Free Kinder Victoria: Who Is Eligible and How to Access It

Who Is Eligible for Free Kinder?

Free Kinder is available to all children enrolled in a funded kindergarten program at a participating Victorian service. The Victorian Government has deliberately made eligibility as broad as possible.

You do NOT need any of the following to be eligible: a Commonwealth Health Care Card or Pension Card, Australian citizenship or permanent residency, proof of Victorian address, or eligibility for the federal Child Care Subsidy (CCS).

This means newly arrived families, families on temporary visas, and families with no concession entitlements can all access Free Kinder. The only real requirement is that your child is enrolled in a funded 3-year-old or 4-year-old kindergarten program (including Pre-Prep) at a service that has opted in to Free Kinder.

Your child must be the correct age to enrol in the relevant funded program. For Three-Year-Old Kindergarten, your child must turn 3 on or before 30 April of the kinder year. For Four-Year-Old Kindergarten or Pre-Prep, your child must turn 4 on or before 30 April of the kinder year. A child can access Free Kinder twice over their early childhood years: once in their 3-year-old kinder year, and once in their 4-year-old kinder year (or Pre-Prep year).

Free Kinder applies to one service at a time. If your child attends more than one kinder, you nominate which service receives the Free Kinder funding by signing an enrolment declaration form provided by the service.

How Many Free Hours Does Your Child Get?

The number of funded hours depends on which program your child is enrolled in. According to the Victorian Government's 2025 funding requirements, participating services must offer the following at no charge: Three-Year-Old Kindergarten receives 5 to 15 free hours per week (200 to 600 hours per year). Four-Year-Old Kindergarten receives 15 free hours per week (600 hours per year). Pre-Prep receives 16 to 30 free hours per week (640 to 1,200 hours per year).

Services cannot pressure families to purchase additional hours beyond the funded amount. Any donations to the kinder are entirely voluntary. Enrolment deposits are refundable once a place is accepted. Waitlist fees must also be refunded once a place is accepted.

If your child's service offers more hours than the funded minimum, you can choose to enrol for additional hours. Those extra hours are not covered by Free Kinder, but families eligible for the federal Child Care Subsidy (CCS) can claim CCS on them.

How Free Kinder Works at Sessional Kinder vs Long Day Care

Free Kinder operates slightly differently depending on the type of service your child attends.

At participating sessional kinder services, there are no compulsory out-of-pocket costs for the funded program. The Victorian Government pays the service directly, so families don't pay fees upfront and don't need to claim anything back. Savings in 2025 are worth up to $2,627 per child. The only charges a sessional kinder may pass on are one-off excursion or incursion fees, and waitlist or registration fees (which must be refunded once a place is accepted).

At long day care centres, Free Kinder works as a fee offset rather than a fully free program. The centre receives the Victorian Government funding on your behalf and applies it as a direct reduction to your out-of-pocket fees, after the federal Child Care Subsidy (CCS) has already been applied.

In 2025, the offset is worth up to $2,101 per child at long day care services. For 4-year-old children: $2,101 (for a 15-hour program). For 3-year-old children: $700.33 to $2,101 (depending on enrolled hours). For children enrolled in Pre-Prep at long day care, the offset is higher — between $2,241 (for 16 hours per week) and $4,202 (for 30 hours per week) in 2025, reflecting the expanded program hours.

You should see the offset clearly labelled as "Victorian Government Free Kinder offset" on your regular invoice, applied weekly or fortnightly across the year.

Not all long day care centres participate in Free Kinder. If your preferred centre doesn't offer it, ask whether the Kindergarten Fee Subsidy (KFS) applies instead.

What About the Kindergarten Fee Subsidy (KFS)?

Some kinder services choose not to opt in to Free Kinder. In those cases, the Kindergarten Fee Subsidy (KFS) may be available instead, but with a much narrower eligibility criteria.

Unlike Free Kinder, the KFS is means-tested and targeted at vulnerable and disadvantaged families. Your child is eligible for the KFS if they, or a parent or guardian, hold one of the following: a Commonwealth Health Care Card, a Commonwealth Pensioner Concession Card, a Department of Veterans' Affairs Gold Card or White Card, a refugee or asylum seeker visa (subclasses 200-204, 785, or 866), or bridging visas linked to the above refugee or asylum seeker visas.

Children are also eligible if they identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander, have had contact with Child Protection, are from a refugee or asylum seeker background, or are identified on their birth certificate as a multiple birth (triplets or more).

The KFS allows eligible children to attend up to 15 hours of funded kinder per week at no cost or low cost. Your service applies for the KFS on your behalf.

The practical takeaway: if your preferred kinder participates in Free Kinder, the KFS is irrelevant for your family. Free Kinder is the better deal for almost everyone because it requires no eligibility criteria at all.

How to Access Free Kinder: What You Actually Need to Do

Accessing Free Kinder is simpler than most parents expect. There's no government form to lodge and no separate application process.

Step 1: Enrol your child at a participating kinder or long day care service. Step 2: Sign the enrolment declaration form that your service provides, nominating it as the service where your child will receive their funded kinder place. Step 3: That's it. The service handles the rest with the Victorian Government directly.

The Free Kinder offset will appear on your invoices automatically, labelled as "Victorian Government Free Kinder offset."

Not every kinder service participates. Services that opt out cannot offer Free Kinder, but they may be able to offer the KFS for eligible families. If your preferred service doesn't participate, you have two options: ask whether the KFS applies to your family, or choose a different service that does participate in Free Kinder.

The Victorian Government actively monitors compliance to ensure services pass the full benefit on to families, so if something doesn't look right on your invoice, contact your service directly or reach out to the Department of Education.

Finding a Free Kinder Service in Melbourne

The majority of Victorian kinder services participate in Free Kinder, but it's always worth confirming with a service before you enrol. When comparing kinder centres in your suburb, ask: Do you participate in Free Kinder? How many funded hours per week does your program offer? How is the Free Kinder offset applied to invoices? Are there any additional fees beyond the funded hours?

For Melbourne families comparing childcare and kinder options across suburbs, Top 3 ELC ranks and reviews the top early learning centres by suburb, including verified fee information and program details, so you can see at a glance which centres offer quality kinder programs in your area. Browse your suburb at top3elc.com.au/victoria.

Free Kinder is genuinely for everyone. If your child is turning 3 or 4 this year and you're enrolled at a participating Victorian service, the saving is automatic. No income test, no citizenship requirement, no application. Just enrol, sign the declaration form, and the funding flows directly to your service.

Frequently Asked Questions