Dear Service Provider,
In recent programme readiness training, a high-level overview of new co-payment functionality was presented. We’d like to share with you a further update of the upcoming change, in advance of training scheduled before the new functionality goes live.
It is anticipated from 31 July 2026, new co-payment functionality will be incorporated into the NCS claim process, for any newly created or edited NCS claims, from this date. Please note, NCS claims submitted before 31 July 2026 will not require amendment to obtain co-payment information. However, if a claim is edited after this date e.g. to add or edit claimed hours, services will be prompted to complete co-payment information.
The new functionality aims to enable the system to auto calculate a parental co-payment. When introduced, the new functionality will be mandatory for completion.
Updated Pathway for NCS Claims
At the point of submitting a new claim, services will be presented with a new drop-down box, requesting the selection of one of two options:
– Manual Input
– Fee Table
Selecting the manual input option will direct a service to manually type in values for the purposes of calculating a co-payment.
Selecting the Fee Table option will direct a service to choose a fee from a summarised view of the active fee table and copy existing fee information into the new co-payment fields.
Information a service will be asked to provide include the agreed fee, the hours and minutes that correspond with the agreed fee, and if applicable any ECCE subsidy or weekly deductions. Some further information can be found in section 7.2 of the NCS policy guidelines.
Online Training and Guidance
Online training will be scheduled for services in the near future, with a recording of the first training session to be posted to the Early Years Hive shortly after. In addition, a training session will be scheduled in late August, for services closed for the summer break.
New guidance to support services with the updated process will also be developed and made available, in advance.
A further communication inviting services to scheduled online training dates on the new co-payment functionality will be issued in mid-July.
If you require support in relation to the detail contained in this announcement, please submit a request using the following categories:
- Programme: NCS
- Request Type: Registrations
- Request Type Details: Claim
- Summary: Co-payment claim functionality
We hope you have a pleasant summer.
Regards,
The Early Years Team