What pay remains after tax?
Your employment income is estimated for each work pattern, then resident income tax and a simplified Medicare levy are deducted.
Return-to-work Maths · Updated for 2026–27
What does childcare and returning to work really leave your family?
An extra workday is worth the after-tax pay left after the added childcare gap. Enter both incomes, your work pattern and each child's care details. ParentMath compares adjacent workdays, recalculates the 2026–27 CCS rate and shows whether the family's annual cash position rises or falls.
Last updated 11 August 2026 · settings checked against published Australian Government rates
2026–27 CCS rates
Australian resident tax rates
Private by default
1
Annual gross
What income and work pattern are you comparing?
Use your expected employment income for the full financial year. Your names stay on this device.
3 days
012345
Estimated annual employment income: $0
Estimated family ATI for CCS: $0.
Advanced income settings
Included in family income for CCS, but excluded from employment take-home pay.
2
What care changes with your workdays?
Add up to four children. Fees are entered per booked day.
3
Per child
How many subsidised hours can apply?
100 hours may apply where both parents exceed 48 hours of recognised participation per fortnight, for Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander children, approved exemptions or specified ACCS circumstances.
Show typical 5% CCS withholding
Withholding changes cash paid during the year, not your final estimated entitlement.
Return-to-work comparison
Is another workday worth it?
Adjust your workdays to compare scenarios.
Annual family difference$0
Retained per added workday$0
Break-even gross pay for the added day each week$0
This compares household employment income after estimated resident tax, Medicare levy and childcare. It excludes Family Tax Benefit, HELP repayments, tax offsets, deductions and super.
Plain English
How does the calculator compare workdays?
How much CCS may apply?
Your family ATI, CCS percentage, hourly cap and subsidised hours are recalculated for each work pattern.
What is the family difference?
The calculator compares household employment income after estimated tax and the childcare gap.
A quick worked example
How much do you keep from one extra workday?
Sometimes you keep nothing. In this illustrative example, one parent earns $120,000 and the other has a $60,000 full-time salary. Moving from 3 to 4 days adds $9,510 a year after estimated tax, but the childcare gap rises by $10,033.92.
With one child in 12-hour sessions at $180 a day and 72 subsidised hours, family ATI rises from $156,000 to $168,000 and the standard CCS rate falls from 76.5% to 74.1%. The family's position goes backwards by $523.92 a year, or $10.08 a week, before other work costs. The figures were verified against the ParentMath calculation engine on 11 August 2026.
Return-to-work questions
What sits behind the comparison?
Short answers about the tax, childcare and CCS settings used in this estimate.
What does the return-to-work result include?
The result combines both parents' estimated employment income after Australian resident income tax and a flat 2% Medicare levy, then subtracts childcare fees after estimated CCS.
ATO: legislated 2026–27 resident tax ratesWhat costs and payments are left out?
The estimate excludes HELP repayments, Family Tax Benefit, tax offsets, deductions, superannuation, salary packaging, Medicare levy reductions or exemptions, the Medicare Levy Surcharge and general living costs.
ATO: Medicare levy guidanceHow can another workday change the childcare result?
Another workday can increase employment income and the number of booked care days. The extra family income may also change the CCS percentage, so the calculator updates tax, CCS and childcare together.
Services Australia: how income affects CCSWhich income tax settings does ParentMath use?
ParentMath uses the legislated 2026–27 Australian resident income tax brackets and adds a simplified 2% Medicare levy. Your individual tax circumstances can produce a different result.
ATO: legislated tax rate changesCan I treat the result as an exact entitlement or financial recommendation?
No. The result is an educational estimate for comparing scenarios. Services Australia determines CCS entitlements and the ATO applies tax rules to individual circumstances.
Services Australia: Child Care SubsidyCan an extra day at work leave my family worse off?
Yes. In one illustrative scenario, moving from 3 to 4 workdays adds $9,510 a year after estimated tax but increases the childcare gap by $10,033.92. The family's position falls by $523.92 a year, or $10.08 a week, before travel and other work costs.
What happens to childcare subsidy if I earn more?
Higher family ATI can reduce the standard CCS rate. In 2026–27, the rate falls by 1 percentage point for each $5,000 above $88,520. In the worked example, another workday raises family ATI from $156,000 to $168,000 and lowers the estimated rate from 76.5% to 74.1%.
Services Australia: income and CCS percentageHow much do I actually keep from an extra day at work?
Compare the change in household income after estimated tax with the change in childcare gap. The result may be positive or negative. ParentMath also recalculates family ATI, the CCS percentage and subsidised hours for the new work pattern.
Is it cheaper for one parent to stay home?
Staying home can produce a higher short-term cash result when lost after-tax income is less than childcare and work costs, but this calculator does not price superannuation, career progression or leave.
Official sources checked 11 August 2026. Government settings can change.