In Home Care qualification exemptions

In Home Care (IHC) educators working in remote and very remote areas may be exempt from the minimum qualification requirements.

On this page:

On 1 January 2026 the process for accessing an exemption changed. Providers must now apply for an exemption. We may grant or refuse the application.

About this exemption

IHC educators are generally required to hold, or be working towards, at least a Certificate III in early childhood education and care (ECEC).

Providers may apply for an exemption to engage IHC educators who do not meet these requirements to work in remote and very remote areas.

Educators must meet exemption criteria and cannot be a family member. There are no exemptions for first aid or other required qualifications.

The exemption should be granted before engaging an unqualified educator.

This exemption recognises the difficulty in attracting and retaining IHC educators in remote locations.

Who can get an exemption

Providers may apply for an exemption on behalf of an educator who:

  • provides IHC in a remote or very remote area
  • has access to support and guidance from a qualified educator at least 20% of the time care is provided.

Remote and very remote areas

The educator must work in a remote or very remote area according to the Accessibility and Remoteness Index of Australia (ARIA+) measure on the Australian Bureau of Statistics website.

Access to support and guidance from a qualified educator

The qualified educator must:

  • hold at least a Certificate III in ECEC
  • support the exempt educator to develop and provide an education program that:
    • acknowledges and strengthens the cultural identity of all children to whom care is provided
    • provides tailored, individual learning goals that are based on each child’s knowledge, ideas, culture, abilities and interests
    • is based on, and delivered in accordance with, an approved learning framework
  • interact with the exempt educator and children for at least 20% of the time care is provided to the family.
  • Interactions may take place in person or online. If a family receives IHC for 5 days per week, this interaction should occur for one day per week on average. Interaction must occur at least monthly.

How to apply

Follow these steps to apply:

Check your eligibility

Review the exemption criteria to ensure you qualify.

Prepare your application

You will need the following information:

  • provider and service Customer Reference Numbers (CRNs)
  • educator details
  • evidence the service is in a remote or very remote area
  • a plan showing how the educator will receive at least 20% support and guidance from a qualified educator, including how and how often this will occur.

Complete the application form

Complete the IHC Educator Qualification Exemption Application and send it to inhomecare@education.gov.au.

A person with management or control (PMC) must complete the form and declare you have:

  • advised the educator about the matters included in the form’s Privacy Statement
  • obtained the educator’s consent to apply on their behalf
  • undertaken a risk assessment for engaging the unqualified educator and identified mitigation strategies.

Decision and review rights

We will assess the application and grant or refuse the exemption. If you disagree with the decision, you can ask for a review by contacting inhomecare@education.gov.au.

After you get an exemption

Providers who are granted an exemption have certain responsibilities. These include:

Supporting exempt educators

Ensure exempt educators complete:

  • the IHC service’s full induction program, including risk and hazard identification and management, educational programming and anything else relevant to the family’s circumstances
  • ACECQA’s IHC quality and safety eLearning modules within 4 weeks of commencing with a family.

Contact IHCqualityandsafety@acecqa.gov.au to register for the eLearning modules.

Where possible, you should support educators to complete minimum qualifications.

Record keeping

Keep records of:

  • how and when the educator is supported by a qualified educator
  • how the exemption criterion is met
  • relevant training completed
  • risk assessment undertaken
  • exemption decision.

We may request these records at any time.

Reporting obligations

Tell us within 7 days if an exempt educator:

  • ceases to be employed by the IHC service, or
  • stops providing IHC to a family in a remote or very remote area.

Contact inhomecare@education.gov.au to notify in this situation.

More information

If you need more information, contact inhomecare@education.gov.au.