The NSW Active and Creative Kids voucher is worth $50, twice a year, for children aged 4.5 to 18 whose parent or carer receives Family Tax Benefit. Basketball is an eligible activity, but only with a registered provider, and uniforms and jerseys are excluded. Both 2026 vouchers were available on 9 October 2026: Voucher 1 must be used by 31 December 2026 and Voucher 2 by 14 July 2027.
Last updated 9 October 2026.
Service NSW runs the Active and Creative Kids voucher for the NSW Government. Each voucher is worth $50 and two are available a year, so the guidelines describe it as two $50 vouchers totalling $100 per child per calendar year. It can go towards sport, recreation, creative and cultural activities, and basketball is on the list.
If you hold two vouchers that have not expired, you can use them together for $100 in one payment. Each voucher can be used only once, it cannot be split between providers, and it cannot be swapped for cash, gift vouchers or credit notes. If you spend less than $50, the remaining value is lost: the guidelines give the example of a $46.50 transaction, where the other $3.50 is forfeited.
This is not a voucher for every child. Service NSW says a child is eligible if they are a NSW resident aged between 4.5 and 18, and are in the care of a parent, guardian or carer who receives Family Tax Benefit Part A, Part B or both, in the current or previous financial year.
Only one person can apply for a child, and you can apply for several children in the same application. Where parents live at separate addresses and the child spends time at each, the guidelines say the parents must appoint one person to apply. Service NSW suggests confirming your Family Tax Benefit eligibility first, through the Express Plus Centrelink app or your Centrelink online account.
To apply you need a MyServiceNSW Account, details from identity documents, your child's Medicare card details and your Centrelink Customer Reference Number. If you cannot apply online, Service NSW says to call 13 77 88.
When we checked on 9 October 2026, Service NSW listed two vouchers as available now. Voucher 1 for 2026 must be applied for and used by 31 December 2026. Voucher 2 for 2026 must be applied for and used by 14 July 2027. A family that has not claimed either can still use both, together or separately, within those dates.
Service NSW's voucher page describes how the vouchers run: one is available from 15 January and must be used by 31 December of that year, and the other is available from 15 July and must be used by 14 July of the following year.
A 2027 voucher was not confirmed when we checked on 9 October 2026. The application page listed only the two 2026 vouchers, and the guidelines say Service NSW can amend them at any time. Check the Service NSW page before counting on a voucher for next season's fees.
Appendix A of the guidelines lists basketball as an eligible physical activity. The activity must be structured, supervised and face to face, and if it is part of a membership fee-based program it must include a structured component. Ask your association which of its fees it accepts the voucher for.
The provider must be registered. Service NSW says vouchers must be used with a registered activity provider. To register, providers must show that everyone delivering the activity holds a current Working With Children Check, and the Office of the Children's Guardian says providers must also complete its Child Safe Sport eLearning and put the NSW Child Safe Standards into practice.
The guidelines exclude items normally bought from a retailer, and Appendix B names jerseys, socks, boots, clothing and uniforms. So the voucher will not buy a rep reversible, a training singlet or shorts. Travel to an activity is excluded too, and so are school activities, including weekend and inter-school ones.
In practice, aim it at a fee: domestic registration or competition fees, a term development program, or part of a rep season fee if your association accepts it there. Bulls, for example, says it accepts vouchers for its 2026 rep fees.
Use the Service NSW activity provider finder, linked from the application page. The guidelines say providers can choose whether to appear in the finder, so a missing listing is not the final answer: Service NSW says to contact the provider directly to ask whether it is participating, and to check it is ready to accept vouchers before you pay.
Several Sydney associations say on their own pages that they accept vouchers, shown in the table below. Many still use the older Active Kids name. The current combined program dates from an initial launch on 1 February 2024, according to the guidelines, so treat older wording as a prompt to confirm rather than as proof. Basketball NSW's own Active Kids page still describes a $50 voucher for each school-enrolled child, which is not how eligibility works now; go by Service NSW.
To pay, show the voucher's QR code in the Service NSW app, give the provider the voucher number, enter the code in an online checkout, or hand over the printed voucher. Some associations have their own process: Camden Valley asks families to email the voucher back to it, and Manly asks families booking its Academy to reply to the booking email with the voucher attached and then refunds the value. If the bill is more than the voucher, the guidelines require providers to accept the voucher plus another payment method.
| Association | What its page says | Page |
|---|---|---|
| Camden Valley | Reduce your fees by $50 with an Active and Creative Kids voucher, emailed back to the association | Term 4 Saturday comp |
| Manly Warringah | Active Kids voucher accepted for 2026 player registration; usable for the MWBA Academy | MWBA Academy |
| Hills | Registrations and game fees described as Active Kids Voucher eligible on its Summer 2026/27 page; its junior rep page says the same of rep fees | Summer 2026/27 |
| Bulls | Payment plans and Active Kids vouchers accepted for 2026 rep fees | Bulls Junior Rep Program |
| Sutherland | Active Kids vouchers can be used for competition and registration fees | Summer Competition |
| Bankstown | Active Kids Voucher accepted for the online Annual Registration | Junior Competition |
| Penrith | Service NSW Active Kids vouchers accepted for Aussie Hoops | Ford Aussie Hoops |
| Wollondilly | Active Kids Vouchers accepted for Summer 2026/27 junior comps | Junior Comps |
The Active and Creative Kids voucher is $50, twice a year, which Service NSW's guidelines describe as $100 per child per calendar year. Two unexpired vouchers can be used together for $100.
NSW residents aged 4.5 to 18 whose parent, guardian or carer receives Family Tax Benefit Part A, Part B or both in the current or previous financial year. Only one person can apply for each child.
No. The guidelines list jerseys, socks, boots, clothing and uniforms as ineligible items, along with items usually bought from a retailer. Use it towards a fee for an eligible activity with a registered provider.
Not confirmed when we checked on 9 October 2026. Service NSW's application page listed only the two 2026 vouchers, and its guidelines say they can be amended at any time. Check the Service NSW page before relying on one.
Search the Service NSW activity provider finder, and if the association is not listed, ask it directly. Service NSW says providers can choose whether to appear in the finder.
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Facts on this page were compiled from the official sources below and written up in our own words. Dates, fees and venues change every season, so confirm anything you are relying on with the association directly.
This page was last updated October 2026. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
