SwimStart Voucher Eligibility

Learning to swim is a skillset we want to teach our children as early as we can, especially in a country like Australia where our lifestyle is so centred around being in and around water. If you are looking to put your child into lessons, it might be handy to first check if you are eligible for a SwimStart voucher. Created to assist in the financial cost of lessons for many families, the new program has now officially started in Queensland.

What is a SwimStart Voucher?

The Queensland Government recently launched SwimStart, a program created to assist families of young children with the cost of early age swimming lessons. With the intention of therefore making the lessons accessible to more families, the program allows eligible families the ability to apply for vouchers up to $150 in value that can be used at any registered provider.

Who is eligible for a SwimStart Voucher?

In order to be eligible for a SwimStart voucher, there are a few criteria that you and your family need to meet. In order to be eligible you must;

Be a Queensland resident.
Have a child aged between 0-4 years old.
Have not received a voucher already this financial year.
Hold a Health Care Card or Pensioners Card.
Have a current Medicare Card with your child’s name on it.

If you meet all of the above criteria, then you are eligible to apply for a SwimStart voucher.

What do you have to do to register for SwimStart?

Before applying for a SwimStart voucher, parents and carers first need to register for an Enquire account. You will only need to do this once, and if you already have an Enquire account from applying for FairPlay vouchers, you can use that one. Once you have the account, you can go in and apply for your voucher.

SwimStart Rounds – Key Dates

SwimStart vouchers are issued during specific time periods, or ’rounds’. When a round is open, parents, carers or guardians can apply, with a limit of 1 voucher per child per financial year. Round 1 has now officially opened and the below dates are ones to keep in mind when thinking about applying.

7th November 2023 – SwimStart Round 1 opens for voucher applications

1st May 2024 – Round 1 Closes for voucher applications

29th May 2024 – Last day for round 1 vouchers to be presented to an activity provider.

How to use your SwimSmart voucher

When it comes to finally using your SwimStart voucher, you will need to go through the following steps to use them.

Step 1 – Check that your activity is available

The first thing you will want to do when getting your SwimStart voucher is find a swim school nearby that you will want to use it at. As you can only use your voucher at a registered provider it is important to make sure first that they are one.

Find out who the registered providers are here.

If your desired venue is not registered, before you try to find another one it doesn’t hurt to call them and ask if they plan to register.

Step 2 – Be aware of the cost

When you speak to your activity provider, make sure you are aware of what the total cost will be. Your voucher can only be used for membership, registration or participation fees. If the fees are more than $150, you will need to pay the difference.

Step 3 – Print and take your voucher to your provider

Head online to your Enquire account and under the ‘vouchers’ tab click on and print your SwimStart voucher to take in to your provider. You can also choose to email it directly to your provider.

Be sure to use your voucher before its expiry date.