School Age Calculator: When Kids Start School in Australia

Each state and territory sets school age by a cut-off for turning 5: children can start if 5 by 31 July (NSW), 30 April (ACT; Victoria for 2027) or 30 June (Queensland, NT). WA and Tasmania set a compulsory start (5 by 30 June; 5 by 1 January). SA government schools have two major intakes.

By the Babbez team for Australian families · Checked October 2026

The short version

• Kindergarten is the first year of primary school in NSW and the ACT; in Queensland, WA, Tasmania and the NT, kindy or kindergarten is the year before Prep, Pre-primary or Transition.
• Official online calculators: ACT, WA and Queensland (kindy and Prep).

England: see our reception age guide. Before school: preschool learning.

How do you use the 2027 school age table?

We built the Start-Year Map from each department’s rule: find your state or territory, then check whether your child’s birthday falls inside its window. Each row is our date arithmetic on the department’s published rule, not a ruling on any child: check with your school or the department.

The 2027 Start-Year Map

State or territory	Born between	In 2027
New South Wales	1 August 2021 to 31 July 2022	Can start Kindergarten
Victoria	1 May 2021 to 30 April 2022	Can start Foundation (Prep)
Queensland	1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022	Eligible for Prep
Western Australia	1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022	Pre-primary, the first compulsory year
SA (government schools), term 1	1 November 2021 to 30 April 2022	Can start reception (intake 1)
SA (government schools), term 3	1 May 2022 to 31 October 2022	Can start reception mid-year (intake 2)
Tasmania	2 January 2021 to 1 January 2022	Must be enrolled (Prep), under the 1 January rule; an exemption can be applied for
ACT	1 May 2021 to 30 April 2022	Can start Kindergarten
Northern Territory	1 July 2021 to 30 June 2022	Can begin Transition (optional)

Source: Babbez Start-Year Map, October 2026. Most rules give the earliest year a child can start; WA’s Pre-primary and Tasmania’s 1 January rule are compulsory. Victoria, Queensland and WA word their cut-off as ‘by’, which we read as including that day: born on a cut-off day? Check with the school.

We checked all 730 birth dates from 1 January 2021 to 31 December 2022 against a day-by-day application of each rule. For a later school year, each window moves forward one year while the rule stays the same; check the department’s page, as Victoria’s states only its 2027 cut-off.

The Birthday Test: one child, eight answers

In the Birthday Test, one birthday runs through every rule. Take a child born 15 May 2022, who turns 5 on 15 May 2027. Under each department’s rule, the answers differ:

• New South Wales: inside the 1 August 2021 to 31 July 2022 window, so the child can start Kindergarten in 2027.
• Queensland: eligible for Prep from the start of 2027.
• Western Australia: Pre-primary, the first year of compulsory schooling, in 2027.
• Northern Territory: can begin Transition (optional) in 2027.
• South Australia: in government schools, the child can start reception in term 3 of 2027, the mid-year intake.
• Victoria and the ACT: a child can start there in 2027 only if born by 30 April 2022, so under each rule this child can start in 2028 at the earliest.
• Tasmania: not yet 5 on 1 January 2027, so under the department’s rule school (Prep) enrolment is required from 2028.

So cousins who share a birthday but live in different states can start school 1 year apart, and among the start-of-year cut-offs (SA’s mid-year intake aside), the earliest and latest, 1 January and 31 July, sit nearly 7 months apart.

What is the first year of school called in each state and territory?

Our Name Decoder: each first year of primary school (in WA and Tasmania, the first compulsory year) and its rule, in our words.

• New South Wales: Kindergarten. According to the NSW Department of Education, Kindergarten is the first year of primary school in NSW public schools, and children can start it at the beginning of the school year if they turn 5 on or before 31 July that year. School is compulsory by the 6th birthday.
• Victoria: Foundation (Prep). Foundation, also called Prep, is the first year of primary school. To start in 2027, a child needs to turn 5 by 30 April 2027. School is compulsory once a child has turned 6.
• Queensland: Prep. Prep eligibility starts with the school year in which a child turns 5 by 30 June (Queensland department). Prep is the first year of school and is compulsory before Year 1; enrolment is required at compulsory schooling age, at least 6 years and 6 months.
• Western Australia: Pre-primary, the first compulsory year. WA Department of Education: compulsory schooling starts in Pre-primary, for children who turn 5 by 30 June.
• South Australia: reception. Reception is the first year of primary school. Government primary schools have two major intakes: a child who turns 5 before 1 May can start reception in term 1; between 1 May and 31 October, in term 3; after 31 October, the following year. Enrolment is required by the age of 6.
• Tasmania: Prep, the first compulsory year. Per the DECYP enrolment page, a child who is at least 5 on 1 January must be enrolled at a school; children 5 to 17 years of age must attend school or an approved home education program.
• ACT: Kindergarten. Kindergarten is the first year of primary school, and a child must be 5 on or before 30 April of the year they start (ACT Government). School is compulsory from 6 years of age.
• Northern Territory: Transition. Children who turn 5 on or before 30 June can begin Transition at the start of the school year (NT education department). Compulsory school age is reached on turning 6 on or before 30 June of the school year.

Is kindy the year before school or the first year?

It depends on the state or territory. In NSW, kindergarten isn’t the year before school: Kindergarten is the first year of primary school in NSW and the ACT; in Queensland, WA, Tasmania and the NT the word means the year before Prep, Pre-primary or Transition, and in the ACT the year before Kindergarten is preschool.

The year-before rules we found on the departments’ pages:

• Queensland, kindy: at least 4 by 30 June in the year of enrolment, for a Queensland Government-subsidised kindergarten program (kindy-age requirements).
• Western Australia, Kindergarten: a child who will be 4 by 30 June can go, as pre-compulsory schooling, at a school, a community kindergarten or some childcare services, once WA immunisation requirements are met.
• Tasmania, Kindergarten: children are encouraged to attend from 4 years of age.
• ACT, preschool: a child must be 4 on or before 30 April of the year they start preschool.
• Northern Territory, preschool: children who turn 4 on or before 30 June can begin preschool at the start of the school year. Preschool and Transition are not compulsory (NT Government).

When does school start in 2027 in each state and territory?

The start of Term 1 isn’t the first school day everywhere: NSW begins with school development days, when students do not attend. Dates are from each government page (some cover only government, state or public schools); at a non-government school, ask the school.

First day of Term 1, 2027

State or territory	Term 1 starts	What the page adds
NSW	Thursday 28 January (Eastern), Thursday 4 February (Western)	School development days first: students do not attend to Tuesday 2 February (Eastern) or Tuesday 9 February (Western)
Victoria	Wednesday 27 January	Students start Thursday 28 January in government schools
Queensland	Wednesday 27 January	Term 1 runs to Thursday 25 March, 9 weeks
WA	Monday 1 February	Students in public schools; check your school’s schedule for planned development days
SA	27 January (a Wednesday)	State schools; the same page lists summer holidays to Wednesday 27 January, so ask your school
Tasmania	4 February (a Thursday)	School and college students
ACT	Monday 1 February for new students, including all Kindergarten students	Public schools; continuing students start Tuesday 2 February
NT	Wednesday 27 January (students)	Most government schools; Gunbalanya School sets its own dates; non-government schools: ask the school

In NSW, the first weekday after those development days is Wednesday 3 February (Eastern) or Wednesday 10 February (Western): our calendar arithmetic, so ask the school about Kindergarten’s first day.

Enrolling for 2027 now? Victorian government primary schools process applications made after 31 July 2026 as they arrive; SA government schools generally make intake 1 offers in term 3 of the year before.

For the first weeks, see making the first days easier and our preschooler clothes guide.

Can a child start school earlier or later?

We don’t advise on readiness; these are the departments’ published routes.

• Queensland, early entry: only if the child turns 5 by 31 July in the year they would attend Prep and the school principal is satisfied the child is ready, or the child has started an equivalent Prep-year program in another state or country and the principal is satisfied the child is ready (early and delayed entry to Prep).
• Queensland, delayed entry: parents may delay Prep (and so Year 1) by one year if they feel the child is not ready; no formal approval is needed.
• Tasmania: entry to Kindergarten or Prep up to six months early if a child meets ‘gifted’ requirements. A parent who feels a child is not ready can talk to the local school principal and can apply for an exemption.

Frequently asked questions