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The $6 million ‘Kids for the Reef’ school excursion rebate program offers eligible schools and registered home educators an Australian Government subsidy for each student they take on an educational trip to the Great Barrier Reef (GBR).
Austrade approves final rebate amounts, but you can calculate your expected rebate using the steps below.
Remind yourself of your school’s ICSEA score and how the Australian Bureau of Statistics classifies its location (Remoteness classification).
Use the map data below.
Source: Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA), School Profile 2025, acara.edu.au, accessed April 2026.
Trouble loading the map? You can also check the necessary details for your school at ACARA’s My School website. (Search for your school and then click ‘View School Profile’.)
Check the one-way distance by road from your school/home educational site to the location/address where your chosen Reef activity departs.
Enter your school’s name in the search field and click on Google Maps’ ‘Directions’ function. Choose the shortest distance.
Check the rebate table below for the distance-based rebate per student (Column 3).
Add the figure in Column 4 if your school’s ICSEA score is 1,000 or less.
If your school is in an outer regional, remote or very remote location, choose the appropriate loading in Column 5, 6 or 7. Add this loading to the figure.
Zone | Distance* to departure point for Reef activity | Rebate per student** | ≤1,000 ICSEA: 50% loading | Outer regional: 150% loading | Remote: 200% loading | Very remote: 250% loading |
1 | 0–149 km | $20 | + $10 | + $30 | or $40 | or $50 |
2 | 150–299 km | $50 | + $25 | + $75 | or $100 | or $125 |
3 | 300–599 km | $100 | + $50 | + $150 | or $200 | or $250 |
4 | 600–999 km | $150 | + $75 | + $225 | or $300 | or $375 |
5 | 1,000–1,999 km | $200 | + $100 | + $300 | or $400 | or $500 |
6 | 2,000–2,999 km | $300 | + $150 | + $450 | or $600 | or $750 |
7 | ≥ 3,000 km | $400 | + $200 | + $600 | or $800 | or $1,000 |
* For this program, distances are one-way, calculated by road. This is regardless of how you actually travel to the Reef.
** First Nations students will receive an extra $50 rebate. This funding must be allocated directly to those students.
High school X is planning a school excursion to the Great Barrier Reef with an approved Reef experience on the Capricorn Coast. Checking on Google Maps for the one-way distance by road to the departure point for its chosen Reef activity, it is offered 3 alternative routes. Via the shortest route, it is 494 km away (Zone 3).
High school X has an ICSEA score of 1,001 and is in an outer regional location.
For this educational trip, High school X will be eligible for a $250 rebate per student. This comprises:
High school Y is planning an educational trip to the Reef, with an educational experience/activity departing from Cairns. Checking its one-way distance by road from Cairns on Google Maps, it confirms it is more than 3,000 km away (Zone 7).
High school Y has an ICSEA score of 952 and is in a very remote location.
For this educational trip, High school Y will be eligible for a $1,600 rebate per student. This comprises:
High School Y will also take some First Nations students on this trip to the Reef. For each of these students, it will be eligible for a $1,650 rebate.
Email: tourism.grants@austrade.gov.au
Phone: 13 28 78