The federal government has given $840 million to reassure parents their four-year-olds will be guaranteed time at preschool.
Prime Minister Tony Abbott says next week's budget will fund two more years of the universal access program that guarantees all four-year-olds up to 15 hours a week at preschool.
"It's very important that as many young Australians as possible that don't just go to childcare but they have preschool as well, and that's what this money is guaranteeing," Mr Abbott said in Sydney.
Education Minister Christopher Pyne said the funding would be indexed for the first time.
"There's absolutely no excuse whatsoever for the states and territories to not provide a full 15 hours minimum of preschool for four-year-olds in Australia," he said.
The states and territories will get $415 million in 2016 and $425 million in 2017.
This is on top of a one-year $406 million extension already given to keep kids at preschool in 2015, after the initial national partnership expired.
The universal access partnership was set up by the Labor government in 2009 and led to four times as many children spending at least 15 hours at preschool.
States and territories have been calling for the program to be continued, with education ministers saying in March a commitment to ongoing funding was urgent.
Opposition Leader Bill Shorten said it was good to see the program extended but criticised the time taken to make a decision.
"A week before the budget, it would appear the best Joe Hockey and Tony Abbott can do is promise not to cut some of the good ideas for families," he told reporters in Melbourne.
Mr Abbott said the latest extension was only for two years because responsibility for preschool was under review as part of the federation white paper.
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