Payment options for Child Care Benefit
You can choose how your Child Care Benefit payments can be made.
Approved care
Child Care Benefit for approved child care can be paid as a fee reduction or as a lump sum.
Fee reduction
If you choose to claim your Child Care Benefit as a fee reduction, it will be paid directly to your Child Care Benefit approved child care service provider. Your Child Care Benefit is based on your estimate of your actual annual family income for the financial year.
The amount will be deducted from the amount of your child care fees by the child care services. You will have to pay any 'gap' in outstanding fees.
You must claim Child Care Benefit as a fee reduction if you want to receive your Child Care Rebate as a fortnightly payment (in many cases weekly), or as a quarterly payment, even if you are assessed at a zero rate of Child Care Benefit.
Choosing this option will allow us to balance your Child Care Benefit and Child Care Rebate entitlements without the need for you to lodge a Child Care Benefit lump sum claim.
Lump sum
You can claim your Child Care Benefit as a lump sum. If you choose to claim a lump sum payment, you will pay full child care fees to your child care service provider during the year, and after the end of the financial year, you can lodge a claim for the Child Care Benefit as a lump sum.
You have two years to lodge your claim for the financial year for which you are claiming. Any Child Care Rebate will also be paid as a lump sum at that time.
Child Care Benefit for registered child care is paid directly to you as a lump sum when you lodge a claim and provide your child care receipts.
Child Care Benefit and Child Care Rebate cannot be claimed through the tax system.
That the two years is measured in financial years, not calendar years.
Registered care
Payments for registered care is made in a lump sum. You need to provide all original receipts for the periods you are claiming for, and you must lodge your claim within a year of the care being provided and paid for.
Your receipts must have the following information:
- registered carers name, address and Carer Reference Number
- your full name
- hours of care provided and fee
- registered carers signature and the date