Family Tax Benefit Non-Parent Carer

You Do Not Need Court Orders to Claim FTB

Family Tax Benefit is the main Centrelink payment for non-parent carers, and you can claim it whether you have a Children's Court order, a Family Court parenting order, or no legal orders at all. The eligibility test is actual care — not legal custody.

If you are a grandparent, aunt, uncle or other relative providing at least 35% of a child's day-to-day care, you meet the threshold for FTB Parts A and B.

Part A vs Part B

FTB Part A is paid per child and is income-tested against both the carer's and (if applicable) their partner's income. The rate varies by the child's age and your household income. It covers the core costs of raising a child — food, clothing, school supplies.

FTB Part B is a per-family payment designed for single-income households. Single grandparent carers receive the higher rate. If you have a partner, Part B is income-tested against the lower earner's income only, with a threshold before it starts reducing.

Both parts are non-taxable. You do not pay income tax on FTB.

The 35% Care Threshold

Centrelink measures "actual care" in nights per fortnight. Thirty-five percent works out to roughly five nights out of every fourteen. If the child lives with you full-time, you obviously meet this. If the child splits time between you and another carer, Centrelink uses care percentage calculations to determine who gets FTB and how much.

For grandparents who have taken on a child completely — the child sleeps at your house every night, goes to school from your address, sees the doctor with you — you are well above the 35% minimum. The complication arises when the biological parent is still receiving FTB for the same child.

Competing Claims: When the Parent Is Still Getting FTB

Centrelink cannot pay FTB to two people for the same child beyond their respective care percentages. If the parent was already receiving FTB before the child moved to your house, that payment continues until Centrelink is told otherwise.

You do not need the parent's permission to lodge your own claim. Call 1800 245 965 (the Grandparent, Foster and Kinship Carer Adviser line) and explain the situation. The adviser can register your non-parent carer status. If the parent disputes your claim, Centrelink evaluates the evidence — school records, medical records, statutory declarations — and makes a care determination.

This process can take weeks if the parent contests it. In the meantime, lodge your claim immediately, because FTB cannot be backdated before your initial contact date with Centrelink. The call itself establishes your claim start date.

The Co-Residence Problem

If the biological parent lives in the same household as you and the child, Centrelink generally considers the parent to retain primary care capacity. A non-parent carer may be excluded from FTB in this situation unless exceptional circumstances, such as severe disability or incapacity, are established.

You may need medical or social work evidence to establish those circumstances.

If the parent no longer lives in the same residence, document the date and keep evidence. A change in living arrangements can change the Centrelink assessment.

What You Need to Prove Care

Without court orders, Centrelink accepts:

• A statutory declaration under the Oaths Act 1900 (NSW) detailing when the child moved in, the reason, and that you provide full-time care
• School enrolment confirmation with your address and name as primary contact
• GP or immunisation records listing your address
• Letters from community members, neighbours or family confirming the care arrangement

Have these ready before you call the adviser line. Claims submitted without supporting evidence go into a holding pattern while Centrelink requests documentation, which can delay your first payment by weeks.

Annual Income Confirmation

FTB is reconciled against your actual income at the end of each financial year. If your estimated income was too low, you may receive an overpayment debt. If it was too high, you get a top-up. Lodge your tax return (or a non-lodgement advice if you do not need to lodge) promptly to avoid reconciliation delays.

The NSW Kinship Carer Support guide includes a phone preparation worksheet for the 1800 245 965 call and a proof-of-care checklist — so you go into the FTB claim process with every document Centrelink will ask for already assembled.

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