Kinship Care Financial Assistance in the ACT: Every Payment and Grant in One Place
Two Funding Streams, One Child
Financial support for kinship carers in the ACT comes from two separate sources: the ACT Territory Government and the Commonwealth Government (through Centrelink). Which payments you can access depends almost entirely on one question: is the child in your care through a CSD statutory placement, or are you caring for them informally?
ACT Territory Payments (Statutory Carers Only)
If the Community Services Directorate placed the child with you under a care and protection order, you receive:
Foster and Kinship Care Subsidy — a fortnightly payment covering basic living costs (food, housing contribution, clothing, personal items, leisure). Rates are age-banded, increasing as the child grows. This payment is tax-exempt and not counted as income by Centrelink or the ATO.
Discretionary expense reimbursements — CSD can cover approved costs for essential school uniforms, book packs, excursion fees, out-of-pocket medical expenses, establishment costs (bedding, furniture, safety equipment when the child first arrives), and transport for birth family contact visits and therapeutic appointments. All require prior written authorisation from your caseworker.
Informal carers — those without a CSD placement order — are excluded from both of these payments. There is no ACT Government informal carer allowance.
Commonwealth Payments (All Kinship Carers)
Regardless of your arrangement type, you can claim through Centrelink:
| Payment | Who qualifies | Means-tested? |
|---|---|---|
| Family Tax Benefit Parts A & B | Non-parent carers with at least 35% actual care; same-home restrictions apply when the birth parent lives with the carer, subject to exceptions | Income-tested |
| Foster Child Health Care Card | Non-parent carers (not biological or adopted child) | No |
| Double Orphan Pension ($81.60/fortnight, Jan 2026) | Carers where both parents are deceased, or one is deceased and the surviving parent is incarcerated 10+ years, admitted to a psychiatric institution indefinitely, or missing after reasonable search efforts | No |
| Carer Allowance ($162.60/fortnight, Jan 2026) | Carers of a child with severe disability or medical condition | No |
| ACCS Grandparent | Grandparents on income support with primary care | No (income support required) |
| ACCS Child Wellbeing | Children identified as vulnerable or at risk | No (provider-initiated) |
The Grandparent, Foster and Kinship Carer Adviser Line (1800 245 965) can help you work out which combination applies to your situation.
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ACT Education Grants
The ACT Government's Future of Education Equity Fund provides annual grants to low-income families and informal carers holding an eligible Centrelink concession card:
- Preschool: $400 per student
- Primary School: $500 per student
- High School and College: $750 per student
Applications open on 1 December each year for the following school year and close in late November. The grants cover school uniforms, footwear, book packs, digital devices, subject fees and extracurricular costs.
Individual school principals also have discretionary authority to waive voluntary contributions, lend learning devices or provide emergency uniform assistance for disadvantaged students — worth asking about directly.
Utility Rebates
If you hold a Centrelink Pensioner Concession Card or Health Care Card, the ACT Government's Electricity, Gas and Water Rebate provides up to $800 per year in direct credits on your utility accounts. This is not specific to kinship carers, but many grandparent carers on the Age Pension or Disability Support Pension qualify automatically.
Emergency Material Relief
If you are in acute financial hardship and cannot wait for Centrelink processing, ACT community organisations provide emergency help:
- St Vincent de Paul Society (Canberra/Goulburn) — food vouchers and material goods
- Anglicare ACT — emergency assistance and family support
- UnitingCare — utility relief and practical support
The ACT Revenue Office can also process emergency rates deferrals during acute hardship.
Tax Treatment
Understanding which payments are taxable helps at tax time:
- ACT Foster and Kinship Care Subsidy: tax-exempt
- Family Tax Benefit, Double Orphan Pension, Carer Allowance: non-taxable
- Age Pension, Disability Support Pension, Carer Payment, JobSeeker: taxable income support payments
The care subsidy is also excluded from child support calculations, so it does not affect any maintenance obligations.
Putting It Into Action
Knowing what payments exist is the first step. Actually claiming them — proving care without a court order, lodging forms on time, tracking what has been approved and what is pending — is where most kinship carers in the ACT get stuck. The ACT Kinship Carer Support Guide walks through every claim process with worksheets for tracking expenses, evidence and agency interactions.
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