Start-Up Allowance, Activities Boost and Remote Loading for Queensland Kinship Carers

Beyond the fortnightly caring allowance, Queensland pays several supplementary allowances to approved foster and kinship carers. These are easy to miss because they are triggered by specific events or circumstances — a new placement, an activities window, or living in a remote area. Here is what each one covers and how it works.

Establishment Payment

When a child first enters care under a Child Protection Order, or returns to care after an unsuccessful reunification and the original order has expired, a one-off establishment payment of $702.94 (2026 rate) may be available once the care arrangement is confirmed for longer than 7 days. It helps with essential setup costs and is processed by your Child Safety Service Centre (CSSC).

Start-Up/Outfitting Allowance

Separate from the establishment payment, the start-up allowance of $141.26 per placement (2026 rate) assists with immediate outfitting when you take a new or initial placement. This covers clothing, shoes, and personal items the child needs straight away.

Like the establishment payment, this is processed by your CSSC and does not require detailed receipts for standard baseline items.

Extracurricular Activities Boost

The extracurricular activities boost provides $1,500 per year per eligible child under 18 ($750 paid in July and $750 paid in January). It is automatic — you do not need to apply or submit receipts.

The payment covers:

• Sports registration and equipment
• Music or dance lessons
• Swimming lessons
• School camps and excursions
• Nippers, scouts, guides, or other organised activities

Eligibility is based on having an active care arrangement on 1 July and 14 December each year. If a placement starts mid-year, you receive the next scheduled half-yearly payment.

This is one of the most straightforward allowances in the system — no forms, no approval process, just two automatic payments per year for each eligible child in your care.

Regional Remote Loading

Kinship carers living in designated remote areas of Queensland receive an additional fortnightly payment on top of the base caring allowance. The 2026 remote loading rates are:

Remote loading is paid automatically based on your residential address falling within a designated remote CSSC catchment area. Eligible areas include Cape York, Torres Strait, Mount Isa, Roma, and other remote centres. You do not need to apply separately — if your address qualifies, the loading appears alongside your fortnightly caring allowance in the Carepay system.

Formal Carers Only

All of these supplementary allowances — establishment, start-up, activities boost, and remote loading — require you to be an approved carer under the Child Protection Act 1999 (Qld). Informal kinship carers (those without Child Safety involvement) are not eligible for these state-funded payments.

If you are an informal carer and want to understand the process for becoming an approved kinship carer — which would unlock these allowances — read our post on how to become an approved kinship carer in Queensland.

For a complete breakdown of every state and Commonwealth payment available to kinship carers in Queensland, our support guide maps each allowance to the type of care arrangement, so you can see exactly what you are (and are not) entitled to.

See more Queensland guides →