2.4.3 Baby Bonus Instalments & Specialist Referrals

Summary

This section covers the following:

• payment of baby bonus by instalments,
• referrals to a social worker or specialist officer, and
• purpose of referrals.

Payment of baby bonus

For children born or entrusted to care eligible individuals are paid the baby bonus in 13 fortnightly instalments.

For individuals who become eligible before 1 July 2011, the baby bonus entitlement is equally divided among the 13 fortnightly instalments.

For individuals who become eligible on or after 1 July 2011, the first instalment (the upfront part) is larger than the other instalments. The amount of baby bonus remaining after payment of the first instalment is equally divided among the subsequent 12 fortnightly instalments. For the 2011-2012 income year, the first instalment is $879.77 and subsequent instalments are approximately $379.77.

The first instalment is generally paid 14 days after the date the claim is granted. In circumstances where there is bereavement such as a stillbirth or death of a child shortly after birth, the individual claiming baby bonus may request a lump sum.

In cases where there is a change of care and baby bonus is paid to more than one eligible claimant the baby bonus may be paid in fewer fortnightly instalments depending on the entitlement amount of each eligible individual. From 1 July 2011, the first eligible carer will usually receive the upfront part.

In the examples below, the following baby bonus rates are used, depending on the date of eligibility:

• 2010-11 rate of $5,294 (also referred to as the July 2010 rate)
• 2011-12 rate of $5,437 (also referred to as the July 2011 rate).

Example 1: Jane has care of her baby Oliver for 17 weeks from birth. Kate has taken over care of Oliver and has indicated care will continue for at least 26 weeks. Because the change of care has occurred within 26 weeks following the birth of Oliver and is expected to last at least 26 weeks, Kate is entitled to baby bonus. The full amount of baby bonus will be apportioned between Jane and Kate.

If Jane and Kate became eligible for baby bonus before 1 July 2011:

• Jane is entitled to a baby bonus payment of $3,461.46 which is approximately 65% of the baby bonus rate of $5,294 for 2010-11. Jane will receive this in 8 instalments of $407.23 (the standard instalment amount) and one instalment of $203.62. Kate will receive $1,832.54, or approximately 35% of $5,294, in 4 instalments of $407.23 and one instalment of $203.62.

If Jane and Kate became eligible for baby bonus on or after 1 July 2011:

• Jane is entitled to a baby bonus payment of $3,728.05, which is approximately 69% of the baby bonus rate of $5,437 for 2011-12. Jane will receive this in one instalment of $879.77 (upfront part), followed by 7 instalments of $379.77 and one instalment of approximately $189.89. Kate will receive $1,708.97, or approximately 31% of $5,437, in 4 instalments of $379.77 and one instalment of approximately $189.89.

Example 2: Claudia and William separate before the birth of their child and Claudia has care of their child Noah. After caring for Noah for 12 weeks, Claudia is no longer able to care for Noah and William takes on 100% care. Claudia is entitled to the first 6 instalments of baby bonus and William is entitled to the remaining 7 instalments of baby bonus. If Claudia and William both become eligible for baby bonus on or after 1 July 2011, Claudia will receive the upfront part as her first instalment.

Note: If an individual is eligible to receive baby bonus as a parent or non-parent carer and a change of care occurs within 26 weeks of the child's birth or of the child's entry into their care, the individual must advise the FAO of the change in care. After receiving the advice, the FAO should attempt to contact the new carer(s) and invite them to make a claim for baby bonus.

Baby bonus may be paid simultaneously to 2 eligible individuals in some situations where there is a change in the provision of primary care for a child, such as where the first individual has not yet lodged a claim or has not yet finished receiving their entitlement in instalments at the same time as a subsequent eligible individual commences receiving their entitlement in instalments.

Example 3: Juanita has primary care of her baby Cassandra for 12 weeks from birth. Juan takes over primary care of Cassandra from week 13 onwards. Juanita and Juan lodge a claim for baby bonus at the same time.

If Juanita and Juan became eligible for baby bonus before 1 July 2011:

• Juanita is paid baby bonus of $2,443.38 in 6 instalments of $407.23 at the same time as Juan is paid baby bonus of $2,850.62 in 6 instalments of $407.23 and one instalment of $407.24.

If both Juanita and Juan became eligible for baby bonus on or after 1 July 2011:

• Juanita is paid baby bonus of $2,778.62 in one instalment of $879.77 (upfront part) and 5 instalments of $379.77 at the same time as Juan is paid baby bonus of $2,658.39 in 7 instalments of $379.77.

Where baby bonus is apportioned between a carer who becomes eligible for baby bonus before 1 July 2011, and a carer who becomes eligible on or after 1 July 2011, the payments will be apportioned and paid in instalments consistent with the arrangements that applied before 1 July 2011 (pre July 2011 rule).

Example 4: Birth mother becomes eligible for baby bonus on 1 June 2011. A foster carer then takes over primary care of the baby on 10 July 2011 and becomes eligible for baby bonus on that day.

• As baby bonus is apportioned between the birth mother who became eligible before 1 July 2011 and the foster carer who became eligible on or after 1 July 2011, the pre-July 2011 apportionment arrangements apply.
• The birth mother is eligible for 39 days of care based on the July 2010 rate of baby bonus, which is calculated as follows: $5,294 x 39/182 = $1,134.43. This would be paid as 2 regular instalments of $407.23 and one instalment of $319.97.
• The foster carer is eligible for 143 days of care based on the July 2011 rate of baby bonus, which is calculated as follows: $5,437 x 143/182 = $4,271.93. This would be paid as 10 regular instalments of $418.23 and one instalment of $89.63.

Example 5: As in example 4, the birth mother becomes eligible for baby bonus on 1 June 2011 and a foster carer becomes eligible for baby bonus on 10 July 2011. However, the foster carer claims baby bonus first and starts receiving payments before the birth mother claims. By the time the birth mother claims, the foster carer has already been paid the larger first instalment (upfront part).

• The baby bonus payable to the birth mother and the foster carer would be calculated as in example 4.
• The foster carer's remaining instalments would need to be adjusted to avoid exceeding the apportioned amount of baby bonus calculated above.
• If the foster carer had already been paid more than their apportioned amount by the time the birth mother lodges her claim for baby bonus, it will be necessary to either raise a debt or reduce the birth mother's entitlement. The appropriate course of action will depend on the circumstances in each case.

Act reference: FA(Admin)Act section 47 Payment of baby bonus, section 47B Claimant for payment of baby bonus to notify changes in care of the child, section 47C Secretary's power to approve a manner of notification

FAAct section 36 When an individual is eligible for baby bonus in normal circumstances, section 37 Generally only one individual eligible for baby bonus in respect of a child

Policy reference: FA Guide 2.4.1 Eligibility for Baby Bonus, 2.4.2 Apportioning of Baby Bonus, 4.5.1 Claims for Baby Bonus & MIA

Referrals to a social worker or specialist officer

Young people and especially those aged 17 years or under are generally inexperienced in handling large sums of money and/or may be subject to pressure to use the payment unwisely. These individuals must be referred to a social worker or specialist officer to discuss available services such as financial planning services, FA entitlements and parent support groups. Attendance at the referral session should be encouraged.

Individuals who are 17 years and over who are experiencing and/or are susceptible to any of the following issues should also be referred to a social worker or specialist officer (Indigenous Customer Service Officer or MSO) for a professional assessment regarding:

• inexperience in handling large sums of money, or
• situations where an individual may be subject to pressure to use the payment unwisely, or
• history of experiencing domestic or family violence, or
• history of difficulties in managing finances, or
• situations where an individual may be vulnerable to exploitation, or
• gambling problems, or
• substance addiction, or
• homelessness or a risk of becoming homeless, or
• previously had or currently has a child subject to child protection, or
• intellectual disability, or
• mental illness.

Any other individual may request assistance or referral to a social worker or specialist officer.

Purpose of referrals

The purpose of the referral is to assess the individual's needs and their required level of support to provide the individual with more detailed and specific information about available services such as parent support groups, financial planning strategies and family assistance services and to enable a referral to other appropriate services as required.

In situations involving bereavement due to the death or stillbirth of the child, where one of the above issues are identified, payment by instalments, rather than lump sum, would generally be appropriate. However, discretion should still be used depending on the circumstances of the case.

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Last reviewed: 11 August 2011