Around 237,000 families juggling work, study or training will be reimbursed for part of their out-of-pocket child care fees as the quarterly Child Care Rebate payments hit bank accounts this month.
Department of Human Services General Manager Hank Jongen said the quarterly payments (covering October – December 2014) will be made automatically to eligible families, who have elected to receive their payment quarterly, over the next fortnight.
“Child Care Rebate provides families with help with the cost of child care – reimbursing parents up to 50 per cent of their out-of-pocket expenses for approved child care, up to $7500 per child, per year,” Mr Jongen said.
“The quarterly payments started going into bank accounts automatically from 21 January, so there is no need for busy families to do anything.
“If families have not received their quarterly Child Care Rebate payment by Friday 6 February, they can check their myGov account or jump on the Express Plus Centrelink mobile app to see if it has been issued.”
Mr Jongen said the Department of Human Services recognises it is important for families to have flexibility in the way they access payments and services.
“It can be hectic juggling numerous commitments and it’s important to have options for managing the family budget,” Mr Jongen said.
“Families can choose to receive the Child Care Rebate in several ways – quarterly, fortnightly, or even weekly – depending on how often their child care services lodge their attendance and what suits their family circumstances.
“Our online services allow families to keep track of their payments on the go. They can also do a whole range of business like viewing child care attendance, applying for other payments, updating personal contact information and reporting income without needing to call us or visit a service centre.”
Families can receive regular updates about payments and services by subscribing to News for Families at humanservices.gov.au/families, by ‘liking’ the Family Update on Facebook Page, following @FamilyUpdateAU on Twitter and visiting the ‘Information for Families’ playlist of the Human Services YouTube channel.
