Carer Allowance (CA) child care receiver undertakes education, training or treatment 009-06040030

Rules for ETT apply 'only' to child care receivers for Carer Allowance (CA). They do not apply to Carer Payment (CP).

Absences may appear to be for respite purposes but it is important to check with the carer whether or not the child will receive any form of ETT during this period. Using ETT provisions will allow a pro-rata rate of payment or a continuation of the CA Health Care Card (HCC) for up to 13 weeks absence once the 63 days of respite have been used.

Is the care receiver a child and is the carer receiving CA?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No, refer to Temporary Cessation of Care (respite) provisions for Carer Payment (CP) and Carer Allowance (CA)

• Yes, go to Step 4
• No, go to Step 3

When absences are for short periods of less than 24 hours during the day or evening by another person or organisation, they do not count toward temporary cessation provisions.

To be considered absent from the carer, the child care receiver must be away for a full 24 hour period, that is, 12:00 am to 12:00 am (midnight to midnight). For example, attending boarding school and staying overnight, for a full 24 hour period, is an absence for ETT, whereas attending school during normal hours and returning home that afternoon is not.

Procedure ends here.

Coding the absence as ETT will count as a normal respite absence for CP, and CP will cancel once the respite days have been fully used.

All absences are to be updated in Customer First using the Temporary Cessation of Care workflow.

In Customer First:

• Run the Temporary Cessation of Care workflow. The Temporary Cessation of Care Summary page will show. This is a display screen only
• Expand the page for the applicable care receiver by clicking on the arrows (>>) next to the care receiver's name. This will show the full summary of the history of absences for the period displayed. Note: if a different period is needed use the drop down box in the Period to Display: field at the top of the page
• Press Continue button. The Care Receiver Absence Update page will display
• Go to Step 5

If the Customer First or workflow is not available or not working, manually update the absence. For manual updates, see Step 5 Table 2.

Update the absence by:

• Selecting the appropriate care receiver from the drop down box in the Care Receiver: field
• Complete the Start Date: and End Date: fields for the period of absence. Note: the End Date: field can be coded if it is known. Regular absences do not require an end date to be coded for the activity to accept
• Update the type of absence in the Absence Type: field
• For a Carer Allowance (CA) child care receiver the reason must be 'ETT' (Education, Training and Treatment) in this case
• Coding 'ETT' is important because absences for ETT may allow the carer to be paid a pro-rata amount of CA or continuation of the CA HCC for up to 13 weeks of an absence. For example, if the child was absent from home for 10 periods of 24 hours, midnight to midnight, per fortnight, the carer would only receive payment for four days per fortnight, or 4/14ths of the full fortnightly payment once the temporary absence or temporary cessation of care (respite) allowable absences are exhausted
• If the absence is to be regular, update the Regular 24hr Period PFN: field with the number of hours per fortnightly
• When completed, click on the Update button. The updates made will be displayed
• Check for accuracy and click on the Update button again. The Absence Updates Summary page will display

• Yes, go to Step 7
• No, go to Step 8

• Carers whose children are absent from home for ETT and who have utilised their 63 days of respite do not lose qualification but are only payable for the period that the child is in their care. As the care receiver is expected to return to care, the carer remains qualified but on 'nil rate', and will retain eligibility for the CA HCC for 13 weeks. Once the 13 week period has passed, all qualification for payment and HCC ceases, and the carer must reclaim
• If the child is in the carer's care some part of each fortnight, payment eligibility will be maintained on a fortnightly basis. For example, if the child is at school Monday to Friday but returns home on weekends
• Service Officers are to code the 24 hour periods midnight to midnight out of care
• The carer should be advised of the reporting and notification obligations. This includes notifying changes to the expected date of return to care
• If a CP (XWP) carer’s only or last payment level CA is suspended or cancelled, or changed to a CA Health Care Card only or nil rate due to ETT, the system will automatically cancel CP (XWP). A carer loses their qualification for CP (XWP) permanently if payment level CA is not reinstated without a gap in entitlement

CA (manual) care receivers

• While the care receiver is absent due to ETT, the system will maintain the carer's 'current' status for up to 13 weeks at a 'nil rate' of payment. In this case a letter will be sent to the carer advising that the payment has ceased, but the HCC will remain valid for up to 13 weeks. This letter will ask the carer to notify when the child returns to care or if they are not going to return to care. After 10 weeks of 'nil rate', a reminder letter will be sent
• At 13 weeks CA will be cancelled and notification sent

CA (auto) care receivers

• Carers granted CA automatically because they have been granted CP are generally subject to the same ETT provisions which are applied to CA (manual) carers. However, where a CA (auto) carer is in a current 'nil rate' period and their CP child is cancelled/suspended, the CA (auto) will cancel/suspend immediately upon loss of CP (child) eligibility, instead of staying current for 13 weeks at 'nil rate'. A letter will be sent advising of the cancellation

CA Health Care Card Only care receivers

• HCC only care receivers who have utilised their 63 days of respite will retain eligibility for the HCC for up to 13 weeks of an ETT absence. A letter will be sent advising of the cancellation

Notification of earlier return to care

If, within the allowable 13 week period, the carer notifies that the child care receiver will return to care earlier than expected, CA will be paid from the return to care date.

However, if the return to care is not within the 13 week period, or the carer does not notify within that period, they must reclaim and requalify based on the daily care requirements.

An absence following a return to care will restart the 13 week nil rate period.

Still current at 1 January

If the carer is still current on 1 January, the new allocation of 63 respite days for the calendar year will return them to payment. It is possible for a new 13 week period to commence after the new allocation of respite days has been fully used.

• If required, record additional absences on the Care Receiver Absence Update section of the page and click on the Update button
• When all updates are completed, click on the Continue button
• The Assessment Results for Activity page will display. Finalise activity and exit the workflow.
• Ensure all updates are correctly noted on a DOC

Note: manual updates can be done in Customer First or the Centrelink system. Rules for ETT 'only' apply to child care receivers for Carer Allowance (CA). They do not apply to Carer Payment (CP).

Absences may appear to be for respite purposes but it is important to check with the carer whether or not the child will receive any form of education, training or treatment during this period. Using ETT provisions will then allow a pro-rata rate of payment once the 63 days of respite have been used or continuation of the CA Health Care Card (HCC) for up to 13 weeks absence.

Is the care receiver a child and the carer receives CA?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No, refer to Temporary Cessation of Care (respite) provisions for Carer Payment (CP) and Carer Allowance (CA)

• Yes, go to Step 4
• No, go to Step 3

When absences are for short periods of less than 24 hours during the day or evening by another person or organisation, these do not count toward temporary cessation provisions.

To be considered absent from the carer, the child care receiver must be away for a full 24 hour period, that is, 12:00 am to 12:00 am (midnight to midnight). For example, attending boarding school and staying overnight, for a full 24 hour period, is considered to be an absence for ETT, whereas attending school during normal hours and returning home that afternoon is not.

Procedure ends here.

Coding the absence as ETT will count as a normal respite absence for CP. CP will cancel once the respite days have been fully used. For CP, see Temporary Cessation of Care (respite) provisions for Carer Payment (CP) and Carer Allowance (CA).

All absences are to be updated in Customer First using the Temporary Cessation of Care workflow. For workflow updates, go to Step 4.

Manual updates are only to be done if Customer First or workflow is not available or not working.

Absences are to be manually coded only when the workflow is not available or not working. Where possible manual updates are to be done in Customer First.

• Go to the Care Receiver Summary (CRS) page/screen
• Select the appropriate care receiver from the list
• In Customer First click on the Continue button or in the Centrelink system press [Enter]

On this screen, 's'elect;

• Absence Enquiry: field
• Absence Details: field
• Assessment Results: field
• In Customer First click on the Continue button or in the Centrelink system press [Enter]

Customer First - manual coding

The Temporary Cessation of Care Update page will display.

• Ensure the correct care receiver is displayed in the Care Receiver: field. If not, use drop down box to select correct care receiver
• Go to Step 1 in Table 3

Centrelink system - manual coding

The Absences Enquiry (ABCE) screen will display.

Field help for the ABCE screen and the Absences Detail (ABSN) screen refers to absences as 'nights'. This will be revised in a future release to clarify that these are 24 hour periods, midnight to midnight.

The ABCE screen provides the summary of the absences taken in the current calendar year.

• Code 'Y' in the Go to Absences Details Screen (Y/N): field
• Press [Enter]. The ABSN screen will display

Is the education, training and treatment absence a regular or a one-off absence?

• One-off, go to Step 2
• Regular, go to Step 3

For one-off absence, the following must be coded:

• Start Date: field - this is the date of the first full 24 hour midnight to midnight period of the absence. For example, if the care receiver left home on 10 January, the start date to be recorded is 11 January
• End Date: field - this is the date of the last evening the care receiver is away from home. For example, if the care receiver returned home on 29 November, code 28 November as this was the last evening the carer was absent. This will enable the system to correctly calculate the absence. Ensure the correct dates are listed in the DOC attached to the activity in the carer's record
• An end date must be coded if this is a one-off absence
• If the carer does not provide an end date, contact them to ask for an estimated date
• Advise the carer the situation will be reviewed as the estimated end date draws near. See What to do with an absence Manual Follow-up (MFU)
• In the Absence Type: field in Customer First or the Reason: field in the Centrelink system:
• For a Carer Allowance (CA) child care receiver the reason must be 'ETT' (Education, Training and Treatment) in this case
• Coding 'ETT' is important because absences for ETT may allow the carer to be paid a pro-rata amount of CA or continuation of the CA HCC for up to 13 weeks of an absence. For example, if the child was absent from home for 10 periods of 24 hours, midnight to midnight, per fortnight, the carer would only receive payment for four days per fortnight, or 4/14ths of the full fortnightly payment once the temporary absence or temporary cessation of care (respite) allowable absences are exhausted
• Absence Extended: field - an absence for ETT cannot be extended, leave this field blank. In the Centrelink system this will default to 'N'
• Update the Source: and DOR: fields
• Press Update button in Customer First or press [Enter] in the Centrelink system.
• Go to Step 4

For a regular absence, the following must be coded:

• Start Date: field - this is the date of the first full 24 hour period (midnight to midnight) of the absence. For example, if the care receiver left home on 10 January, the start date to be recorded is 11 January
• In the Absence Type: field in Customer First or the Reason: field in the Centrelink system:
• For a CA child care receiver the reason must be ETT in this case
• For a CA adult care receiver the reason must be RSP (Respite care)
• Regular 24 hour absences PFN: field - this is the number of full 24 hour days (midnight to midnight) the care receiver is regularly absent each fortnight
• Absence Extended: field - an absence for ETT cannot be extended, leave field blank. In the Centrelink system this will default to 'N'
• End Date: field - ETT must be coded with an expected end date
• Press Update button in Customer First or press [Enter] in the Centrelink system

• Yes, go to Step 5
• No, go to Step 6

An absence for ETT cannot be extended.

Carers whose children are absent from home for ETT do not lose qualification but are only payable for the period that the child is in their care (once their 63 days of respite have been utilised). As the care receiver is expected to return to care:

• the carer remains qualified but on 'nil rate' and they retain eligibility for the CA HCC for 13 weeks, and
• once the 13 week period has passed, all qualification for payment and HCC ceases, and the carer must reclaim

If the child is in the parent's care some part of each fortnight, payment eligibility is maintained on a fortnightly basis. For example, if the child is at school Monday to Friday but returns home on weekends.

The carer should be advised of the reporting and notification obligations. This includes notifying changes to the expected date of return to care.

If a CP (XWP) carer’s only or last payment level CA is suspended or cancelled, or changed to a CA Health Care Card only or nil rate due to ETT, the system will automatically cancel CP (XWP). A carer loses their qualification for CP (XWP) permanently if payment level CA is not reinstated without a gap in entitlement.

CA (manual) care receivers

While the care receiver is absent due to ETT, the system will maintain the carer's 'current' status for up to 13 weeks at a 'nil rate' of payment. In this case, a letter will be sent to the carer advising that the payment has ceased, but the HCC will remain valid for up to 13 weeks, and asking the carer to notify when the child returns to care or if they are not going to return to care. After 10 weeks of 'nil rate', a reminder letter will be sent.

At 13 weeks CA will be cancelled and notification sent.

CA (auto) care receivers

Carers granted CA automatically because they have been granted CP are generally subject to the same ETT provisions applied to CA (manual) carers. However, where a CA (auto) carer is in a current 'nil rate' period and they lose entitlement to CA (auto) due to cancellation/suspension of CP (child), the CA (auto) will cancel/suspend immediately upon loss of CP (child) eligibility, instead of staying current for 13 weeks at 'nil rate'. A letter will be sent advising of the cancellation.

CA Health Care Card Only care receivers

HCC only care receivers will also retain eligibility for the HCC for up to 13 weeks of an ETT absence following depletion of the 63 respite quota. A letter will be sent advising of the cancellation.

Notification of earlier return to care

If the carer notifies an earlier than expected return to care within the allowable 13 week period, CA will be paid from the return to care date. However, if the return to care is not within the 13 week period, or is not notified within that period, the carer must reclaim and requalify based on the daily care requirements.

An absence following a return to care will restart the 13 week nil rate period.

Nil rate at 1 January

If the carer is still current on 1 January, the new allocation of respite days will return them to payment. It is possible for a new 13 week period to commence after the new allocation of respite days has been fully used.

When a carer enters a nil rate due to ETT absences recorded, the nil rate date will be displayed on the Temporary Cessation of Care Update page in Customer First or the ABCE screen in the Centrelink system.

In Customer First

The Temporary Cessation of Care Update page will redisplay with additional fields to allow for further absences to be updated.

• This will now show the updated data, check the details
• When all updates are completed, click on the Continue button
• Go to Step 7

Centrelink system

The ABCE screen will redisplay.

• This will now show the updated data, check the details
• Press [Enter] and the ABSN screen will redisplay
• Further absences can be coded, if required
• Press [Enter]

• Record details on a DOC. If the end date is keyed as a result of an estimate by the carer, this should be included in the DOC.
• Go to the Assessment Results (AR) screen and finalise the activity. Note: for the Centrelink system AR must manually be coded in the Nxt: field or the system will default to the Activity List (AL) screen.