Recalculation of a Child Care Benefit (CCB) lump sum claim 007-03030040

Recalculation of a CCB lump sum claim may result in:

• a top-up - after any debt offsetting, Centrelink will issue any remaining top-up amount and an automatic letter to the customer
• a negative adjustment - an overpayment is created automatically on the Debt Management and Information System (DMIS) and an advice issued to customer
• nil adjustment - no automatic letter will be issued
• Send online letter Q351 (review of decision) to advise customer if required

Eligibility for the Child Care Rebate (CCR) will be recalculated when the CCB lump sum claim for the same financial year is recalculated. This may result in an extra CCR payment, nil adjustment or CCR debt.

For 2010-11 and later financial years, in Customer First, select Workspace > Families Benefits > FTB and CCB Reconciliation >Family Tax Benefit (FTB) and Child Care Benefit (CCB) Reconciliation workflow. Key events provides reconciliation information for the relevant payment and year. Click on the links to drill down for further details if required

For 2009-10 or earlier years, select Workspace > Family Assistance> Reconciliation> Child Care Benefit Reconciliation to June 2011. On the FAO Reconciliation and Claim Summary (FRCS) screens, select the CCF reconciliation line for the relevant financial year

For more help, see CCB reconciliation and lump sum claim calculation screens.

Recalculation of the lump sum claim will only be triggered if the customer has claimed more than the zero rate.

If the ATO transfers actual income details (initial or revised) for the customer, current partner or ex-partner to Centrelink, recalculation will be triggered if all required adequate income details are present. The lump sum claim would have been paid at the zero rate if actual income was needed for customer/ partner.

ATO link ended after 3 years unless the customer has a Family Tax Benefit (FTB) non-lodger debt. If actual income details are required for a year for which the link has ended, for example, 1 July 2009 for 2005-06, the customer will need to provide their Notice of Assessment and tax return (if available). See Mutual Customer Identification (MCI) process for family assistance customers.

Ex-partner: if actual income is received for an ex-partner, this will be used to recalculate lump sum claim entitlement.

ATO cancels Notice of Assessment

If the lump sum claim is still assessed (pending), the system will ignore the actual income details.

If the actual income used to finalise a lump sum claim is later cancelled by the ATO, Centrelink will continue to use the actual income until new actual income details are received from the ATO.

DOC any information provided by the customer and any updates made.

Recalculation of the lump sum claim will only be triggered if the customer has claimed more than zero rate (or minimum rate before 2008-09).

If estimate is reasonable, estimated components of adjusted taxable income can be coded on the FAO Income for Previous Year (FIPY) screen. This will trigger a recalculation.

If actual income has been received for the person, only non-taxable pensions/ benefits, foreign income and child maintenance expenditure can be updated. Actual income components will continue to be used. The system will use the higher of the estimated non-taxable pension/ benefit and the amount recorded as being paid by Centrelink.

The system determines which income components to use for each person separately.

Revising an estimate will not change the lump sum claim result if it was assessed at the zero/minimum rate for reasons other than income, for example Tax File Number (TFN), mismatch with the ATO. In these cases extra details such as a TFN are also required.

Finalise the activity on the Assessment Results (AR) screen and record details on a DOC of any information provided by the customer and any updates made.

A customer may provide TFN details to have their CCB lump sum claim entitlement reassessed at more than the zero rate.

Customers need to provide a TFN for themselves and either a TFN or TFN exemption for their partner and ex-partner. See Provision of Tax File Number (TFN) for family assistance and Paid Parental Leave scheme payments.

For the customer's CCB claim to be assessed at more than zero:

• mutual customer identification with the ATO needs to be successful for the customer and current partner
• adequate income details need to be available

Finalise the activity on the Assessment Results (AR) screen and record details on a DOC of any information provided by the customer and any updates made.

A lump sum claim cannot be finalised until the immunisation status of all children required to be immunised is known. If the status is 'not immunised' for a child, CCB for child is rejected.

If the customer provides evidence they have met immunisation requirements for the child or immunisation details are received from AIR after customer provides Medicare details, the child will be considered immunisation compliant in the Lump Sum Claim recalculation.

Finalise the activity on the Assessment Results (AR) screen and record details on a DOC of any information provided by the customer and any updates made.

Child care services advise child care details weekly via the Child Care Management System (CCMS). If the service advises new child care details for the relevant financial year, this will trigger a recalculation of the CCB lump sum claim.

Child care attendance details as well as the customer circumstance information on the record is used to determine their CCB entitlement.

Updates on the Child in Child Care Details (CICD) screen where the child is using or not using approved child care may trigger a recalculation of the lump sum claim.

If linking a child to a customer not previously included in the lump sum claim, include the child in the claim by updating Assess in LSC? field to 'Y' on the CCB Lump Sum Claim (CLSC) screen. A recalculation will not occur if immunisation requirements need to be met for the child and no immunisation details are recorded.

Finalise the activity on the Assessment Results (AR) screen and record details on a DOC of any information provided by the customer and any updates made.

A lump sum claim calculation or recalculation does not use details recorded on the Child in Care (CHC) screen. The claim form does not ask customers if the child is in their care.

Child care attendance recorded in the customer's name is used to determine eligibility for the claim rather than child in care details. If the child is linked to the customer and included in the claim (Assess in LSC? field is Y on the CCB Lump Sum Claim (CLSC) screen), child care attendance is recorded for the child and if immunisation requirements are met, the child will be included in the calculation.

Recording child entered care or left care will trigger a recalculation of the claim but will not change the result.

However, if the customer advises a child has entered or left their care, consider the effect this may have on other payments the customer may be receiving or entitled to (for example, Family Tax Benefit), issue appropriate forms and record a DOC.

DOC any information provided by the customer and any updates made to the customer's record.

If the customer advises that they (and their partner if they were partnered) satisfied the work/training/study test or an exception applies for CCB for approved care, update details on the Child Care Work Training Study (CWTS) screen to show that they satisfied the work test for CCB for approved care and for the Child Care Rebate. This will allow CCB to be paid for up to 50 hours per child per week.

For help, see Eligible hours for CCB.

Lump sum claim customers cannot be paid CCB for more than 50 hours per child per week.

DOC any information provided by the customer and any updates made to the customer's record.

If the customer died during the financial year, the claim would be lodged by another person to claim CCB for care recorded in the deceased customer's name.

While it is not expected that any child care attendance would be recorded for any period after the death of a child, some child care services may ask the customer to continue to pay fees for up to 2 weeks (standard notification period for leaving the service). All child care attendance recorded after the date of death of a child will be included in the lump sum claim calculation.

CCB for a deceased customer can only be paid up until the Sunday following the date of death.

If a customer is recorded as deceased in the relevant financial year after the lump sum claim has been finalised, a recalculation will occur and an overpayment will result for any CCB paid to the customer after the Sunday following their date of death. A letter will be sent to the Executor of the Estate advising of the overpayment.

DOC any information provided by the customer and any updates made to the customer's record.

A Manual Follow-up (MFU) will be created to issue a manual letter to the estate after reconciliation or re-reconciliation has occurred.

If an income support payment is:

• granted to the customer, partner or ex-partner with a date of effect in the financial year of the lump sum claim, a top up will be calculated for the difference between the maximum CCB rate and the income tested rate for the period from Monday of the week of the grant and the earlier of the first Sunday on or after 30 June or the Sunday following cancellation of the income support payment
• cancelled for the customer, current partner or ex-partner (for reasons other than compensation - CMP), CCB will be income tested from the Monday following the date of effect of the cancellation and an overpayment may result
• For reason CMP, the customer is still entitled to CCB as if the income support payment was not cancelled

DOC any information provided by the customer and any updates made to the customer's record.

A customer may revise relationship status details provided on the lump sum claim.

Where relationship status is changed (for example, partner linked or unlinked) with a date of effect in the financial year of the lump sum claim, a recalculation will occur.

However, entitlement to more than minimum/zero rate and any change in entitlement depends on:

• Tax File Number (TFN) or TFN exemption recorded for a partner linked to the customer
• successful matching with the ATO for a current partner
• adequate income details (the system determines which income components to use for each person separately)

For all partnered periods, the income of the customer and partner will be used to work out CCB entitlement.

Linking a partner is likely to result in a negative adjustment. However, any overpayment for an ex-partnered period will be suppressed. If the partner received an income support payment, the customer may receive a top-up.

Unlinking a partner may result in a top-up as only the customer's income will be used to assess CCB for the non-partnered period.

DOC any information provided by the customer and any updates made to the customer's record.