Education Tax Refund (ETR) payment for 2011-12 101-03070000

From 1 October 2022

Education Tax Refund (ETR) payments are no longer payable to customers. The ETR Payments determination is no longer in force and therefore assessments and reassessments are not supported by legislation. This means debts should not be raised and payments should not be made to customers.

To be completed by Families Program Management team only

Occasionally a Manual Follow-Up (MFU) will be created on customer records. These must not be completed by Service Officers. These MFUs are monitored and actioned by the Families Program Management team, to ensure payment is not issued to the customer. They will have the key words FTBETR or ISPETP.

If a Service Officer incorrectly processes these MFUs they will receive staff feedback.

Prior to 1 October 2022

The ETR statutory payment was paid automatically to eligible parents/guardians receiving Family Tax Benefit (FTB) Part A or students receiving an income support payment.

A person was eligible for the ETR Statutory payment if they were receiving one of the following payments on 8 May 2012:

• FTB Part A for school aged children in the following age groups
• 5-11 years (born 1 Aug 2000 - 31 July 2007)
• 12-15 years (born 9 May 1996 - 31 July 2000)
• 16 to turning 19 years in the 2012 calendar year (born 1 January 1993 - 8 May 1996) in full-time secondary study or in an exemption category
• Youth Allowance (YA) (student) recipients aged 16 to turning 19 in the 2012 calendar year (born 1 January 1993 - 8 May 1996) who were in full-time secondary study
• ABSTUDY (living allowance) recipients aged 16 to turning 19 in the 2012 calendar year, (who were in full-time secondary study
• Disability Support Pension (DSP) recipients aged 16 to turning 19 years in the 2012 calendar year who were in full-time secondary study and also in receipt of Pensioner Education Supplement (PES)

Parents/guardians/students not eligible for the ETR Statutory payment may be eligible for an ETR Administrative Scheme payment.

Individuals receiving a qualifying payment on 8 May 2012 were paid during the period 20-29 June 2012. This included customers whose FTB Part A legislative rate was greater than nil.

Claimants who had one of the above qualifying payments granted retrospectively for a period that included 8 May 2012 were paid the ETR Statutory payment (if eligible) when their claim was granted.

Eligible customers were paid an ETR Statutory payment of:

• $409 for each child born 1 Aug 2000 to 31 July 2007 (primary rate)
• $818 for each child born on or before 31 July 2000 (secondary rate)

For FTB customers, these amounts were apportioned based on the FTB shared care and/or blended family percentage on 8 May 2012.

ETR payments are non-taxable and are not assessed as income for family assistance and income support entitlement.

ETR Statutory payments were subject to income management.

Payments were made into the same bank account the customer's regular payments. If they had a payment nominee, the payment was paid into the payment nominee's account.

Letters were issued confirming payment.

The ETR paid via the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has been abolished and cannot be claimed for the 2011-12 year onwards.

In most cases, statutory ETR payments will be at least equal to the amount the customer would have been eligible for through the tax system.

In some circumstances, customers may have been paid less, for example where a child’s age attracted the primary rate but the child was in secondary school, or where there have been changes in care within the 2011-12 financial year. In these instances the customer may be eligible for a top-up under the Administrative Scheme after 1 July 2012.

If 8 May 2012 fell during an FTB bereavement period for a deceased child (who would have met eligibility had they not died), the FTB customer would have received a Statutory ETR payment for that child.

ETR overpayments are to be raised manually only where it has been determined a customer has knowingly made a false or misleading statement or has knowingly provided false information to receive payments.

Parents/guardians/students not eligible for the ETR Statutory payment who would have been eligible to claim the ETR through the taxation system or would have received a higher rate through the taxation system than was paid to them as a statutory payment may be paid ETR under the Administrative Scheme.

This includes:

• Approved Care Organisations (ACO) in receipt of FTB for eligible children
• Family Tax Benefit (FTB) recipients with children who were:
• in their care for part of the 2011-12 financial year but not on 8 May 2012, or
• in shared care on 8 May 2012, but were in full time care or had a higher shared care percentage at another time during the 2011-12 financial year (may receive a top-up), or
• aged 4 (born after 31 July 2007) and in primary school on 8 May 2012, or
• born on or after 1 July 1986 but before 1 January 1993 (20-24 years of age) and who were in full-time secondary study on 8 May 2012, or
• born on or after 1 August 2000 who were in secondary school on 8 May 2012 (may receive a top-up to the secondary school rate)
• Independent primary or secondary students younger than 16 receiving income support
• Students aged under 25:
• in part time secondary study on 8 May 2012, or
• whose income support payment was at a nil rate due to employment income on 8 May 2012
• who met the rules for a statutory payment at some time in 2011-12 but not on 8 May 2012, or
• who were in full-time secondary study and in receipt of another income support payment at some time in 2011-12

A person was eligible under the ETR Administrative Scheme if:

• they were not eligible for the ETR Statutory payment (or they were eligible for the Statutory payment but are eligible for a greater amount under the Administrative Scheme)
• they received Family Tax Benefit (FTB) Part A, a social security benefit or pension (ISP), or a Prescribed Education Scheme (PES) payment during the 2011-12 financial year (between 1 July 2011 and 30 June 2012 inclusive)
• the FTB child or the ISP/PES student was undertaking primary or secondary studies during the 2011-12 financial year
• for FTB Part A customers, SCH or FSC is recorded on the CHSI screen for the child
• for income support customers, the EDC screen must show one of: PRI, SC1, SC2, SNS, SSN, S07-S13 or UPC
• for Youth Allowance (other) customers the study must be recorded in their Employment Pathway Plan
• the FTB child or ISP/PES student was aged between 4 and 25 years in 2011-12 (a proportional rate could be paid if they turned 25 before 30 June 2012)

If undertaking secondary equivalent study:

A person was considered to be undertaking secondary equivalent study if they had not completed year 12 and were undertaking a Certificate II or lower level course.

If they had not completed Year 12 but had already completed a Certificate II level course, further study at the Certificate II level was not considered secondary equivalent.

The ETR Administrative Scheme payment could be paid automatically or manually. Evidence is required in some cases before payment could be made.

The rate of ETR paid under the Administrative Scheme may be the full rate or an apportioned rate based on the number of days the customer met the eligibility criteria during the 2011-12 financial year.

The rate may have been affected by the student's circumstances or the period they were receiving a qualifying payment.

For FTB customers, the rate was also apportioned based on the shared care and/or blended family percentage.

Maximum amount payable:

• $409 for a primary school student
• ($204.50 per period: 1 July to 31 December 2011, 1 January to 30 June 2012)
• $818 for a secondary school student
• ($409 per period: 1 July to 31 December 2011, 1 January to 30 June 2012)

ETR payments are non-taxable and are not assessed as income for family assistance and income support entitlement.

ETR Administrative Scheme payments were not subject to income management.

There is no specific time limit preventing a person from being paid the ETR payment, but it depends on their eligibility for a qualifying payment.

Letters were issued confirming payment.

ETR overpayments are to be raised manually only where it has been determined a customer has knowingly made a false or misleading statement or has knowingly provided false information to receive payments.

An FTB customer may be eligible for ETR for each FTB child in their care during the 2011-12 financial year.

The FTB Child Eligibility Summary (FCES) screen in 2011-12 FTB reconciliation will confirm whether a child is an FTB child or not.

Check if any ETR payment has been made for the child on the Education Tax Refund Summary Child/ren (FOSETP) screen (access from the Families One Off Payment Task Selector (FOPTS) screen).

Has a payment been made?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No, go to Step 4

If necessary, confirm the customer's bank account details.

If payment has been made to an incorrect bank account, see Replacing direct credit, New Payments Platform (NPP) or Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) payments at a customer's request.

Is the customer satisfied with the payment amount?

• Yes, record details on a DOC. Procedure ends here
• No, go to Step 3

A customer who received an ETR Statutory payment may be eligible for a top up ETR payment under the Administration Scheme if:

• they have been paid primary school rate for a child in secondary studies (if the child was under 11 years of age on 8 May 2012, request evidence of enrolment in secondary studies), see Requesting information (CLK), or
• their ETR payment was reduced because of their care percentage on 8 May 2012 and they had a higher care percentage at another time in the 2011-12 financial year

Is the customer eligible for a top up?

• Yes, go to Step 4
• No, advise the customer they are not eligible for an ETR top-up payment. Record details on a DOC. Procedure ends here

Does one or more of the following apply?

• FTB lump sum claim was granted for 2011-12 but has not yet been paid (e.g. pending income)
• FTB was current but not receiving FTB Part A on 8 May 2012 because their estimated income exceeded the threshold
• FTB instalments were prohibited on 8 May 2012 and reconciliation for 2011-12 has not yet occurred

Check the FAO Reconciliation and Claim Summary (FRCS12) and Child Education Summary screens.

• Yes,
• Advise the customer that an ETR assessment for any school children when their lump sum claim for 2011-12 is processed and paid, or when FTB reconciliation occurs
• Record details on DOC of the information advised. Procedure ends here
• No, go to Step 5

Was the customer receiving FTB (including CZR payment choice which was not prohibited) on 8 May 2012 fora primary/secondary school child but did not receive an ETR Statutory payment?

Possible reasons:

• 16-19 years of age and in part-time secondary study
• 19 years of age or over
• under 5 years of age on 31 July 2012

Entitled to ETR payment but not paid?

• Yes, go to Step 8
• No, go to Step 6

The customer may be eligible if any of the following apply:

• They received FTB Part A in 2011-12 for the child, and the child was in primary/secondary study, but not both on 8 May 2012
• They received FTB Part A in 2011-12 for the child (or would have if the child's income was not over the limit), and the child was in secondary study in 2011-12 but not on 8 May 2012
• They were an Approved Care Organisation (ACO) with care of an FTB child during 2011-12

Do any of the above apply?

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

Does the customer believe they would have qualified for an ETR if claiming for 2011-12 under previous rules through the ATO?

• Yes, advise them ETR may be payable. Go to Step 9
• No, advise them they will not be eligible for an ETR payment. Record details on a DOC. Procedure ends here

Advise the customer:

• They may be eligible for payment of ETR
• Their query will be referred to a specialist team for processing
• The maximum rate of ETR payment is:
• $409 for each primary school student
• $818 for each secondary school student, or
• a pro rata amount if they receive a shared care or blended care rate
• less any amount already paid for that child as a Statutory payment (if any)
• If required, request enrolment evidence be provided (if the child was born after 1 July 2007 and the customer is advising their child was in primary school on 8 May 2012)
• They should contact again in 4 weeks if they have not received anything

If the child was born after 1 July 2007, request evidence of enrolment in primary studies. See Requesting information (CLK)

Record details on an open DOC. Include keyword FTBETP. Ensure the following details are included: child/ren details, education details, reason for application, if evidence has been requested, and one of the following keywords is added:

• FTBFULL if the full $409/$818 needs to be paid
• FTBPART if a part year payment is to be made
• FTBSHR if recalculation of shared care rate is needed
• FTBOTH for Approved Care Organisations and other cases where above keywords are not applicable

Leave the DOC open and 'O'ut to region A1E

Note: keywords are imperative for work items to map to the correct area for assessment. Ensure keywords have been added.

Check if payment has already been made:

Families One Off Payment Task Selector (FOPTS) screen.

Does one or more of the following apply?

• FTB lump sum claim granted for 2011-12 but has not yet been paid
• FTB current but not receiving FTB Part A on 8 May 2012 because their estimated income exceeded the threshold
• FTB instalments were prohibited on 8 May 2012 and reconciliation for 2011-12 has not yet occurred

Check the FAO Reconciliation and Claim Summary (FRCS12) and Child Education Summary screens.

• Yes,
• Advise the customer that an ETR assessment for any school children when their lump sum claim for 2011-12 is processed and paid, or when FTB reconciliation occurs
• Annotate the DOC with details of information advised. Close the DOC. Procedure ends here
• No, go to Step 3

Check that the FTB customer met eligibility criteria at some time during the 2011-12 financial year to be eligible for a payment or top-up.

• Yes, go to Step 4
• No, go to Step 6

Check study details recorded on the Child/Student Income Circumstances (CHSI) screen for the child, and/or the Child Education Summary screen.

If the study cannot be verified by information on the customer's or child's record, evidence is required.

Is the FTB customer required to provide evidence of enrolment or study level?

• Yes,
• If they have lodged evidence, go to Step 5
• Otherwise, ask the customer to provide evidence, see Requesting information (CLK) and select information to be supplied within 14 days + delivery. Record details of the request in a DOC. Procedure ends here
• No, go to Step 5

To make a payment:

• Go to the Child Selection (CHS) screen and note the Customer Reference Numbers (CRN) of each child ETR is to be paid for
• Go to the Families One Off Payments Task Selector (FOPTS) screen, select the ETP line to go to the Education Tax Refund Summary Child/ren (FOSETP) screen
• On FOSETP screen, update N to 'Y' in the GO TO FOMETP field to go to the Manual issue of ETR payments (FOMETP) screen
• On FOMETP screen (repeat for each child)
• key the eligible child's CRN
• key total entitlement amount (if paying a top-up, enter the total entitlement (e.g. if $409 has been paid but the entitlement is $818, code $818) as the system will recognise any amount already paid and pay the difference)
• key 'Y' in Admin Scheme: field
• key source 'INT'
• key Date of Receipt (DOR)
• press [Enter]
• confirm payment with 'Y' (if 'N' is entered here, payment will not be made)

Annotate DOC including:

• ETR Administrative Scheme payment made
• amount of payment
• decision made under the ETR Payments Administrative Scheme (FaHCSIA) Determination 2012
• explanation for part rate payments

Procedure ends here.

Contact the FTB customer and explain why they are not eligible for a payment or top up. If unable to contact, send Q999 letter.

Record details on a DOC including:

• customer found not to be eligible for ETR payment
• why they are not eligible
• decision made under the ETR Payments Administrative Scheme (FaHCSIA) Determination 2012

Does the customer disagree with the decision?

• Yes, go to Step 7
• No, procedure ends here

If the customer disagrees with the decision, they can request an explanation or apply for a formal review of the decision. See Initial contact about a decision and the review of decision process.

If the customer is advising they would have been eligible for more under the ETR than they have received, they can provide evidence to support this.

These cases will be referred to Level 2 Service Desk and will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis in consultation with the Department of Social Services.

If a parent does not have Person Permitted to Enquire (PPE) status, it may be appropriate to use implied authority. See Disclosing information to parents of Youth Allowance (YA) customers. If in doubt, information from the parent can still be received (that is, claim details) but do not disclose information about the customer.

Check the below screens to see if any ETR payment has been or will be paid:

• One Off Payment (OOP) screen
• Payment Summary (PS) screen

For dependent Youth Allowance (YA)/ABSTUDY customers who were not in receipt of payment on 8 May 2012, check that payment for the YA/ABSTUDY customer has not been made to the parent by checking the Families One Off Payment task selector (FOPTS) screen on the parent's record.

Has an ETR payment been made?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No, go to Step 3

If necessary, confirm bank account details.

If payment has been made to an incorrect bank account, see Replacing direct credit, New Payments Platform (NPP) or Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) payments at a customer's request.

See ETR Administrative Scheme payments table for rate and payment information.

Has the correct entitlement been paid?

• Yes, and the customer is:
• satisfied with the payment amount, record details on a DOC confirming contact. Procedure ends here
• not satisfied with the amount received, go to Step 8
• No, go to Step 3

Check that the student met eligibility criteria at some time during the 2011-12 financial year.

• Yes, go to Step 4
• No, go to Step 7

In most cases, the student's study can be confirmed by checking the Education Course Details (EDC) screen or their Job Plan.

If they were undertaking secondary study, the EDC screen will display one of the following study levels: PRI, SC1, SC2, SNS, SSN, S07 - S13, UPC

If undertaking secondary equivalent study, confirm that the student:

• had not completed Year 12 or a Certificate II level course - check the Education Status (NES) screen or confirm with the student, and
• was undertaking a course at the Certificate II or lower level - course level details should be on the EDC screen

If the study cannot be verified by information on the student's record, evidence of enrolment is required.

Is evidence required?

• Yes
• If evidence of enrolment has been lodged, go to Step 5
• Otherwise, advise the student to provide evidence of their studies.
  Record the following details on a DOC:
  - who contacted
  - student's name (or if enquiring on behalf of themselves, note 'self')
  - education status (full-time or part-time)
  - payment type received during 2011-12
  - primary or secondary studies
  - if not evident on their record, include start and finish date of study
  - period/s received payment between 1 July 2011 and 30 June 2012
  - calculated amount eligible under ETR Administrative Scheme (if known)
  - evidence required
• Procedure ends here
• No, go to Step 5

Record details on an open DOC. Include keyword ISPETR. Ensure the following details are recorded:

• who contacted
• student's name (or if enquiring on behalf of themselves, note 'Self')
• education status (full-time or part-time)
• payment type received during 2011-12
• primary or secondary studies
• if not evident on the record, include start and finish date of study
• period/s received payment between 1 July 2011 and 30 June 2012
• the administrative scheme category the student has been paid under (for grants)
• the payment amount (for grants)
• if payment is not the full amount, a basic explanation of the rate (for example, paste the summary information from the rate calculator)
• legal authority (for example, Decision made under ETR Payments Administrative Scheme (FaHCSIA) Determination 2012)
• evidence supplied (if applicable)

Leave the DOC open and 'O'ut to region A1E

Note: keywords are imperative for work items to map to the correct area for assessment. Ensure keywords have been added.

Procedure ends here.

For Specialist staff only

The ETR payment is made via the OOP screen.

Determine the correct amount payable

To issue the payment:

• Go to OOP screen
• In Effect date: field:
• for Youth Allowance (YA), ABSTUDY, PES and Special Benefit (SpB) customers, enter the date the payment is being made - 't' for today
• for Pension or Parenting Payment customers, the date of effect must be a date on which the customer was in receipt of payment
• In Payment type: field enter the ETR payment type (AEP)
• Code Source: and DOR: fields, and press Enter
• Go to Assessment Results (AR) screen and confirm payment is being made
• Finalise activity

Close the referral DOC and advise the customer of the outcome.

Has the system been able to calculate the amount payable?

View OOP line on the AR screen.

• Yes, finalise the workflow and advise the customer of the result
• No, use the ETR rate calculator to determine the correct amount payable. See Resources page for a link

Assistance in determining the amount payable

For complex cases, Service Officers should contact Local Peer Support (LPS):

• For PES customers, the team can be contacted directly
• For ABSTUDY customers, the team can be contacted directly
• For YA Jobseekers, discuss with Senior Practitioner or Subject Matter Expert (SME)

Once the correct amount payable has been determined:

• select the OOP line on the AR screen and return to the OOP screen
• enter the correct amount payable to the customer
• finalise the workflow, and
• advise the customer of the result

Possible parent entitlement to ETR payment

If the student was an FTB child in the 2011-12 financial year before receiving an income support payment, it is possible that the parent also has some entitlement to an ETR payment.

Finalise the student's enquiry and check if the parent is entitled to ETR under the Administrative Scheme for FTB customers.

Record details on a DOC.

Ensure the following information is included where applicable:

• who contacted about the ETR payment
• student's name (or if student is enquiring on their own behalf, note 'self')
• education status (full-time or part-time)
• primary or secondary studies
• if not evident on the record, start and finish date of study
• payment type received during 2011-12 financial year
• period received payment between 1 July 2011 and 30 June 2012
• reason ineligible or reason dissatisfied with payment amount received
• legal authority (for example, Decision made under ETR Payments Administrative Scheme (FaHCSIA) Determination 2012)

Does the student disagree with the decision?

• Yes, go to Step 8
• No, procedure ends here

If the student disagrees with the decision, they can request an explanation or apply for a formal review of the decision. See Initial contact about a decision and the review of decision process.

If the customer is advising they would have been eligible for more under the ETR than they have received under the ETP, the customer can provide evidence to support this claim.

These cases will be referred to Level 2 Service Desk and will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis with the Department of Social Services (DSS).