Eligibility for Carer Payment (CP) and/or Carer Allowance (CA) 009-04030000

To be eligible for CP the carer and care receiver must meet certain rules.

The carer must:

• be personally providing constant care to:
• an adult with a qualifying Adult Disability Assessment Tool (ADAT) score, or
• a child/children with a qualifying Disability Care Load Assessment (child) Determination (DCLAD) score
• provide the care in the private home of the care receiver
• must meet the 100 hour work limit
• satisfy the residence requirements
• meet the pensions income and assets test

The care receiver must:

• have disability or medical condition likely to last at least 6 months, or have a terminal illness
• need constant care in their private home
• achieve a qualifying ADAT score or qualifying DCLAD score
• satisfy the residence requirements
• meet the Care Receiver Income and Assets (CRIA) test

Note: the carer is not required to live with the care receiver.

In different situations carers can be eligible for CP when caring for a child/children, even when they may not qualify under the standard eligibility. These include:

• Short term care
• Episodic care
• Combined care
• Multiple care
• Exchanged care

The level of carer required may mean the care receiver qualify 2 or more carers for CP. Specific eligibility criteria apply, see Carer Payment (CP) for 2 or more carers in respect of the same care receiver.

Wife Pension customers who were getting payment level Carer Allowance on 19 March 2020 qualify for CP (XWP) under grandfathering provisions as long as payment level CA continues without a break. They are not required to satisfy the normal CP requirements . See Transfer from Wife Pension (WP) to Carer Payment (CP).

CA can be paid in addition to wages and/or an income support payment, including CP, for:

• a maximum of 2 qualifying adult care receivers, and/or
• each qualifying dependent child. There is no maximum number of child care receivers

To be eligible for CA the carer and care receiver must meet certain rules.

The carer must:

• be providing daily care and attention to:
• an adult with a qualifying ADAT score, or
• a child/children with a qualifying DCLAD score
• provide the care in:
• the private home of the carer and/or care receiver for an adult care receiver, or
• the shared private home of the carer and/or care receiver for a child care receiver
• satisfy the residence requirements
• have income below the CA income test

Note: the carer and their adult care receiver do not need to live together.

The care receiver must:

• have a disability, medical condition or be frail aged, which is likely to last for at least 12 months
• if an adult:
• achieve a qualifying ADAT score
• need daily care and attention in their, or their carer’s, private home
• if a child:
• achieve a qualifying DCLAD score
• be the dependent child of the care receiver
• need daily care and attention in the shared private home of them and their carer

Eligibility for CA (child) can be either a:

• fortnightly CA payment and a CA Health Care Card (HCC), or
• CA HCC only

In different situations carers may still be eligible for CA when caring for a child care receiver, even where they may not qualify under the standard eligibility. This includes:

• CA HCC only, if:
• the care receiver is a dependent child of the carer
• the carer receiver required a level of care and attention, which is substantially more than the needs of a child of the same age
• the medical condition or disability is likely to last for at least 12 months
• the carer satisfies the CA income test
• CA (auto), which is payable for each child care receiver the carer receives CP for

CA can be shared by 2 carers who:

• are not members of the same couple, and
• share the care for the same care receiver/s

See Shared care for Carer Allowance (CA).