Carer Supplement (CS) 009-07010000

CS helps carers with the costs of caring for a person with a disability or medical condition. CS is an annual payment made in July of up to $600, to carers who are receiving:

• Carer Payment (CP)
• Carer Allowance (CA)
• Carer Payment (CP) (XWP)
• Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA) Partner Service Pension with CA, or
• DVA Carer Service Pension

Carers in receipt of a CA Health Care Card (HCC) only on 1 July are not entitled to CS.

Payment is based on a carer having 'received' an instalment of an identified 'qualifying' payment, such as CP or CA, for a period that covers 1 July of that year. It cannot be paid until payment of the qualifying payment is made. However, carers who receive a qualifying payment component (such as CP) and the CA component will receive both payments on the same day.

The amount of CS paid to customers receiving CA is up to $600 per care receiver (or a percentage of $600 if there is a shared care arrangement).

Carers in receipt of a CA Health Care Card (HCC) only (for child care receivers) on 1 July are not entitled to CS.

Note: Customers receiving CA HCC only still have a status of CDA/CUR.

If payment of CP or CA is granted after 1 January and backdated to a date that includes 1 July, the CS will not be automatically generated. It must be paid manually.

A carer may receive more than one component of CS. For example, a carer caring for:

• one person and receives both CP and CA, qualifies for 2 payments of CS, or
• 2 people and receives CP and 2 CA payments, qualifies for 3 payments of CS

CA customers who are in a shared care arrangement receive either the full rate of CS or a proportion of the CS payment. Customers who receive the full rate of CA will receive the full $600 of CS (even if their share of care is below 100%).

CA customers who receive a part-rate are paid a similar proportion of CS. For example, if Carer 1 receives 50% of CA (as they share the CA payment with Carer 2), Carer 1 will receive 50% of CS. If Carer 2 is granted CP for a date on or before 1 July but after Carer 1 receives their CS, Carer 2 will still be entitled to receive CS. That is, Carer 2 will be entitled to receive CS, even if Carer 1 has already received it.

Carers in receipt of a qualifying income support payment who have their payment reduced to a nil rate for a period that includes 1 July are eligible to receive CS. See the Resources page for payments that attract CS and when the payment will be made.

On the death of a care receiver, carers in receipt of:

• CP will qualify for CS if they were in receipt of CP or a CP bereavement payment during the period that includes 1 July. In this situation, CS is paid after 1 July
• CA (child) qualify for CS where CA (child) is paid as a lump sum under the 14 week bereavement provisions if the lump sum payment is paid for a period that includes 1 July. In this situation, CS is paid after 1 July
• CA (adult) qualify for CS if they receive a CA Bereavement Payment during the bereavement period that includes 1 July. This initiative commenced on 1 July 2012, so payment of CS only applies if the care receiver's date of death is after 1 July 2012 and is not, therefore, payable for the 1 July 2012 year. In this situation CS is paid with the CA Bereavement Payment

If there was a shared care arrangement, the rate of payment of CS during the bereavement period that includes 1 July will be in the same proportion as for the rate of CA that was previously paid.

CDAP is an annual payment of $1,000 for carers who receive CA (child) for a period that includes 1 July. Customers can receive both CDAP and CS. Eligibility for CDAP is separate to eligibility for CS.