Non-cash maintenance income assessment for Family Tax Benefit (FTB) 277-51100000

Item

Example

Mortgage payments: Example 1

Mortgage payments - payer pays mortgage

Former family home jointly owned (no property settlement).

Payee lives in home with children.

Payer lives elsewhere and pays full mortgage payment for former family home of $500 per calendar month.

Assessable child support: $250 per calendar month, or $3000 pa.

Mortgage payments: Example 2

Mortgage payments - payee lives in home and payer pays less than 50%  

Former family home jointly owned.

Payee lives in home with children.

Payer lives elsewhere and pays $200 out of the full $500 mortgage payment each month.

Assessable child support = nil.

Payer pays less than 50 per cent of the amount payable.

Mortgage payments: Example 3

Mortgage payments - payer lives in home and pays mortgage

Payer lives in former family home and pays the full mortgage of $500 per month.

As there has been no formal property settlement, home is taken to be jointly owned.

Payee lives at a different address with children.

Assessable child support = nil.

Payee does not live in the home that is being paid for. Payee does not get any direct benefit from the amount paid by the payer.

Mortgage payments: Example 3

Mortgage payments - Separated under one roof  

Former home is jointly owned.

Both parents live in home, separated under one roof.

Customer pays $100 toward the mortgage, the separated partner pays the other $200 of the full $300 payable each week.

Assessable child support for customer = $50 per week.

Do not count the first half of the full amount payable (half of $300 = $150, the partner pays $50 more than this).

Rent: Example 1

Rent - payer pays rent

Customer's previous partner gives customer $150 per week to pay the rent to the real estate agent. A third party owns house.

Assessable child support = $150 per week.

Rent: Example 2

Rent - payer pays part of rent

Gerald gives previous partner, Nancy $100 per week to pay the rent. A third party owns house.

Nancy lives with Julie (grandparent) who pays $50 toward the total rent of $150 per week.

Assessable child support = $100 per week.

Free accommodations: Example 1

Payer owns home and pays no rent  

Previous partner fully owns home after a formal property settlement.

They allow the customer and children to live in the house and do not charge any rent.

The house had been rented for $200 per week up until the customer moved in a week ago.

Assessable child support = the market value rent of the property, which can be taken as $200 per week.

Free accommodation: Example 2

Free accommodation - payer owns property  

Previous partner fully owns a house after a formal property settlement.

They allow the customer and children to live in the main home while the previous partner lives in a separate dwelling on the same property.

A letter from a real estate agent states the total market value of the property is $400 per week, $280 for the main home, $120 for the flat.

Assessable child support = $280 per week.

Item

Example

Sole use of car  

Customer has sole use of a car that is jointly owned with a previous partner. The customer pays all the running expenses, registration, and insurance. The partner has continued to pay loan repayments for the car of $100 per month. The partner has bought another vehicle for their use.

Assessable maintenance = $50 per month.

This is treated the same as other loan repayments. Because the car is jointly owned, only half the loan repayments can be counted. The other half is contributing toward the partner’s interest in the car.

Shared use of car

Debbie shares the use of a car with Bill, the other parent of Jane, Rob, and Carmen. The car is owned outright by the other parent who pays for registration, insurance, ongoing maintenance costs and all petrol.

Debbie states that the use is shared 50/50, and that Bill paid $450 on registration, $130 on insurance, $10 per week to cover ongoing maintenance, and $40 per week for petrol.

Assessable maintenance = half the total amount spent on ongoing maintenance and petrol ($25 per week)

The cost of insurance cannot be counted as it does not directly benefit Debbie. It insures Bill's asset.

The cost of registering the car cannot be counted as Bill has not paid any more to allow Debbie to use the car. He would have registered the car anyway so that he could use it.

Car jointly owned  

Sandra and Tony jointly own a car for which they have a joint loan. Since they separated, Tony has paid the full loan repayments. Tony has had sole use of the car. Sandra tells Services Australia that child support that she is getting is from Tony due to the loan repayments.

Assessable maintenance = nil.

Sandra does not benefit from the amount paid as the car is not available for her to use. Although her share of the asset is being maintained, this is of no direct benefit to Sandra while Tony is wearing the car out.

Item

Example

Customer says that her previous partner pays $150 per month in private health insurance premiums (30% government rebate already taken off)  

This policy covers the payer, his new partner and her two children, and his child now in the customer's care.

Assessable maintenance = nil

It does not cost the payer any more to insure his child from his previous relationship.

Customer says that his previous partner pays $100 per month for basic private insurance that covers the payer, the customer and two children from their relationship now living with the customer  

To insure a single person would cost $60 per month.

Assessable maintenance = $40 per month

This is the extra cost to insure the customer and children in his care.

If the customer and payer shared the care of the two children, only the extra amount paid to insure the customer would count as child support.

Note:  the figures used are example details only.

Item

Example

Carol's separated partner, Ron, pays $150 per calendar month repayment off a loan to give child support for their 3 children, now in Carol's care.

The loan is in both names  and is for an entertainment centre that is in Carol's home.

Assessable child support = $75 per calendar month ($900 pa)

Only assess half the amount paid because the other half is paying off Ron's debt.

As Carol has not yet applied for a Child Support assessment after separating, this child support should be recorded as voluntary child support.

Carol's separated partner, Ron, pays $150 per calendar month repayment off a loan to give child support for their 3 children, now in Carol's care.

The loan is in Ron's name  and is for an entertainment centre that is available for Carol and her children to use.

Assessable child support = nil.

Although Carol has full use of the entertainment centre, the full amount paid is going toward paying off Ron's debt and increasing the value of Ron's asset.

If the loan was in Carol's name only, the full $150 would be assessed as child support.

Carol and Ron have just separated. They have a joint credit card on which they owe $870. Ron has agreed to pay $100 per week off the credit card so that Carol will be able to use the available credit.

Assessable child support = $100 per week.

Even though it is a joint loan, the full amount paid by Ron is treated as child support because Carol has sole ongoing access to the credit.