Am I eligible?
I care for a child
You can claim the Education Tax Refund (ETR) if you had eligible education expenses during the financial year for a child who meets the schooling requirement, and:
- you received Family Tax Benefit (FTB) Part A for the child
or
- a payment was made for the child which prevented you from receiving FTB Part A,
or
- your child stopped full-time school during the year and received income over the cut-out amount which prevented you from receiving FTB Part A for the child.
Payments that prevent you from receiving FTB Part A, but which still entitle you to receive the ETR include:
- Youth Allowance
- Disability Support Pension
- ABSTUDY Living Allowance
- the Veterans’ Children Education Scheme
- Student Financial Supplement Scheme, and
- the scheme to provide education and training under s258 of the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004.
You can claim the ETR even if you are not required to lodge a tax return. For more information, see How do I claim?
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I am an independent student
You can claim the ETR if you had eligible education expenses during the financial year and you:
- received a social security pension or benefit, a labour market program payment or a prescribed educational scheme payment including:
- Youth Allowance
- ABSTUDY Living Allowance
- Veterans’ Children Education Scheme and payments under the scheme to provide education and training under section 258 of the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004, or
- a disability support pension
and, you:
- were an independent person for the purpose of the payment
- met the schooling requirement
- were under 25 years of age
- were an Australian resident (within the meaning of the Social Security Act 1991) or a special category visa holder (within the meaning of the Migration Act 1958), and
- lived in Australia.
You can claim the ETR even if you are not required to lodge a tax return. For more information, see How do I claim?
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What is the schooling requirement?
For the purposes of the ETR, in order to meet the schooling requirement a child or independent student must be:
- registered or enrolled in a primary or secondary school course provided at an educational institution such as a school or TAFE (secondary school study only)
or
- registered or enrolled with the education authority of their state or territory as a home schooled student,
or
- registered or enrolled in a course of study or instruction which the Minister administering the Student Assistance Act 1973 determines that the ETR applies for.
They also must have attended the course of study or instruction, or received home schooling for at least one day in a six-month period, commencing from 1 July or 1 January.
Even if a child only meets the schooling requirement for part of the year you can still claim for that period. This also applies to independent students.
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What is family tax benefit (FTB) Part A?
FTB Part A is designed to help with the cost of raising children. It is paid to a parent, guardian, carer (including foster carer), eligible grandparent or approved care organisation.
To be eligible for family tax benefit (FTB) Part A you must:
- have a dependent child aged under 21,
or
- have a dependent full-time student aged 21 to 24,
and
- have care of that child for 35 per cent of the time or more,
and
- meet residential requirements,
and
- have income under a certain amount (this amount varies depending on number and age of children).
A child or student cannot be a dependant if they:
- receive a pension or benefit
- receive a labour market program payment
- are aged 5 to 15, not studying full-time and their annual income is $12,742 or more
- are aged 16 to 24 and their annual income is $12,742 or more
- are aged 16 to 24 and receiving a prescribed education scheme payment such as ABSTUDY, or
- are aged 21 to 24 and not studying full-time.
If you are unsure if you received FTB Part A or are eligible to receive it you should contact the Family Assistance Office (FAO).
You can contact the FAO by any of the following means.
- Visit the FAO website at www.familyassist.gov.au
- Phone the FAO on 13 61 50 between 8.00am and 8.00pm (local time), Monday to Friday.
- Visit your nearest FAO. Offices are located in Medicare offices and Centrelink customer service centres.
- Phone 13 12 02 if you do not speak English well.
- Use the teletypewriter (TTY) service on 1800 810 586 (this service is only available via a teletypewriter machine) if you have a hearing or speech impairment.
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