How much can I claim?
I care for a child full time
You can claim the Education Tax Refund (ETR) each financial year for a child who meets the schooling requirement.
Maximum claimable amounts
You can claim 50% of eligible education expenses up to the maximum amounts. For the 2010–11 financial year, the maximum amounts are:
- $794 for each primary school child. You can claim a maximum refund of $397 for each primary school child you have, and
- $1,588 for each secondary school child. You can claim a maximum refund of $794 for each secondary school child.
If you care for a child full time and are eligible to claim the ETR, you can claim the full maximum claimable amounts for each of your children who meet the schooling requirement.
Please note the maximum claimable amount increases each year by the Consumer Price Index. You can claim 50% of eligible education expenses up to the maximum amounts.
I share the care of a child
If you are eligible, you can claim the ETR each financial year for children in your care who meet the schooling requirement.
The ETR entitles you to claim 50% of eligible education expenses up to the maximum claimable amounts. For the 2010–11 financial year, the maximum amounts are:
- $794 for each primary school child. You can claim a maximum refund of $397 for each primary school child you have, and
- $1,588 for each secondary school child. You can claim a maximum refund of $794 for each secondary school child.
If you share care of a child, the amount you can claim under the ETR depends on your share of the shared care percentage for Family Tax Benefit (FTB) Part A for that child.
If you share the care of a child with someone who is not your current partner and a payment was made for that child that prevented you receiving FTB Part A, you will need to calculate your ETR based on the percentage of nights during the year that the child was in your care.
An ETR calculator is available to help you calculate your refund. You will also find some examples in the FAQs and examples.
I am an independent primary or secondary student
If you are eligible, you can claim the ETR for each financial year that you meet the schooling requirement.
For the 2010–11 income year, you can claim up to $1,588 of your eligible education expenses. The maximum refund you can claim is $794.
Rolling over excess eligible expenses
If you spend more than the maximum claimable amount in one financial year, you can claim the excess eligible education expenses the following year. If you do not claim eligible expenses within two financial years, you cannot claim them later.
Example
Lachlan is in year 10 and in January 2011 his parents bought a computer, a printer and educational software for his study, totalling $2,000. Lachlan also attended school the year before so he satisfies the schooling requirement for the whole of the 2010–11 financial year.
Lachlan’s father Robert gets FTB Part A, so he is eligible to make a claim for the whole of the income year. To determine his excess eligible education expenses for the current year, Robert works out that 50% of the eligible education expenses is $1,000. He compares the amount to the refund limit he can claim ($794 for a secondary school student ). He has an excess of $206.
Robert would double the excess ($412) to restore it to the original expense value.
Assuming Robert and Lachlan still meet the eligibility and schooling requirements for the ETR in the following financial year, Robert can include the $412 of expenses in the following year when calculating his refund entitlement for that year.