EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Child Care Benefit (Receipts) Rules 2000
Summary
These rules are made under subsection 219E(2) of the A New Tax System (Family Assistance) (Administration) Act 1999 (the Administration Act). Section 219E was inserted by item 61 of Schedule 2 to the A New Tax System (Family Assistance and Related Measures) Act 2000.
The purpose of these rules is to set out information to be contained in receipts, and to specify to whom receipts should be given, for the purposes of child care benefit (CCB).
Background
The A New Tax System (Family Assistance) Act 1999 (the Family Assistance Act) introduced CCB, which is a payment towards a family’s child care costs. One way in which payment of CCB may be made is by ongoing reductions of child care fees. When an individual is eligible for CCB, the child care service caring for the individual’s child will reduce the fees that the individual is liable to pay. The difference is then paid to the child care service by the Secretary. When a child care service reduces fees in this way, it is required under section 219E of the Administration Act to issue receipts to the individual, setting out the amount actually paid and the amount of the reduction, and any other information specified in rules made by the Secretary.
Subsection 219E(2) of the Administration Act provides that the Secretary may make rules regarding the issuing of receipts.
Explanation of the provisions
Part 1
Section 1 of the rules states the name of the rules, and section 2 states that the rules commence on 1 July 2000, which is the date that the CCB provisions of the Family Assistance Act will begin to operate. Section 3 contains interpretation provisions.
Part 2
Section 4 provides that receipts should be given to the person who has paid reduced child care fees. However receipts are not required in cases where the rate of CCB has been increased because the child has been determined to be at risk of serious abuse or neglect.
Section 5 lists various types of information to be contained in receipts. These items are in addition to the requirement in the Administration Act to set out the amount paid and the amount of the fee reduction. The items are:
the name of the child care service and the signature of the person issuing the receipt;
the name of the person to whom the receipt was issued (this may not be the person who is eligible for CCB, if someone else paid the fees on that person’s behalf);
the service’s ABN (Australian Business Number), if it has one;
the name of the child concerned;
the period for which payment is made;
the receipt number and date of issue;
the number of days during the current financial year on which the child has been absent from the service on a “permitted absence day” (under subsection 10(3) of the Family Assistance Act, a child may be absent from the service, without affecting entitlement to CCB, for a limited number of “permitted absence days” in a financial year).