EXPLANATORY STATEMENT

Child Care Benefit (Work/Training/Study Test Exemption) Amendment Determination 2009 (No. 1)

Summary

The Child Care Benefit (Work/Training/Study Test Exemption) Amendment Determination 2009 (No. 1) (the Amendment Determination) is made by the Minister for Education and Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations under subsection 14 (2) of the A New Tax System (Family Assistance) Act 1999 (the Family Assistance Act).

The purpose of the Amendment Determination is to amend the Child Care Benefit (Work/Training/Study Test Exemption) Determination 2000 (the Principal Determination) to incorporate amendments to the family assistance law made by the Same-Sex Relationships (Equal Treatment in Commonwealth Laws – General Law Reform) Act 2008 (the Same-Sex Act) to eliminate discrimination against same-sex couples and the children of same-sex relationships in Commonwealth legislation.

Background

Subdivision G of Division 4 of Part 3 of the Family Assistance Act includes provisions relevant to working out the number of hours of child care provided in a week by an approved child care service to a child, for which an individual is eligible for child care benefit.  A limit of 24 hours applies in a week to claimants for child care benefit by fee reductions, and to claimants for child care benefit for a past period, if a weekly limit of up to 50 hours does not apply (subsection 53 (3) of the Family Assistance Act).  A weekly limit of up to 50 hours applies to such a claimant if both the claimant and claimant’s partner satisfy, at some time in the week, the work/training/study test (subsection 54 (2) of the Family Assistance Act). A person satisfies the work/training/study test if the person meets the requirements specified in subsection 14 (1) of the Family Assistance Act of having recognised work, work-related study or training commitment.

Subsection 14 (2) of the Family Assistance Act authorises the Minister to determine a class of person to be exempt from the requirements of the work/training/study test. Subsection 14 (3) provides that an individual included in the exempt class is taken to satisfy the test while the determination is in force.

Currently, the Principal Determination exempts grandparents with grandchildren in their care from the work/training/study test.  For the purposes of determining whether a person is a grandparent or great grandparent of another person, the following relationships are treated in the Principal Determination as if they were the biological child-parent relationships:

• the relationship between an adopted child and his or her adoptive parent; and
• the relationship between a step child and his or her step parent.

This Amending Determination provides for an additional category of relationship for the purposes of the above provision, namely, the relationship between a relationship child and his or her relationship parent.

Explanation of provisions

Amendment Determination

Section 1 provides that the name of the Amendment Determination is the Child Care Benefit (Work/Training/Study Test Exemption) Amendment Determination 2009 (No.1).

Section 2 states that the Amendment Determination commences on the day after it is registered.

Section 3 provides that the Principal Determination is amended as set out in Schedule 1 to the Amendment Determination.

Schedule 1 to the Amendment Determination

Item 1 inserts the words ‘the relationship between a relationship child and his or her relationship parent’ as a new paragraph (c) in subsection 5(3) of the Principal Determination.  

The Same-Sex Act extends the definition of parent to include the additional term, ‘relationship parent’ and extends the definition of child to include ‘relationship child’. A person is a relationship parent to a child who is not a biological or adopted child of the person and who is the product of a relationship the person has had as a couple with another person, whether of the same sex or a different sex. The child must be the biological child of at least one of the persons in the relationship or have been born to a woman in the relationship.  

Formal matters

Consultation

The Amendment Determination ensures existing guidelines are consistent with amendments to Commonwealth primary legislation made by the Same-Sex Act, and are consequential to those amendments. No public consultation was considered necessary.

Regulatory Impact Statement

The Amendment Determination does not require a Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS) nor a Business Cost Calculator Figure. The Amendment Determination is not regulatory in nature, will not impact on business activity and will have no compliance costs or competition impact.

Authority

Subsection  14 (2)  of the A New Tax System (Family Assistance) Act 1999. No preconditions need to be satisfied for the making of this instrument.