Jensen Healey

Anyone have a handle on childcare costs, particularly day nurseries for a 2 year old? Thinking of Brisbane, but any general info would be useful.

ABCDiamond

Check out the Child Care Benefit to see if you will be eligible for it.

It can reduce actual fees by around 80%.

ABCDiamond

This web site quotes child care costs as:

Child care is expensive, currently costing between AUD$120 and AUD$150 per week per child

That would be before any benefit available.

We were paying about $30 pw, after benefit, 3 years ago.

Jensen Healey

Blimey, I don't call that expensive - we're paying £126 per week for 4 days. If we can get childcare benefit too, that's a massive reduction in our outgoings! Anyone know if the 2 year rule applies to this particular benefit? ISTR seeing somewhere that this one is exempt...

ABCDiamond

Residential requirements are quoted as being the same as Family Tax Benefit. What visa class are you on ?

Jensen Healey

Skilled, Designated Area Sponsored

ABCDiamond

Check out this site:
http://www.familyassist.gov.au/Inter...ChildCare.html

Jensen Healey

Well, it's slightly non-specific, but reading between the lines it looks as if the 2 year rule doesn't apply. Excellent!

Thanks for the pointers.

Jeff.

DianeOZ

I was paying about $115 per week and that was with a 2 child % of about 67%. Now they are both at school it's gone about about $30 for each of them (holiday care that is)

janeyray

But thats in pounds, you can't convert pounds to $'s once you're living here, so $150 might not sound a lot to you, but it is.

I paid $140 for before and after school care (a week). It's $13 for the morning and $16 for the afternoon.

Unlike the UK where you can use a registered childminder, here they are few and far between. If you can find one with vacancies (same goes for childcare centres) then hang onto them for dear life!!

RichS

I live in Sydney.

I have 2 nippers. They are in a day care centre for 3 days, and have family day care for the other 2.

We have a 457 visa

cost is over $25,000 p.a

We get nothing from the govt.

Its one of my pet hates.

ems

My 2 yr old goes to daycare 2 days a week at a cost of $110 per wk. We get minimum child care benefit as the rate you recieve is means tested. Income you earn in the UK before you arrive is counted. The threshold is around $97000 if you earn more then you get minimum rate.

em

ABCDiamond

The 2 year resident rule does NOT apply.
Confirmed today from Centrelink. It is the same rules as Family Tax Benefits (Child Allowance)

Just the income limits for aproved care, but no income test for Registered care. rates and thresholds

Centrelink seem unable to confirm your UK income, so they work purely from your own estimates of UK and OZ incomes. This is then checked with the ATO at the end of the year.

The following temporay visa classes also get it:
309, 310, 447, 451, 785, 786, 820 & 826

desperate2go

I should bloody well think so too !!
Surely you dont think that people who earn 100,000 p.a. should have their childcare paid for too!

ems

doh! did I say i expected people who earn this amount to get benefit, i merely stated the facts

When we applied a few months ago, the rules were that you need to make an estimate of your income if you expect to earn $97000+ in that tax year (including what you earnt in the uk). if you think it will be more then you dont estimate your income as you'll only get the minimum rate. If you underestimate your earnings you do have to pay back benefit which is overpaid.