Family Tax Benefit Part A - child aged 0 to 12 (maximum rate)

What Is This Payment?

Family Tax Benefit Part A is a federal per-child fortnightly payment that helps with the cost of raising children. This rule covers the maximum rate that applies to a child aged 0 to 12, the largest age cohort in the FTB Part A structure. Inside the rule database it is tagged as a monetary primary Federal benefit in the Family Tax Benefit cluster. The entitlement scope is per child rather than per family, which means each qualifying child runs through this rule independently and a family with two children aged 5 and 9 produces two separate $227.36 outputs before any reduction is applied.

The administering body is Services Australia. FTB Part A claims are lodged through myGov linked to a Centrelink online account, at a service centre, or by phone. Payments are made fortnightly into the same bank account used for other Centrelink payments, with families given the choice between fortnightly delivery during the year or a single end-of-year lump sum after the tax return is finalised. The entitlement is reconciled once the actual annual family income is known, so an accurate estimate matters.

This rule is the per-child maximum-rate path for primary-school-age children. The companion 13 to 19 rule pays a higher per-child rate for teenagers in full-time secondary study, and the FTB Part A base rate rule picks up where this rule's $72.94 floor stops, applying the Method 2 taper for higher-income families.

How Much Can You Get?

The amount block is defined as a formula paid fortnightly. The per-child maximum rate is $227.36 per fortnight, which annualises to $5,911.36 over 26 fortnights. The rule note records this as the March 2026 verified Services Australia figure. On top of this fortnightly amount, families also receive the FTB-A Supplement of $938.05 per child per year after the end-of-year balancing step, but the supplement is delivered through a separate annual reconciliation rather than this fortnightly rule.

The income test is a single Method 1 step. When family_income_annual is above $66,722, the per-child fortnightly amount is reduced by $0.0077 for each $1 above the threshold. The conversion is straightforward: 20 cents per year per dollar divided across 26 fortnights gives roughly $0.00769 per fortnight per dollar, rounded to $0.0077 in the YAML. So a family on $80,000 sits $13,278 above the threshold; reduction per fortnight per child is $13,278 multiplied by $0.0077, equal to about $102.24, leaving roughly $125.12 per fortnight per child.

The floor cap is $72.94 per fortnight per child. Once the Method 1 taper drops the per-child amount to this floor, this rule stops reducing further. The rule note explicitly says further reduction is handled by the FTB Part A base rate rule using Method 2. That handoff is also enforced by the eligibility ceiling at $118,771 family income, beyond which the assessment moves entirely to the base rate path.

To audit any estimate produced by this rule, follow five short steps. First, confirm the per-child base of $227.36 for each qualifying child aged 0 to 12. Second, check whether family income is above $66,722; if not, the maximum rate applies in full. Third, compute excess income above $66,722 and multiply by 0.0077 per fortnight. Fourth, subtract the reduction from $227.36 for each child. Fifth, apply the floor cap at $72.94 per fortnight; if the calculated value falls below the floor, replace it with $72.94 and recognise that the base rate rule will take over for any further taper.

The rule stores an empty multiplier and reduces_if, and date_windows is also empty. There are no seasonal modifiers or bonus rates on top of the $227.36 base. The only adjustments that change the outcome are the Method 1 reduction above and the immunisation-related $29.68 per fortnight preprocessing deduction noted in the eligibility comments.

Eligibility Conditions

The eligibility block is an all set, so every item must pass.

1. Dependent children: dependent_children = true. There must be at least one child the family is financially responsible for.
2. Residency status: residency_status in [australian_citizen, permanent_resident, special_category_visa, other_eligible_visa]. Temporary visa holders generally fall outside this list.
3. Presence: living_in_australia = true. Long absences from Australia can suspend FTB Part A through separate portability rules.
4. Care percentage: care_percentage >= 35. Below 35% the carer is not regarded as the FTB carer for that child; between 35% and 65% the entitlement is shared.
5. Child age range: child_age >= 0 and child_age <= 12. Once the child turns 13 the assessment moves to the 13 to 19 rule.
6. Immunisation: child_immunisation_met = true. Children not meeting the National Immunisation Program schedule do not lose eligibility under this rule, but a separate preprocessing layer trims $29.68 per fortnight per child until the schedule is brought up to date.
7. Family income ceiling: family_income_annual < 118,771. Beyond this ceiling the assessment moves to the base rate rule for Method 2.

Required fields for assessment are dependent children, residency status, family income annual, child age, care percentage, living-in-Australia status, and immunisation status. These should all be present before the rule can produce a deterministic per-child amount; missing any one of them puts the result into an unknown state and the system will prompt for the missing value before issuing an estimate.

The exclude block is empty, but the relationship with the FTB Part A base rate rule is enforced by the family income ceiling. A high-income family is not blocked from FTB Part A entirely; the system routes them through the base rate path. A family near $118,771 should not assume their result follows this rule's geometry; it follows the base rate rule's Method 2 conversion math instead.

The care percentage gate is the most commonly misunderstood item. Shared-care families often record an estimate that may not match the arrangement registered with Services Australia. Where care is between 35% and 65%, the per-child amount is split between carers in proportion to recorded care, so an unregistered split can move thousands of dollars per year.

How To Apply

Application metadata defines three channels: online, service centre, and phone. The same FTB claim form covers Part A and Part B, so a family with both eligible streams does not lodge twice. The apply URL is the official Services Australia FTB claim page.

Evidence requirements are explicitly listed in the rule and should be prepared in advance:

• identity document (Centrelink Customer Reference Number where available, plus standard photo identification)
• tax file number (for the claimant and partner where applicable)
• family income estimate for the financial year, which the system uses for fortnightly Method 1 calculation
• proof of children, typically a birth certificate or recognised guardianship document
• immunisation records from the Australian Immunisation Register

Two practical tips help. First, the family income estimate is reconciled at the end of the financial year against the actual ATO-assessed family income, and any over-payment becomes a debt - so a cautious estimate that runs slightly high is safer than an optimistic one. Second, families have a choice between fortnightly delivery during the year or a single end-of-year lump sum after the tax return is finalised; the lump sum option avoids reconciliation surprises entirely and pays out faster than waiting for a debt-and-rebill loop.

Lodge an FTB claim through Services Australia

Rule-Based Scenarios

Scenario 1: low-income family, two primary-school children

Margot is a single parent in regional Victoria with two children aged 6 and 9, both up to date with immunisations, both in 100% care. Annual family income from her part-time wage and a small carer payment supplement is $58,000, well under the $66,722 free area. The per-child rate sits at the full $227.36 per fortnight for each child, giving an FTB Part A maximum-rate component of $454.72 per fortnight or $11,822.72 per year before the FTB-A Supplement of $938.05 per child is added at year-end balancing.

Scenario 2: middle-income family, single qualifying child

Henrik and Renata have one child aged 4 and a combined family income of $90,000. Excess above the $66,722 threshold is $23,278. Method 1 reduction is $23,278 multiplied by $0.0077 per fortnight, equal to $179.24. Subtracting from $227.36 gives a calculated per-fortnight amount of $48.12, which is below the floor of $72.94 - so the rule replaces it with the floor. Their per-child fortnightly amount in this rule is $72.94. Beyond this floor the FTB Part A base rate rule takes over with Method 2 if family income keeps rising.

Scenario 3: shared care, 50/50 arrangement

Tobias has 50% care of his 8-year-old daughter, with his ex-partner taking the other 50%. Family income for Tobias as a single applicant is $62,000, below the threshold. The per-child rate of $227.36 is split with the other carer in proportion to care percentage, so Tobias receives $113.68 per fortnight from this rule for that child. The other carer's rule outcome runs in parallel as a separate household assessment.

Scenario 4: income above the rule ceiling

Vera and her partner earn a combined $130,000 with one child aged 10. Family income is above the $118,771 ceiling, so this rule does not apply. Their assessment is routed to the FTB Part A base rate rule, which uses Method 2 conversion math from the base rate of $72.94 downward. The per-child fortnightly value in their case is calculated by the base rate rule, not by this maximum-rate path.

Common Mistakes

• Reading the per-child rate as per-family: the $227.36 is per child, not the entire FTB Part A entitlement. A family with three eligible children aged 0 to 12 produces three separate $227.36 fortnightly amounts before income reduction, not a single household figure.
• Treating the floor as the bottom: the $72.94 per fortnight floor is the bottom of this rule, not the bottom of FTB Part A overall. The base rate rule continues the taper to zero through Method 2 once a family's income is high enough.
• Mixing up Method 1 and Method 2 thresholds: the income free area in this rule is $66,722 and the rule ceiling is $118,771. A family that uses the wrong threshold or pulls the Method 2 numbers from the base rate rule will produce a misaligned estimate that does not match the Centrelink payment summary.
• Skipping the immunisation field: the rule requires child_immunisation_met = true as an eligibility item rather than as an automatic check. A child who lapses on the National Immunisation Program is not removed from FTB Part A, but a $29.68 per fortnight per child preprocessing deduction is applied; ignoring this field can over-estimate fortnightly cashflow.
• Forgetting the FTB-A Supplement at year-end: the $938.05 per child supplement is a year-end lump sum after balancing, not part of the fortnightly $227.36. Counting the supplement inside the fortnightly rate inflates the per-pay calculation by about $36 per fortnight per child.
• Estimating income too optimistically: a low income estimate produces high fortnightly payments, but the year-end reconciliation generates a debt for the difference. Building the estimate around realistic ATO-assessable income avoids that retrospective debt-and-rebill loop.

Related Benefits

This rule sits inside the Family Tax Benefit cluster, with strong forward and backward links to other family payments and concession cards. Use these links to navigate the surrounding rules.

• Family Tax Benefit Part A - child aged 13 to 19 (maximum rate) - the sibling rule that takes over once a child turns 13, with a higher per-child base.
• Family Tax Benefit Part A - base rate (higher income families) - the rule the assessment moves to once family income reaches $118,771 or the per-child taper hits the $72.94 floor.
• Family Tax Benefit Part B - youngest child under 5 - companion per-family payment for single-income households with a young child.
• Family Tax Benefit Part B - youngest child aged 5 to 18 - companion per-family payment for older youngest children.
• Newborn Upfront Payment and Newborn Supplement - one-off payment that attaches to FTB Part A for a new child.
• Health Care Card (HCC) - auto-issued with qualifying payments - automatic concession card that follows FTB Part A receipt above base rate.

Frequently Asked Questions