Transfer Payments

• Increase in the Child Care Rebate rate (November 2007): The Government has improved child care assistance, by increasing the Child Care Rebate from 30 to 50 per cent of out-of-pocket costs.
• Secure and Sustainable Pension Reforms (2009-10 Budget): The Government delivered an historic increase in pension rates, strengthened indexation of the pension so it keeps up with pensioners' cost of living, introduced a new Work Bonus to reward Age Pensioners who do some part-time work, and announced a gradual increase in the pension age from 65 to 67 years.
• Introduction of the national Paid Parental Leave scheme and the national Paid Paternity Leave scheme (2009-10 Budget and August 2010): The Government is giving more parents the financial security to stay at home during their babies' vital early months while maintaining a connection to their workplaces, by providing eligible parents with up to 18 weeks of leave paid at the rate of the federal minimum wage. The Government is also providing eligible working fathers, or other partners providing full-time care or sharing their baby's care, with up to two weeks of paternity leave paid at the rate of the federal minimum wage.
• Building Australia's Future Workforce (2011-12 Budget): The Building Australia's Future Workforce package contained a number of measures to promote participation through rewards, opportunities and responsibilities. These included:
  • Decrease in the taper rate of the Newstart Allowance for single principal carers (2011-12 Budget): The Government will improve participation incentives for single parents, by decreasing the taper rate of Newstart Allowance for single principal carers from 50 or 60 per cent to 40 per cent, enabling these parents to earn almost $400 extra per fortnight before they lose eligibility for at least some income support. [Consistent with recommendation 85 of the tax review.]
  • Increase in the income-free area for Youth Allowance (Other) (2011-12 Budget): The Government will improve participation incentives for young people, by increasing the amount of income that all young people on Youth Allowance (Other) can earn by increasing the income-free amount from $62 to $143 a fortnight before taper rates start to apply.
  • Increase in Family Tax Benefit Part A for 16 to 19 year olds (August 2010): The Government will improve support for families with children in full-time school or training, and better reflect the cost of raising children, by increasing the rate of Family Tax Benefit Part A for 16 to 19 year olds in full-time secondary study to match that for 13 to 15 year olds. [Consistent with recommendation 91(a) of the tax review.]
  • Increase in the number of hours that people on the Disability Support Pension can work (2011-12 Budget): The Government will improve participation incentives for people with a disability, by increasing the number of hours that a person on the Disability Support Pension can work and retain access to their pension from 15 to 30 hours per week. [Consistent with recommendation 86 of the tax review.]
  • Reduction in the age of the youngest child at which parents who were eligible for the Parenting Payment prior to 1 July 2006 lose eligibility (2011-12 Budget): The Government will better align the treatment of different recipients and make the system fairer by reducing the age of the youngest child at which people who were eligible for the Parenting Payment prior to 1 July 2006 lose eligibility for those payments, from 16 to 12 years. [Consistent with recommendation 85 of the tax review.]
  • Better alignment between Family Tax Benefit Part A and Youth Allowance (2011-12 Budget): The Government will provide greater consistency between family payments and Youth Allowance, by aligning the eligibility age for Family Tax Benefit Part A with the age of independence for Youth Allowance. [Consistent with recommendation 98 of the tax review.]