Family Tax Benefit Eligibility: Part A, Part B, and Care Tests

Family Tax Benefit eligibility rests on four tests: you must be an Australian resident or hold a qualifying visa, provide at least 35% of a child’s care, have a child of the right age, and have family income below the relevant thresholds. Part A is paid per child based on family income. Part B gives extra help to single parents and to couples where one partner earns most of the household income. You can qualify for one, both, or neither depending on how these tests line up.

Residency and Visa Requirements

You need to be an Australian resident or hold a qualifying visa. That covers New Zealand citizens on a Special Category visa living in Australia, plus holders of certain provisional and temporary visas that qualify for Special Benefit, including Partner (Provisional) subclass 309, Partner subclass 820, Temporary Protection subclass 785, and Safe Haven Enterprise subclass 790. Workers in the Pacific Australian Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme on a subclass 403 visa who have been approved to bring family members to Australia can also qualify.¹

The 35% Care Test

You must provide at least 35% of the child’s care, which works out to roughly 128 nights per year. When two or more adults share care, each person who meets the 35% threshold can receive a share of FTB in proportion to their care percentage.² If your care drops below 35%, you lose eligibility entirely, no matter your income or other circumstances.

Which Children Qualify

For Part A, the child must be either under 16, or aged 16 to 19 and meeting study requirements. Those study requirements mean the child is in full-time secondary study, has an acceptable study load, or has received an exemption from Services Australia.³

Part B uses different age limits depending on your family situation. If you’re part of a couple, the youngest child must be under 13. If you’re a single parent or grandparent carer, the child can be up to 18, though children aged 16 to 18 must meet the same study requirements as Part A.⁴ That gap between couples and single parents is one of the most commonly misunderstood parts of Part B eligibility.

Income Limits for Part A

Part A uses a two-stage income test. If your family’s adjusted taxable income is $66,722 or less, you qualify for the maximum rate. Between $66,722 and $118,771, the payment reduces by 20 cents for every dollar over $66,722 until it reaches the base rate. Above $118,771, a steeper taper of 30 cents per dollar applies, and the payment keeps reducing until it hits zero.⁵

Where your Part A cuts out depends on the number and ages of your children. A family with one child under 13 loses all Part A once income reaches $125,110, while a family with three children under 13 can receive some payment up to $143,348.⁵ The base rate that Part A won’t fall below (until the second taper kicks in) is $1,901.65 per child per year for the 2025–26 financial year.⁶

Income Limits for Part B

For couples, the primary earner’s income must be $120,007 or less. If it exceeds that, the family gets no Part B at all. Below that threshold, the secondary earner can earn up to $6,935 before payments start reducing. Above $6,935, the payment drops by 20 cents for every dollar of the secondary earner’s income over that amount.⁷

Single parents get the maximum Part B rate as long as their income stays at or below $120,007.⁷ There’s no secondary earner test for single parents because there is no second earner.

What Counts as Income

Both tests use adjusted taxable income (ATI), which goes well beyond your salary. ATI adds together your taxable income, adjusted fringe benefits, target foreign income, total net investment losses, tax-free pensions or benefits, and reportable superannuation contributions, then subtracts deductible child maintenance expenditure.⁸ For couples, both partners’ ATI figures are combined.

This broader definition picks up income that doesn’t show on a standard tax return. Salary sacrificed super, employer fringe benefits, and rental property losses all factor into your ATI even when they reduce your taxable income. Underestimating ATI is one of the most common reasons families end up with an overpayment debt at reconciliation.

Child Support Effects on Part A

If you receive child support, a separate maintenance income test can reduce your Part A. Services Australia reduces Part A by 50 cents for every dollar of child support you receive (or are entitled to receive) above the Maintenance Income Free Area. The reduction can’t push Part A below the base rate, but it stacks on top of the regular income test.⁹

One detail trips up many parents. If you collect child support privately rather than through Services Australia, the system assumes you receive the full assessed amount regardless of what actually comes in. If the other parent underpays, you can’t get a higher FTB to compensate.⁹

Immunisation and Health Check Requirements

Even when you clear the residency, care, age, and income tests, your Part A rate can be cut if immunisation and health check conditions aren’t met. Children must meet immunisation requirements for you to receive the full Part A rate. If your child’s vaccinations are not up to date, Part A may be reduced.⁶

A separate Healthy Start for School health check applies to children turning four. If the check isn’t completed by the child’s fifth birthday, Part A can reduce by up to $35.28 per fortnight, starting on that birthday and continuing for up to 26 fortnights. That adds up to over $900 in lost payments, and because it’s a fortnightly rate reduction rather than a supplement withholding, the money is lost rather than delayed.¹⁰

1
Department of Social Services. Family Assistance Guide – 2.1.2.10 Residence Requirements
2
Department of Social Services. Family Assistance Guide – 2.1.1.20 Shared Care and Change of Care Summary
3
Services Australia. Family Tax Benefit Part A Eligibility
4
Services Australia. Family Tax Benefit Part B Eligibility
5
Services Australia. Income Test for Family Tax Benefit Part A
6
Department of Social Services. Family Assistance Guide – 3.1.1.20 Current FTB Rates and Income Test Amounts
7
Services Australia. Income Test for Family Tax Benefit Part B
8
Department of Social Services. Family Assistance Guide – 3.2.1 Adjusted Taxable Income – General Provisions
9
Services Australia. How Child Support Affects FTB Part A Payment Rates
10
Services Australia. Healthy Start for School Health Check