Community Housing information bulletin
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Community Housing information bulletin – April 2009
Rent assessment of the Australian Government’s one-off Stimulus Package Bonus Payments
As part of the Australian Government’s $42 billion Nation Building – Economic Stimulus Plan, announced on 13 February 2009, bonus payments will be paid to low and middle income households. Households may be eligible for more than one bonus payment. These payments will be made by Centrelink and the Australian Taxation Office.
Providers which are required to follow the Community Housing Rent Policy should ensure the Government’s one-off Stimulus package bonus payments are not included in rent or income eligibility assessments.
Centrelink¹ payments include:
| Payment | Who will get it? | How much? |
|---|---|---|
| Single Income Family Bonus | Recipients of Family Tax Benefit Part B | $900 per family |
| Back to School Bonus | Recipients of Family Tax Benefit Part A with a child aged 4-18 years old (inclusive) | $950 per eligible child |
| Recipients of Carer Payment or Disability Support Pension, who on 3 February 2009 were aged less than 19 years old | $950 | |
| Farmer’s Hardship Payment | Recipients of:
|
$950 |
| One-off Training and Learning Bonus | Recipients of:
|
$950 |
| One-off Training and Learning Bonus - Family Tax Benefit | Recipients of Family Tax Benefit Part A with a child aged 21-24 years (inclusive) who is a full-time student | $950 |
| Education Entry Payment (EdEP) Temporary Supplement | People who would normally qualify for Education Entry Payment, plus Youth Allowance recipients looking for work. (The requirement for people to be receiving a payment for 12 months before being eligible for the Education Entry Payment has been reduced to 4 weeks.) |
$950 - in addition to the existing EdEP of $208 |
The Australian Taxation Office will also make payments to low and middle income households of up to $900 for eligible households who have lodged a tax return in 2007-08. These payments should not be included for rent assessment or income eligibility purposes. The payments include:
- a $900 bonus for people with a taxable income up to and including $80,000
- a $600 bonus for people with a taxable income exceeding $80,000 but not exceeding $90,000
- a $250 bonus for people with a taxable income exceeding $90,000 but not exceeding $100,000.²
More information: For further information about the Stimulus Package Bonus Payments, please refer to the Commonwealth Treasurer's website, the Centrelink website or the Australian Taxation Office website.
¹ Centrelink 'Household Stimulus Package', Australian Government Centrelink 25/03/2009.
² Australian Taxation Office 'Tax bonus payment', Australian Government www.ato.gov.au 25/03/2009, pg 2.
Last updated 17 April 2009
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