What is Family Boost?
Family Boost is a childcare payment designed to assist eligible households in covering the cost of early childhood education (ECE). If you’re eligible, you can claim up to 25% of your weekly childcare fees, with a maximum of $975 every three months. Childcare fees can include optional charges and services. However, claims are made for the household, not for each individual child.
Claim Periods for Family Boost
Family Boost can be claimed for the following quarters:
– July to September
– October to December
– January to March
– April to June
Eligibility Criteria
Your eligibility for Family Boost depends on your caregiving situation, household income, and the type of childcare you pay for. You may be eligible if:
– You are the caregiver of a child or children aged 5 and under.
– Your household income is less than $180,000 per year.
– You have costs from a licensed early childhood education (ECE) provider.
– You are a tax resident of New Zealand.
To check if your ECE provider is licensed, visit https://www.educationcounts.govt.nz
Care Arrangements
Separated caregivers or caregivers living in separate households can claim Family Boost if they:
– Have some day-to-day care of the child or children.
– Have costs for ECE.
– Provide separate invoices.
Income Used for Family Boost
The income used to calculate your eligibility includes:
– Salary and wages: Household income will be based on your income information.
– Self-employment: Household income will be based on your tax return. Overdue income tax returns must be filed before you can claim Family Boost.
There will be no change to your claim if your income is different at the end of the year.
Receiving Payments from MSD and Other Subsidies
You can claim Family Boost if you receive payments from the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) and have ECE costs for a child in your household. If you receive other childcare subsidies and have additional costs, you can still claim Family Boost for those extra expenses not covered by the subsidies, such as the Childcare Subsidy from Work and Income.
How to Register and Claim Family Boost
Registering
To claim Family Boost, you will need to register in myIR. Registration opens in mid-September 2024. You will need:
– A myIR login.
– An IRD number for each child attending early childhood education (ECE).
– Your bank information.
– Your partner’s details.
If you don’t have a myIR account, you will need to create one. Register for a personal myIR account
https://www.ird.govt.nz/register
Claiming
From 1 July 2024, start saving copies of invoices from your ECE provider. These should be saved as an image or PDF file. If your children attend different ECE providers, you will need invoices from each provider.
You can submit your claim for Family Boost from 1 October 2024. You will need to make a new claim for each three-month period.
