Breaks from caring

To continue getting Carer Payment, you must tell us within 14 days if you’re taking a break or if the person you care for goes into hospital.

Taking a respite break

You can have up to 63 days of respite each calendar year without your payment stopping. A calendar year is from 1 January until 31 December.

You can use these days for anything, including a holiday or simply a break from caring. If the person you care for is hospitalised and over the age of 16, you can use hospitalisation days. These are different to respite days.

While you’re having a break, the person getting care can either be:

• in formal respite care, at home, or elsewhere
• looked after by a friend, neighbour or family member.

If you have exceptional circumstances and may need a longer break, you can speak to us about your situation.

You can contact us by either:

• booking a phone or face to face appointment
• calling our Disability, sickness and carers line.

You can also visit a service centre to see what we can do.

If the person getting care goes into hospital and they’re younger than 16 years

We’ll keep paying you Carer Payment if the child getting care goes into hospital. You will not have to use any respite days as long as both of the following apply. You:

• keep caring for them throughout their hospital stay, providing any support they may need while in hospital
• plan to still provide care for them at home when they leave hospital.

We’ll check back with you if they’ve been in hospital for more than 12 weeks.

If you don’t provide care for the person while they are in hospital, you can use your respite days to keep getting your payment.

If the person getting care goes into hospital and they’re 16 years or older

We’ll keep paying you Carer Payment for up to 63 days in a calendar year. These 63 hospitalisation days are different to the 63 days of respite.

You’re eligible if the person you provide care for is in hospital and both of the following apply. You:

• keep caring for them throughout their hospital stay, providing any support they may need while in hospital
• plan to still provide care for them at home when they leave hospital.

Tell us if the person getting care is in hospital for more than 63 days in a year. We may be able to still pay you by using some of your respite days.

If you don’t provide care for the person while they are in hospital, you can still use your respite days.

How to tell us

You must tell us within 14 days if you take a break from caring, or the person you care for is in hospital.

If your Centrelink online account is linked to myGov, you can sign in and select View/Update Absence from Care to tell us about changes to your circumstances.

Sign in to myGov

If you don’t have a myGov account or a Centrelink online account you can create them.

You can also tell us by:

• booking a phone or face to face appointment
• calling our Disability, sickness and carers line
• visiting a service centre.