{"id":1733,"date":"2012-02-04T05:35:37","date_gmt":"2012-02-03T19:35:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.philippinesentinel.org\/?p=1733"},"modified":"2012-02-04T05:35:37","modified_gmt":"2012-02-03T19:35:37","slug":"extra-help-for-families-with-teenagers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.philippinesentinel.org\/?p=1733","title":{"rendered":"Extra help for families with teenagers"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>From 01 January 2012, eligible families with teenagers aged 16 to 19 will get  a boost to their family payments of to up to $4,208 per teenager, if their child stays in school or a vocational training equivalent.<\/p>\n<p>This increase will bring the maximum rate of Family Tax Benefit Part A for eligible teenagers to $6,307 a year.<!--more--> <\/p>\n<p>Prime Minister Julia Gillard and Minister for Families Jenny Macklin met with the Huynh and Tran families in Smithfield, Sydney, to discuss what the increased Family Tax Benefit (FTB) Part A payments will mean for them.<\/p>\n<p>We all know teenagers don\u2019t cost less once they turn 16.  If anything they cost more, which is why we&#8217;re making this important change.<\/p>\n<p>There are about 630,000 families across Australia with a teenager turning 16 within the next five years who stand to benefit from this increase if their child stays in school or a vocational training equivalent.<\/p>\n<p>The increase means these families could benefit from the increase in the maximum rate of FTB Part A of up to $160 extra per fortnight to help pay the bills, which translates to an increase of $4,208 annually.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to this, more than 82,000 teenagers currently aged between 16 and 19 could also benefit from the changes. Families already receiving Family Tax Benefit Part A will have their entitlements automatically adjusted if they are entitled to the higher rate.<\/p>\n<p>The Minister for Families Jenny Macklin said that evidence showed that those teenagers who finish their education or get a trade are better off in the long term. <\/p>\n<p>The government wants all children to stay in school or get school-based apprenticeships to give them the best chance at getting a good job.<\/p>\n<p>This change will provide parents with that extra financial support to ensure their older teenagers achieve a Year 12 Certificate or equivalent qualification. <\/p>\n<p>The Government\u2019s $770 million investment over five years will be particularly valuable for families with lower income.<\/p>\n<p>In 2006, Year 12 completion rates were at 59 per cent for students from low income homes, compared with 78 per cent for higher income students.<br \/>\nThese findings indicate that the costs of educating teenage children are an important barrier for families on low income to support their child\u2019s education.<\/p>\n<p>Most families with a teenager in full-time secondary study who is currently receiving Youth Allowance are likely to be better off on Family Tax Benefit and should check their eligibility. For more information, go to<br \/>\nhttp:\/\/www.fahcsia.gov.au\/sa\/families\/payments\/Pages\/supporting_families_teenagers.aspx<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>From 01 January 2012, eligible families with teenagers aged 16 to 19 will get a boost to their family payments of to up to $4,208 per teenager, if their child stays in school or a vocational training equivalent. This increase will bring the maximum rate of Family Tax Benefit Part A for eligible teenagers to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.philippinesentinel.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1733"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.philippinesentinel.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.philippinesentinel.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.philippinesentinel.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.philippinesentinel.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1733"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.philippinesentinel.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1733\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.philippinesentinel.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1733"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.philippinesentinel.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1733"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.philippinesentinel.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1733"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}