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Changes to child support guidelines, fees and early intervention means test

We recently made a number of changes to our Commonwealth child support guidelines, fees and early intervention means test. The changes will assist private practitioners and community legal centres (CLCs) to support separated parents to resolve their child support matters early, and increase access to justice for eligible clients.

Published:
Tuesday 31 March 2026 at 1:41 pm

We recently made four changes to our Commonwealth child support guidelines, fees and early intervention means test. The changes aim to facilitate private practitioners and community legal centres (CLCs) to assist separated parents to resolve their child support matters early, and increase access to justice for eligible clients.

The four changes became operational on 16 March 2026 and include:

  • Amending Guideline 4 (parentage determinations) and Guidelines 5.1 to 5.7 (the child support guidelines) to remove the requirement for applicants to first seek assistance from VLA’s Child Support Legal Service or a CLC.
  • Updating the wording of Guideline 5.1 to better align with child support processes.
  • Aligning child support and family law fees in the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (FCFCOA).
  • Expanding the application of the 'child support early intervention means test' to all matters under Guideline 4 (parentage determinations) and Guideline 5.1 (advice and negotiations), irrespective of whether the client is represented by an in-house lawyer, a private practitioner or a CLC.

Details of the changes

  • Amending Guideline 4 and Guidelines 5.1 to 5.7
    These guidelines require that a person ‘has sought and is unable to obtain assistance from our Child Support Legal Service or a community legal centre’ before a grant will be made for a private practitioner. Removing these words will make it easier for private practitioners to obtain grants for child support matters. It will also allow continuity of service for clients already receiving assistance from private practitioners in their family law matters, and increased access to justice for clients.
  • Updating the wording of Guideline 5.1 to better align with child support processes
    Many child support disputes require escalation through Services Australia, which has a specific ‘internal review’ process. To ensure this type of early intervention service is captured, Guideline 5.1 is broadened to state where ‘the lawyer considers that the dispute may be resolved through advice, negotiation and exchange of letters or through a Services Australia internal administrative review.’
  • Aligning child support and family law fees in the FCFCOA
    Having two separate fee tables is unnecessary and creates confusion as child support and family law matters follow the same case management pathway in the FCFCOA. Minor changes have also been made to clarify the fees available for child support matters in the Magistrates’ Court.
  • Expanding the application of the ‘child support early intervention means test’ to all matters under Guideline 4 (parentage determinations) and Guideline 5.1 (advice and negotiations), irrespective of whether the client is represented by an in-house lawyer, a private practitioner or a CLC.

Apply for a grant in Atlas (under Family Law) using the new ‘child support early intervention means test’ template for eligible clients.

The child support early intervention means test is applied to both parents receiving and paying child support (herein referred to as ‘separated parents’) as follows.

1. That separated parents who are:

  • in receipt of Centrelink benefits
  • and/or in receipt of or entitled to Family Tax Benefit of more than the minimum rate

be entitled to legal representation free of charge in the Magistrates’ Court and for Services Australia internal administrative reviews, for matters under the Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989, if the application meets the Commonwealth Merits Test.

2. That separated parents who do not meet the requirement in paragraph 1 for matters under the Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989 be required to apply for a grant of legal assistance applying the standard VLA Means Test.

Handbook changes

There are changes to the following guidelines, along with various notes to the guidelines pages and the Fee table 4:

See archived version of the Handbook for a list of itemised changes to the Handbook.

More information

Please email our Child Support Legal Service at Childsupportreferrals@vla.vic.gov.au or Grants and Quality Assurance at Grants@vla.vic.gov.au

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