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Child Support Objection Template (Australia)
If Services Australia has changed your child support assessment, your care percentage or a collection decision and got it wrong, Australian law gives you exactly 28 days to lodge a written objection — free, decided on the papers, and the gateway to the Administrative Review Tribunal. Our template builds the objection with decision-type-aware grounds, an evidence schedule and the privacy protections the process needs.
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Objection to a Child Support Decision
Child Support Registrar — Services Australia · 8 June 2026
Rachel A. Donovan
8 Marri Place, Joondalup WA 6027
0407 661 238
rachel.donovan@email.com.au
8 June 2026
Services Australia — Child Support
Services Australia — Child Support
GPO Box 9815
Perth WA 6848
GPO Box 9815
Perth WA 6848
OBJECTION — CARE PERCENTAGE
CRN: 618 442 905L · Decision of 21 May 2026
Dear Child Support Registrar,
I lodge a written objection under Part VII of the Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988 (Cth) to the care percentage decision notified to me on 21 May 2026. I ask that this letter be treated as my objection lodged on the date above, and that receipt be confirmed in writing.
I lodge a written objection under Part VII of the Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988 (Cth) to the care percentage decision notified to me on 21 May 2026. I ask that this letter be treated as my objection lodged on the date above, and that receipt be confirmed in writing.
1.
OBJECTOR AND CASE DETAILS
Full name: Rachel A. Donovan
Customer Reference Number (CRN): 618 442 905L
Address: 8 Marri Place, Joondalup WA 6027
Telephone: 0407 661 238
Email: rachel.donovan@email.com.au
Other parent: Michael T. Donovan
Decision objected to: the care percentage decision
Date of the decision notice: 21 May 2026
Decision reference: CS-2026-WA-77310
Customer Reference Number (CRN): 618 442 905L
Address: 8 Marri Place, Joondalup WA 6027
Telephone: 0407 661 238
Email: rachel.donovan@email.com.au
Other parent: Michael T. Donovan
Decision objected to: the care percentage decision
Date of the decision notice: 21 May 2026
Decision reference: CS-2026-WA-77310
2.
OBJECTION LODGED
This objection is lodged in writing as required by section 80 of the Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988 (Cth). I understand that the Registrar will provide a copy of this objection to the other parent, who may respond within the statutory period, and that the Registrar must then consider the objection and give a written decision with reasons within 60 days. I ask to be told the name and contact details of the objections officer handling this matter.
3.
OUTCOME SOUGHT
Set aside the care percentage decision of 21 May 2026 and restore my care percentage for both children to 35%, with the assessment recalculated from the date the change was applied.
4.
GROUNDS OF OBJECTION
The decision reduced my care percentage from 35% to 14% based only on the other parent's account. The children have continued to stay with me five nights a fortnight under our parenting plan, and my care diary, the school pick-up register and Medicare records all show that pattern continuing.
5.
DETAILED GROUNDS
Framework for this decision type: Care percentage is determined from the actual nights of care over the care period under the Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989 (Cth), not from assertions. Where a care arrangement in a court order, parenting plan or written agreement is not being followed, the determination must reflect the care actually taking place. I ask the decision-maker to make findings on the nights of care against the records listed in this objection.
Care percentage is wrong: The nights of care actually provided differ from those used in the decision. Care must be determined on the care actually taking place over the care period — not on a pattern asserted by one parent. The care records listed below evidence the true position night by night.
Procedural and legal error: The decision was made without giving me a proper opportunity to provide information, relies on material I was never shown, or misapplies the governing provisions. I ask the objections officer to identify the statutory basis of the decision and re-make it on the correct test.
Grounds in detail: The decision letter states the change was based on information from the other parent that the children now stay with me one night a fortnight. No one contacted me before the decision was made. The parenting plan signed on 12 February 2025 provides for five nights a fortnight (Wednesday to Friday in week one, Saturday to Sunday in week two), and that arrangement has been followed without interruption. The care period night count in my care diary matches the school pick-up register and the Medicare claim history for both children.
Care percentage is wrong: The nights of care actually provided differ from those used in the decision. Care must be determined on the care actually taking place over the care period — not on a pattern asserted by one parent. The care records listed below evidence the true position night by night.
Procedural and legal error: The decision was made without giving me a proper opportunity to provide information, relies on material I was never shown, or misapplies the governing provisions. I ask the objections officer to identify the statutory basis of the decision and re-make it on the correct test.
Grounds in detail: The decision letter states the change was based on information from the other parent that the children now stay with me one night a fortnight. No one contacted me before the decision was made. The parenting plan signed on 12 February 2025 provides for five nights a fortnight (Wednesday to Friday in week one, Saturday to Sunday in week two), and that arrangement has been followed without interruption. The care period night count in my care diary matches the school pick-up register and the Medicare claim history for both children.
6.
EVIDENCE SCHEDULE
The following evidence supports this objection:
1. Care diary with night-by-night record (January to May 2026) — five nights per fortnight of actual care for both children
2. Parenting plan signed by both parents (12 February 2025) — the agreed five-nights-a-fortnight care arrangement
3. School pick-up register extract — St Mark's Primary (Term 1 and Term 2, 2026) — collection of the children on my care nights
A care diary recording the nights of care, together with school and Medicare records consistent with it, is enclosed and relied on for the care findings.
1. Care diary with night-by-night record (January to May 2026) — five nights per fortnight of actual care for both children
2. Parenting plan signed by both parents (12 February 2025) — the agreed five-nights-a-fortnight care arrangement
3. School pick-up register extract — St Mark's Primary (Term 1 and Term 2, 2026) — collection of the children on my care nights
A care diary recording the nights of care, together with school and Medicare records consistent with it, is enclosed and relied on for the care findings.
7.
PRIVACY AND TIMING
Redaction request: Because a copy of this objection will be provided to the other parent, I ask that my residential address, contact details and any other information that could identify my location be redacted from the copy served: I have recently moved and my new residential address should not be disclosed to the other parent for family safety reasons — please serve a redacted copy.
8.
NEXT STEPS
Enforcement while the objection is decided: I ask that enforcement of the disputed amounts — including any arrears recovery or variation to employer withholding based on the decision under objection — be placed on hold until the objection is decided, and that any amounts I pay meanwhile be recorded as paid under protest.
Further review: If this objection is disallowed in whole or in part, I intend to apply to the Administrative Review Tribunal for a first review. I note that application must be made within 28 days of the objection decision (90 days from a reciprocating jurisdiction), that no fee applies, and I ask that the objection decision letter set out those rights in full.
Further review: If this objection is disallowed in whole or in part, I intend to apply to the Administrative Review Tribunal for a first review. I note that application must be made within 28 days of the objection decision (90 days from a reciprocating jurisdiction), that no fee applies, and I ask that the objection decision letter set out those rights in full.
9.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND DECISION
Please acknowledge receipt of this objection in writing, confirm the date it was lodged, and provide the written objection decision with reasons within the 60-day statutory period. If anything further is required to determine the objection, contact me using the details above.
YOURS FAITHFULLY,
Rachel A. Donovan
Objector
Date: ____________________
OBJECTOR
Rachel A. Donovan
Date: ____________________
Available as a print-ready PDF or an editable Microsoft Word (.docx) file.
What Is a Child Support Objection?
An objection is the formal first-stage review of a decision by the Child Support Registrar under Part VII of the <strong>Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988 (Cth)</strong>. Section 80 lists the decisions that can be objected to — the particulars of an assessment, care percentage determinations, decisions on change-of-assessment applications, and many collection and enforcement decisions. The objection must be lodged within <strong>28 days</strong> of receiving the decision notice (90 days for a parent in a reciprocating jurisdiction overseas), and a different Services Australia officer then reconsiders the decision and must give a written outcome within <strong>60 days</strong>.
Objections are decided on documents, and the other parent participates: the Registrar serves a copy of your objection on the other parent, who may respond within 28 days before the decision is made. That mechanic has two practical consequences for Australian parents. First, evidence wins — a night-by-night care diary corroborated by school pick-up registers and Medicare records, or tax returns and payslips for income grounds, beats any narrative. Second, what you write will be read by the other parent, so addresses and safety-sensitive details should be redacted on request.
The official form is the <strong>CS1893 — Objecting to a Child Support decision</strong>, but the form's grounds boxes are where cases are actually won or lost, and gov.au gives no help writing them. With a care percentage band shift or a wrong income year typically moving Australian child support by $200-800 a month for years, a structured objection — statutory framework, specific errors, numbered evidence — is the difference between a corrected assessment and a trip to the Administrative Review Tribunal that could have been avoided.
What's Covered in This Template
The letter is a complete written objection under Part VII — and the grounds document if you also lodge the CS1893 form.
Four Decision Types
Assessment particulars, care percentage, change-of-assessment decisions and collection/enforcement — the grounds framework rebuilds around the type you select.
Objection Mechanics Block
Lodged in writing under s 80, with the service-on-the-other-parent mechanic and the 60-day decision period stated so the timetable is on the record.
Outcome Sought
Exactly what should change — the percentage, the income figure, the annual rate, the enforcement step — and from what date.
Expert: Decision-Type Framework
The assessment formula inputs, the actual-nights basis of care percentage, the Part 6A change-of-assessment context, or the collection statutory basis — written into the letter.
Expert: Income Grounds
Challenges the adjusted taxable income figures, the income year used and unreconciled estimates — anchored to tax returns and payslips.
Expert: Care Grounds
Puts the nights-of-care record against the assertion that changed your percentage — care diary, school register, Medicare history.
Expert: Procedural Grounds
Decisions made without hearing you or on material you never saw — the procedural fairness ground objections officers must answer.
Expert: Evidence Schedule
A numbered, dated document list with what each item proves — the format the objections officer can adopt as findings.
Expert: Redaction Request
Keeps your residential address and contact details off the copy served on the other parent — critical after a safety-related move.
Expert: Late Objection / Extension
A structured extension-of-time request with dated reasons if the 28-day window has passed.
Expert: Overseas 90-Day Window
States the reciprocating-jurisdiction timing rule expressly so a valid objection is not rejected as out of time.
Expert: ART Positioning & Enforcement Hold
Records the 28-day Administrative Review Tribunal next step and asks for a hold on enforcing the disputed amounts meanwhile.
How to Create a Child Support Objection
Five steps from decision letter to lodged objection.
- 1
Check the Clock First
You have 28 days from receiving the decision notice — 90 days if you live overseas in a reciprocating jurisdiction. If the window has passed, the Expert section builds the extension-of-time request; lodge as soon as possible either way.
- 2
Identify the Decision Type
Assessment, care percentage, change-of-assessment decision, or collection/enforcement. The objection grounds differ for each — the template adapts automatically.
- 3
State the Outcome and Brief Grounds
Say exactly what should change and from what date, then two or three sentences on why the decision is wrong. The structured grounds come next.
- 4
Build Grounds and Evidence (Expert)
Tick income, care and procedural errors as they apply, and schedule the evidence: care diary against school and Medicare records, tax documents for income grounds, the signed parenting plan.
- 5
Lodge and Protect Your Position
Lodge the CS1893 online with this letter as the grounds, or post the letter to the address on the decision notice. Ask for written acknowledgement of the lodgment date, and use the Expert privacy section if your address must stay confidential.
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Legal Considerations
Child support objections run on strict statutory timing and a two-party process.
This template provides general information for Australian parents and is not legal advice. For objections involving family violence, complex income structures or international child support arrangements, get advice — community legal centres and Legal Aid commissions across Australia help with child support reviews free of charge.
Reviewed for Australian law
The 28-Day Window — and the 90-Day Overseas Rule
Under s 81(1) of the <strong>Child Support (Registration and Collection) Act 1988 (Cth)</strong>, an objection must be lodged within <strong>28 days</strong> of being served with the decision notice. A parent in a reciprocating jurisdiction overseas has <strong>90 days</strong>. Late objections need an extension of time, which the Registrar may refuse — the request must explain the delay with dated, concrete reasons. Care percentage objections are the one class that may also be made orally (s 80(6)); everything else must be in writing, which is exactly what this letter is.
The Other Parent Sees Your Objection
The Registrar must serve a copy of the objection on the other parent, who may respond within 28 days (90 days from a reciprocating jurisdiction) before the objection is decided — and the Registrar must decide within <strong>60 days</strong> of lodgment (s 87). For parents who have relocated for safety, the template asks for residential address and contact details to be <strong>redacted</strong> from the served copy. Write the objection knowing both the objections officer and the other parent will read it: facts and records, not commentary.
Care Percentage Runs on Actual Nights
Care determinations under the <strong>Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989 (Cth)</strong> turn on the nights of care actually provided over the care period — and where an agreed arrangement in a parenting plan or court order is not being followed, on the care actually taking place. The strongest Australian objection evidence is a night-by-night care diary that matches independent records: the school pick-up register, Medicare claim history, activity rosters. A care percentage moved on one parent's assertion, without that record being tested, is precisely what the objection process exists to correct.
After the Objection — the Administrative Review Tribunal
If the objection is disallowed, the next step is a first review by the <strong>Administrative Review Tribunal</strong> — free, but only within <strong>28 days</strong> of the objection decision (90 days from a reciprocating jurisdiction), under the ART (Child Support) Practice Direction 2026. Note the distinction the template preserves: objecting to a change-of-assessment decision is different from applying afresh for a change of assessment in special circumstances under Part 6A of the Assessment Act. For Centrelink payment decisions and debts, see our Centrelink review request and Centrelink debt dispute letter templates — FTB review timing differs from child support objections.
Frequently Asked Questions
Object Inside the 28 Days — With Grounds That Hold
Create your child support objection in minutes: decision-type-aware grounds, a numbered evidence schedule, redaction and timing protections, in formal Australian letter format. Download the PDF free, or unlock Expert for the full structured objection.
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