Is your child's dentist free?
If your family gets an eligible payment, Medicare covers basic dental for each child up to a cap. Most people entitled to it have never heard of it, and anything unused is lost.
$1,158
covered for each eligible child over two calendar years, for basic dental
What this is
The Child Dental Benefits Schedule pays for basic dental care for children in families receiving an eligible payment, most commonly Family Tax Benefit Part A. It is not a rebate you claim back: the dentist bills Medicare directly if they take it. The reason it goes unused is that eligibility is worked out quietly in the background, the notification is a letter among many, and a parent who has never been told does not think to ask a receptionist about it.
Does it apply to you?
- Families getting Family Tax Benefit Part A or another eligible payment
- Children aged 0 to 17 who are eligible for Medicare
- Anyone whose circumstances changed mid-year: eligibility needs the payment only once in the calendar year
How to do it
- Check eligibility: the child must be eligible for Medicare, be 0 to 17 for at least one day that calendar year, and you or they must get an eligible payment at least once that year.
- Services Australia writes to you when a child becomes eligible, but that letter is easy to miss. Check your Medicare online account through myGov instead of waiting for it.
- Ring the dentist BEFORE the appointment and say you want to use the Child Dental Benefits Schedule. Not every dentist bulk bills it, and the ones that do will say so.
- Ask what the visit will cost against the remaining balance. The dentist can check the balance for you.
Where people lose the money
Waiting for the letter to arrive.
Check your Medicare online account. Eligibility is assessed automatically and the letter is easy to lose.
Booking first and asking about the scheme afterwards.
Ask when you book. A dentist who does not bulk bill it will charge you and you cannot claim the difference back later.
Saving the balance for a bigger job.
Anything unused at the end of the two-year period is gone, and it does not cover orthodontics anyway.
Questions
How do I know if my child is eligible?
Your Medicare online account through myGov shows it, and Services Australia sends a letter when a child first becomes eligible. Eligibility needs the family to have received an eligible payment at least once in that calendar year, so a short period on a payment can be enough.
Do I pay and claim it back?
No. The dentist bills Medicare directly if they participate. That is why asking before the appointment matters: if they do not bulk bill the scheme, you pay the full private fee and there is nothing to reclaim.
What does it actually cover?
Basic dental: check-ups, x-rays, cleaning, fillings, root canals and extractions. It excludes orthodontic work, cosmetic work and any dental service provided in hospital.
What happens to money we do not use?
It is forfeited at the end of the two consecutive calendar years and a new period begins. There is no carry-over, which is the single most common way families lose the benefit.
Where these numbers come from
- Services Australia, What’s covered by the Child Dental Benefits Schedule · read 2026-09-23
- Services Australia, Who can get the Child Dental Benefits Schedule · read 2026-09-23
Last gone over 2026-09-23. Figures change; the link above is always the current one.
Published by Income Lab, Melbourne. Responsible for this page: Jarred Krowitz.