29 March 2024

Community care provided by a third party
5 September 2007

The principles set out below apply equally to other community services provided and where you are in receipt of HACC funding.
Where you are in receipt of HACC funding to carry out community care services, it may happen that an agreement is entered into for a third party provides services to you. A common example of this is where a Local Government in receipt of funding contracts with a third party to provide services to that Local Government so that the Local Government can fulfill its obligations under the funding agreement. Where the service is being provided to the Local Government, we believe that the GST treatment would be as follows:
Where the legal relationship between Council and the third party supplier is that the supplier provides a service to Council so That Council can provide 'meals on wheels' services, Council is entitled to claim input credits for all creditable acquisitions it makes. This would include the supply of services by the third party supplier.

'Subsection 38-30(2) of the GST Act states that a supply of care is GST-free if the supplier receives funding under the HCC Act in connection with the supply. The Council receives funding under this Act for the 'Meals on Wheels' service. The Explanatory Memorandum to the GST Act includes 'Meals on Wheels' service as a part of the community care or care that is funded under the Aged Care Act 1997 or the HCC Act. Therefore, the supply of the 'Meals on Wheels' service by the Council is GST-free under subsection 38-30(2) of the GST Act.'

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