Aussie mum exposes little-known Centrelink rule that is hurting families across the country

A little-known Centrelink rule, which does not recognize twins as multiples, has been branded ‘absurd’ by an Australian mother.

Rachel March, mother of five-year-old twins, has revealed that only triplets or above are eligible for the government’s multiple birth grant.

The grant is $4,800 annually for families with triplets and about $6,400 for parents of quadruplets or more.

Families must still qualify for the Part A family tax credit to qualify.

Parents of twins miss out on the benefits and are only eligible for normal government support for each child.

The Australian government does not recognize twins as multiples (pictured are Mrs March’s twins who will be six this year)

Uploading a video to TikTok in January, Ms. March called the line her “Roman Empire,” which is slang for something you can’t stop thinking about.

“Centrelink treats twins as ONE child and does not recognize them as ‘multiples’,” she wrote.

‘Even if you have to buy two car seats, two cots, a double stroller, a bigger car and five million other things. One payment for two children.’

Pregnant mothers and parents of multiple children were quick to agree with the sentiment.

“If anyone has twins this year, that’s an absurd restriction,” one person wrote.

“I’m surprised it’s not recognized as multiples. When I got pregnant with twins I was working full time and struggling to buy double the amount of everything,” said another.

“Yes, this fooled me when I had twins,” wrote another.

One twin claimed there were also problems with government benefits later in life.

“They also cancel each other out on most of the benefits, namely: the ‘first’ child to go to college if they go at the same time,” she wrote.

Ms March told Daily Mail Australia there were a lot of costs involved in transporting her twins Sunny and Nyah.

“Because I was high risk, I faced additional charges for my twins, scans and blood tests that were not billed in bulk,” she said.

‘I had to buy a back brace (and) abdominal bands for support (my back and pelvis still haven’t recovered).

‘Before they were even born, I had to buy two cots, mattresses, two car seats, a double stroller, bottles (just in case), two bouncers, double clothes, bedding, diapers, wipes, etc.’

Despite the cost of twins being almost five times higher than that of a single child up to the age of one, parents of twins are not eligible for the multiple birth benefit (pictured, Mrs March’s twins when they were newborns)

Ms March also said people assume her twins shouldn’t cost too much extra.

“A common misconception I get is that clothes, toys and raw materials shouldn’t cost double because they can be shared,” she said.

‘That one cracks me up because my twins are so different, have completely different interests and also have different dress and shoe sizes.’

According to the Australian Multiple Birth Association (AMBA) report, the cost of twins was almost five times higher than that of a single child up to the age of one.

Julia McCarthy of the Australian Multiple Birth Association said the Australian government needs to change its definition of twins.

“According to Centrelink and the Australian Government, twins are still not considered multiples and are entitled to the same support as parents of singletons,” she said.

‘Parents of twins and multiples have long felt forgotten and unseen by the Australian government and it is time to change this.’