Reporting guide
QFR Care Minutes Reporting: Labour Hours, Roles and Reconciliation
Residential aged care providers report labour costs and hours for each home through the Quarterly Financial Report. Those worked-hour records feed care-minute calculations, Star Ratings, funding analysis, and the final audited Care Minutes Performance Statement.
01
QFR scope and due dates
Registered providers submit a QFR four times each financial year. Residential providers complete facility-level quarterly cost and hours reporting in addition to the provider-level financial and prudential information that applies to them.
| Quarter | Reporting period | Legislated due date |
|---|---|---|
| Quarter 1 | 1 July–30 September | 4 November |
| Quarter 2 | 1 October–31 December | 14 February |
| Quarter 3 | 1 January–31 March | 5 May |
| Quarter 4 | 1 April–30 June | 4 August |
The department states that these dates are legislated and extensions are not available. QFRs are submitted using the Government Provider Management System.
02
How worked hours become care minutes
The reported care-minute position depends on both sides of the calculation. A complete worked-hours file with an incorrect occupancy denominator—or complete occupancy data with ineligible hours in the numerator—can still produce an incorrect result.
Each home has a target based on its resident case mix. Sector-wide averages are useful context but should not be substituted for the target that applies to the individual home and quarter.
03
Separate QFR labour categories from care-minute eligibility
| QFR category | Reported in residential labour costs and hours | Care-minute treatment |
|---|---|---|
| Registered nurses | Yes | Eligible direct-care worked time contributes to total and RN minutes. |
| Enrolled nurses | Yes | Eligible direct-care worked time contributes to total minutes; up to 10% of the RN target may be met by EN time under current guidance. |
| Personal care workers / assistants in nursing | Yes | Eligible direct-care worked time contributes to total minutes. |
| Care management | Yes | Reported as a labour category but does not automatically count toward the care-minute result. |
| Allied health | Yes | Reported as a labour category but does not count toward the care-minute responsibility. |
Official QFR guidance excludes non-worked hours such as leave, training, and voluntary hours. Telehealth time does not count toward care minutes. Apply the current data definitions to the actual duties and records involved.
04
Quarter-end controls that catch material errors early
- 01Reconcile source completeness
Confirm every home, pay cycle, agency source, and occupancy day is present.
- 02Resolve roles and duties
Review new titles, changed duties, ambiguous classifications, and registration status.
- 03Remove non-worked and duplicate time
Check leave, training, voluntary hours, overlapping shifts, and repeated files.
- 04Test the denominator
Reconcile occupied bed days to the resident ledger and investigate missing dates or unexplained movements.
- 05Compare independent views
Review total, RN-only, and RN-plus-EN results as well as unusual changes by home and period.
- 06Approve and retain
Record the reviewer, source versions, calculation version, final values, and submitted return.
05
Carry the record from QFR to the year-end statement
The annual performance statement uses final actual values, so it may differ from a QFR prepared before late invoices, payroll corrections, or other adjustments were available. The useful control is not to erase those differences; it is to explain them.
Retain the QFR values, supporting source versions, reviewer, and submission record.
Record the new information, date received, amount, reason, and affected categories.
Use the completed actual record in the annual performance statement.
Explain the difference through the year-end submission process and support it for audit.
06
How CareMin supports QFR work
CareMin brings worked hours, agency records, role classifications, occupied bed days, and home-specific targets into a repeatable quarter workflow. Import receipts and original row references remain connected to calculation versions and exported summaries.
CareMin supports review and evidence preparation. It does not replace the QFR form or submit a provider’s return to government.
Sources
Primary sources used for this page
- Quarterly Financial ReportCurrent scope, due dates and residential care cost and hours categories
- Quarterly Financial Report resourcesData definitions, templates, guidance and system resources
- QFR residential care labour costs and hours reporting guidance videoOfficial explanation of worked hours, care-minute roles and the calculation
- Care Minutes Performance StatementFinal actual values and explanations for differences from QFR submissions
Source links and page content were checked on 11 August 2026. Government guidance can change; follow the linked source for the current position.
Review CareMin against your current process.
See how source records, calculations, monitoring, and evidence remain connected.