Centrelink
“I have the highest regard for the team at Aegis Financial Planning. Their service and care has always been exceptional. I can always turn to them for prompt and totally professional assistance, delivered with patience and good humour!”
- roger e, QLD
How we can help:
Age Pension benefits
The age pension can be a key component of your retirement finances. Since your age pension benefit is regularly re-calculated based on your income and assets, it can be difficult to determine what you can expect to receive throughout your retirement as your financial position continues to change. Through complex financial modelling, we can help determine how the age pension will work for you, so you’re able to retire with peace of mind.
Concession cards
Centrelink offers a range of concessions that can help reduce costs for medicine, public transport and more, which can be a huge benefit for retirees. We can help you determine which concessions you can access to reduce your expenses.
Increasing your Centrelink benefits
Did you know that some investment products and strategies can actually increase the benefits you receive? Age pension eligibility is based on a complex set of rules which include concessions and exemptions for certain products that you may be able to use. We can help you navigate this complex space and get the benefits you deserve.
Frequently asked questions:
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If you’re born after the 1st of January 1957, you need to be 67 years of age to be eligible for age pension payments (if you’re born before that date, you have already met the age requirement.) You also need to be an Australian resident, and physically living in Australia. How much pension you receive will depend on your assets and income; see the questions below for more on this.
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The asset limits for the age pension vary depending on if you are single or a member of a couple, if you’re receiving Rent Assistance, and if you are a homeowner. All your assets are considered under the asset test, which means the value of your home contents, car and other possessions are taken into consideration, not just your financial assets. However some assets are excluded from this assessment:
If you’re a homeowner, the value of your home is not considered; this includes any permanent fixtures on the property, eg. solar panels. Your allowable asset thresholds are instead reduced by a fixed amount.
If your partner is underage pension age, their super funds which are in accumulation phase will be excluded from the asset test.
The asset thresholds are regularly updated in line with inflation; you can find the current limits on the Services Australia website.
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Yes, you can continue to work while receiving the age pension, however the income you earn may reduce the amount of age pension you receive. Your earned income is combined with the deemed income from your investments when determining your age pension eligibility. If you earn over a certain amount, your age pension will be reduced; however the rules are arranged such that doing so will not result in you losing money (ie. your age pension will be reduced by less than the amount you earn over the threshold.) The government also introduced the Work Bonus Scheme which allows older Australians to earn more without reducing their age pension benefits.
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Income from your financial investments is included when calculating your age pension benefit, but the actual income your investments earn can be volatile, sporadic, and hard to calculate. To make the process simpler, Centrelink uses ‘deeming’ rates; this is an assumed percentage of income that your financial assets earn. This way, Centrelink simply looks at your current assets and determines a deemed amount of income, which is included in your income test calculation. This amount will be periodically re-calculated to ensure it aligns with your current asset position.
Deeming rates are regularly updated; there is a lower deeming rate which applies to assets below a certain threshold, and an upper deeming rate which applies to all financial assets above that threshold. You can check the Services Australia website to view the current deeming rates.
Do you have a question about centrelink?
This information has been provided as general advice. We have not considered your financial circumstances, needs or objectives. You should consider the appropriateness of the advice. You should obtain and consider the relevant Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and seek the assistance of an authorised financial adviser before making any decision regarding any products or strategies mentioned in this communication.
Whilst all care has been taken in the preparation of this material, it is based on our understanding of current regulatory requirements and laws at the publication date. As these laws are subject to change you should talk to an authorised adviser for the most up-to-date information. No warranty is given in respect of the information provided and accordingly neither Alliance Wealth nor its related entities, employees or representatives accepts responsibility for any loss suffered by any person arising from reliance on this information.