Special Benefit

This payment can help if you:

• are in severe financial hardship due to circumstances beyond your control
• don’t earn enough to support you and your dependants
• can’t get any other income support payment, and
• meet residence rules

You can claim Special Benefit for a child if:

• you have custody
• your child is an Australian citizen or permanent resident
• you can’t get any income or family support payments because you’re not a permanent resident
• you’re in severe financial hardship
• you can’t support yourself and your child

Severe financial hardship

You’re in severe financial hardship if you:

• earn less than the highest Special Benefit fortnightly payment
• can’t improve your financial position, and
• have limited savings

Limited savings

For short term payments you must have no more than the fortnightly Special Benefit payment amount.

For long term payments you must have no more than $5,000.

For more information:

• call the Exceptional Circumstances Relief Help line, or
• go to a service centre

The amount of Special Benefit you get depends on your circumstances.

It’s usually the same as Newstart Allowance or Youth Allowance.

We update payment rates for Special Benefit on:

• 1 January each year if you’re under 21 and have no children, or
• 20 March and 20 September each year if you have dependent children or are 21 years of age or older

If you’re in severe financial hardship, you can get your first Special Benefit payment early.

For more information:

• call the Exceptional Circumstances Relief Help line, or
• visit a service centre

Your income and assets determine how much you can get.

Income test

For every $1 of gross income you earn or get, your rate of Special Benefit reduces by $1.

We’ll determine how much you can get by looking at:

• your income
• your partner’s income
• any extra support you get, including:
  • food
  • accommodation
  • utilities, or
  • other goods and services

Assets test

An asset is any property or possession you own partly or wholly. It includes any assets you have outside Australia and any debts owing to you.

We’ll determine how much you get by looking at:

• if you own your own home
• if you are buying your own home

On the day you claim Special Benefit, you must be:

• an Australian resident, and
• in Australia

To keep getting Special Benefit

You must continue to be an Australian resident for as long as you get this payment.

What may be different

You may also meet the residence rules for Special Benefit if you:

• are living in Australia, and
• are physically present in Australia on the day you submit your claim, and
• hold one of the following temporary visa subclasses:
  • subclass 820 - extended eligibility (partner)
  • subclass 309 - partner (provisional)
  • subclass 785 - temporary protection
  • subclass 786 - temporary (humanitarian concern)
  • subclass 790 - safe haven enterprise (temporary)
  • subclass 449 - humanitarian stay (temporary)
  • subclass 070 - bridging (removal pending)
  • subclass 060 - bridging visa F

You may have to wait to get Special Benefit if you are:

• a seasonal worker
• moving to an area of low employment
• newly arrived in Australia

In each of these categories there are exemptions that mean you may not need to wait.

There are things you must do to keep getting income support and have a better chance of finding work.

Read more about mutual obligation requirements

Not meeting your mutual obligation requirements as a job seeker can affect your Parenting Payment.

Read more about if you don't meet your mutual obligation requirements

We review your Special Benefit to make sure you’re still eligible and getting the right amount.

When we review

We review your Special Benefit:

• every 3 months once payment starts, and
• call you every 9 to 12 months to check your circumstances

How we review

You can do your Special Benefit review:

• online
• by post, or
• at a service centre

Online

You need to have a Centrelink online account to do your review online. We’ll send you or your nominee a message when you need to complete your review.

If you choose to have a nominee, they can do the review on your behalf.

You might want to give your partner permission to make enquiries about your Special Benefit. This lets you both enter the information we need for you to complete your online review.

Submit your review by the due date or your payment may stop.

Post or service centre

If you don’t have a myGov or Centrelink online account we’ll send you a Special Benefit review form.

Complete and return this to us by post or at a service centre.

Submit your review by the due date or your payment may stop.

You can also access the Special Benefit review form online.

We need to know about changes that could reduce, increase or stop your payment.

If you don’t tell us when these changes happen, you may be doing the wrong thing.

You need to tell us if there are changes to your:

• relationship status
• address
• income
• account balance and whether this goes above the allowable limit
• eligibility to lodge a tax return
• care arrangements
• work or study load, or
• visa

There are other changes of circumstances you need to tell us about.

How and when to tell us

The easiest way to tell us about changes is through our self service options.

You need to:

• tell us within 14 days of the change
• make sure your details are up to date in myGov

It’s never too late to report a change.

If you don’t tell us

If you don’t tell us about changes in your life, we may pay you too much. If this happens you’ll have to pay the money back, plus a fee.

If you deliberately don't tell us about changes, we could charge you with fraud.

Read how to avoid fraud.

There are rules about when your Special Benefit can be paid when you travel outside Australia.

Read more about Special Benefit while travelling outside Australia

Some people can get income support payments each week instead of each fortnight.

Read more about weekly payments

How much you or your partner earn affects your payment. We need to know what you and your partner earn so we pay you the right amount.

Read more about income reporting

When you reach age pension age, you should apply to transfer to Age Pension to see if you are eligible, and to tell us about any superannuation you have.

You may continue to be paid Special Benefit if you are not eligible for Age Pension.

Once you reach age pension age, the Pension Supplement will be automatically paid to you with your regular fortnightly payment. The supplement replaces your separate additional payments of:

• Telephone Allowance
• Pharmaceutical Allowance, and
• Utilities Allowance

Read more about how to transfer to Age Pension.

You can get help to manage your money if your bank account is overdrawn.

Read more about what to do if your account is overdrawn

You can use our free and voluntary service to pay bills as regular deductions from your Centrelink payments.

Read more about regular deductions using Centrepay

Provides training and work experience in environment and heritage conservation for young Australians while generating environmental benefits.

Read more about the Green Army Programme