Income Support Bonus & Other Supplements & Allowances

• The Income Support Bonus is a tax-free payment made twice annually to eligible recipients to assist with unexpected costs.
• Qualifying payments include Newstart Allowance, Sickness Allowance, Youth Allowance, Austudy, ABSTUDY Living Allowance, Special Benefit, Parenting Payment Single, Parenting Payment Partnered and Farm Household Allowance.
• Recipients of an education allowance under the Veterans’ Children Education Scheme and the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act Education and Training Scheme are also eligible.
• To be eligible a person must be under age pension age and qualified for, and in receipt of, a qualifying payment on 20 March and/or 20 September.
• Eligible recipients are only entitled to one Income Support Bonus payment in each instalment period regardless of how many qualifying payments they receive.
• The Income Support Bonus payment instalment rates are:
  Single

  $111.70
  Member of a couple

  $93.00
  Member of a couple separated by illness

  $111.70
  Member of a couple partner is in respite care

  $111.70
  Member of a couple partner is in prison

  $111.70
• The payment will be paid on the earliest day on which it is reasonably practicable after the test days in March and September. The payment will be indexed to Consumer Price Index twice annually, in March and September.

The payments are not separately means-tested.

Recipients of Widow Allowance and Partner Allowance are not eligible. They will continue to be eligible for Utilities Allowance.

The Income Support Bonus is not payable to recipients who are in receipt of Pension Supplement above the Pension Supplement basic amount.

To qualify for the full amount each year, a recipient would need to be qualified for, and in receipt of one of the qualifying payments on both 20 March and 20 September.

Note: The Job Commitment Bonus program will cease on 31 December 2016, subject to the repeal of enabling legislation. The program and payments will continue until the repeal date. Individuals who are qualified to claim at the time of the repeal will be able to lodge a claim for the bonus and will have 90 days to do so. Those who would have qualified after the legislative repeal date will no longer be able to lodge a claim for the bonus.

The Job Commitment Bonus is a payment to encourage long-term unemployed young Australians to find and keep work.

There are two Job Commitment Bonus payments.

Basic conditions of eligibility

For the first Job Commitment Bonus payment:

• you must be aged 18 or over and under 31 years of age when in receipt of Newstart Allowance or Youth Allowance as a job seeker, and
• while aged 18 or over and under 31 years of age have been in receipt of Newstart Allowance or Youth Allowance as a job seeker or a combination of both for a continuous period of at least 12 months, and
• commenced gainful employment in Australia on or after 1 July 2014 for a continuous period of 12 months and not received an income support payment.

For the second Job Commitment Bonus payment:

• you must be eligible to receive the first Job Commitment Bonus payment, and
• have completed a further 12 continuous months of gainful employment in Australia and not re-ceived an income support payment.

Continuous work

A period of continuous work will include:

• taking paid leave
• taking up to 28 days of unpaid leave in the 12 month period
• if undertaking more than one job in the 12 month period there can be a break of no more than five business days of unpaid leave between jobs. These days are included in the 28 days of unpaid leave calculation.

Gainful employment

Certain types of employment will not attract a Job Commitment Bonus. These may include employ-ment that:

• does not involve sufficient financial gain or reward, for example, voluntary employment or em-ployment for less than the National Minimum Wage or Award Wage
• does not involve substantial and consistent personal exertion, for example selling own goods on eBay or garage sales, or occasional blogging
• involves domestic or gardening tasks at your or your family member’s place of residence or an investment property owned by yourself or a family member
• involves caring for or doing domestic tasks for a family member or their foster child, or a person residing at your or your family member’s place of residence, or involves the management of fi-nancial investments in which you or your family member has an interest
• involves nudity or is in the sex industry
• contravenes Commonwealth, state or territory legislation, for example, criminal activity
• is for the purpose of achieving election of yourself to public office
• is undertaken as part of certain Commonwealth funded programs, for example, the Green Army Programme (in relation to certain participants) and the New Enterprise Incentive Scheme
• is done for the purpose of an academic, sporting or other scholarship
• involves payment-in-kind or exchange of services.

Residence requirements

• Must be an Australian citizen or permanent visa holder.

Basic rates

• The first Job Commitment Bonus is $2,500 for 12 months of continuous gainful work.
• The second Job Commitment Bonus is $4,000 for a further 12 months of continuous gainful work.

Income test

• No income test.

Asset test

• No asset test.

• A Pension Supplement is added to the regular fortnightly payment made to recipients of Age Pension, Carer Payment, Wife Pension, Widow B Pension, Bereavement Allowance, Disability Support Pension (except if aged under 21 without children) and to certain other income support payment recipients if the person has reached age pension age.
• The maximum Pension Supplement is currently $65.10 a fortnight for singles and $98.20 a fortnight for couples, combined.
• The minimum Pension Supplement is an amount below which the Pension Supplement does not fall until income or assets reach a level that would otherwise reduce a total pension including Pension Supplement to nil. The minimum amount is currently $34.90 a fortnight for singles, and $52.80 for couples combined.
• Pensioners may elect to receive the minimum pension supplement amount on a quarterly basis. Installments will be paid as soon as possible after 20 March, 20 June, 20 September and 20 December each year.
• The Pension Supplement is paid while the person is in Australia or, if outside Australia, only while the person has the right to continue to be paid their social security payment outside Australia. After an absence of more than six weeks outside Australia, the Pension Supplement is reduced to the Pension Supplement Basic Amount.
• The Pension Supplement Basic Amount is currently $22.70 a fortnight for singles and $37.40 a fortnight for both members of a couple, combined.
• Recipients of Parenting Payment (Single) under age pension age have the Pension Supplement Basic Amount added to their regular fortnightly payment.

Telephone Allowance is a quarterly payment to assist with the cost of maintaining a telephone service; it is not paid to assist with the cost of telephone calls.

Telephone Allowance is paid to telephone subscribers who receive the Disability Support Pension and who are aged under 21 years without children and to Parenting Payment (Single) recipients who are under age pension age. Telephone Allowance is also paid to telephone subscribers who receive certain social security allowance payments and are in specific circumstances.

A higher rate of Telephone Allowance is payable to recipients of Disability Support Pension who are aged under 21 years without children if they or their partner have a home internet connection.

The current rate of Telephone Allowance is $112.80 per year ($28.20 per quarter). The higher rate of Telephone Allowance is $168 per year ($42 per quarter) for home internet subscribers. This amount is shared between both members of an eligible couple.

The payment is made in January, March, July and September each year and is adjusted to increases in the Consumer Price Index in September. For most pensioners and other income support recipients who have reached age pension age, the value of Telephone Allowance has been either added into the Pension Supplement or forms part of the rate paid under transitional arrangements.

Utilities Allowance is a quarterly payment to recipients of Widow Allowance and Partner Allowance who are under age pension age, and to Disability Support Pension recipients (under 21 without children) to assist with meeting the cost of utilities bills. The payment is made in March, June, September and December each year and is adjusted to increases in the Consumer Price Index in March and September. The current annual rate is $609.20 for singles and $304.60 for each eligible member of a couple.

For most pensioners and other income support recipients who have reached age pension age, the value of Utilities Allowance has been either added into the Pension Supplement or forms part of the rate paid under transitional arrangements.

Rate: $6.20 per fortnight for an eligible single person, and $3.10 per fortnight for each eligible member of a couple (i.e. $6.20 in total if both members of a couple are eligible). However, where a person is a member of an illness separated couple or a respite care couple or where a partner is in prison, the rate is $6.20 per fortnight (i.e. same as for a single person).

Note: Pharmaceutical Allowance may be paid for temporary absences until the primary payment ceases, or for up to 26 weeks if the primary payment may be paid indefinitely.

For most pensioners and other income support recipients who have reached age pension age, the value of Pharmaceutical Allowance has either been incorporated into the Pension Supplement or forms part of the rate paid under transitional arrangements.

Conditions under which Pharmaceutical Allowance is paid:

Note: Pharmaceutical Allowance may be paid for temporary absences until the primary payment ceases, or for up to 26 weeks if the primary payment may be paid indefinitely.

For most pensioners and other income support recipients who have reached age pension age, the value of Pharmaceutical Allowance has either been incorporated into the Pension Supplement or forms part of the rate paid under transitional arrangements.