How the tests work · guide
Centrelink income tests compared
There is no single Centrelink income test. Each payment has its own free area, its own taper and its own idea of whose income counts.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
Centrelink applies a different income test to almost every payment. Pensions such as the Age Pension and Carer Payment allow $226 a fortnight of income for a single person and then take 50 cents per dollar. Parenting Payment single allows $208 plus $24.60 for each child and takes 40 cents. JobSeeker and the other allowances allow $150 a fortnight and take 50 cents up to $256, then 60 cents. Students on Youth Allowance or Austudy have a $539 free area and an income bank. Family payments use annual family income: Family Tax Benefit Part A starts falling above $69,131, and Child Care Subsidy loses a point for each $5,000 above $88,520. The same $700 a fortnight of wages leaves a single person $1,000.70 of Age Pension, $893.24 of Parenting Payment single with one child, or $514.30 of JobSeeker.
The same income under three income tests
Age Pension kept
$1,000.70
| JobSeeker kept (no children) | $514.30 |
| Parenting Payment single kept (one child) | $893.24 |
Each payment has its own free area and taper; the maximum rates differ too.
The seven tests at a glance
| Payment | Free area | Taper per dollar | Particularity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Age Pension, Carer Payment | $226 a fortnight (single) | 50c, or 25c each for a couple | combined for a couple |
| Parenting Payment single | $208 plus $24.60 a child | 40c | own income only |
| JobSeeker, Parenting Payment partnered | $150 a fortnight | 50c to $256, then 60c | partner test at 60c |
| Youth Allowance and Austudy (students) | $539 a fortnight | 50c to $646, then 60c | income bank |
| Family Tax Benefit Part A | $69,131 a year (family) | 20c, then 30c above $123,078 | none with income support |
| Family Tax Benefit Part B | $7,154 a year (lower earner) | 20c | higher earner limit $124,327 |
| Child Care Subsidy | $88,520 a year (family) | 1 point per $5,000 | percentage of fees |
Fortnightly tests and annual tests
The social security payments, pensions and allowances, look at income each fortnight. A busy fortnight lowers that fortnight's payment, a quiet one raises it, and nothing needs to be repaid if reports are accurate. The family payments, Family Tax Benefit and Child Care Subsidy, look at adjusted taxable income for the whole financial year: they are paid on an estimate and reconciled after the tax returns. A household on both types needs to report income fortnightly for one and keep an accurate annual estimate for the other.
Whose income counts
For a single person, only their own income. For a couple, it depends. The pension test combines the couple's income and halves it. JobSeeker and Parenting Payment partnered test each partner's own income and add a partner test above a free area tied to the JobSeeker cut-out. Parenting Payment single has no partner by definition. Family Tax Benefit Part A adds both partners' adjusted taxable incomes; Part B tests the higher earner against a limit, then the lower earner alone. Child Care Subsidy uses combined family income. Young people on dependent Youth Allowance can also be affected by their parents' income.
The cut-out points
Free areas tell you where a payment starts to fall; cut-out points tell you where it ends. For a single person with no rent, the Age Pension stops at about $2,701 a fortnight of income, Parenting Payment single with one child at about $2,933, and JobSeeker at about $1,557. The differences come from both the free area and the starting rate: a pension starts higher and tapers more slowly than JobSeeker, so it reaches much further up the income scale. Rent Assistance raises each of these cut-outs because it is added to the maximum rate before the test. For a couple, the cut-outs depend on both incomes, and for the pension on the couple's combined income, so the household calculator is the practical way to find them.
Reporting
Fortnightly payments rely on what you report each fortnight: gross earnings for the fortnight in which they were earned, not when they were paid. Family payments rely on your annual estimate, which you can update at any time in your Centrelink online account. The two kinds of reporting are separate, and doing one does not update the other.
What counts as income
For the fortnightly tests, ordinary income: wages before tax, business income, rent received, and deemed income on financial assets instead of actual interest and dividends, at 1.75% and 3.75% from 20 September 2026. Most social security payments, Family Tax Benefit, Rent Assistance and child support are not income for these tests. For the family tests, adjusted taxable income, which adds reportable fringe benefits, reportable superannuation contributions and net investment losses to taxable income, and includes taxable Centrelink payments.
One family, several tests
Take a couple with a child aged 3 where one partner earns $1,800 a fortnight and the other cares for the child. The carer's Parenting Payment partnered is reduced by the partner test once the partner passes the free area. Family Tax Benefit, while Parenting Payment is paid, ignores family income. If Parenting Payment reaches nil, Part A switches to the family test: on $46,800 a year with one child, Part A is $235 a fortnight. Child Care Subsidy, if the child goes to care, is at 90% throughout. The household calculator keeps track of these switches.