Centrelink Payments Instead of Personal Loans

If you are considering a loan because you have sunk into some debt, you may want to consider Centrelink payments first. These payments can be especially helpful those that are having trouble making monthly payments and are consistently falling behind on regular payments like rent, utilities and food.

Centrelink payments are government benefits that consist of regular payments or one time grants or a large number of personal situations.

List of Centrelink Payments

Families
Parenting Payment – income support for parents and guardians raising a family.

Family Tax Benefit – is a two part payment to help with the raising of children under 20 years old.

Parental Leave Pay – offers pay to raise a newborn or adopted child up to 18 weeks.

Newborn Upfront Payment & Newborn Supplement – an increase to your Family Tax Benefit A payment when you have a child.

Dad or Partner Pay – government support of new dads caring for a newborn or a newly adopted child for up to 2 weeks.

Child Care Benefit – helps with the payment of approved and registered child care.

Child Care Rebate – helps with child care expenses when you are working, studying or training and you must receive the child care benefit as well.

Family or Domestic Violence – if you in a situation that needs help, the government provides payments, referrals and resources to help in this situation.

 
Job Seekers
Newstart Allowance – helps provide financial support while you look for a new job.

Youth Allowance – for youths 16-21 that are looking for work or doing approved activities there is a payment allowance.

Austudy – provides payments to full time Australian students and Apprentices over 25.

ABstudy – gives money for Aboriginals or Torres Strait Islanders who are undertaking an Australia apprenticeship.

Carers
Carer Payment – if you provide full time care for someone that is severely disabled or has a medical condition that prevents you from working full time, you are probably eligible for this payment.

Carer Allowance – this payment is not taxed, not counted as income or asset tested like the other support payments. You can receive it if you provide additional daily care for a dependent child with a disability, medical condition or a person that is frail aged.

Carer Supplement – this annual lump sum payment provides for expenses for parents and carers that are receiving a Carer Payment or Allowance.

Carer Adjustment Payment – is a onetime lump sum payment for parents dealing with a child under 7 years old that has suddenly become ill or been in an accident.

Child Disability Assistance Payment – provides help for parents with children suffering from disabilities and is an annual lump sum payment.

Older Australians

Age Pension – income tested this payment helps older Australians deal with living and household costs.

Energy Supplement – is for seniors that receive an age pension or a Commonwealth Seniors Health Card holder and provides extra money for energy costs.

 
Others
Rent Assistance – provides financial assistance to those that receive Centrelink payments and rent privately.

Centrelink loans – There are different grants, benefits and non-profit loans you can qualify for, theses can be in addition to Centrelink payments you are already collecting.

Bill smoothing – This is another process which can be done on your own or with the assistance of Centrelink. It’s essentially a better way to manage your money to reduce the chances of missed bill repayments and large unexpected bills.

Financial hardship – This is a great process to work with your creditors to possibly change your repayment terms to allow for more flexibility with repayments. This can help managing your monthly budget easier and remove the need for a loan.

The above are some of the main payments and supplements that Centrelink offers, but it is by no means a complete list of offerings from Centrelink. Use the Centrelink benefits calculator to see what you may qualify for and help you before applying for expensive short-term loans.