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You are here: ABSTUDY > 7
Benefits and Allowances > 7.3 Living Allowance
This chapter contains details about Living Allowance.
Summary table
The table below summarises the Living Allowance.
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Feature of Allowance |
Details |
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Availability |
Schooling B, Tertiary and Masters and Doctorate Awards and students eligible for Away-from-base assistance. |
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Purpose |
To assist in meeting day-to-day living costs of the student. |
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Eligibility conditions |
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Entitlement |
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Maximum rates |
See table at 6.5.2.1 (an abatement rate applies which may reduce a student’s entitlement to Living Allowance. |
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Period of entitlement |
Exceptions:
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Other entitlement features |
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Payment features |
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| Taxation status |
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Indexation status |
Indexed to CPI and adjusted annually. |
Students on the following awards may qualify for Living Allowance:
Other students eligible for Away-from-base assistance may also qualify for Living Allowance for a short period.
The purpose of Living Allowance is to assist in meeting the day-to-day living costs of the student. For school students it may also be used towards meeting school expenses such as school fees of students living at home.
Maximum Living Allowance rates for dependent students are set with the expectation that parents/guardians will contribute to students’ living costs. Higher rates may be available for students who meet the ABSTUDY criteria for independence and students eligible for the away from home rate.
A student is eligible for Living Allowance if s/he:
Note: A full-time or part-time student approved for Away-from-base assistance for Living Allowance if her/his regular source of income is lost (see Policy Manual 7.10.3.3.1).
Income, assets and family actual means tests apply during the period for which the student is eligible for ABSTUDY assistance.
Income and assets tests also apply to:
The parental income and assets tests and the family actual means test are waived for students who are, or have been, living under an officially approved substitute care arrangement and who have reached the minimum school leaving age for their State/Territory (see Policy Manual 5.4.1.3).
Students in State care who remain within their family will have their parents’ income taken into account (see Policy Manual 5.4.2.6).
Living Allowance rate of entitlement is determined by the following factors:
Continuing students aged 21 years or more in receipt of the ABSTUDY living allowance, who given their current personal and partner circumstances will not receive as high a level of overall benefit in 2001 as they would have received in 1999 given the same circumstances, will be maintained at 1999 levels until the completion of their current course of study because of the ABSTUDY changes in 2000.
Note: Once a continuing student goes onto the 2000 rate they cannot then go back to the 1999 rate should a change in their circumstances make the 1999 rate more attractive.
Current course of study for Rate Maintenance provisions includes:
A continuing student is one who has not had a break in study between 1999, 2000 and 2001, except where, in exceptional circumstances that are generally beyond a student’s control, the break in study can be justified on:
Different rates of Living Allowance apply for students who are:
Where a 15 year old is granted independent status under the provisions for orphanhood, homelessness, where parents cannot exercise parental responsibilities or special adult status in an Aboriginal community, s/he will be entitled to the independent rate for 16-17 year old students.
Proof of age is a requirement for all students turning 16 years old in 2001 and for new students who are 16 years or older (see Policy Manual 2.1.4.2.2 for acceptable documentation).
Different rates of Living Allowance apply (see table in Policy Manual 6.7.2.1) for students who are:
Different rates of Living Allowance apply for students who:
Note: The sole parent rate of Living Allowance can be paid to a student who shares custody and financial responsibility of a child if the child lives with that parent for at least half the week.
Students receiving the away rate of Living Allowance are eligible for the full period of their entitlement providing they were living away from home when they commenced and completed full-time study in the approved course. No reassessment is required for vacation periods.
A student who is, or has been, living under an officially approved substitute care arrangement and has reached the minimum school leaving age for that State/Territory (see Policy Manual 5.4.1.3) is entitled to receive:
Entitlements for the Masters and Doctorate Award are based on the standard stipend and allowance rates which apply for the Australian Postgraduate Award (APA) scheme.
Masters and Doctorate is covered in detail in Policy Manual 7.4.4.2 and rates at 6.7.2.
A table of the maximum Living Allowance rates is given in Policy Manual 6.7.2.1.
Tables of indicative rates giving approximate Living Allowance entitlement according to income levels are included in the appropriate Centrelink information booklets.
A tertiary student who:
may elect to:
Note 1: Pensioner students who elect to have residential fees paid, forfeit Pensioner Education Supplement (PES) during periods when they are living in residence and are not eligible for the reduced level of Living Allowance. They will, however, receive the full rate of PES for any period residential fees are not charged.
Note 2: Non-PES students will be means tested against their parents/guardians or partner, if relevant, and consequently, Living Allowance entitlement may be less than $41.60 a fortnight. However, residential costs may be paid where the student is entitled to Living Allowance of any amount.
Students considering the residential costs option should carefully compare the costs with their level of entitlement before making their decision. They can be referred to the indicative rates tables in the appropriate Centrelink information booklets, which gives approximate Living Allowance entitlement according to income levels.
Note: Students who choose this option are ineligible for Additional Assistance and/or meals allowance to supplement the reduced rate of Living Allowance.
There is no set upper limit on the residential costs payable by ABSTUDY for approved students who choose the residential costs option, however, Centrelink should ensure that residential charges are reasonable, particularly where a large proportion of the students are on ABSTUDY support.
Note: Centrelink Customer Service Officers should check whether any fees are refundable.
Residential fees do not include bonds or other refundable fees.
School students may be entitled to transfer any unused School Fees Allowance to meet excess board fees which cannot be covered by the level of Living Allowance if they:
This includes approved boarders attending government schools (see Policy Manual 7.8.6) and students who qualify for independent status as a homeless student, an orphan or a student whose parent(s) cannot exercise parental responsibilities (see Policy Manual 5.3.4.10).
Transfer of unused School Fees Allowance to meet excess board costs is not automatic. Approval requirements are provided in Policy Manual 7.8.6.4.
Where transfer of the school fees entitlement is approved, the amount payable must not exceed the combined School Fees Allowance and Living Allowance entitlements for a term.
A schedule of boarding charges should be obtained from boarding institutions before paying the away from home Living Allowance.
The ABSTUDY Manager or her/his delegate must be satisfied that the boarding charges are reasonable. If the charges claimed appear unreasonable, the Customer Service Officer should request that the institution demonstrate that the charges are reasonable.
The normal period of Living Allowance entitlement is:
Circumstances which affect the commencement of the entitlement period are:
Circumstances which affect the end of the entitlement period are:
A student's period of entitlement may also be affected by loss of entitlement due to absences from class (see Policy Manual 4.6.1 and 4.6.3).
With the exception of a student who is not accepted into her/his course (see 7.3.6.11 and 7.3.6.12), a student who does not commence full-time study in an approved course is not entitled to Living Allowance for any period.
A student will not be regarded as commencing late if he/she commences full-time study in the approved course within the first three weeks of classes ie by the Friday of the third week of term or semester.
Where a student commences study in the course after the Friday of the third week, Living Allowance entitlement will start from the day on which the student actually commences full-time study in the approved course.
If, in the opinion of the delegate, a student's late commencement was due to circumstances beyond the student's control (see Policy Manual 4.6.4.2), Living Allowance entitlement may be made retrospective in accordance with the normal period of entitlement for that course.
A student who resumes full-time study after a break greater than one semester is entitled to assistance from the date of commencement which includes the day on which the student actually commences study in the approved course.
ABSTUDY can be paid from 1 January or 1 July as applicable where a student:
A student cannot get ABSTUDY Living Allowance for the same period that s/he gets:
A FaCS benefit or allowance can continue to be paid up to the date the student commences full time study. No ABSTUDY is payable for any period while the FaCS allowances continue.
A person cannot receive ABSTUDY if s/he:
Newstart or YA customers who start courses of six months or less duration will transfer to ABSTUDY if they have not been directed to undertake the course. The payment arrangements applying to this group of students are that the FaCS allowance will continue up until the day before the course commences. ABSTUDY will then pay from the course start date.
For students on Newstart or YA who are undertaking courses of longer than six months duration, Newstart or YA will continue for 21 days after the commencement of the course, then transfer to ABSTUDY. However, under amendments to the Department of Family and Community Services (FaCS) legislation (s.614(6) of the Social Security Act), eligible FaCS recipients may continue to receive Newstart or YA for the duration of study in courses of less than twelve month’s duration. As a result, customers may choose to remain on their FaCS benefit rather than transfer to ABSTUDY if they are undertaking an ‘approved activity’ by studying in a shorter course. They may, however, transfer to ABSTUDY if financially beneficial to do so.
The arrangement for students who transfer to ABSTUDY from Sickness Allowance (SA) or Special Benefit (SpB) is that these payments will continue up until the day before the course commences, regardless of the duration of the course. In these cases, ABSTUDY should be paid from the course start date.
Under the Social Security Act, eligible FaCS recipients may continue to receive SA/SpB for study in courses of less than twelve months’ duration. These customers may also choose to remain on their FaCS benefit rather than transfer to ABSTUDY if they are undertaking an ‘approved activity’ by studying in a shorter course.
There will be occasions when a student has not been paid FaCS benefits up to the commencement of their course or for the first three weeks of the course, contrary to the understood arrangements. Any shortfall should be checked quickly and either the FaCS benefit or ABSTUDY paid for the period concerned subject to the student being otherwise qualified.
If a student is not actually getting a FaCS payment prior to study, ABSTUDY can be backdated to the later of:
The Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) provides different types of payments:
Particular care should be taken in assessing eligibility of students getting DVA payments. Often:
Note: If there is any doubt about which disability pension a student receives, clarify the matter with a regional office of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs
Students may still receive ABSTUDY if they attract the Child Disability Allowance. The allowance is paid to parents of children who require special care and attention because of disabilities.
A student will be considered to have discontinued if:
Note: See Policy Manual 4.6.3.6 for action if a student subsequently resumes after an absence of this nature, and the education institution accepts the period of absence.
The date of discontinuation is whichever is the earlier of:
A student who ceases to study full-time:
A student who is formally released from school prior to the official end of the school year, eg Year 12 students, may be entitled to Living Allowance until 31 December.
A continuing student who does not resume full-time study by the third Friday of the term/semester in a full-year course (ie would otherwise be eligible for payment from 1 January) which, in the opinion of the delegate was due to circumstances beyond her/his control, can be paid until the day when s/he became aware of the circumstances (see Policy Manual 4.6.4.2).
Note: To receive assistance for this period, the student would be expected to advise Centrelink as soon as possible.
A student who does not resume full-time study after a term or semester vacation is entitled to Living Allowance only until the last day of the course which includes the final day of the previous term or semester.
A student who does not resume full-time study after a vacation due to circumstances which, in the opinion of the delegate was beyond the student’s control, is entitled to Living Allowance until the last day of the course which includes the day the student became aware of the circumstances (see Policy Manual 4.6.4.2).
A student who does not resume full-time study following a period of extended absence from class which, in the opinion of the delegate, was due to circumstances beyond the student's control (see Policy Manual 4.6.4.2), is entitled to Living Allowance to the last day of the course which includes whichever is the earlier of:
A student who discontinues in the course and subsequently resumes the same course in the same year is entitled to Living Allowance from the date of commencement which includes the day on which s/he re-commenced classes if the period from the date of discontinuation to the date of resumption is more than four weeks.
Note: See Policy Manual 4.6.3.6 where the break in study is less than four weeks.
ABSTUDY can be paid for a period between a change in course if the student starts the new course within 28 days (and within the same year).
A student who lodges a claim form signalling an intention to enrol in an approved tertiary course and, subsequently, is not accepted into the course, is entitled to Living Allowance until the date of notification of non-acceptance.
Where a student who lodges a claim form signalling an intention to enrol in an approved tertiary course is not accepted into the course and subsequently drops back to secondary study later than the third Friday of a term, entitlement will continue without a break if studies are taken up within two weeks of receiving notification of non-acceptance into the tertiary course.
If Living Allowance has been paid in advance to a boarding school or hostel for a student who has commenced in the term and under the institution’s conditions of enrolment it will not be refunded, there will be no overpayment of Living Allowance.
Note: There is no entitlement to the school for a student who does not commence.
Eligibility for a fortnightly allowance
Where a change of circumstance occurs which affects a student's eligibility for a fortnightly allowance, the student is entitled to the allowance from the date of notification.
Examples of these changes include:
Where a change of circumstance occurs which affects a student's rate of fortnightly allowance, the student is entitled to the new rate of fortnightly allowance from the date of the change.
Examples of these changes include where a student:
DIFFERENT TO YA/AUSTUDY PAYMENT
A student's eligibility for Living Allowance may cease/commence if s/he:
Where a student commences or ceases to receive a pension, Living Allowance entitlement will cease or commence with effect from the day of change in status (see Policy Manual 4.4.2.5 for the circumstances which apply to students eligible for the pensioner workload concession who cease to receive a pension).
When a person enters lawful custody, all ABSTUDY payments will cease from commencement of custodial sentence.
Once in lawful custody, a person wishing to continue or to commence a course of study may apply for assistance under the Lawful Custody Allowance in accordance with 7.5. The lodgement of the claim should be in accordance with paragraph 7.5.3.2.
When a person is released from lawful custody and resumes study immediately s/he cannot be eligible for any ABSTUDY entitlements until they notify Centrelink and provide the following:
a) Proof of release from lawful custody;
b) Proof of resumption of study in the form of enrolment documentation (same as paragraph 2.1.4.1.2).
Any approval of payments by Centrelink are to be back-dated to the date of release from lawful custody.
The table below summarises Living Allowance entitlements where a student approved for away from home entitlements leaves a boarding arrangement during a term and returns home to study at a local school.
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If Living Allowance has... |
then... |
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been paid for the full term to a boarding education institution and, under the conditions of enrolment for the education institution, it will not be refunded |
there is no further entitlement for either School Term Allowance for the remainder of the term. |
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either not been paid or is refunded by a boarding education institution |
the student will be entitled to School Term Allowance or continuation of Living Allowance at the standard rate, for the period not charged by the boarding institution, provided s/he commences school at the home location in that term. |
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been paid at the away rate to an applicant or private board-provider |
Entitlement to Living Allowance at the away rate is to be reassessed from the date of the change. |
Also see 7.3.6.12 - Not accepted into course and returns to secondary study.
Where the educational programme conducted by a secondary school requires students to live away from home for a part of a school term, special pro rata arrangements for entitlements will apply.
If a student dies, Living Allowance entitlement will cease at the end of the pay period which includes the day on which the student died.
The payee may be:
Note: Tertiary students may elect to have costs for residential college or hostel accommodation, meals and associated costs paid directly by Centrelink (see 7.3.4.12).
Living Allowance is payable:
Note: A copy of the standard Agreement for term in advance payments to hostels is shown at Appendix 1 and also is available on-line.
Living Allowance may be paid, subject to eligibility provisions, on the basis of the student or applicant indicating that the student has enrolled or intends to enrol in an approved course.
Sufficient basis for payments to commence will be:
Note: Although payments may commence prior to enrolment, there is ultimately no entitlement where the student does not enrol or commence in an approved course.
Living Allowance for ABSTUDY Schooling students approved for the away rate (or, in some circumstances, the independent rate, see Policy Manual 5.3.4.7, 5.3.4.10, 5.5) may be paid term in advance directly to a boarding school. Hostels may also be paid term in advance where an Agreement has been entered into. Where no Agreement is signed, payments will be made fortnightly.
This payment option is not available to persons providing private board arrangements.
Refer to Policy Manual 7.1.2 to identify the responsible payee where an overpayment of this allowance has been made.
ABSTUDY Living Allowance under 16 years of age is not assessable income for taxation purposes.
ABSTUDY Living Allowance 16 years of age or older is assessable income. The allowance is considered the student's income for taxation purposes, whether paid to the student, parent/guardian or an agent. This includes unused School Fees Allowance entitlement which has been transferred to pay excess boarding fees.
See Policy Manual 6.4.1.
Students in receipt of a fortnightly ABSTUDY Living Allowance may be able to get an advance on their entitlement of between $250 and $500. This is available once a year, usually after students have been receiving ABSTUDY for at least three months.
The amount which can be advanced is the lowest of:
No advance is payable if the amount requested or the 7% of entitlement works out to be less than the minimum amount payment of $250.
The advance is not available:
Advance payments to dependent students under 18 years cannot be paid without the parent's permission.
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