We all look forward to retirement our whole lives, and for many, claiming the Age Pension is part of the retirement plan.
Let’s discover how to make the claim process easier and quicker.
To be eligible for the Age Pension, you need to be Age Pension age, which is 67 years. You also need to meet the residence requirements and both you and your partner’s combined assessable income and assessable assets must be under the income and assets test limits. You can find the latest limits on our website, servicesaustralia.gov.au.
You can apply for the Age Pension up to 13 weeks before you become eligible. That could be 13 weeks before you turn Age Pension age, or, if you’re already Age Pension age, 13 weeks before a change in your income and assets makes you eligible.
If you’re applying early because your income and assets are going to change, we’ll need some proof of your changing circumstances. For example, if you’re retiring from work and know your retirement date, you could provide a letter from your employer confirming it.
The best way to apply for the Age Pension is online. It’s quicker and easier because you can avoid a whole host of questions you’d have to answer on a paper claim even if they’re not relevant to your situation.
Log in to your Centrelink online account through myGov or use the official myGov app, or the Express Plus Centrelink app to lodge your claim.
We may need to ask for a range of supporting documents when you claim the Age Pension. Having an understanding of the types of supporting documents you might need will streamline the application process, so I’d recommend having all the supporting documents ready before you lodge the claim. That’ll reduce delays and help get payments sooner.
To make that easier, another advantage of applying online is that you’ll be given a personalised list of the documents that you need to lodge with your claim based on your answers to the questions. If you lodge a paper claim, you will find a list of all the possible documents you might need to provide with the form.
You don’t have to go online to apply for payments. If you’d prefer, you can always call us or visit your local service centre to get help with your paper application forms.
It may be that as part of your claim process, you’ll need to complete additional forms to get more information about your circumstances. The good news is that the claim tells you if you need to complete any additional forms, whether you’re lodging online or through a paper claim.
These forms may ask for more supporting documents on top of what you’ve already gathered for your claim. Make sure you read everything carefully to find out what other information you need to upload with the forms.
Until next time.
Have you applied for the Age Pension? Why not share your experience in the comments section below?
Also read: Centrelink Q&A: How will Centrelink value my home while I’m travelling?
