Robyn is temporarily moving away from her home address to support a relative and wants to know if she can apply for an Age Pension at any Centrelink office.
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Q. Robyn
I will be applying for the Age Pension soon. Am I able to apply at any Centrelink office? I will be in Mudgee for a few weeks to see an aunt who is going into hospital, but my address is in Sydney.
A. Applying for the Age Pension can be quite a complicated process and if you are approaching retirement age, you should probably start investigating the process at least six months out.
Robyn is not clear on the amount of time she is spending away from her home address, but the good news is that she can apply for the Age Pension up to 13 weeks before she is eligible, so she can get started on the application process even before she leaves for Mudgee.
However, if Robyn does want to get the process started while she is away, there is a Centrelink office in Mudgee and for anyone else needing to find an office or access point, they can put their postcode into this link.
It’s vital to book an appointment, and make sure you have all the relevant documents with you.
The government will write to you to let you know when you can start the application process and it’s good to start early, as approval can take weeks. Your claim will be backdated to the day you lodge your application.
You can also apply at any other Centrelink centre and online through the myGov site. You will first need to link your myGov account to your Centrelink online account.
Here’s a guide to Services Australia’s online support.
Services Australia also has staff who travel to rural and regional areas in mobile service centres. See when and where they are travelling.
For anyone planning on applying online, there are a quite a few documents needed to prove your age, your relationship status, confirm your tax file number and your income and assets. You can find a list of the documents here.
Depending on your personal circumstances, you may also need to provide some extra forms, such as the ones here.
Robyn should copy these documents and take them with her if she is planning on applying for the Age Pension in Mudgee.
Do you have a Centrelink query? Send it to newsletters@yourlifechoices and we’ll try to answer it or find someone who can.
Also read: Carer fears for her future
