Amendments to Australia’s social security laws are set to take effect in 2022.
Social security benefits are available to Australian residents who are in financial need. The Department of Social Services (DSS) considers Australian citizens, permanent visa holders and some New Zealand citizens as Australian residents for social security payments. Temporary partner visa holders can also access some payments.
To qualify for most payments from January 2022, new residents will have to wait four years from the time their residency is granted. Time outside of Australia will not count towards the four year wait time.
The waiting period for Carer Payment, Parental Leave Pay and Dad and Partner Pay will increase from two to four years. For Carer Allowance and Family Tax Benefit Part A the waiting period will increase from one to four years. The government also wants to introduce a new waiting period of four years for Family Tax Benefit Part B.
A four-year waiting period for JobSeeker, Parenting Payment and most concession cards has been in place since 2018.
