First-payment checklist and 7 common mistakes

What to do before your first payment arrives, and the seven mistakes that cost pensioners money.

First-payment checklist

1. Claim 13 weeks early. Lodge before you turn 67 so there is no gap. 2. Check both tests yourself. Work out your income-test result and your assets-test result — the lower one is your rate. 3. Report everything. Income, assets, super, rent, partner details, overseas travel — missing items delay claims and can create debts later. 4. Set up payment. Nominate an Australian bank account and decide whether to ask Services Australia to withhold tax. 5. Check your supplements and card. Confirm Rent Assistance (if you rent), the Pension Supplement and Energy Supplement, and your Pensioner Concession Card are all in place.

Mistake 1–3: reporting, gifting, and the family home

1. Not reporting changes. Income, assets, relationship status and living arrangements must be reported when they change. Unreported increases can create overpayment debts that Services Australia recovers from later payments.

2. Gifting without understanding deprived assets. You can gift up to $10,000 in a financial year and $30,000 over five years without it counting; amounts above those limits are still counted as your assets for five years (deprived assets). Giving money to family to get under a threshold usually fails — and it still leaves you without the money.

3. Assuming a home sale makes money invisible. Proceeds from selling your home generally become assessable financial assets. Get advice before you sell, especially if you plan to buy again — timing and what you do with the proceeds change the assessment.

Mistake 4–7: super, travel, the full rate, and claiming late

4. Forgetting super counts at 67. Superannuation in the accumulation phase is generally not counted before pension age — but once you reach Age Pension age it counts under the assets test and is deemed under the income test. A large super balance can halve a pension that looked full on income alone.

5. Travelling without knowing the clocks. Overseas travel changes your payment on three clocks: after 6 weeks overseas the Energy Supplement stops and your Pensioner Concession Card cancels; after 12 weeks (from 20 September 2026) the Pension Supplement stops for temporary travel; after 26 weeks your rate may be recalculated from your Australian working-life residence (35 years or more usually means no change; fewer years usually means a proportional rate). Tell Services Australia through myGov before you travel.

6. Assuming you will get the maximum. The maximum rate is a starting point, not a promise. Run both tests before you budget around $1,237.70 a fortnight.

7. Claiming late. Every week you delay past eligibility is money you generally do not get back. Claim up to 13 weeks before you turn 67.

Official links

Verify every figure on this page at Services Australia:

• Age Pension — Services Australia
• When you leave Australia if you get Age Pension — Services Australia