The Australian government offers a one-time non-taxable payout to people who have experienced or are experiencing financial hardships or are going through some severe circumstances to offer them support to stand back and enhance their living standard.
The one-time payment is a Crisis payment, which is offered based on different circumstances to ensure every Australian can get the support at the needed time. Australians can access the crisis payment based on the situation they are in, leading them to the crisis.
Services Australia has set different eligibility criteria for each circumstance crisis payment. The residents must apply for this payment within 14 days of the crisis to get immediate support. The Centrelink one-off payment is boosted with 2025 indexation and adjustment.
| Benefit | Crisis Payment |
| Who qualifies? | Australians who meet the circumstances mentioned for the crisis payment and are receiving the Income Support or ABSTUDY living allowance |
| Circumstances | Domestic or family violence, an extreme situation, humanitarian entrants, confined in prison for more than 14 days |
| Max. Payout | Weekly basic rate of the Income Support or ABSTUDY living allowance |
| Claim Online | Services Australia |
| Taxable or not | Non-taxable payout |
| Official Website | https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/ |
Crisis Payment Circumstances
As mentioned earlier, the Australian government offers crisis payments based on circumstances. People wondering about the Crisis payment circumstances can check them below:
- When you have left your house or are forced to leave the house due to domestic violence or any incident in the family;
- When you have not left your home even after facing domestic violence, but a family member was removed from the house or left the home, leaving you dependent on yourself.
- When you entered Australia as a humanitarian for the first time and hold a specific humanitarian visa;
- When you were pressured to leave your home due to some extreme circumstances, or you couldn’t return to your home in your future due to some unreasonable reasons.
- When you were confined in a prison or psychiatric facility for at least 14 days, you may get the crisis payment.
Eligibility
The Australian government has set the crisis payment criteria for each circumstance; hence, if you wish to receive this payout, you must check the eligibility criteria for each circumstance below:
- For people experienced domestic violence or a family incident:
- You must be entitled for ABSTUDY living allowance, or income support payment;
- You are facing financial hardships and experiencing domestic or family violence,
- You need living arrangements, you are in contact with the social workers, who can assess your situation, and you are in Australia when the incident occurred or when you filed the claim.
- For Extreme Circumstances:
- You are entitled to an income support payment or ABSTUDY living allowance and are facing financial hardships.
- You were pressured to leave the home due to extreme situations, such as flood, fire, violence, etc., and intend to find a new residence or establish a new house.
- You must have been living in Australia when the emergency happened, and you made the claim.
- For humanitarians:
- You must be entitled to or receiving income support or ABSTUDY living allowance, and facing any financial hardships, or you have entered Australia with a humanitarian visa.
- For people released from psychiatric confinement or prison:
- You must be entitled to or receiving income support or ABSTUDY living allowance, and facing any financial crisis
- You have committed a criminal offence and you were imprisoned for more than 14 days.
Payout Amount
The payout of the crisis payment depends on the circumstances or any incident that happened when you were living in Australia, and claim it when you are living in Australia. The payout amount can depend on the circumstances you claim for, such as:
- For family or domestic violence, you can expect a four-payout in a year for circumstances, which is equal to the basic weekly payment you received via income support or ABSTUDY allowance.
- The extreme circumstances payout also offers four payments in a year, which is equal to the weekly payout of ABSTUDY allowance and income support.
- The payout for the humanitarian entrances is the same as the weekly pay rate of the income support basic payment.
- The payout for people who were confined or imprisoned will receive a payout equal to the weekly basic rate of income support.
How to claim?
Australians who need support from the Australian government on the grounds of crisis payment can claim the payout online through the following steps:
- First, you should open the myGov account or create an account online if you don’t have one.
- Next, go to the Centrelink option and select payments and claims from the Menu option.
- After that, click the claim icon, and click the Make a claim option.
- Next, go to the Crisis payment option and select the circumstances you wish to apply for the payment.
- Next, some questions will be asked based on your circumstances, answer them clearly and submit the claim.
If you can’t apply online, you must download the Crisis payment claim form from the Services Australia website or call the services, or visit the nearby Service centre to claim Crisis payment.
