Rent Assistance FAQ and myths
Do I need to make a separate claim for Rent Assistance?
No. Rent Assistance is assessed as part of an eligible payment, or when you update your accommodation details if you already receive one. There is no separate Rent Assistance form. If you receive an eligible payment and your rent details are on record, Services Australia assesses it automatically. If it does not appear, the usual cause is missing or out-of-date rent details, not a missing separate claim.
Can I get Rent Assistance if I live in public housing?
Generally no. Rent Assistance is not payable if you pay government rent to a state or territory housing authority, which covers most public housing. That rent is already subsidised. Rent paid to a community housing provider is different, and can count, subject to the usual rules.
Can a homeowner get Rent Assistance?
Not for a home you own and live in, and not for mortgage repayments, which are not rent. A homeowner who is temporarily absent from the principal home may qualify for Rent Assistance for temporary accommodation only if the specific rules for that situation are met. Retirement village fees are a separate case, with their own conditions, covered on the what counts as rent page.
Is Rent Assistance a percentage of my whole rent?
No. It is 75 cents for every dollar of rent above the threshold, up to the maximum. A single person with no children paying $300.00 a fortnight does not receive 75 per cent of $300.00. The rent above the $157.80 threshold is $142.20, and 75 per cent of that is $106.65. The full arithmetic is on the how it is calculated page.
Does everyone who rents privately qualify?
No. You must first receive an eligible income support payment, or Family Tax Benefit Part A above the base rate, and your rent must be above the threshold for your family situation. A private renter in Sydney, Melbourne, or any other Australian city who receives no eligible payment does not qualify, however high the rent is.
Does sharing a home always mean the sharer rate?
Not automatically. The sharer rate applies to a single customer with no dependent children who lives in shared private accommodation and receives one of the payments listed on the sharer rules page. Board and lodging arrangements have their own treatment, and a shared arrangement with a partner is assessed as a couple, not as a sharer case.
Is Rent Assistance taxable?
Rent Assistance is generally not taxable income. It is an addition to a payment, not earnings, and it is not counted as taxable income for tax purposes. If your tax position is complex, confirm it with the Australian Taxation Office, because the tax treatment of your main payment is a separate question from Rent Assistance itself.
What if my rent rises but my payment does not?
Check three things in order: that the new rent figure is actually on your Centrelink record, that you are not already at the maximum for your situation, so that extra rent adds nothing, and that no indexation or household change has offset the rise. If the record is correct and you are below the maximum, contact Services Australia. A rent rise that was never reported is the most common explanation, and it is fixed by reporting the change, as explained on the reporting changes page.
Can Rent Assistance be backdated?
Rent Assistance generally starts from the start date of the main payment, or from when the rent and accommodation details were provided and assessed. Whether a particular period can be backdated depends on when the claim and the details were lodged and on the rules of the main payment. Keep the dates of your tenancy agreement and of any update you make, because those dates are what any backdating question turns on.