Many Australians require government welfare assistance to meet their everyday costs of living. When these payments are a person’s primary source of income they are called an ‘income support payment’, which is a category of social security payments. Australian social security payment policy is administered by the Department of Social Services, and income support payments are delivered by the Department of Human Services, through its network of Centrelink offices. Payments are targeted to individuals who do not have the means to support themselves.
These payments support people unable to work or find work. In addition to financial assistance, the requirements of these payments—such as actively looking and preparing for work—aim to build a person’s capacity to support themselves and encourage self-reliance. They are an important part of a larger network of services and assistance, designed to improve the wellbeing of Australians (see Employment services for more information).
This page focuses on people aged 18–64 years receiving the main unemployment and parenting income support payments. Data are sourced from the Department of Human Services administrative data. Information on government expenditure on these payments is covered in Welfare expenditure.
As at 29 June 2018, 1.1 million people aged 18–64 received an unemployment or parenting payment, equating to 7.3% of the population aged 18–64. Of these:
- 71%, or 802,600, received an unemployment payment—717,000 for Newstart Allowance and 85,600 for Youth Allowance (other). This represents 5.2% of the population aged 18–64.
- 29% or 325,700 received a parenting payment—243,400 for Parenting Payment Single (PPS) and 82,300 for Parenting Payment Partnered (PPP). This represents 2.1% of the population aged 18–64.
In late June 2018, 10,600 Newstart Allowance recipients were aged 65, reflecting the increase in the qualifying age for the Age Pension to 65.5 from 1 July 2017 (see Income support payments for older people).
Newstart Allowance and Youth Allowance (other) are the main income support payments for unemployed people of workforce age, while they look for work or participate in approved activities that may increase their chances of finding a job.
Newstart Allowance is paid to people aged 22 or over but less than Age Pension age.
Youth Allowance (other) is paid to people aged 16–21 who are seeking or preparing for paid employment. Certain 15 year olds, including those who are homeless, may also receive assistance. Youth Allowance (other) recipients considered dependent are subject to a parental income test. Data on this page do not include recipients aged 15–17.
Parenting payment is the main income support payment available to people with sole or primary responsibility of a young child. It provides a safety net for parents who might otherwise be at risk of hardship. Parenting payment is paid in recognition of the impact caring for a young child can have on a parent’s capacity to undertake full-time employment. Only one parent or guardian can be the principal carer, and receive the payment.
Single parents may be eligible for PPS until their youngest child turns eight. Single parents must satisfy part‑time mutual obligation requirements of 30 hours per fortnight once their youngest child turns six (unless exempt). Partnered parents may be eligible for PPP until their youngest child turns six.
This page does not include all working-age income support payments for people aged 18–64, in particular recipients with disability or caring for people with disability (see Disability Support Pension and Carer Payment for more information).
Overall, both the number and proportion of people aged 18–64 receiving an unemployment or parenting payment decreased over the last 2 decades. Between 2001 and 2018, the:
- number of recipients fell by 11%, from 1.3 million in 2001 to 1.1 million in 2018, with a low of 930,700 in 2008
- proportion of the population aged 18–64 receiving unemployment or parenting payments fell by 3 percentage points, from 10% in 2001 to 7.3% in 2018, with a low of 6.9% in 2008 (Figure 1).
These overall trends were largely driven by recipients of unemployment payments (Newstart Allowance and Youth Allowance (other)), given that they account for the largest proportion of recipients receiving an unemployment or parenting payment.
Notable variations were observed in the trends for specific payments. Between 2001 and 2018, the number of recipients of parenting payments (PPP and PPS) aged 18–64 fell steadily from 619,600 to 325,700 (5.1% to 2.1% of the population aged 18–64).
Unemployment payments increased from 645,000 in 2001 to 802,600 in 2018 (24% increase), with a low of 446,700 in 2008 and a peak of 851,400 in 2015. As a proportion of the population aged 18–64, this equates to proportions remaining relatively flat overall between 2001 and 2018 (5.3% and 5.2% respectively), with some fluctuations from a low of 3.3% in 2008 to a high of 5.7% in 2015.
See ’Chapter 3 Income support over the past 20 years’ in Australia’s welfare 2019: data insights for more information on long-term trends.