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James Coyle
James has over 35 years experience in financial services with particular expertise in two of the key components of retirement finance - Superannuation and the Age Pension. He is passionate about providing the guidance and support that can help older Australians enjoy their best possible retirement. He lives in regional Victoria surrounded by dogs and chooks.
At what date exactly does the Thresholds and increased Work Bonus commence please
Hi Amanda. This is still subject to legislation which is currently in Parliament. We are expecting it to be passed imminently and will know the start date after that. The CSHC thresholds will become effective 7 days after the legislation receives Royal Assent
Once either the age pension or the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card are applied for, how long does it take on average these days provided all the paperwork is correct?
Hi Ian, great question! Commonwealth Seniors Health Card claims are generally approved within 3 weeks presuming the claim is lodged correctly with all supporting documents, our record is 4 days but that is unfortunately not the norm. With Age Pension claims the timeframe can vary, for a ‘simple’ claim with no complex situations these are usually approved in 4-6 weeks however if you have a Private Company/Trust, SMSF or complex relationship then these claims are sent off for an extra assessment and often take 8-10 weeks. Of course this is all from our experience and others may have experienced differing time periods.
Absolute tosh… it MAY be that the much of the direct increase to age pension rates is eroded by rising costs of living. (should read HAS BEEN) But the extra benefits in the table above are not just on rates – and will HOPEFULLy mean that you are MUCH better off overall… who writes this propaganda… a failed ex priest?…$30 increase is chicken feed and the health concessions are a bureaucratic joke.
We have sold our home and are now waiting for a new retirement home to be built
It should be ready by June next year
When I use a pension calculator do I click on couples home owner or couples non homeowner .When I select homeowner our pensions vanish but when I select non home owner the pension for couples based on our current assets shows we will receive $9,311 per year
Hi Linda, when you say “retirement home” I’m presuming you mean the same as a retirement village? In which case whether you are assessed as a homeowner or not is determined by the fee you are paying. Currently, the figure used to make the determination is $224,500 which means if you pay more then that, you will be considered a homeowner and if you pay less then you will be considered a non-homeowner.
If you are building a private home for yourselves and I have misunderstood “retirement home” then whilst you are living elsewhere during the build you would be considered non-homeowners but then once you move in to the finished house you would then become homeowners.
If you retire in say November 22. Does the extra earning apply for the year from November/December 22 or financial year? ie, if you worked until 1st November do your earnings from July-October go against the extra income you can earn?
Also, is there a place you can read/learn about how you report income, date you are paid as opposed to earning period etc.
Thanks
Hi Lilian, great question! When it comes to the Age Pension, Centrelink assess your income as of the day you lodge your claim onward. Previous income earnings are not held against you nor is your previous financial year’s income. CSHC is different though and does go off the most recent FY income. Regarding how you report income, you report the income that appears on the pay slip you received during the past fortnight. If you get paid a couple of days after you were due to report, that is not an issue as you are declaring what was previously paid to you, not what you are about to receive.