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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.
What if I win money on horseracing.
Will that be considered as income ?
I received $112,000 as an inheritance. I purchased a block of land using $60,000 of the money and the other went into my bank. I receive Newstart and family tax benefit A and B and am a single mother. How will I be effected
Hi Susan, thanks for seeking clarity! We do not specialise in Job Seeker(Newstart) or Family Tax Benefit payments so could not clarify the impact (if any) with certainty. Generally speaking though you need to notify Centrelink of any increase or decrease in your income/assets so if you have not already you should notify Centrelink of the payment you received and how it has been used.
This seems very unfair I have helped my own children before retirement and now have eight grand children I would dearly love to assist with their homes. Surely if everyone received a taxed pension this would eliminate many expenses, After enduring the experience and expense of aged care for my late husband I am very concerned about how I will afford same if needed, hope it never happens to me. The Government of the day should not have any say in how people who have worked hard and paid taxes for many years spend their retirement or their finance.
I am on Centrelink Disability Support Pension with ‘Indefinite Portability’ (which allows me to live overseas and receive full benefit. I currently reside in Thailand.
My father passed away early last year.. and finally next Monday the executor of the estate will deposit $401,000 into my Australian bank account.
I am yet to have any plan for the money.
Q. When and how (or do I have to?) tell Centrelink of this. And what affect will it have to my benefit.
thanks
Hi Daniel. You need to tell Centrelink of changes to your circumstances within 14 days of the change occurring. The additional money in your bank account will affect your entitlements as it will be treated as an asset
Lee my mum passed away and i will recive about $40000 do i need to tell centerlink
Hi Lee, thank you for reaching out with your enquiry. Centrelink expect you to notify them of any change to your financial investments of +/- $2,000 within 14 days of the change occurring. Once you receive the payment into your account you should request an interim/out of cycle statement from your bank, upload the statement to Centrelink and then call them to ensure the change is made and your pension is recalculated accordingly. You may wish to update Centrelink on all of your other asset values in case there have been other changes that you have not yet notified Centrelink about.
I agree….. surely the essence of maintaining family unity is being eroded. I feel that if you have got off you ‘bum’ ( and there are other words) then you should not be penalized but rewarded for your contribution to society. Our wishes should not be controlled via government red tape when we live in a democratic country. The limit of $10,000 per year with a maximum of $30,000 over five years seems very ineffective considering how hard it is for our younger population to save a deposit and to buy their first home. Wouldn’t it be in the interest for any governments (either now or in the future) to allow some leniency of owning your first home considering the well publicized difficulties and the amount of money being allocated and given to kick-start the building/construction industry. Maybe to add more fuel to the control exercised by government agencies (putting tongue in cheek) – we should be able to show how we have assisted our family members in purchasing the first home as we have to show all other documentation in the format that is requested/demanded. After all it is our money, our family and our children’s future that is being eroded.
That’s fair enough. Extra assets mean you don’t need as much pension, at least that is what we are meant to believe with assets just over the max assets test.
Excellent useable information thank you
Can someone tell me how valuable inherited artwork is treated by Centrelink please. Does it have to be declared as an asset and will that affect my age pension? What if I sell it? I cant find any reference to this sort of inheritance on the Centrelink website or anywhere else. Thank you.
Hi Leonie. Artwork will be counted amongst your personal possessions for the assets test. The same will be the case with the proceeds should you choose to sell it.
I recieved inheritance of 67.000 in 2019. Im on age pension.
I havent reported it..
Iv spent aprox 40.000..
Would this situation be a problem if i report it now.
I have no assets or other savings.
Do you sugest i report as soon as possable
Thankyou..Jphn
Hi, if you are on the age pension you are required to report changes in your circumstances to Centrelink such as an inheritance. Based upon what you have told us you would be well below the assets threshold so your inheritance wouldn’t have affected your entitlements. Centrelink may however wish to talk to you about why it wasn’t reported at the time and you take the opportunity to update all your assets including things such as a car and personal assets
I am on a disability pension and my mother passed away a month ago. I currently rent, and will not be able to afford to buy a home with my inheritance (which will likely be between $150,000 and $200,000). So I don’t have a home which I can pay off and I am worried that I might lose my disability pension. Am I likely to lose my pension if I don’t spend this money immediately? I do need a new car, so would like to put some of the money towards that, but I don’t want to waste my inheritance either. Unsure what I should do and feeling quite stressed about this.
Hi Sandra, if you look up the assets test for pensions you’ll see the limits. Buying a car doesn’t mean you’ve spent the money as the car is also considered an asset . If you don’t have any other significant assets this inheritance won’t affect your Centrelink payment as the cut off for full pension is $480,000 approx for non home owners. So unless your assets including the inheritance add up to $480k your payment won’t be affected.
Good information Thank you. My questions:
1.what are the effects of inheriting a house? how is the value of the house calculated
2. I you also inherit cash and a house how is this calculated? (for a single olde age pensioner)
Hi Antonina, if you or anyone else reading would like to talk about your situation in detail, we offer 30min consultations at a cost of $75. We can clarify how Centrelink will assess you specifically and help guide you on any related matters that might impact your Age Pension. If you wish to proceed please CLICK HERE to book the best suitable time available.
I have $130000. In my account which is for my children from their grandfathers death. I am self funded retired and 64 I need to give $20000. To 2 children but my partner is on pension of $729 approx. What is the best way to do this and will it have any affect on my hubby’s pension.
Hi Mx Welling, if you or anyone else reading would like to talk about your situation in detail, we offer 30min consultations at a cost of $75. We can clarify how Centrelink will assess you specifically and help guide you on any related matters that might impact your Age Pension. If you wish to proceed please CLICK HERE to book the best suitable time available.
My parents are pensioners living on the poverty line, and are about to receive a $100,000 inheritance. They want to purchase a house to live in but would never get approved for a mortgage. They want to give me the money to use as a deposit to purchase the property in my name, for them to live in (I can comfortably afford to do this and pay the mortgage). Would centrelink consider this a gift even though they’ll be the primary residents of the asset? Or would my parents need to be listed on the title of the property in order for the $100,000 not to be considered a gift?
Hi Jenny, what an important situation to get clarity on! There is good news, Centrelink refer to this situation as Granny Flat Interest and you can read more about it HERE. Essentially though, it means your parents can give you a sum of money in exchange for the right to live in a property (that they do not own) for the rest of their life. It will not count as gifting so long as the amount they give you is not more than the value of the property which based on the figures you have mentioned will not likely be a problem.
I will be I hearing approx $240 thousand
I havecoffered $200 thousand to my son to assist buying a home.
How will this affect my pension?
I have a son with a mental illness whom I haven’t seen for 30 years. My current will divides my assets between both sons more or less equally but I’m worried about leaving the former so much, ( let’s say $500,000) that it will negate his pension. Besides which, I have no idea whether he would be competent enough to manage it. I’m wondering whether to leave him a smaller amount which could make his life more comfortable but he would still have all the advantages of remaining on the pension. What could this a out be under Centrelink rules? He does not own a house and presumably lives in A rental State Housing flat.
Hi, I received inheritance of $550k. I found that lump sum such as inheritance exempts from the income test on their web-site https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/lump-sums-while-income-support?context=22526 Will Centrelink deem my Disability Support pension ? Thank you
Sorry Irina, we do not specialise in Disability Support payments so could not accurately confirm what the impacts might be. I suggest you call Centrelink’s Disability Support line on 132 717 Monday to Friday 8am-5pm.
Hi
My father will inherit the RAD from my mother’s aged care facility once the estate is settled. When does that cash become deemable? Only once the cash actually hits his account?
Hi Susan, our condolences on your mother’s passing. You are correct that the balance will be deemed once it is received by your father. Until then it is still considered the Aged Care Facility’s asset, not your father’s.
I’ve used the Centrelink nursing home assessment tool, it estimates that based on our current situation if my husband needs to go into care there would be an approx daily fee of $100 per day.
When my elderly mother passes away I will receive an approx $200,000 inheritance, when I receive this will it be taken into account and increase the daily fee payable?
Hi Janice, we only specialise in Age Pension and Commonwealth Seniors Health Card so we could not confidently advise on how other Centrelink entitlements may be impacted.
Once probate is settled, if a sibling buys our deceased mother’s house by taking over the mortgage and pay my share of the inheritance (approx. $100,000) to me in instalments over a couple of years rather than paying me a lump sum, would I be liable to pay tax on these instalments? And would the instalments affect my Age Pension?
Hi Colleen, thanks for reaching out! We can’t answer your question regarding potential tax liability and recommend you speak with a tax agent to be certain. In terms of how these payments impact your Age Pension, you would need to provide Centrelink with a new copy of your bank account statement as each payment comes through so that Centrelink know how much your assets have increased by and can recalculate your pension payments if need be.
Hi, I’m about to receive $100,00 inheritance approx. I’m on a part aged pension and family allowance (one high school child). My wife works as a permanent casual farm worker. We have under $10k in savings and rent a house. How will this amount affect my pension and what if it’s split between the two of us – same? Thanks.
Hi Bret, thanks for seeking assistance! The best thing for you to do is complete an Age Pension eligiblity calculator as the amount of pension you receive depends on multiple factors regarding your income and assets. You can find Retirement Essentials’ free calculator HERE.
Hi Steven
My wife will shortly inherit $510,000 from her mothers estate .We are both on the full aged pension . I understand that if she deposits this amount into her accumulated super fund she would not be penalised by the income and assets test
We are considering in about six months time to sell our home and buy a retirement home off the plan.we would need the $510,000 to go towards the cost of the home.If we withdraw this amount as a one off would her super balance still be considered in the accumulation mode
Hi Chris, Thanks for your question.
The impact will be different depending on circumstances (age plays a factor, amounts, timing of sale and purchase, etc.). I think you would benefit from booking an advice consultation appointment with myself or one of my colleagues. You can find more information about this service here. Best of luck with your plans!
I am about to inherit $250000 from my mothers estate currently I receive a full pension and have assets of $175000 given me a total of $425000 how would this affect my pension and how much would it decreaseby
Hi Robert. It could affect your pension. How much will depend on whether you are a home owner or not and if you are single or part of a couple, as well as any other assets you have. Here is a link to how the thresholds work as well as a link to our eligibility calculator where you can input your inheritance and calculate how much you will be likely to receive.
hi I recently inherited 17,000 from my mother, I drew out that amount to use some to do up my mother’s grave and I want to put rest in my safe at home with my will, for down track I do receive a small amount of centerlink a fortnight, plus I work only one day a week, because my husband works too full-time, will my $17,000 be exempt from centerlink, im going to tell them about my inheritance, and that what I be doing with it. thanks.
Hi Michele. It is not exempt unfortunately. Here is an article we have recently written on this subject.
Handling an inheritance.
Hi,
I am 70yo & my wife 69yo. We own our home & have about $140k each in our super of which we draw $300/mth.
We are on the age pension & not big spenders or holiday people so live adequately. (pay our bills/feed ouselves & maintain priv health insurance).
We are about to receive approx $400k each from my mother’s estate. Will this basically eliminate our pensions and/or can we place the inheritance into our respective Super?
thank you
Hi Allan, thank you for reaching out and I’m sorry to hear of your Mother’s passing.
Whether you invest the money into your super or leave it in a bank account, Centrelink will still count it as an asset either way. The asset threshold for a couple who own their home is $935,000 and based on the figures you provided you and your wife will have $1,080,000. Therefore once the funds are received you should provide Centrelink with a bank statement or equivalent to show the increase in assets so they can stop your payments to avoid any potential debt needing to be repaid.
You may be eligible for a Commonwealth Seniors Health Card as this is only income tested, however Centrelink will not simply ‘swap you over’ you will need to lodge a separate claim for the CSHC.
As a pensioner I have received my mothers inheritance of real estate (her Home) will I still be able to receive the age pension until such time that I would sell the property or would Centrelink classify it as an immediate asset
Hi Alex, thank you for reaching out! Centrelink will assess your late mother’s property as an asset as soon as it becomes yours. You should notify Centrelink of this as soon as possible via the submission of Mod R form to avoid any overpayments/debt to Centrelink.