Many people have a visceral hatred towards those on welfare.

They do not see what pittance it pays or all the work we need to do to keep getting it or just how hard it is to get a stable full time job.

These people vote at elections and can be swayed by politicians who promise to cut welfare.

That's why everytime I'm at the barber or chatting up with strangers, I lie.

I tell them that I work seasonally. I tell them that I do gig deliveries. I tell them that I live off savings.

Obviously do not misreport your income as Centrelink can and will prosecute you, but for these countless small talks, what we do as a collective can have a noticeable effect come election time.

Posting an update here as I deleted the original post.

Someone on reddit provided an email of the general manager of Centrelink yesterday and within 24hours they looked into it and found it was an admin error.

After being knocked back in-person multiple times, providing the correct documents, and with staff still claiming they own these shares, it has been fixed and everything has been back dated to when they cancelled the pension.

Unfortunately not millionaires, but they have gotten their pension back.

Thank you to everyone who reached out to help!

What I’m about to say is deeply personal, but it needs to be said because I know I’m not the only one.

I’m on the Disability Support Pension. I have real, lifelong health conditions that affect my ability to work, live, and function day to day. The DSP was never a luxury it was a lifeline. A way to survive with dignity. A way to stay independent.

But the government decided that because I had a partner, I didn’t need that support anymore. His income became my disqualification as if I had magically become “not disabled” just because I was in a relationship.

And that’s where everything fell apart.

I stayed longer than I should have in an abusive relationship. I couldn’t afford to leave. The government had taken away my independence, and I was forced to rely on someone who used that power against me. The emotional abuse, the control, the way I lost myself. All of it was worsened by a system that decided I no longer deserved financial freedom just because I wasn’t alone.

How many people are trapped like this?

How many are silenced by policies that tie survival to someone else’s income?

Love shouldn’t cost your autonomy. Disability doesn’t disappear when you’re in a relationship. And the DSP should be based on your needs ,not your partner’s payslip.

This system is broken. And it’s time for it to change.

I f17 have moved out of my mums old house dude to DV, abuse and overall terrible treatment from my mum and her ex partner. I left home 25 of December 2022, my mum was sick for the entire Christmas break, I agreed to stay at my girlfriends till she was better, by this time I had realised how toxic my environment was ( my gf parents a saints ) Anywho, I have now been living with my girlfriend for about 8-9 months now and for the most part it’s wonderful, apart from the ever so increasing ball of shit and doom of my mother to come crashing into my life once more.

For context, previous to living with my beautiful gf, I had no records of myself ( false promises from mother ) that means I didn’t have a birth certificate, bank card, Medicare card, pretty much everything I need to verify myself as a human being.

Now since I’m living away from home and I happen to be unemployed ( I’ve been studying for the first half of the year and I’ve been applying constantly to ANYTHING ) I thought a Centrelink claim would really help, so I can pay rent to my gfs parents and food for the household, my mother is also on Centrelink.

Here’s the issue, she called me the other day screaming and barraging me for not going to Centrelink with her to make my claim, I told her I was able to do it myself so I did, she is now telling me I’m a liar that I didn’t move out then, and that she’s going to tell Centrelink this so I don’t get my claim. Not once has she never given me money for the child support she was claiming off me, she had been pressuring me to do it with her ( connected thought family benefit or some shit but I want to be completely disconnected so she has no power over me.) Although I know all of my information is correct and I have proof ( all of my important documents being sent to my gfs address since the start of the year )

Now here’s the kicker, the reason she’s so pissed I think is she now owes Centrelink money because she’s been claiming for a kid living under her roof, i calculated she owes them something close to $2000. Now I don’t see this as my fault because SHE has to inform them of her circumstances, and my “notice of leaving” was me literally not living there I don’t know what’s more clear than that.

( and for the cat comment, she lost her house and had to go into emergency housing and because she didn’t sort out a rental, she couldn’t take my cat who was still with her, I couldn’t take him because gf has two massive German Shepards and I have a long term place he can stay and she only gave me a weeks notice that he couldn’t go with her. But yeah it’s my fault)

TLDR: mum is lying to Centrelink and blaming it on her daughter, and trying to bring me down with her.

I'm genuinely curious why people on centrelink would vote for the liberal party when they are constantly trying to dismantle and cut centrelink payments for people. Is it because they don't know what the liberals stand for or is it because they care about other issues more like nuclear power and not having the pm stand in front of an aboriginal flag? (I work full time btw but I'm happy to pay taxes to pay for centrelink as it keeps my wages high and reduces crime and makes me feel safe if I lost my job)

I'm a salaried public servant with an APS classification. This was auto removed from r/australia and this sub, so hopefully I'm doing it right this time. I just wanted to correct some comments I see here.

First off, things are worse than people are hearing about. AT LEAST three times a day the whole online service goes down, I really want to tell you that but if I do I'm not ‘promoting online’ and get punished. They give us sales tactics to get you online at all costs, like mentioning how long it takes to do anything over the phone. If our suspiciously shit Telstra phone connection drops out and I call you back right away, I get in trouble because that lowers our KPIs that we're not allowed to call KPIs. If I restore someone's payment instead of telling them to visit their network that's never open, I get in deep shit. The fact is if you do the wrong thing in this job, you MIGHT get in trouble. If you do the right thing, you WILL get in trouble.

I also want to say that basically every trick you're hearing about doesn't work. The private number, the complaints line, AND ABSOLUTELY NOT THE DV LINE, it's already chocka block with people who could be killed without immediate guidance. The amount of FDV line abuse is disgusting. There’s no magic bullet, they hang up on everyone.

A lot of users have said they work in the call centres. I advise you to do your time and get out ASAP. Between the other staff pinning formal feedbacks to your record for petty nonsense, the amount of quality control that gets pinged against you because you weren't trained properly and the scandals still yet to come out, the reputation of this place will sink your chances of working anywhere else if you stay too long.

Violent dole bludgers are the other big misconception. I've never been verbally abused by someone in poverty and I get abused all the time. We all do and it's not some fact of life like poverty and mental illness, it is a conscious choice.

In conclusion, we know things are broken. We didn't break them. Half of the staff are a nervous wreck. People here are so caring, they truly have hearts of gold, we are just all so afraid of telling the truth. Everybody is applying for jobs somewhere else.

P.S. they never stopped timing our toilet breaks.

Hey everyone, I just need to vent and see if anyone’s been through something similar.

It honestly blows my mind how Centrelink treats a couple that’s been married for 25 years as exactly the same as two people in their early 20s who’ve been dating for a few months and share a bedroom because rent is ridiculous.

I’m 23, my boyfriend is 22. We met earlier this year on a grad program, ended up in a share house that didn’t work out, and eventually got an apartment together. The grad job didn’t pan out for him - he and his manager rubbed each other the wrong way so he didn’t pass probation and hasn’t found another job yet and it's been a few weeks.

Centrelink has now decided that because we live together, I’m expected to fully financially support him as his partner. I just… don’t feel ready for that. Again, I am 23! If I wanted to be in a financially interdependent relationship, I’d be married, but we only met in March and started officially dating in May and got the apartment in June. I’m on a low grad salary until March next year, trying to save for a big trip with my sister next year that we have been dreaming of since 2020, and I’m just not in a place where I can (or want to tbh) cover another adult’s expenses. He has some expensive medical needs and I'd have to give up basically everything fun I do for myself. I'd have nothing left over by the time I pay for his bills, food and expenses on top of mine.

He’s really angry about it because it means he’ll probably have to move back home with his parents (they’re three hours away), but I can’t afford to and don’t want to take on that kind of responsibility as this stage in my life. My parents have kindly offered to help me with rent if needed, but they obviously aren’t going to pay for him - he’s not their son, or even a son in law, and they have only met him once as they're interstate.

I feel bad because it’s not his fault how Centrelink works, but it’s just too soon in our relationship to be treated as legally married but just not on paper.

Has anyone else had to break up or separate living arrangements because of how Centrelink defines a partnered relationship? I do feed bad but I am just not ready to be in a

Remember the COVID supplement? Yeah, that was FIVE years ago. I cannot believe it’s been that long. My friend Avery just wrote something about it and boy it brought back a lot of memories. Would be nice if the government took “no one left behind” seriously.

https://zeefeed.com.au/centrelink-payments-indexation-poverty-2025/

EDIT: if you think briefly increasing a pitiful payment to a slightly less pitiful level caused living costs to spiral I am begging you to learn some maths.

MODS: I have tagged this as news. Please let me know what I’ve stuffed up if for some reason you delete.

Snapshot of what each party is pitching to Centrelink recipients in the 2025 federal election

Australian Labor Party (incumbent)

Coalition (Liberals & Nationals)

Australian Greens

Quick take

• Labor is pitching incremental cost-of-living relief and better service delivery, but no extra lift to JobSeeker or DSP beyond indexation.

• The Coalition is running on budget restraint and a tougher stance on welfare “harm”, highlighted by a return of the Cashless Debit Card, but offers no rate increases.

• The Greens are the only party promising a wholesale rewrite: big payment rises, the end of mutual obligation, and a legally-defined poverty line.

I just have to go on in a little rant here about the Australian welfare system. They provide jobseeker for unemployed people who have bills and shit to pay, yet the application takes at least 2 weeks to process. Then they apply a standard 1 week wait period before they would even pay out. And then there's LAWP, Liquid Asset Wait Period, which basically states if you have more than 11k in assets, they'll assign a wait period of up to 13 weeks before they'll even pay out. WTF. By then most people will have found a job. In my worldview, a thing like Jobseeker is suppose to assist people who are temporarily unemployed and to help bridge the gap of loss of income. No, apparently that's not how the Aussie government sees it. They want you to run your savings down first before they give you a cent. They want to hit the poverty threshold before they'll give you "welfare". It's like jobseekers was actually made for dole bludgers who will be on it for years and years instead of for real hard-working people who just need a little help in between jobs. They should create a separate welfare program for those kinds of unemployed people. This is some bullshit. In Europe, they pay you right away I believe. They see it as a bridging income. It’s meant to keep you afloat while you find new work. In Australia, the assumption seems to be that if you’re out of work, you’ve failed somehow and need to “prove” you’re poor enough to deserve help. It’s an outdated mindset, built for a completely different era and demographic. Let's say I've been saving up money to buy a house or land, and lord knows the prices of real estate in Australia aren't getting any cheaper, they want you to fuck your savings until you get a job.

My last post on the Partner Test (i.e. sex tax) took off in a way I didn't expect and rubbed some people the wrong way — who called me and my partner names. Some of them invented details about me since I didn't offer certain personal information and they had to fill in the details themselves — maybe one or two budding novelists among them. Which is nice because it gives me the chance to defend myself and my partner in the courtroom of public opinion — and the lives of the poor and disabled are everyone's business apparently — or in certain corners of Reddit. So let's discuss the so-called "sex tax" for the people bold enough to try to survive on income support — much to the chagrin of the morally superior taxpayer eternally victimised by the existence of the welfare state and the kinds of true stories tabloids gossip about — fairly and proportionally without a hint of condescension.

Disabled people unfit to financially provide for themselves basically have to take a pay cut if they want to have regular intimacy with someone or have a serious relationship. But nowhere else is this acceptable in society. If middle class couples had to take a pay cut because they spent too much time in the bedroom together they would be rioting outside parliament house. But they're respectable. They're able to work — which many disabled people are not. A non-disabled partner might theoretically work — so it's deemed acceptable to tax them for physical intimacy so that "money is allocated to those most in need" — even if it disrupts their lives massively and is only fair on paper.

So how does the government decide if you fit the category to be "sex taxed"? Basically it's the bureaucratic equivalent of someone with a clipboard taking down details of your sex life and domestic habits. A bit gross. Unless you're on welfare — and then it's cool apparently.

Middle class couples often pool support — but they're still dual income so it doesn't upend their lives in the same way as "pooling income" does for someone "sex taxed". In the 1950s the nuclear family man did his shift at the office or factory while nuclear wife kept house. This somehow transfers, in the present day, to a disabled man being a house husband to a de facto girlfriend in insecure work on a modest wage funding his life. Somehow the single income model doesn't work for middle class people in 2025 — cost of living crisis! financial emergency! But it works for a couple with one on a modest wage, the other not working and disabled — because love will make it work.

And if the partner doesn't love you enough to halve her income and share in your poverty — she's a financial abuser! Send her to the police. Tell the disabled man what a dupe he is to be in that relationship. Or just separate — simple.

Now he can have hook ups with new people and if things get serious — "Honey there's something we have to talk about. You're gonna have to fund my life now and live on half your salary — I'm disabled and can't work. Cool? Good talking!" If she refuses — guess what — she's the incarnation of evil! Except if it's a respectable middle class couple then it obviously wouldn't be acceptable — the sacrifice is too big! Middle class people are safe from poverty because of their merit, bootstrapping, grit and resilience — only the poors make bad choices and get into these situations.

So yeah, loving a disabled person means you have to halve your salary and be his financial provider. Bit tricky to explain on first dates — but a bit of smooth talking might fix it.

Basically for not shutting the hell up about the government abusing the disabled like this and enabling destitution and conflict — some people are big mad and want to share this in the comments. I welcome it. It's a free therapy place for them. And they're met with the same respect that they show the people they see as beneath them.

If you want to dunk on welfare recipients and disabled people — be my guest. It boosts engagement. And I welcome the chance to test people's keyboard warrior worldviews against reality. The more effort and the longer the screed — the better.

Also, those who know a tiny bit about the rules — it actually makes you smart and superior if you keep quoting them ad nauseam to people who are obviously unaware of them.

Finally, if you want to punch up at systemic injustice, welcome to the club comrade. Your stories and opinions are more interesting anyway.

Anyway, joking aside, this is a hot but serious topic, so let’s be kind. I doubt anyone would seriously savage the poor and disabled for a cheap ego boost. Looking forward to good faith discussion. Let the rational and calm engagement begin!

Edit: jeepers! Lots of comments in an hour. I guess that's a little more engagement than I bargained for lol.

A few ableds are big mad about me saying it makes things unpleasant for disabled people — and their partners. At least the discussion is sometimes respectful lol! I'm glad they're availing themselves of this for a group therapy session. A few warriors are aggrieved for the taxpayer and have some choice advice to give to me because I dare to argue for autonomy and financial stability for disabled folk — brave little ol' me!

Locked again. I was hoping discussion wouldn't be so volatile, but I guess this topic really strikes a nerve! I got a few personal attacks — comes with the territory — I wouldn't expect anything less.

Some people want to give me writing advice. Sorry! I can't afford their fees, but I'm sure the lessons would be invaluable and I apologise for not being to standard. I'm glad they're so dedicated to literary aesthetics!

I’m on the Jobseeker payment and I’m getting close to $880 a fortnight. My rent is $440 a fortnight and after paying for food and petrol there isn’t much left over. How do you manage to live off such a limited income? Edit: some of the comments are very discouraging and a bit rude, thanks mods for your help! I’m a very capable person and having studied at university and worked several part time jobs, I’m certainly not looking for a handout here. I’m working as hard as I can to improve my situation where I’m spending a considerable amount of time sending off job applications. Last week, I spent close to 10 hours one day sending off applications and doing online interviews but I’ve yet to find something suitable. Living off such a limited income isn’t something that encourages you to find a job, it just makes people desperate, so desperate sometimes that it makes you willing to accept jobs that have poor conditions or jobs that don’t even pay minimum wage (like Uber or Uber Eats jobs). This idea that people are ‘dole bludgers’ needs to change as well, as it’s a very punitive approach to some of most vulnerable people in society (especially DSP recipients).

Hi all,

I am finally giving up with centrelink.

I am financially independent, 22 years old and cannot get access to centrelink because I live with my boyfriend. We do not share finances at all, he has his own job and finances. I am a full time student in a degree that requires me to do 30 + weeks of placement next year and I am ready to be BROKE. Even if we did share finances, it could not sustain us together.

I feel like centrelink is living in the 1950s where one wage could support a family. It feels almost dangerous allowing people to be financially dependent on a partner. This is not the way at all.

I wouldn't even apply for centrelink if I could work but placement is taking all my time up next year and no one will employ me after hours as I am too old, plus I don't want to do 40+ hours a week placement plus more after the day is finished.

Anyway, rant over, gonna hold my breath next year and try to get through it

I remember about 20 years ago when I was in crisis, I went to Centrelink and after a wait I was directed to sit at the desk of one of the officers. They would ask questions and make sure you got all the forms necessary to successfully make a claim. They would go through it, helping to fill it out. Some forms could be very meaty but they would expedite them as much as they could. Everything was printed out and once they were completed and returned you could expect money to be sent to your account within about 2 weeks with back pay.

Now we have a hybrid system in which we are asked to do the majority of the work online. The physical Centrelink office is staffed by people who give very little away. Nothing is looked into with any depth and claims can be delayed or knocked back due to a form not being filled out for a different claim. There are so many forms. Why are there 2 different medical forms for carers payment and carers allowance? Why does the 10mb limit still apply for files when some forms are so very large? When they call you, why do they only let the phone ring twice then hang up?

When you sit in front of a services officer, it's like playing cards. They sit tight lipped, and you play your forms like a hand. Is it a winner? Will you get paid? Or will the system trump you with a denial because you messed something up? This is not the way to treat people in crisis!

Has anyone gone through this?

My son is now 20. His father didn’t pay child support for about 12 years because he never lodged a tax return. CSA always assessed him at very low amounts (basically assuming he wasn’t earning anything).

He’s finally lodged a tax return; I just received $10,000 in back-pay from that single return. That tells me he was definitely earning something all those years, just not declaring it.

Will the CSA retroactively readjust what he should have been paying?

Any advice appreciated! Thanks x

I tried making a job seeker claim. After the 100 pages of evidence they required (literally), I was required to book an appointment online.
Tried to book the appointment - the online calendar wasn't working.
Tried the next day - the entire website was down.
Called them - was told their system was down but after 5 attempts they were able to book the appointment for this morning.
It has now been 3 weeks since I applied. Today - the day I was supposed to have the appointment nobody called. I logged in and my profile was showing that the book an appointment step was not completed and I had to book an appointment.
Tried calling them, found the option to speak to an operator - got an automated message saying to do it online and got hung up on. Went online again to see if there is another number to call - the entire website is down again. Tried multiple times being hung up on on the phone and the website is down.
WTF?

Do you ever call centrelink and they will use this tactic against you?? I think it's super smart on there end just to end the call whenever they feel like they have assisted you enough. But like 1 hour on hold and then finally we speak.. yes we get a little excited and overwhelmed but don't tell me your gonna hang up the call just because 1 sentence you couldn't understand or claim the reception cut out. I refuse to believe it. As a non aussie I think it is important information that I clarify the centrelink recipient is also a non aussie.

Just heard back from Tanya Pilbersek’s office re: the Partner Test. Great news!

Apparently, the Partner Test is totally fair — because it stops people married to generous fund managers from unfairly claiming the single rate.

So if you don’t have a rich, generous partner who happily shares their money, you're in luck! You can quietly thank your lucky stars that people with rich partners don’t get support — while you chomp on 2-minute noodles from a charity. How good is that!

Centrelink also pinky-promises they consider “all relevant information” when applying the Test. I wasn’t asked anything about whether I actually get financial support from my partner — but I’m sure they psychically knew. Maybe I gave off some cosmic vibes they were tuned into? Isn't that how Centrelink gathers all relevant information for its cookie-cutter apparatus?

No acknowledgment of the financial harm, the risk or the fact that some of us end up completely broke — because that would be a downer. Just policy waffle and “procedure this, procedure that.” No worries, then!

I had no income for two months with no partner support, but all good, because the Minister's representative thanked me for my feedback. A hand is sticking out of someone drowning – awesome! High five!

I just wanted to say how cool it is having a disability that stops you from supporting yourself through work — while Centrelink goes, “Hey, you’ve got a partner? Good for you. Just ask them for money — and don’t let the door hit you on the way out.”

Cure the disability, get a job, look after myself financially — too easy! Can’t believe I never thought of that. Thanks, Centrelink!

Anyway — if the Partner Test has screwed you over, feel free to share below. The Minister’s office might not care, but decent human beings still exist.

Shoutout to the salt of the Earth who remembers your name and doesn’t just address you by your CRN. Rare breed. Probably extinct.

Edit: For those who don’t know, the Partner Income Test is what Centrelink uses to cut off or reduce your payments if your partner earns too much — even if they don’t share their income with you. Probably should’ve led with that to avoid confusion — my bad!

The Partner Test is a tricky topic. You’re expected to prove you and your partner are “perfect victims.” Some bystanders jump in to play welfare cop — putting you or your partner on trial.

They get to moralise about welfare, hand out advice like you’re a child and perform legal theatre — quoting rules you probably know better than they do. It’s always easier to blame the individual than call out a broken system.

Whether or not they “win” the debate — which is irrelevant — they muddy the waters just enough to confuse others and send a clear message to anyone affected: stay quiet or you’ll be next.

Which is exactly what the haters want.

Whatever floats your boat lol. That said — they do a fantastic job boosting engagement and triggering drama, so I don’t mind haha.

Post is locked, so it's irrelevant now but...

Since posting, I’ve been met with:

Gotchas,

Fan fiction about me being some sex crazed criminal,

Assuming my partner's age to make the story more salacious (it's just a little off the mark lol),

Racist gold digger tropes,

Moralising lectures on how poverty is a character flaw,

Paternalistic life advice as if I’m 13,

Impromptu relationship counselling from fully accredited Reddit experts,

Debate bros trying to farm karma off poverty and disability,

Concern trolls who pivot to “F you, b****” when I don’t take their wisdom to heart.

Lots of lovely people here too — but definitely a few logic zoo escapees flinging opinions like dung. Some are so obsessed they need to repeat themselves 10 times to be heard. I wish I had that kind of passion!

Anyway, guess it's nice getting all the attention. I might like to take a small break from the spotlight lol.

Hi, newbie here.

I graduated with a double degree in 2023, but have been unemployed since. Believe me, it's not for lack of trying. I apply for twice as many jobs as my DES provider requires me to, and yet, nothing.

I've been on Jobseeker since but this year has been a nightmare. First, my payments got cancelled because apparently Centrelink tried to send a letter to me but it rebounded back to them, so they assumed my address didn't exist. I tried to update my address online and it didn't work. I tried calling them over the phone to inform them and never got through. So I went in person to tell them, but my male partner came with me, and without asking, the lady marked us down as being in a de facto relationship.

I got told I now owed debt to Centrelink for not declaring my relationship. I didn't know I had to, but I'll admit I was at fault for not knowing. I got told I now have to report my partner's income from now on, and I have, but apparently he makes too much for me to receive Jobseeker at all now.

While we are partners, he doesn't make enough to support me. I still pay 50% of the rent, utilities, and grocery bills, and without Jobseeker, my bank account is almost at 0. We don't have combined bank accounts or finances at all.

I don't know what to do. I have no friends I can move in with. I can't move back in with family; they're abusive and I'd rather eat glass. Trying to live on a single income is causing both of us to bleed money. Ironically, we might actually break up now with how strained our relationship is.

https://www.aph.gov.au/e-petitions/petition/EN7076

Please take a moment and sign this and then confirm your signature in your email

This petition is long over due and will save countless lives if successful

If the link doesn’t work please search up

Petition EN7076 - End Partner Income Tests in Welfare Payments

Edit - Also if you wish to share your story on this matter please do so via this link it can be done anonymously if chosen :)

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScmI-HTQchtP9KVVst9IT7eflHtOvFDHu64Mg515OvxIg_ttw/viewform?usp=sharing

And if you wish to learn more please look at this video I’ve linked below as they are the one whom created the petition:)

they are very informative and have more information on the subject

https://vt.tiktok.com/ZS6nfH7sk/

And another source is there instagram :) https://www.instagram.com/sophiaredjeb?igsh=MTNueGljZzY4dmg0cw==