Financial Care Services Newsletter

by Christine Hopper
Volume 13 Edition 5 – 31 May 2023

Christine at Financial Care Services, the specialist adviser to seniors in transition to new lifestyles

Your second career as a full time carer for a frail adult

When a senior needs help to stay at home, another family member might become her full-time carer.

‘Home care packages’ could fund some regular hours of visiting nursing or personal care assistance, for a seriously frail senior.

But a competent adult could be needed to greet the visitor and provide the extended hours of care.

A spouse or life partner, might be already retired or willing to early retire from full-time work, whilst still having the physical and mental capacity to provide the necessary care.
Alternatively, an adult child might reduce her working hours so that she could visit every day to give the essential assistance.

Others totally relinquish their paid work and independent lifestyle, to become their parents’ full-time live-in carer.
As a community, we acknowledge the role of carers in helping physically frail or mentally challenged seniors to stay at home.

Help with the additional costs of carer duty – Centrelink Carer Allowance

A modest financial contribution is available via the Centrelink Carer Allowance, to help with the additional costs incurred in providing dedicated support daily to someone who needs extensive personal help to stay at home.
The Carer Allowance is $144.80 each fortnight, May 2023.
The amount of the Carer Allowance is reviewed each January.

To be eligible for the Carer Allowance your ‘adjusted taxable income’ must not exceed $250,000 per year.
The Carer Allowance does not have an Asset Test.

Claiming the Carer Allowance

The first step on your Centrelink Carer challenge is for the person you care for to be accepted as needing full-time care.
Centrelink require a Medical Report from a health professional who knows your family member’s condition and limitations.

You could start the Centrelink Carer challenge by asking your regular doctor to complete the Centrelink Medical Report form SA332A and send it direct to Centrelink.

Once Centrelink confirm that your care recipient is frail enough to qualify for a Centrelink Carer then you could apply for the Carer Allowance.

Christine at Financial Care Services helps clients to complete Centrelink claim forms.

Christine has neat handwriting just right for inserting your data into small printed spaces.

Christine could help you with collating your supporting documents and then mailing your form to Centrelink.

Christine charges fees based on the work involved in completing your Claim forms as well as advising you about Centrelink carer benefits, health cards, and pensions.

Financial Support while you are a full-time carer – Centrelink Carer Payment

Centrelink Carer Payment provides fortnightly financial support to people who are unable to work in substantial paid employment because they provide full-time daily care to someone with a severe disability or medical condition, or to someone who is frail aged.

To qualify for a Centrelink carer, the care would be required for a significant period each day such that the commitment of the carer could be at least the equivalent of a normal working day.

The amount of Carer Payment depends on the income and assets of both the carer and the person receiving care.
If the person being cared for is receiving a Centrelink means tested Disability Support Pension or Age Pension then their financial position would not exclude their carer from eligibility for the Carer Payment.

The maximum rate of Carer Payment is equivalent to the full Age Pension rate.
The Income Test and the Assets Test are the same for the Carer Payment as for the Centrelink Age Pension and Disability Support Pension.

Note that while the carer is under her Age Pension Age, her accrued ‘accumulation phase’ superannuation is treated as an exempt asset.
The Pension Supplements are payable in addition to the Carer Payment.
If you qualify for Carer Payment, you automatically receive a Pensioner Concession Card.

Help to claim the Carer Payment

The first step to claiming a Carer Payment is to have your care recipient accepted by Centrelink as an adult who needs full-time care.
You would do this step to qualify for the Carer Allowance.

Once your care recipient is accepted as needing full-time care then you could submit a Claim for the Carer Payment.
Centrelink require you to claim Carer Payment online via your MyGov account.

As part of your Claim, you also need to satisfy Centrelink that you are a long term ‘permanent resident’ or citizen of Australia.
This ‘proof of identity’ allows you to be allocated a Centrelink Reference Number; your CRN for life.

Then you must complete the Centrelink Income and assets form – SA369.

Centrelink use the information you provide in your Income and assets form – SA369 to assess how hard the means tests will impact your Carer Payment rate.

Help with Centrelink challenges is available from Christine Hopper at Financial Care Services.

Christine has neat handwriting just right for inserting your data into small printed spaces on Centrelink forms.
She helps clients complete Centrelink forms.
Christine could help you with collating your supporting documents and then mailing your form to Centrelink.

Assistance with completing Income and Assets forms and Carer Payment or Pension Claims is available to clients of Christine at Financial Care Services.

To make an appointment for confidential, independent and professional advice about aged care, retirement lifestyle costs, granny flat or Age Pension issues please contact Christine Hopper or call +61 3 9808 0338.

Time out from carer duty for work or study

Carers are encouraged to maintain their links to the workforce and community by working, volunteering, studying or training.

You can participate in formal work, including volunteer work, study or training and still be eligible for Centrelink Carer Payment.

But your work, study or training must not take you away from your care recipient for more than 25 hours a week including travel time.
To remain eligible for Centrelink Carer Payment, you must demonstrate that you continue to personally provide extensive care.

Any income you receive from work may impact your rate of Carer Payment.
You would need to report your work hours and earnings income to Centrelink each fortnight.

Time out for your own rest and refreshment

You can take a break from caring for up to 63 days each calendar year without changes to your Carer Payment.
If you stop providing care for more than 63 days your Carer Payments may be cancelled.

You are also allowed 63 additional days per calendar year if you receive Centrelink Carer Payment (caring for a person 16 years or over) and the person you are caring for is in hospital temporarily and you still help with their care.

Returning to the regular workforce when your full-time carer role concludes

Your Carer Payment and Carer Allowance cease when your full-time carer duty ends.
In Centrelink administrative terms, now that your carer duty is finished you are free to resume your independent lifestyle again.

The Centrelink JobSeeker payment is available to former carers who are under age 67 years and are not incapacitated for work.
The Centrelink JobSeeker payment is significantly less than the Carer Payment.
Then you need to cope with the job search conditions for the Centrelink JobSeeker payment.

Help is available to assist with your transition to the workforce.

In practice, former carers need time to grieve before returning to an independent lifestyle and the full-time workforce.
If you have been away from the conventional paid workforce for a period of time, you may not know where to start in finding a suitable job.
You could be feeling overwhelmed and out of touch with your employment prospects.

Remember, you are not the only person ending a long-term carer role.
Lots of former full-time carers have similar experiences when they have been focusing their time and energy on caring for family members.

The team of Career Support Specialists at Carers Victoria can assist you in getting the clarity, advice, skills and connections you need to make a successful transition back into the workforce.

Carers Victoria provides tailored one-on-one job search support for carers.

The Carers Employment Support Program offers monthly zoom sessions to start your journey.

In practice, your first project could be learning how to setup your device and internet connection to use zoom.
The first formal Carers Victoria session is ‘Building Confidence in Your Employ-ability Skills for Carers’
To get started on your next career you can contact Carers Victoria Employment.Support@carersvictoria.org.au

Former carers eligible for Centrelink income support payments

Former carers who have attained their Age Pension Age, now 67 years, could be eligible for an Age Pension.
The Age Pension is paid at the same rate and subject to the same means testing as the Centrelink Carer Payment.
On ceasing carer duty your Carer Payment and Allowance would cease but you could transfer to the Age Pension if you are at least 67 years old.

Some younger former carers could be eligible for a Disability Support Pension.
These carers might have started a Disability Support Pension long before their carer duty ceased.
The Disability Support Pension is also paid at the same rate and subject to the same means testing as the Age Pension.

Where to live after carer duty concludes.

Former carers who are young enough and fit enough to return to the regular workforce need to make their own housing arrangements when their carer duty ends.
The wider family might need to be patient with the former carer as they re-establish their independent lives.

Some former carers already own a home; they might need to have their tenant move out before moving themselves back home.

Other former carers could face challenges in finding suitable accommodation.

The family could agree to the former carer staying on in the family home after their carer duty concludes.
Every family is different.

If the former carer is to inherit the home or a substantial part of the estate of the person they cared for, then staying on in the home might be reasonable.
A formal family agreement could define the financial arrangements for this ‘tenancy’.

Please be aware that the former carer would not normally be entitled to stay on in an independent living or serviced apartment within a retirement lifestyle community village.
Only the residents/purchasers nominated in the retirement village entry contract are allowed to live alone in the retirement village unit.
The former carer would need to sign up for a new resident contract with the retirement lifestyle community village if they seriously wanted to stay in that retirement lifestyle community village.

Staying in the family home when the person you cared for enters residential aged care

The Centrelink rules acknowledge that a former carer who is now eligible for a Centrelink Pension, might not be able to move to a home of their own.

The Centrelink Asset Assessment for an entrant to permanent residential aged care, allows for the aged care entrant’s former home to be an ‘exempt asset’ if their domestic partner still lives there.

The former home could be an ‘exempt asset’ if it is occupied by their former Centrelink Carer Payment recipient.
But to claim this exemption, their former carer must now be eligible for a Centrelink Pension and have lived with the aged care entrant as their carer for at least the last two full years.

Please note that the former carer must be eligible for either an Age Pension or a Disability Support Pension to qualify for this exemption.

Moving the former carer from the Carer Payment to JobSeeker does not qualify the former home to be an ‘exempt asset’.

Alternative conditions for the residential aged care entrant’s former home to be an exempt asset

An alternative condition for the former home to be an ‘exempt asset’ is a close relative who is now eligible for a Centrelink Pension, had lived with the aged care entrant for at least the last five full years.

The ‘close relative’ could be a child, grandchild, parent or sibling of the aged care entrant.
Thus the aged care entrant’s former home could be an ‘exempt asset’ when a close relative who has lived with the aged care entrant for five years but not as the Centrelink recognised ‘carer’ for two full years.
Allowing the former carer and/or close relative, to stay on in the family home might solve their immediate housing problem.

A written family agreement could prove beneficial if a carer or close relative stays on

The former carer might just stay in the home without any real plans to move on.
But if the former carer or close relative, does not inherit the home then their ongoing housing could be a challenge.

A family agreement could be needed to ensure that the occupier of the former care recipient’s home is actively planning for their future housing.
Written family agreements signed by both the home occupiers and other family members, could record the family action plan.

Staying on in a retirement lifestyle community village unit is only possible if the carer or close relative, had also signed the entry contract as a ‘resident’ jointly with the person moving into residential aged care.

Christine at Financial Care Services your independent adviser

Christine at Financial Care Services is an independent adviser specialising in retirees of modest means and aged care entrants.
Our core values include working with clients in claiming DVA and Centrelink entitlements.

Christine at Financial Care Services is here to answer your Health Card and Age Pension questions and guide your understanding of aged care costs.

Help with Centrelink challenges is available from Christine Hopper at Financial Care Services, the specialist adviser to seniors in transition to new lifestyles.

Christine has neat handwriting just right for inserting your data into small printed spaces.
She helps clients complete Centrelink forms.
Christine could help you with collating your supporting documents and then mailing your form to Centrelink.

Assistance with completing Age Pension, Low Income Health Card and Commonwealth Seniors Health Card Claims and the Commonwealth aged care means testing forms is available to clients of Christine at Financial Care Services.

Christine charges fees based on the work involved in advising you about health cards, pensions and aged care fee solutions.

Christine Hopper
Financial Care Services
Independent aged care, strategic lifestyle and Social Security advice for seniors in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Telephone – call +61 3 9808 0338
Email – contact Christine@financialcareservices.com.au
Address – mail to 2B Thomas Street, Camberwell Victoria 3124
Website – visit financialcareservices.com.au
LinkedIn – connect https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinehopper1
Past newsletters – see http://financialcareservices.com.au/newsletters/
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Disclaimer: The information contained in this newsletter is of a general nature only and does not constitute “financial advice”.
All eligibility for Commonwealth benefits will be determined by Centrelink or DVA, based on your personal position as documented and the legislation and Regulations in force at that time.