To qualify for Australia's Age Pension, a person must:

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  be at least age 66 years and six months (increasing to age 67 on July 1, 2023); and

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  have at least 10 years residence in Australia between age 16 and minimum retirement age, including a continuous period of at least five years (some exceptions apply).

To qualify for Australia's Disability Support Pension, a person must:

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  be between age 16 and the minimum retirement age;

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  be permanently blind or have a physical, intellectual, or psychiatric impairment;

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  be unable to work or be unable to retrained for work at least 15 hours per week within two years due to the impairment; and

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  be an Australian resident for at least 10 years, including a continuous period of five years; there is no minimum residence requirement if the disability occurs while the person is a permanent resident of Australia (some exceptions apply).

There is no provision for married spouses.

A parenting payment can be paid to a divorced spouse who is caring for at least one dependent child under age eight. There is no minimum residence requirement if the couple was residing in Australia on the date of divorce. Otherwise, the couple must have been residents of Australia for at least two years.

There is no specific benefit for children. However, a supplement to the retirement or disability benefit may be payable if there are dependent children.

A “carer” payment is an income support payment for a person who provides constant care to a retirement or disability beneficiary.

A parenting payment is payable to a surviving spouse, including a divorced surviving spouse, who is caring for a dependent child of the deceased under age eight. There is no minimum residence requirement if the couple was residing in Australia on the date of death. Otherwise, the surviving spouse must have been a resident of Australia at the time of death and have resided in Australia for at least two years.

There is no specific benefit for children. However, a supplement is payable to a person receiving a parenting payment for dependent children.

Prior to March 20, 2020, a bereavement allowance equal to the retirement benefits rate for a single person was payable for 14 weeks to a surviving partner not otherwise entitled to a pension. As of March 20, 2020, a one-time bereavement payment equal to 14 times the difference between a single and couples pension is payable to the surviving partner of a pensioner couple.