Weekly payments 103-05010000

Most customers are paid fortnightly. Some may have trouble making their money last until the end of the fortnight. They may suffer hardship. These customers may benefit from weekly payments.

Getting weekly payments must be the customer's choice. They need to be able to make an informed choice. They should not change to weekly payments if it will cause them financial stress.

Weekly payments are part of a broader service offer to help customers budget.

Check out other options such as:

• referrals to financial support
• referrals to specialists like social workers
• offsetting Family Tax Benefit (FTB), Double Orphan Pension (DOP) and Carer Allowance (CA)
• Centrepay deductions to help pay bills
• Rent Deduction Scheme to help pay for government housing
• Income Management

To start, stop or review weekly payments, Service Officers must be SO3 or above and have completed the training module.

Customers will continue to have fortnightly instalment periods. They will get the same amount, but it will be paid as 2 weekly payments instead of 1 fortnightly payment.

The system calculates the customer's full payment for the fortnight. It pays half of this on their normal payday, the other half a week later. See Calculating weekly payments.

Weekly payments can include:

• income support payments
• add-ons that can be paid weekly

Some add-ons cannot be paid weekly.

To change to weekly payments, customers must:

• live in Australia
• get an eligible payment
• be financially vulnerable
• not get a hardship advance or urgent payment in the current instalment period
• not get payments through a nominee or group payment schedule
• agree they can no longer get urgent payments

Note: to remain eligible for weekly payments under the legacy model after a gap of 8 weeks or less, the customer (and their partner) must not have income that reduces their payment. For more information on legacy model customers, see Calculating weekly payments.

Customers cannot get weekly payments if they get the Home Equity Access Scheme payments with their income support payment.

Job seeker claims

The online claim offers weekly payments to some job seekers based on their responses about their circumstances. If they accept the offer, no assessment is needed outside the claim process.

Current customers

Weekly payments can help financially vulnerable customers.

This can include customers affected by these issues:

• homeless or at risk
• gambling or substance misuse
• poor literacy or numeracy
• poor mental health
• recent traumatic relationship breakdown

It can also include customers who:

• often ask for urgent payments
• often ask to change their pay day
• have trouble meeting their requirements due to their finances

Talk to the customer before offering weekly payments.

Customers on weekly payments cannot get an urgent payment.

The system will not start weekly payments if the customer got a hardship advance or urgent payment in the fortnight.

Reject requests for urgent payments. This is a condition for starting weekly payments.

If the customer insists on changing to fortnightly payments to get an urgent payment, tell them:

• they cannot go back on weekly payments until their next fortnight
• if they are paid under the legacy model, this will change to the new model

The system will end weekly payments if the customer:

• has a break in payments. This includes gaps when granting, restoring or transferring payments
• goes overseas and no longer qualifies for their payment
• failed to meet their requirements (for some compliance actions)
• is paid under the legacy model and payment is reduced due to earned income

When weekly payments end, the customer will get fortnightly payments.

If a customer asks to change to fortnightly payments, check if this will cause them financial stress.