Is it possible to live on centrelink alone?

Ok, just tossing around thoughts at the moment, because DH wants to study nursing, but he wants to do it full time. Actually, we both want to study nursing, but I thought if he did it first, got into the system, then when I start most of the kids will be at school.

So is it possible to live on Austudy payments and whatever I would get from family assistance? We manage to live on one income at the moment, but its a middle income I suppose you would say (over 50K) plus whatever I get from family assistance.

So does anyone do it? How much approximately are the payments? I had a look on the family assistance website and centrelink, and tbh, its just confusing me all those numbers.

Anyway, just something I'm tossing around in my head.

Your best bet would be to jump on to the Centrelink website and use their rate estimator to see how much you would both get each fortnight. Then you can work out if it's doable :)

Austudy is much, much lower than the other payments and at least one of you would be on it (you can stay on parenting payment) and Austudy is barely enough to feed a cat let alone a human. EVERY other payment is higher. Wouldn't recommend it unless you are single and in share accommodation and willing to live on rice and ramen like other students.

Whats parenting payment? I get FTB A & B at the moment.

Thanks Leash, I did jump on there, and I *think* I got my estimates right, but I'm not too sure.

It would most likely involve a move back to Queensland, so will probably never eventuate, but I just wanted to get my numbers right to back me up.

AUSTUDY is a very low payment. I can't imagine someone paying a mortgage with that.

Do you qualify for Rent Assistance? (i can't remember if you are renting or have bought a home).

The family tax payment (either b or a) that is tied to income, will probably go up if the $50K stops.

Other options may include:
- studying part-time instead of fulltime
(find out what the percentages are - e.g if studying 75% of a course entitles a person to fulltime AUSTUDY)
- studying online (the bits you can do that are theory)
- doing the parts of the course that are theoretical part-time (while dh is still working), and doing the practical parts fulltime (thereby minimising the length of time your family needs to be existing on F/T CL payments.

Can you learn to be a nurse in Tassie? or do you have to go to QLD to do that?
Is it exam based or does it involve "practical modules" in hospitals?

If you don't understand the CL website (i find it confusing too), maybe get a CL staff member to help you look up the right bits and add them up. (at a CL office).

just a bit of brainstroming from someone who has never studied to be a nurse, so pure brainstorming. but i have lived on AUSTUDY in the past, and it was really hard (as a single person, paying rent, no child). i worked fulltime in the semester breaks, saved EVERYTHING in order to survive for the rest of the year.

don't forget to allow money for text books and course fees. these days, with the internet, fees may be for other things (than text books). Plus the HECS debt that will accrue.

ask at the Uni about scholarships.

The CL site says (under Training - AUSTUDY)
"maximum fortnightly payment for partnered person with children" is $413
plus family tax a and b
plus rent assistance (if you qualify for that)

I guess technically you could, but it would be really tough IMO.

I would *think* you'd be entitled to the max rate of FTB A & B, plus parenting payment.
Parenting Payment is given to the lower income earner. It's a taxable income & it's means tested - at 50k a year you might not be entitled to any (we're not) but if your DH was on Austudy I would think you would be.

I second speaking to someone at CL to help you out with what you'd be entitled to.

(and moving back to QLD would be ok too, lol :p)

i've sent you the numbers babe...

the numbers aren't as bad as you might think - austudy for a mature aged person isn't THAT low (around 410 per fortnight - similar to parenting payment)

Totally agree with everyone's opinions.

We live on clink alone since DH hurt his back [apart from the odd occassion I have to take $ from the business acc when we are desperate].

It is very hard, you get just enough to live off. If you have any debt it's really tight - we were paying off our car + 3x credit cards for the first 18mths after DH hurt his back. Now I only have the cc's left. It is doable, but coming off your income it would be a real shock to the system. It was a huge change for us even though DH only earnt about 10K more a year than what we get now.

Austudy would be worse. AFAIK & as the PP have said it is alot less that Newstart+Parenting Payment.

Hey,

I studied a few years ago (Graduated 2007) with a few families living on CL. I was a povo singleton living on Youth Allowance and then Austudy and woudln't have survived without credit and loans but the families were much better looked after. Most of them had a house coming into it but definitely lived off benefits alone.
ALso My DH is studying nursing now externally through Charles Darwin Uni (First year is web based study) and he manages to work 2 nights a week as an EN, used to be Patient Care Assistant(a few days manual handling training is all that is required). The new changes to Centrelink let you earn a little more before they take any away so that could be something to consider. He does most of his study while he is at work and is a SAH Dad the rest of the week while i work. I think if it is what you want to do you can defnitley do it. There are also MANY MAny nursing scholarships that don't get taken up especially if you are from or plan on practicing in a rural area.
Good luck

When I was a student you could only be paid austudy if you have no assets that you can sell to live off. If the rules are the same then you could be in for some trouble if you have investments or own an asset, or sold shares to buy something such as a car. The may tell you to sell the car and live off the proceeds and when you run out of money then you can claim austudy ;)

i have just run the estimator on the details Arimeh gave me - paying rent, money in the bank from the sale of their house, and average assets - and it came back that the amount for Austudy is less than $4 less than her parenting payment ($414 for Austudy, $417 for parenting payment). income and assets tests DO come into it - you wouldn't be able to have massive amounts tied up in shares or a huge house you're earning money on while you live elsewhere, but if you are a low income family, and one of you is studying to extend your employability, you do get supported.

Thanks BG for sending me those figures, they aren't as bad as I thought they would be.

We wouldn't have any debt, we currently own our car and just have the mortgage (which we would sell the house) and then just a credit card.

Oh - and we don't have to move to queensland, its just a bonus for me!

It's a long time to be living at that level though. If anything goes wrong or your car needs a new gearbox yadda yadda it can really throw you for a six. It's hard to afford swimming or dancing lessons for the kids - it's enough to live on but that's it.

It would be for 3 years, and we'd have about $40K still in the bank from the sale of our house just in case anything did happen - which is better than nothing I guess? I'm not expecting any car trouble cos its a good car and its not that old, but I know anything can pop up. But that should be enough of a buffer shouldn't it?

I mean, its all just speculation and will probably never happen because DH doesn't really want to move back to queensland, said he'll be a hypocrite if he did that, and he doesn't know if he wants to go back to full time study next year (cos its pretty soon...)

Sooo.. its just ... ideas... (or really - its just me day dreaming!)

Mel,
Not going to comment on the payment stuff, cos eeryone else has told you...
But i can comment on the Nursing stuff.
When i did my training, i managed to work a fair bit around my lectures, depends what he wants to do... but in 2nd year i was working 3 shifts in a nursing home as well as studying... granted i didnt have a family to look after, but it certianly helped cash wise.

Another option could possibly be doing div 2 initially so that he will get credits towards div 1 and then he can work as a div 2 while studying and will have to do less subjects so could do more hours at work.
In Vic, you can do Div 2 in one year or 2 years as part of a sponsorship, so you are working through that time too - if that makes sense...
Just throwing in other options!

Now with national registration it will be better in that once you are qualified he (and then you) will be able to work anywhere in Aust without having to apply for a new registration - makes so much more sense!

Hope this helps

I think the $$$ in the bank would probably affect hun. You might be expected to use that money first.

Yup, if you apply for payment with $40k in the bank they might make you wait a year or something ridiculous before you can get payment. Sell the house once you're *on* a payment and it isn't the same.

I had this discussion with CL a while back as I have a house for sale (never sold it, it is rented now). I'd just be putting the proceeds into our new house if it sold though, rather than leaving cash lying around. I'm under the CL asset limit by a lot despite having three properties - one is vacant land and one is a large and very nice house worth barely more than the land, just in a cheap area - and my pay gets cut down because of the rent.

I'm sure BG took our money into account when doing the figures (didn't you BG? Or was I assuming you did.. LOL)