Carer Supplement: Who Qualifies and How Much It Is

Carer supplement is a yearly payment for people who are paid carer allowance, carer payment or carer service pension for a period that includes 1 July. The Social Security Act 1991 sets the amount at $600 for carer payment, $600 for carer service pension and $600 for each eligible care receiver for carer allowance.

This guide explains the qualification test and the amounts exactly as the Act words them. It is general information only, not advice about your own situation, so check your own circumstances with the agency that pays you before you rely on it.

Who qualifies for carer supplement

The test is about a payment you already receive. Under section 992X of the Social Security Act 1991, a person is qualified for carer supplement for a year if the person was or is paid an instalment of carer allowance, carer payment or carer service pension in respect of a period that includes 1 July in that year.

So the date that matters is 1 July. Being a carer, or caring for someone full time, does not on its own meet the test. The test asks whether one of those three payments covered 1 July.

How much carer supplement is

The amount depends on which payment you were paid, and the Act sets it out in a table:

• Carer payment: $600.

• Carer service pension: $600.

• Carer allowance: $600 for each eligible care receiver.

• Carer allowance and partner service pension together: an extra $600 where you were also paid an instalment of partner service pension under the Veterans' Entitlements Act for a period that includes 1 July.

The Act says each person to whose care a qualifying instalment of carer allowance relates is an eligible care receiver. If your carer allowance rate takes account of a determination of a particular share for a care receiver, the amount for that person is that share of $600.

A worked example from the Act

The Act includes its own examples. In one, a person is paid a qualifying instalment of carer allowance relating to one eligible care receiver and also a qualifying instalment of carer payment. The amount of carer supplement for that year is $1,200, made up of $600 relating to carer allowance for the care receiver and $600 relating to carer payment.

Because the allowance part is counted per care receiver, a person who is paid carer allowance for more than one eligible care receiver can have more than one $600 amount in their total.

When a payment rate is nil

Sometimes a payment is worked out at nil because of income, so no instalment is paid. A later subsection of the same section deals with this for carer payment, partner service pension and carer service pension.

If this could be you, read the subsection or ask the agency that pays you.

What this guide does not cover

Section 992X sets the qualification test and the amounts. This guide does not cover how or when carer supplement is paid, how to claim a carer payment or carer allowance, or whether you are eligible for either of them. Those depend on your own circumstances and are decided by the agency that administers the payments.

If you are working out whether you count as a carer at all, our guide on whether you are a carer or a support worker explains that carer describes unpaid care for a family member or friend, and that paid work is a different role.

If you are also thinking about paid support

Some families that include an unpaid carer also look at paid help for some hours. If you are considering paying a relative, our guide on whether a family member can be a paid support worker covers the checks to make first. Before you change how you are supported, ask the agency that pays you whether it affects your payments.

If you want a plan for when the main carer cannot provide care for a while, a back-up plan for when the main carer gets sick sets out what to arrange in advance.

Frequently asked questions

Is carer supplement paid on its own?

Under section 992X, qualification depends on being paid an instalment of carer allowance, carer payment or carer service pension for a period that includes 1 July. The test does not describe carer supplement as something you can qualify for without one of those payments.

How much is carer supplement?

The Act sets the amounts at $600 for carer payment, $600 for carer service pension and $600 for each eligible care receiver for carer allowance. A share of $600 applies where a share determination affects the carer allowance rate.

Which date decides whether I qualify?

The date is 1 July in the year in question. The Act asks whether you were or are paid an instalment of one of the three payments in respect of a period that includes that date.

Sources

• Social Security Act 1991, section 992X (Carer supplement), Part 2.19B, legislation.gov.au, compilation in force from 20 September 2026, read 10 November 2026.