The JobSeeker income test

A construction site in Brisbane. Part-time and casual earnings reduce the payment under the income test. Photo: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0.

A shopfront in Hahndorf, South Australia. Retail and hospitality shifts are common part-time work. Photo: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

A shopping centre in Goodna, Queensland. Every dollar of income must be reported each fortnight. Photo: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.

The income test decides how much of the maximum rate you actually keep in a fortnight when you have income. It works on fortnightly income, and the reduction starts once income goes over $150. Income that is not reported can create an overpayment — a debt — so reporting each fortnight is not optional paperwork, it is part of how the payment is calculated.

Single, not a principal carer

Up to $150 of fortnightly income: no reduction. From $150 to $256: the payment reduces by 50 cents for each $1 over $150. Over $256: the payment reduces by 60 cents for each $1 over $256, on top of the 50-cent band. In other words, the taper gets steeper, not flatter, as income rises — the opposite of what many people expect.

Single principal carer (dependent child under 16)

Up to $150: no reduction. Over $150: a single flat taper of 40 cents for each $1. There is no second, steeper band. That is why a principal carer's payment survives higher earnings than a single person's without children — the cut-off point is much further out, as the cut-off table shows.

Partner income

If your partner receives a pension from Services Australia, your combined income is halved and each half is tested under its own payment's test — the JobSeeker half under the $150 free area and the 50-cent/60-cent bands above. If your partner does not receive a pension, your incomes are assessed separately, and your partner's income reduces your payment by 60 cents for each $1 over a threshold that depends on your partner: $1,440.00 a fortnight if your partner is 22 to Age Pension age, $1,307.00 if your partner is under 22 with no children, and $1,402.00 if your partner is under 22 with children. One caution: if Pharmaceutical Allowance or Rent Assistance is being received, that partner-reduction point can change — so this site does not state a single number for those cases, and neither should any calculator that ignores supplements.

Working Credits

Working Credits are a small buffer built into the system: credits build up in fortnights when your income is under $48, and they are used first in higher-income fortnights, preserving part of the payment that would otherwise be reduced. The government material confirms the under-$48 build rule; caps and accrual rates quoted by non-government sources are not repeated here as official figures.

Worked examples (on the maximum rate, before any supplements)

Example 1 — single, no children, earns $500 in a fortnight. Reduction = 50c × $106 (the $150–$256 band) + 60c × $244 (the amount over $256) = $53.00 + $146.40 = $199.40. Payment = $824.90 − $199.40 = $625.50.

Example 2 — single principal carer, earns $500 in a fortnight. Reduction = 40c × $350 (the amount over $150) = $140.00. Payment = $883.30 − $140.00 = $743.30.

Both examples are arithmetic on the maximum rate only. Supplements, a partner's income, or a waiting period would change the real outcome, and neither example is a promise of what any individual will receive.

General information only. This page explains JobSeeker Payment in plain English. It is not legal, financial, or medical advice, and it cannot decide whether you qualify. Only Services Australia can decide a claim. Rates and rules change over time — rates are indexed on 20 March and 20 September each year — so always confirm the current position with Services Australia before you act on it. Contact: hello [at] tapetoolhq.com.