Centrelink is the part of Services Australia that delivers government payments, including payments that help students and apprentices with living costs. Getting one isn’t automatic, so the first step is working out which payment applies to you and what it asks for.
What is Youth Allowance?
Youth Allowance is the main payment for younger students and apprentices. You could be eligible if you’re one of the following:
- 18 to 24 & studying full time
- 16 to 24 & doing a full-time Australian Apprenticeship
- 16 to 17 & independent, or needing to live away from home to study
- 16 to 17, studying full time & have completed Year 12 or equivalent
You’ll also need to meet residence rules, pass income and assets tests, and be doing an approved course at an approved education provider. If you’re 21 or younger and looking for full-time work instead of studying, there’s a separate stream of Youth Allowance for job seekers.
If you’re already getting Youth Allowance as a student or apprentice when you turn 25, you can keep getting it until you finish your course or apprenticeship.
What is Austudy?
Austudy is for students and Australian Apprentices aged 25 or older who aren’t already on Youth Allowance. To be eligible as a student, you need to be both:
- 25 or older
- Studying full time in an approved course at an approved institution
You’ll also need to meet residence rules and pass an income test and an assets test. Austudy doesn’t use a parental income test.
What is ABSTUDY?
ABSTUDY is for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students and Australian Apprentices. To get it, you need to:
- Be an Australian citizen
- Be an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander person
- Normally live in Australia
- Be enrolled in an approved course, or be an Australian Apprentice
- Not be getting other government or financial assistance to study
ABSTUDY can cover more than day-to-day living costs. Depending on your situation, it could help with school fees, boarding fees, living costs, travel costs and school materials. There are different pathways depending on whether you’re a school student living at home, living away from home to study, or doing an apprenticeship.
How dependent and independent status affects your payment
For Youth Allowance, you’ll be assessed as either dependent or independent. ABSTUDY also makes this assessment, using its own rules.
If you’re 21 or younger, you’re considered dependent unless you meet one of the independence criteria. These include:
- Supporting yourself through full-time work, generally an average of 30 hours a week for at least 18 months within any 2-year period
- Being or having been married or in a registered relationship, or in a de facto relationship for at least 12 months
- Having, or having had, a dependent child
Once you turn 22, you’re treated as permanently independent. Needing to live away from home to study can mean a higher rate of payment, but it doesn’t make you independent on its own.
For example, a 19-year-old who worked full time for 18 months after finishing school could be assessed as independent when they start university. A 19-year-old who went straight from school to university would usually be dependent.
That difference decides whose income is tested. If you’re dependent, your parents’ or guardians’ income affects whether you can get a payment and how much, and if they earn too much, you won’t be able to get one. If you’re independent, or getting Austudy, your own income and assets are assessed instead, along with your partner’s if you have one.
Study load and payment rates
To get Youth Allowance or Austudy as a student, you generally need to study full time, which means doing at least 75% of your course’s full-time study load. If you study less than that, you usually can’t get a student payment, although there are exceptions, such as for some students with a disability.
Maximum rates for Youth Allowance are updated on 1 January each year, and the amount you get depends on your circumstances. Check current rates with Services Australia before relying on a figure you’ve seen elsewhere.
Extra support that comes with these payments
The best part is that some extra support is worked out for you.
Rent Assistance is a regular extra payment if you get an eligible payment and pay rent or accommodation costs above a certain amount. You don’t need to claim it separately, since it’s checked when you claim your payment or update your accommodation details. If you’re 25 or younger, special rules apply depending on your payment and living arrangements.
If you’re approved for Youth Allowance, Austudy or ABSTUDY Living Allowance, you’ll also get a Health Care Card at the same time, which gives you cheaper prescription medicines. If you don’t get a student payment but you’re on a low income, you may still be able to get a Low Income Health Care Card.
How to check and apply
Living at home or working part time doesn’t automatically rule you out of a payment, since eligibility depends on several factors together. Services Australia’s Payment Finder asks about your situation and estimates which payments you could get and how much. The result is an estimate only, so it isn’t a guarantee.
You apply through a Centrelink online account linked to myGov, the government’s online platform for services like Centrelink and Medicare. You can claim up to 13 weeks before you start full-time study or an Australian Apprenticeship, which means your payment is more likely to be ready when you need it.
If you’re weighing this up alongside other financial support, our managing money resources cover more on budgeting and finances while you study.
Note: information is accurate as of September 2026 – but Services Australia regularly updates payment rates, eligibility criteria and application processes so check directly if you want the specifics.
