Social Services Legislation Amendment (Strengthening Income Support) 2021

✦ Plain-English Summary

# Social Services Legislation Amendment (Strengthening Income Support) Bill 2021

## What it does
This bill increases payments for working-age Australians receiving income support (like JobSeeker and Youth Allowance) and loosens some of the rules around eligibility and how much you can earn before payments are reduced. It makes five main changes to how welfare works: boosting payment amounts, adjusting coronavirus-related eligibility rules, removing waiting periods, raising income thresholds, and improving portability of payments.

## Why it matters
If you're on JobSeeker, Youth Allowance, or similar payments, you'll get more money. The bill also means you can earn more money from work before your payments get cut, and you face fewer bureaucratic hurdles to qualify or keep your support.

## Key details
- **Payment increases started 1 April 2021** — the maximum fortnightly rates for young people and other working-age recipients went up (e.g. independent young people moved from $510.95 to $512.50 per fortnight)
- **Income thresholds and taper rates changed** — you can earn more before payments reduce, making it easier to work part-time without losing support
- **Coronavirus eligibility rules were adjusted** — temporary pandemic-related qualification changes were extended or normalised into the system

Official Description

Amends the Social Security Act 1991 to: increase, from 1 April 2021, the maximum basic rates of all working age social security payments by $50 per fortnight; extend, until 30 June 2021, the criteria for a person to qualify for youth allowance (other) or jobseeker payment in circumstances where the person is in quarantine or self-isolation or caring for a family member or household member in quarantine or self-isolation due to COVID-19; extend, until 30 June 2021, the portability period for certain age pensioners and recipients of the disability support pension unable to return to, or depart from, Australia within 26 weeks due to the impact of COVID-19; and permanently increase the ordinary income-free area for jobseeker payment, youth allowance (other), parenting payment partnered and related payments to $150 per fortnight.

Committee Referrals

Senate Community Affairs Legislation Committee; Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights

Full bill PDF →APH page →

Audit History

Introduced

25 Feb 2021

Last updated on APH

10 Apr 2026

Outcome date

22 Mar 2021

Last checked by Crossbench

2 days ago

Full text indexed

2 days ago

🗳️

No formal division recorded

This bill passed by voice vote — parliament agreed without calling a formal count. A division is only recorded when a member explicitly requests one.

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