I have been living in Thailand for the past year now back in Australia to lodge
papers for age pension has anybody out there in TD land been through this process
and had any difficulties because they live in Thailand
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I have been living in Thailand for the past year now back in Australia to lodge
papers for age pension has anybody out there in TD land been through this process
and had any difficulties because they live in Thailand
Others will know better but I am sure you must return to Oz every 13 weeks to be eligible for any pension.
bloody hell gos you did,nt look that old mate :)
^ Not for the aged pension. It can be paid for life while overseas.
The info on the Aus, Gov. website can be difficult to decipher and a bit criptic.
To qualify for the full Aus. Aged Pension you need to be a resident of Australia for a full (?) 25 years between 15 and 65.
Best to talk to CenterLink.
Age Pension
MediCare is a bit of a worry though. As I understand it they scrub you if you have been living abroad for more than 5 years. Could be wrong though.
Best check it out with them
Thanks for the info Panda
Thanks for the compliment Nedwalk where did we meet
Crikey :(Quote:
Originally Posted by Panda
All the best Gos, had a mate here recently who lives in the Philippines on the pension, says they just keep paying the dosh into his account. I know the Pommie pension is paid each month regardless of where you live. Hopefully the sort their shit out in the next 30+ years by which time I'll qualify.
Sorry to burst your bubble, Wayne but if you are in your thirties now you ain't getting squat for an old age pension. It's now called "superannuation". I think the cut off for old age pension was 1967 and anyone born after that has to fend for themselves.
I recieve Australian age pension as does my australian wife, we informed Centrelink that we are leaving australia at the end of the year to spend the rest of our time in Malaysia and thailand, we were informed yesterday by letter , that after 12 months our house in australia (which is remaining empty) will be valued as an asset and our pensions wild be reduced by a minimum of 35% this is hard to understand as we have only leased condo,s in penang and prachuap, centrelink seem to change the rules as they please has anyone else experienced anything like this???
Oh f'k it ... oh well I guess I can stop feeling bad about drinking all my old man's beer :)Quote:
Originally Posted by davearn
Found nothing to support that on the centerlink site, but I doubt a pension will be available in years to come anyway, and no, I have nothing to support that thought either.Quote:
Originally Posted by davearn
Forgot to mention earlier, if you recieve a pension from another source or country as well as the australian age pension, centrelink will deduct 49cents on the dollar, so you are still being ripped off instead of things getting better they are getting worse
So basically lie to the fuckers as much as you can so they don't steal from you.
Same as the UK.
thanks everyone for the replies
quite right.Quote:
Originally Posted by Marmite the Dog
How can you lie to them , centrelink are informed automatically by immigration when you leave and arrive back in australia, also centrelink has unrestricted access to your australian bank accounts, now they have specialists checking accounts for overseas transactions, its the people who lie and cheat ,who make it difficult for honest folk:tosser1:
I was talking to an Aussie who lives here for 9 months of the year and he gets what he is due because he bullshits to them. Why shouldn't he be entitled to his pension (et al)? He's contributed throughout his working life just like the next man.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ningi
If the government weren't a bunch of thieves people wouldn't have to be dishonest.
Well after going to Australia thinking I had done everything right and I meet all the criteria on the website they have rejected my claim giving the reason that I am living overseas permanently.On their website it says if you are living overseas permanently that your age pension can generally be paid indefinately.:tosser1: ers
Seconded - could kick myself for telling the truth !!!:(Quote:
Originally Posted by Marmite the Dog
never fear they will catch you!!we returned to Aus on friday, after a 7 day trip to HK, got a please explain phonecall yesterday asking why we had not informed them we were leaving the country!!I explained we had informed them by phone of our departure and I phoned them on friday when we returned gave both the reference numbers, was informed on return to Aus you have to front up personally because of the amount of people , cheating and getting there mates to phone in~~ its a bit silly really seeing as immigration informs them within 3 days of leaving or arriving:mid:
must be a bugger getting old, GOS, were,nt you at the little drinky session in HH last june, trying to chat up NR if i recall :), hope you get it sorted anyway mate, i got an old mate who comes back here for 3 mths at a time and goes back, never really asked him the ins and out of his pensionQuote:
Originally Posted by gos
yes that was me a very pissie night but a good time was had by all
Hey Gos we are near bribie drop us a line if you need any help:)Quote:
Originally Posted by nedwalk
^ THat was Ned, mate but you don't want to know him coz he's a c&unt !!:rolleyes:
Sory Ned, couldn't resist mate !
Sorry Ningi do not understand bribie
^ he be talking about bribie island i presume.. just down the road from this knut and up the road from that other knut davearn :)
Bribie Island soon to be come suburb of brisbane and home of the biggest fuxxxxxx desalination plant in australia:confused:
i,ll give you a wave mate next time i,m passing :)
Well I have just been informed by international pensions that my claim was rejected because allthough I meet all the criteria I left on the 26th may and the decision was made on the 30th May even though it says you have to be in Australia when you lodge your application ,you have to stay until a decision is made so I have to go back to Aus to put another form in .I double checked with international and they say their is no reason why anybody cannot get their pensions living in any country
I have now come back to Australia put the form in and now they tell me that if I want my pension I will have to stay in Australia for two years without leaving and if I do my pension will be cancelled and I will have to start the
process again. I am being treated as a former resident even though I am an Australian citizen and have only been out of the country for only10 months .My big mistake was being honest and saying I was living in Thailand.
Gos, I think the person you spoke to is taking those rules to the extreme interpretation. The way I understand it that 2 year rule is meant to apply to people who, while technically qualifying for an aged pension, have left Australia years ago with no intention of returning except to claim their pension and then go back to live permanently overseas.
If you have been an Australian resident for 25 years between the age of 16 and 65, you should be entitled to full aged pension paid overseas (subject to means test). The restrictive 2 year wait for a temporary absence of 10 months seems a bit over the top.
If you have any documents to show that your 10 month absence was indeed temporary, such as rates notices, phone bills, electricity bills etc.. , I would suggest you start building a file to have another go.
If you told them that you left Australia permanently 10 months ago and only came back to apply for the pension with the intention of leaving Australia immediately afterwards with no intention of returning again, well perhaps they have some justification for imposing that 2 year rule.
Have a talk to your Federal Member and see if you can get some expert legal advice to build you case before trying again.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ningi
I believe that this is normal, as your house is then considered to be an asset, albeit not earning income. It may be in your best interests to consider renting your house and declaring yourself a non-resident, of course you would loose some pension benefits, however I believe the rate of a tax for a non resident is considerably lower than the normal rates.I would suggest you consult an accountant and have the math done. As a pensioner living overseas you loose poharmaceutical benefits and a few other extras, so the renting the house option may be worthwhile.
I would be interested to have some facts and figures of the cost of living in Thailand/Malaysia. e.g., rents, purchase price of villa, and general living expenses.
Hi all, this is my first post here. Have just joined. I have been living out of Australia for the last 17 or 18 years. I have returned about every 2 years, sometimes more frequently as I have family there, 2 daughters and one son from 2 ex marriages. Also 2 grandchildren. I am now 72 and up until last year fully employed. I returned to Australia last March to apply for the aged pension. I should point out I was born in NZ and moved to Australia where I worked for the next 35 years. I have had my home address for the last 5 years in Cairns where my son lives and my bank account is and my medicare card gets sent there. I was told in Cairns that all the aged pensions were handled in Tasmania so I filled out an application form and sent all required info off to Tassy. Heard nothing for about 2 weeks so phoned them, they don't seem to do anything on line. Was told by some guy on the phone to forget it I had no chance.
Couldn't believe this so phoned again the next day, got a different guy who put me through to a women who asked me all about my application and said they would let me know next week. End of two weeks phoned again and was asked to wait and after about 15 minutes the same woman got back to me and said it had been rejected but I could appeal. I appealed, explaining family situation and I had no home because the ex wife had got that etc etc, this can only be done by mail, and after 2 weeks waiting phoned again and was told it had been approved. Said I would be returning to Auatralia in 6 to 12 months.
I received the pension for about 3 months then it was reduced by about $40. It fluctuated by several dollars for another 3 months, no explanations given, and then reduced by about another 35%.
Can't get any clear explanation for all this except on the Centrelink web site which is a bit cryptic and says they may reduce it if out of Aust for more than 13 weeks. I am highly p..... off with all this mystery and almost suspect some sort of scam going on. The boat people are all better off. Has anyone else had a problem?
Have a look at this site :
http://www.australianpensioner.org/index.html
as in real estate, qualifying for an Aussie pension is all about location, location & location.
They clearly state that you must be an Australian resident.
I've spent the last 15 years convincing the Aus Tax Office that I'm a non-resident. I think it would be seen as hypocritical to then retire and spend the rest of my life trying to convince them that I was now an Aus resident.
SOCIAL SECURITY ACT 1991 - SECT 43Quote:
Originally Posted by Lance
Qualification for age pension (1) A person is qualified for an age pension if the person has reached pension age and any of the following applies:
(a) the person has 10 years qualifying Australian residence;
(b) the person has a qualifying residence exemption for an age pension;
(c) the person was receiving a widow B pension, a widow allowance, a mature age allowance or a partner allowance, immediately before reaching that age;
(d) if the person reached pension age before 20 March 1997--the person was receiving a widow B pension, a widow allowance or a partner allowance, immediately before 20 March 1997.
SOCIAL SECURITY ACT 1991 - SECT 43 Qualification for age pension
Same situation mate when my now deceased Mum went into a nursing home, we originally thought we would leave her house empty but then the Govt regarded Mums house as an asset. Sell your house or rent it is the way to go.Quote:
Originally Posted by Ningi
There are different qualifications on the Centre Link site pertaining to residency. Age Pension - residence requirementsQuote:
Originally Posted by beano
To lodge an Age Pension claim you must be an Australian resident and in Australia on the day that you lodge your claim.
To qualify as an Australian resident you must be living in Australia as:
an Australian citizen, or
the holder of a permanent resident visa, or
a New Zealand citizen who was in Australia on 26 February 2001, or for 12 months in the 2 years immediately before that date, or was assessed as "protected" before 26 February 2004.
To be paid Age Pension, you also need to meet the 10-year qualifying Australian residence requirements, unless:
you are claiming under an international social security agreement, or
you are a refugee or former refugee, or
you were getting Partner Allowance, Widow Allowance or Widow B Pension immediately before turning Age Pension age, or
you are a woman whose partner died while you were both Australian residents and you had 2 years residency immediately before claiming Age Pension.
Note: The 10-year Australian resident requirement means you have been an Australian resident for a continuous period of at least 10 years, or for a number of periods which total more than 10 years, with one of the periods being at least 5 years.
Is there any organisation or company assisting expat aged pensioners in getting their pensions if living overseas. I spent 35 years working and living in Australia with family, children etc and have now had my pension stopped after 6 months. I could certainly not afford to live in Australia on the pension and it seems completely wrong that the Australian Government can dictate where I live or how I spend my money after having paid my taxes like any other person in Australia over thr years.
Welfare Rights are pretty good, or try the website I posted above.