Financial help for dementia caregivers in Australia
Australian carers of someone with dementia may qualify for Carer Payment, Carer Allowance, or both, through Services Australia. Carer Gateway is the national service for support, counselling, and respite navigation.
What support exists in Australia
Carer Payment
An income-support payment for people who cannot work full-time because of their caring role. Up to $1,200.90 a fortnight for a single person and $905.20 a fortnight each for partnered carers, effective 20 March 2026.
Income and asset tested. It is designed to replace wages for full-time carers, not to sit on top of them.
Carer Allowance
A supplement of $162.60 a fortnight for carers providing daily care. It is non-taxable and can be received alongside Carer Payment.
Subject to a family income test of $250,000.
Carer Supplement
An annual payment of $600, paid automatically in July to people receiving a qualifying carer payment. You do not apply for it separately.
Carer Gateway
The national navigation and support service for carers — counselling, peer support, coaching, and help finding respite and practical services in your area.
Figures and rules change. Confirm current amounts and eligibility with the official source before you rely on them.
How to apply
- 1
Set up or sign in to a myGov account linked to Centrelink — most carer claims start there.
- 2
Check whether the person you care for meets the care-needs requirements for Carer Payment, Carer Allowance, or both.
- 3
Have their medical details ready — Services Australia usually needs information from their treating health professional.
- 4
Submit your claim through myGov, including your income and asset details for the relevant tests.
- 5
Contact Carer Gateway separately for practical support, counselling, and respite — it is a different service from your Centrelink claim.
Spouses and other family members
You can claim carer payments for a partner, parent, adult child, or another person you care for, as long as the care-needs and residency requirements are met. Whether you're related does not by itself decide the claim — the level of care needed and the income and asset tests do.
Go deeper on Australian carer support
This page is an overview. The detailed eligibility rules and application walkthroughs live in our full guides.
Get organized before you apply
Dementia care generates paperwork slowly and constantly — appointment letters, assessment dates, medication changes, receipts, hours of unpaid support. Applications go smoother when that history is already in one place instead of reconstructed from memory.
Hours of support, check-ins, and day-to-day help logged as they happen.
Assessments, letters, and forms stored together and easy to find again.
Out-of-pocket costs and trips to appointments captured as you go.
Official sources
- Services Australia — Carer Payment →
- Services Australia — Carer Allowance →
- Services Australia — Carer Supplement →
- Carer Gateway →
This page is general information, not legal, tax, medical, or financial advice. Payment amounts, eligibility rules, and application processes change — confirm details with the official body or a qualified adviser before making decisions.