Eligibility

You may be eligible for basic rate Telephone Allowance if you:

• have a telephone connected in your or your partner's name, and
• are under 21 years of age with no dependant children and in receipt of Disability Support Pension, or
• receiving Parenting Payment (single), or
• Parenting Payment (partnered), if claimed on or after 1 July 2006 and have been assessed as having a partial capacity to work due to a disability, or
• Newstart Allowance or Sickness Allowance, and be over 60 and in receipt of an income support payment continuously for 9 months, or
• Partner Allowance, Widow Allowance, Special Benefit or Parenting Payment (partnered) and be over 60, but under Age Pension age, and in receipt of an income support payment continuously for 9 months, or
• Newstart Allowance or Youth Allowance and have a partial capacity to work as assessed by a Job Capacity Assessor, or
• Partner Allowance or Parenting Payment (partnered) and your partner is over 60 and receives Newstart Allowance or Sickness Allowance and has received income support payments continuously for 9 months, or
• Newstart Allowance or Youth Allowance and are a single principal carer of a dependent child, and
• meet the residence requirements for your main payment.

You may be eligible for higher rate Telephone Allowance if you:

• meet the above conditions, and
• receive Disability Support Pension, and
• are under 21 years of age with no dependent children, and
• have a home internet service connected in your or your partner’s name.

More information

• Telephone Allowance section