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Background information
(The information below is an abbreviation of the Wikipedia entry titled 'Social security in Australia'
The full entry can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_security_in_Australia)
Social security, in Australia, refers to a system of social welfare payments provided by the Commonwealth Government of Australia. These payments are administered by Centrelink, a branch of the Department of Human Services. In Australia, most benefits are means tested.
Income support
All Centrelink Income support payments are payable fortnightly, usually by direct deposit required into the recipient's bank account. They are also subject to a means test which calculates the recipient (and their partner's) fortnightly income and assets and affects the rate of their payment accordingly. As such, people on lower incomes may be entitled to part-payment of their allowance (subject to other qualification requirements). The assessment of income and assets varies greatly between different social security payments and the effect that income and assets have on each payment differs in that they have different income thresholds (i.e. how much income one can earn before it affects their payment) and different taper rates (the amount the payment drops by per dollar above these thresholds).
Newstart Allowance
Newstart Allowance is an unemployment benefit, which is paid in the form of a payment (currently for people between 22 and 64, though this is to change at the start of 2015) which is given to those who apply for the benefit and are unemployed and are seeking work.
It is paid on the basis of a 'mutual agreement' between the customer and Centrelink, where Centrelink will continue to pay fortnightly payments to the customer, for so long as the customer attempts to find employment and fulfils the mutual obligation requirements. These mutual agreements are negotiated between Centrelink, the Job Seeker and their Job Services Australia provider or Disability Employment Services provider, and are recorded into an Employment Pathway Plan or "EPP". Activities which a job seeker may have to agree to engage in, in order to continue receiving Newstart Allowance include applying for a specific number of jobs (usually ten) per fortnight and recording these applications in a Centrelink issued diary,[1] undertaking vocational education or training, paid work experience, participation in a labour market program or Work for the Dole project, and other activities, such as voluntary work if considered appropriate by Centrelink.[2] For example, more elderly customers who have been made redundant and are approaching the age pension age, and who may face considerable difficulties re-entering the labour market, are often permitted to fulfil their plan by engaging in voluntary activities alone. A job seeker has to nominate and engage in one activity (for example, either a vocational education activity or Work for the Dole activity) in any one mutual obligation period (lasting six months at a time).
Youth Allowance
Youth Allowance is an income support payment available to full-time students and Australian Apprentices aged 16-24, and to job seekers and those undertaking a combination of other activities leading to employment aged 16-20. (The budget changes will have all those aged up to 25 converted from Newstart recipients to Youth Allowance recipients.)
Youth Allowance recipients are considered to either be dependent on a caregiver(s), or independent. The underlying philosophy of Youth Allowance is that legal guardians are responsible for supporting their children where they have the means if that young person has not lived independently from them.