Australian Government Directory of Services for Older People 2012-2013
Products and assistance
Table of contents
Australian Government Mobile Offices
The Department of Human Services currently has two Australian Government Mobile Offices that travel to and service rural and remote Australia. Experienced specialist officers travel with the Mobile Office and provide friendly, face-to-face service, information and support. Staff can assist with payment and service options. The staff are specialists in rural servicing, and live and work in the communities they serve.Phone: 13 23 16 (Centrelink services)
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au
Centrepay
Centrepay is a free direct bill-paying service available if you receive Centrelink payments. Through Centrepay you can choose to have a regular amount deducted from your payment for rent, electricity, telephone, gas, home care services and other essential expenses. It’s an easy way to pay some of your bills and stay in control of your finances.Centrepay is free and totally voluntary. By using Centrepay you benefit from its convenience, security and ease of payment, knowing that your payments are under control.
Instead of having large bills every quarter or month, your bills are paid in manageable amounts from your payment - making it easier for you to budget. It’s simple, easy, and there is no cost to you.
Phone: 13 23 00 (Centrelink services)
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au/centrepay
Commonwealth Financial Counselling
If you are experiencing personal financial difficulties you may be able to get free financial counselling services through Commonwealth Financial Counselling services. The Australian Government funds community and local government organisations to provide these services across Australia, including regional and rural areas. Some services are also available by phone.The financial counsellor can:
- provide advice and information
- carry out individual advocacy
- make referrals.
Contact the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs to get contact details for a financial counselling service near you. Alternatively, you can call the national financial counselling hotline.
Phone: 1800 007 007 (Financial Counselling Hotline)
Website: Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs at www.fahcsia.gov.au/cfcp
Department of Human Services Agents and Access Points
The Department of Human Services funds an extensive network of over 225 Access Points and 355 Agents in rural, regional and remote Australia to enhance customer access to Centrelink services and other department services. Access Points provide free self-help facilities where customers can conduct their business with Centrelink services. These services include providing information products, forms, and brochures; providing access to a telephone dedicated to the Call network; and providing faxing or photocopy facilities so customers can forward material to a Service Centre, fax a job résumé, or carry out other related business.
Access Point staff can sight and photocopy Proof of Identity documents so that customers no longer have to send original documents in the mail to support their claims. There is no additional face-to-face staff assistance provided at Access Points.
Agents are established in communities which require a more significant Department of Human Services presence than that provided through an Access Point. In addition to providing the same facilities as an Access Point, an Agent provides a face-to-face information service to the community, along with an internet-enabled computer and printer so customers can conduct their business.
Agents also:
- provide assistance and guidance to customers about using self-service products, such as the internet for online services, and automated telephone systems
- accept claim forms and other documentation required to be lodged
- provide telephone claim information and reply paid envelopes to send Medicare information
- respond to customer enquiries and provide assistance, guidance or referral as appropriate.
- make any payments or decisions about payments
- review, assess or vary payments
- access customer information
- issue Centrelink payments or replacement Concession or Health Care Cards.
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au/accesspoint
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Department of Human Services Multicultural Services 
The Department of Human Services through Multicultural Services assists people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds in many ways. These services include:A Multilingual phone service (ph 13 12 02) - allows you to speak to Service Officers in languages other than English.
Language Services - provides free interpreting and translating services for Centrelink services for customers from CALD backgrounds. Interpreters are generally available by appointment and can easily be arranged upon request to assist with immediate customer enquiries. Document translation services are provided where necessary to help establish a customer’s entitlement to Centrelink payments or services. In some Service Centres, bilingual staff are available to assist with customer enquiries. Translated information can also be found on the Department of Human Services website.
Customers can be reassured that any information discussed at an interview will remain confidential. The department's contracted interpreters and translators are bound by confidentiality provisions and a code of ethics.
International Services - makes social security payments to over 79,000 customers who are outside Australia indefinitely or for more than 13 weeks. International Services also handle more than 7,300 pensions paid in Australia under International Social Security Agreements.
Phone: 13 12 02 (Centrelink Multilingual Call)
13 16 73 (Centrelink International Services)
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au/multilingualcall
Department of Human Services Multilingual Products 
There are over 120 products available in over 60 languages.Translated booklets
The information booklet Information in your language - a guide to your options and our services is available in 42 languages.
The booklet provides an overview of the wide range of Department of Human Services’ payments and services that support customers at different times in their lives. Information in your language includes assistance for people who are:
- looking after children
- looking for work
- studying or training
- farmers, self-employed or rural Australians
- experiencing a crisis
- ill, injured or have a disability
- caring for someone
- about to retire or are in retirement
- needing help when a loved one passes away
- recent arrivals to Australia.
Translated factsheets
Translated factsheets provide a more detailed explanation of services and payments, and are available on the Department of Human Services website.
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au
Free CDs
Audio visual CDs are available in new emerging community languages, targeting recent refugee and humanitarian arrivals. These CDs are available free of charge by calling the Department of Human Services.
Phone: 13 12 02 (Centrelink Multilingual Call)
(02) 8512 0946 (Multicultural Services)
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au
Multicultural community newsletter
The Journey is an e-newsletter for community agencies supporting culturally and linguistically diverse clients. It is updated bi-monthly and provides all the latest information on multicultural services in Australia provided by the Department of Human Services. Organisations can register online to receive The Journey.
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au
Multicultural media
The Department of Human Services provides information about its programs and services in up to 15 languages via regular broadcasts on Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) National Radio and community radio across Australia, and in articles in a number of in-language community newspapers. A translated version of News for Seniors is also available in 16 languages each quarter.
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au
Department of Human Services Visiting Services
Many Service Centres operate visiting services to places in rural and remote Australia. The frequency of these visits and the types of services offered are usually based on consultations with the local community and the specific needs of the people involved.Staff conducting visiting services can provide specific information on entitlements and eligibility, and provide general advice and assistance with forms.
Phone: 13 28 50 (Centrelink services)
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au
Farmer and Drought Assistance Lines
The Department of Human Services provides special services to farmers through the Farmer Assistance Line and Drought Assistance Line. Rural call centre staff can provide advice on a range of payments and explain how farmers may be eligible for other Centrelink services payments and services.Phone: 1800 050 585 (Farmer Assistance Line)
13 23 16 (Drought Assistance Line)
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au/ruralcall
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Financial Information Service
The Financial Information Service (FIS), provided by specialist departmental officers, is an education and information service available to everyone in the community. FIS helps people make informed decisions about investment and financial issues for their current and future needs. FIS is independent, free and confidential, and provides a service by phone, by appointment and through seminars.Assistance for seniors includes information on:
- investment options, concepts and strategies
- accessing superannuation and annuities
- understanding investment types
- advantages and disadvantages of different investments
- the effect of tax on investments
- complex age pension income and asset issues
- accommodation choices for older people
- aged care issues
- help when someone dies.
FIS holds free seminars throughout the year covering a range of topics crucial to planning a financial future. The seminars have been designed to assist people with planning, getting ready for and living in retirement, and are intended to complement those run by the finance industry.
Phone: 13 23 00 (Financial Information Service)
13 63 57 (Financial Information Service seminar bookings)
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au/fis
Indigenous Call Centres
The Department of Human Services operates four Indigenous Call Centres which provide an appropriate access channel for Indigenous people; particularly those who live in remote areas and may not have direct access to other Department of Human Services facilities. The call centres take calls from anywhere in Australia. They are located in Palmerston (Northern Territory), Cairns (Queensland), Bunbury (Western Australia) and Port Macquarie (New South Wales).Phone: Freecall™ 1800 136 380 (Centrelink services)
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au/indigenous
Indigenous Service Officers
A network of 100 Indigenous Service Officers operates at Service Centres across Australia. As contact points between Indigenous communities and the Department of Human Services, these Specialist officers facilitate better communication, provide advice and support that helps improve service delivery to Indigenous customers and communities.
Indigenous Service Officers:
- establish effective relationships with local Indigenous communities, government and non-government agencies, and other relevant stakeholders
- conduct outreach activities to local Indigenous communities to ensure that customers understand Centrelink services
- identify opportunities for enhanced service delivery
- work with Service Centres to develop strategies to achieve equitable access to, and participation in, Centrelink services and programs by Indigenous customers.
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au/indigenous
The Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) has a national network of Indigenous Veterans’ Liaison Officers to help Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander veterans obtain their entitlements and benefits.
Please call DVA on 1300 55 1918 and ask to speak with the Indigenous Veteran Liaison Officer in your state.
Requesting information in alternative formats
Some Department of Human Services website information and certain DVA publications are available in alternative formats. These include audio CD or DVD, large print, braille and e-text.By selecting the ‘Listen’ icon on the Department of Human Services website, you can open a new window that will play the main contents of the page back to you as audio. You can select the text you want to hear, or listen to the whole page.
Phone : 13 27 17 (Centrelink services)
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au
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Seniors information publications
The Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) and the Department of Human Services produce a range of publications that provide practical and easy-to-read information on topics such as investment options, accommodation choices and government programs and services to assist seniors. These publications include:- About to retire or in retirement? - a guide to your options and our services
- Investing for Your Retirement - helps you understand the range of investment options available
- Accommodation choices for older Australians and their families: what older Australians and their families need to know - an informative and easy-to-read guide to help you make decisions about living arrangements
- A Guide to Concession Cards - provides information on concession card eligibility and the range of concessions offered in each state or territory.
Phone: 13 23 00 (Centrelink services)
1800 050 009 (Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs)
Websites: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au/olderaustralians
Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs at www.fahcsia.gov.au
Someone to deal with the Department of Human Services for you
Some customers may have difficulty managing their affairs with the Department of Human Services because of a disability or illness, or problems reading, writing, understanding information or handling money. If you receive a Centrelink or family assistance payment or service, Person Permitted to Enquire (PPE) arrangements or nominee arrangements can be put in place to allow an authorised person to make enquiries, act, and or receive payments on your behalf.PPE arrangements enable a Department of Human Services customer to authorise a person or organisation to make limited enquiries on their behalf.
A nominee arrangement authorises a person or organisation to enquire, act and make changes on your behalf and/or receive your Centrelink payment on your behalf.
Phone: 13 23 00 (Centrelink services)
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au/nominees
Transitional Income Support
Transitional Income Support can assist farmers in financial difficulty who are, or are likely to be, adversely affected by climate change. If you are a farmer and need short-term income support, Transitional Income Support can help you and your family adjust to the effects of climate change. You may receive a fortnightly payment at the same rate as Newstart Allowance.Three assets tests determine your eligibility for Transitional Income Support. The first is an off-farm assets test, and is the same as that used for Newstart Allowance. This includes all funds in any Farm Management Deposits. All other assets essential to the operation of the farm are exempt from this initial assets test.
The second assets test assesses your (and your partner’s) total net assets. These assets must be below $1.5 million, including all farm assets.
The third assets test assesses your liquid assets*. To be eligible under this assets test, you (and your partner) must have less than $20,000 in liquid assets. Assessable income must be below the allowable income limits used to calculate Newstart Allowance.
*Liquid assets means cash immediately available in personal and business bank accounts, term deposits, shares and other financial accounts.
Phone: 1800 050 585 (Farmer Assistance Line)
Website: Department of Human Services at www.humanservices.gov.au