Centrelink income apportionment: Millions of Aussies could be owed money as ‘flawed’ debts called in
Centrelink is resuming the collection of nearly 150,000 debts that were previously paused due to concerns over the legality of the 'income apportionment' calculation method. Many affected Australians are disputing the validity of these long-standing debts, some dating back over a decade.
Why it matters
This highlights ongoing issues with government welfare administration and the potential for systemic financial harm to vulnerable citizens.
shares Share article Centrelink is demanding almost 150,000 Australians repay debts that have been paused for years and were calculated using an averaging method that was later found to be unlawful.
The income averaging method is called “income apportionment” and was used to tally up an estimated three million debts totalling $4.4 billion over a period of decades, from the late 1990s to 2020.
Pete and Heather lost over $1.2 million in retirement savings overnight
I only paid in cash for three days. It was harder than I expected
Millions of Australians repaid the debts, but around 147,000 are still marked as money owed in the system, and Centrelink is now calling them in.
Many of the debts date back to alleged overpayments on social security payments received more than a decade ago, prompting calls for Centrelink to wipe debts that are more than six years old.
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