Section 611 — Social Security Act 1991: Assets test—jobseeker payment not payable if assets value limit exceeded

(1) Subject to section 654, a jobseeker payment is not payable to a person if the value of the person’s assets is more than the person’s assets value limit. (2) A person’s assets value limit is worked out using the following table: work out which family situation applies to the person; the assets value limit is the corresponding amount in the assets value limit column. Assets value limit table Column 1 Column 2 Column 3 Assets value limit Item Person’s family situation Column 3A Either person or partner homeowner Column 3B Neither person nor partner homeowner 1. Not member of a couple $250,000 $450,000 2. Partnered (partner getting neither pension nor benefit) $375,000 $575,000 3. Partnered (partner getting pension or benefit) $187,500 $287,500 Note 1: For member of a couple, partnered (partner getting neither pension nor benefit) and partnered (partner getting pension or benefit) see section 4. Note 2: For homeowner see section 11. Note 3: If item 2 applies to a person, the value of all the assets of the person’s partner are to be taken as being included in the value of the person’s assets (see subsection 612(1))—this is why the assets value limit is so high. If, on the other hand, item 3 applies to a person, the value of the person’s assets is only half the combined value of the person’s assets and the assets of the person’s partner (see subsection 612(2)). Note 4: If a jobseeker payment is not payable to a person because of the value of the person’s assets, the person may be able to take advantage of provisions dealing with financial hardship (see sections 1131 and 1132). Note 5: The assets value limits of items 1 and 3 in column 3A and item 3 in column 3B are indexed annually in line with CPI increases (see sections 1191 to 1194). Note 6: The assets value limit of item 1 in column 3B is adjusted annually (see subsection 1204(1)). Note 7: The item 2 assets value limits are adjusted annually so that they are twice the corresponding item 3 limits (see subsections 1204(2) and (3)).