Australia · rates from 20 September 2026 · checked 17 October 2026
How much Rent Assistance will you get? Up to $263.06 a fortnight for a family with one or two children, and up to $223.80 for a single person on an income support payment. Your rent decides where in between you land.
Put in who is renting, your children, and your rent. You get the amount a fortnight and a year, and the sum behind it.
What you enter stays in your browser. It's an estimate, not an assessment: Services Australia decides what you're paid.
This works out one payment. To see tax, Family Tax Benefit, child care, child support and Parenting Payment together, see the Net Income Modeller →
You get 75 cents for every dollar of rent above a starting amount, up to a maximum. The starting amount and the maximum depend on whether you're single or a couple, and whether you have children. Rent above the amount that reaches the maximum adds nothing.
There are two sets, because Rent Assistance is paid two ways. A family with children gets it as part of Family Tax Benefit Part A. Everyone else gets it with an income support payment. All figures are a fortnight, from 20 September 2026.
| If you're | Rent is more than | Rent for the maximum | Maximum |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single, 1 or 2 children | $207.34 | $558.09 | $263.06 |
| Single, 3 or more children | $207.34 | $603.82 | $297.36 |
| A couple, 1 or 2 children | $306.60 | $657.35 | $263.06 |
| A couple, 3 or more children | $306.60 | $703.08 | $297.36 |
| If you're | Rent is more than | Rent for the maximum | Maximum |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single | $157.80 | $456.20 | $223.80 |
| Single, sharing | $157.80 | $356.74 | $149.20 |
| A couple, combined | $255.80 | $537.14 | $211.00 |
The rates are indexed every 20 March and 20 September, in line with the Consumer Price Index, so these change next on 20 March 2027. A weekly rent is doubled to get a fortnightly one.
A single parent on a taxable income of $60,000, with one child, paying $200 a week in rent. That is $400 a fortnight. We ran the calculator on 17 October 2026 with those inputs.
| The sum, for a year | Amount |
|---|---|
| Rent for the year ($400 a fortnight, paid daily over 365 days) | $10,428.57 |
| Less: the rent Rent Assistance starts above (single) | −$5,405.65 |
| Rent over that | $5,022.92 |
| 75 cents for each dollar of it | $3,767.19 |
| The most for 1 or 2 children | $6,858.35 |
| Rent Assistance before income: the smaller of those two | $3,767.19 |
| Less: family income (nothing comes off at $60,000) | – |
| Rent Assistance for the year | $3,767.19 |
| Each fortnight: the year divided by 365 days, then multiplied by 14 | $144.48 |
The $3,767.19 sits under the $6,858.35 maximum, so rent is what limits it. We put the same household into Services Australia's own Payment Finder on 21 September 2026 and it gave $144.48 a fortnight too.
| The household | A fortnight |
|---|---|
| The same parent, paying $300 a week ($600 a fortnight) | $263.06 |
| A couple on $70,000 and $30,000, one child, paying $500 a week | $115.78 |
| A couple on $110,000, one child, paying $500 a week | $68.04 |
| A single person on JobSeeker Payment, no children, paying $200 a week | $181.65 |
| The same person, sharing their home | $149.20 |
| A couple on JobSeeker Payment, no children, paying $200 a week | $108.15 |
Two things show in that table. Past $558.09 a fortnight, the first parent gets no more however high the rent goes. And for a family, income matters: Rent Assistance is part of Family Tax Benefit Part A, so as family income rises and Part A falls, Rent Assistance falls with it. The calculator shows that as its own line.
Each of our calculators answers one question. The Net Income Modeller works out tax, Family Tax Benefit, child care subsidy, child support, Rent Assistance and Parenting Payment together, so you can see what an extra day's work, a pay rise or a salary package leaves your family.
Three things have to be true. You get an eligible payment, you live in an eligible type of housing, and you pay more than the minimum amount of rent.
You don't apply. Services Australia pays it with your regular payment, and checks when you claim a payment or change your address. You do have to tell them within 14 days if you move or your rent changes.
The rates move every 20 March and 20 September. Leave your email and we'll tell you when they do, with the new maximums and what changed.
75 cents for each dollar of fortnightly rent above a starting amount, up to a maximum. From 20 September 2026 the maximum is $263.06 for a family with one or two children, $297.36 with three or more, and $223.80 for a single person on an income support payment. The tables above have the rest.
It depends on your household. The top of the range is $297.36 a fortnight, for a family with three or more children. A single sharer on an income support payment has the lowest maximum, $149.20.
People who get an eligible payment from Services Australia, such as the Age Pension, JobSeeker Payment, Youth Allowance, Parenting Payment or Family Tax Benefit Part A above the base rate, and who pay more than the minimum rent in an eligible type of housing.
No. Community housing is different, and can be eligible.
If you're single with no dependent children and live in shared private accommodation, you get the single sharer rate, a maximum of $149.20 a fortnight instead of $223.80. It goes with payments such as JobSeeker Payment, Youth Allowance, Austudy, the Age Pension, Special Benefit, Farm Household Allowance and ABSTUDY Living Allowance, not with the Disability Support Pension or Carer Payment.
No. Services Australia pays it automatically with your regular payment if you're eligible.
Services Australia pages read on 17 October 2026.
General information about Commonwealth Rent Assistance from 20 September 2026 as at 17 October 2026, not personal advice and not an assessment. Services Australia decides what you are paid. Confirm your own situation with them.