You've worked hard, you've built up some super, and somewhere along the way you've heard a worrying line: "You've got too much — you won't get the pension." Maybe a colleague said it, maybe a barbecue expert. And because the rules feel complicated, plenty of people in their 50s just assume they'll miss out, or assume they'll get it, without ever checking. Both assumptions can be expensive. The truth is the age pension isn't all-or-nothing, and the tests that decide it are simpler than they look.
Start with the basics: age 67, and your home doesn't count
Age pension age is 67. To qualify you need to have reached that age and meet residence rules; after that, what you receive is decided by two means tests run by Centrelink — one on your assets, one on your income.
The single most important thing to know: the home you live in is not counted in the assets test, whether it's worth $500,000 or $5 million. What counts is almost everything else — superannuation, savings, shares, investment property, your car and caravan, and household contents. Two softeners help here. Contents and vehicles are counted at second-hand value, not what you paid — for most households that's a fraction of the insured figure. And if you have a partner under age pension age, money sitting in their super accumulation account isn't counted until they reach pension age themselves.
The full pension is currently worth $1,178.70 a fortnight for a single (about $30,600 a year) and $1,777.00 a fortnight combined for a couple (about $46,200 a year). Rates are adjusted every 20 March and 20 September, so they rise again on 20 September this year.
The assets test: where the limits sit
For a full pension, your assessable assets need to be under these limits (current from 1 July 2026): $333,000 for a single homeowner, $499,000 for a homeowner couple, $600,000 for a single non-homeowner and $766,000 for a non-homeowner couple.
Above those limits, the pension doesn't stop — it tapers. You lose $3 a fortnight for every $1,000 of assets over the threshold. The part pension finally cuts out at about $733,500 for a single homeowner and about $1,102,500 for a homeowner couple ($1,000,500 and $1,369,500 for non-homeowners). Those cut-offs are indexed too, and move again on 20 September.
A worked example. Suppose you and your partner own your home and have $700,000 in super, savings and contents combined. That's $201,000 over the couple threshold of $499,000, which trims the pension by $603 a fortnight. You'd still receive around $1,174 a fortnight between you — roughly $30,500 a year of part pension — plus the concession card that comes with it. "Too much super to get the pension" turns out to be a much higher bar than most people think.
The income test — and the deeming shortcut
The second test looks at income. A single can have income of $218 a fortnight before the pension reduces; over that, it reduces by 50 cents for every extra dollar, cutting out at $2,619.80 a fortnight. A couple can have $380 a fortnight combined, with the same 50 cents in the dollar reduction between them, cutting out at $4,000.80 combined.
Here's the twist: for financial assets — bank accounts, shares, super in pension phase — Centrelink doesn't ask what you actually earned. It "deems" your money to earn a set rate, and that deemed figure goes into the income test no matter what your investments really did. This cuts both ways: earn more than the deeming rate and the excess is ignored; earn less and you're still assessed as if you'd earned it. If you keep working past 67, the Work Bonus also lets you earn a certain amount from employment before it counts — a genuine sweetener for part-time work in your late 60s.
Two tests, one rule: the lower result wins
Centrelink works out your entitlement under both tests and pays you the lower amount. For most retired homeowners with meaningful super, the assets test is the one that bites; for people with modest assets but decent ongoing income, it's the income test. Knowing which test binds you matters, because it tells you which levers actually move your pension.
If you're near the edge — or worried you'll miss out
If you're still five or ten years out, don't plan your life around today's thresholds — they're indexed and they shift every year. Do a rough check annually, not a panicked one weekly.
If you're close to the limits, be careful with the obvious "fixes". Giving money to the kids doesn't simply make it disappear: gifts above modest limits are still counted as your asset for five years. Spending on your exempt home — the long-delayed renovation, clearing the last of the mortgage — can lift a part pension, but only makes sense if you'd spend that money anyway. And if your assets are above the cut-off entirely, you may still qualify for the Commonwealth Seniors Health Card, which brings cheaper medicines and other concessions with no assets test at all.
As Noel Whittaker has said for years, the age pension rules reward people who understand them and punish those who guess. Twenty minutes with the current thresholds — or with a good calculator — beats a decade of barbecue mythology.
Retirement, the age pension and super are covered step by step in Retirement Made Simple (6th Edition) by Noel Whittaker — updated for the current financial year. Buy direct from the author for $19.95, delivered instantly in PDF and EPUB.
This article is general information only and doesn't take account of your personal circumstances. Figures are current at time of writing and change each financial year. Consider seeking advice before acting.