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6 things Aussies at age 60 need to know about the Age Pension asset test before they retire

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  • In Australia, 60 years old is the first retirement milestone.
  • The asset test includes everything that you own, except the home you live in.
  • To be eligible for the Age Pension, you need to meet basic requirements ahead of the income or asset test.
  • As of the 20th of September, to receive the full Age Pension, single homeowners can own assets up to a value of $333,000, and non-homeowners can own assets up to $600,000 in retirement.
  • You can gift assets worth up to $10,000 in any one financial year and $30,000 over any five-year period without these assets being included in the Age Pension asset test.

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  • “Aussies” is named in the headline. We could not find it in the report.

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In Australia, 60 years old is the first retirement milestone. At this point, you can start drawing down on your superannuation, and you're just seven years away from potentially receiving the Age Pension payment.

The asset test includes everything that you own, except the home you live in.

You'll also need to declare any assets held outside Australia and any debts owed to you.

The tricky thing is that the Age Pension rules, thresholds, and maximum payments are constantly changing.

To be eligible for the Age Pension, you need to meet basic requirements ahead of the income or asset test.

You also need to be an Australian resident who has lived in Australia for at least 10 years, with at least 5 of those years in a continuous period.

As of the 20th of September, the maximum fortnightly Age Pension payment increased to $1,237.70 for people.

As of the 20th of September, to receive the full Age Pension, single homeowners can own assets up to a value of $333,000, and non-homeowners can own assets up to $600,000 in retirement.

The cut-off point for a part-payment for single homeowners is now $745,000, and $1,012,750 if you're a single non-homeowner.

For assets above the full pension limit, the Age Pension payment for singles or couples, regardless of whether they're homeowners or not, reduces by $3 per fortnight for every $1,000 of assets.

You can gift assets worth up to $10,000 in any one financial year and $30,000 over any five-year period without these assets being included in the Age Pension asset test.

Shortened to 1 minute of reading, this version reads 11.7 on the Niral Score.

You are reading our version, not theirs. This is The Motley Fool Australia's report shortened to its most important sentences, in plainer words, with verdicts and loaded words taken out. Plain description stays, and so do adjectives that carry a fact, such as "former" or "federal". The reporting, the facts and the quotations are theirs — quotations are never edited — and the indicators beside it measure this version. Hover or tap Adjectives to see every one left in the text.

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The Motley Fool Australiaas they published this story 14.9 10 3 52.9
Mundane Readneutralized from The Motley Fool Australia 13.5 9 3 52.9

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