Australian Age Pension 2026: Setting Up MyGov Step By Step

If you are turning 67 in Australia — or you already have — the Age Pension is the single biggest piece of government income most people will ever claim. It pays fortnightly for the rest of your life, it comes with a Pensioner Concession Card that discounts pharmacy, transport, and utilities, and it is administered entirely through the myGov website once you get past the setup.

This April 2026 walkthrough takes you through the three steps that trip most people up:

Confirming you are actually eligible (67, residency, income and assets tests).
Getting a myGov account and linking Centrelink — the bit with the Customer Reference Number.
Submitting the Age Pension claim and tracking it online.

You can do the whole thing in an afternoon. Here is how.

Who Qualifies For The Age Pension In 2026

Age

Australian Age Pension age is 67 years as of 1 July 2023. If you were born on or after 1 January 1957, your Age Pension age is 67. There is no further increase planned.

Residency

You must generally have been an Australian resident for at least 10 years, with at least 5 of those years in a single continuous period. Exemptions exist for refugees and some international agreements (New Zealand, UK, US, and others).

Income Test

Centrelink calculates your fortnightly income from wages, investments, pensions, and "deemed" earnings on financial assets.

As of April 2026 (approximate — always verify at servicesaustralia.gov.au):

Single: Full pension if fortnightly income is under $218. Part-pension cuts out around $2,500+/fortnight.
Couple (combined): Full pension if fortnightly income is under $380. Part-pension cuts out around $3,800+/fortnight.

"Deeming" explained. Rather than asking what your term deposit actually earns, Centrelink assumes your financial assets earn a "deemed" rate (two tiers, adjusted periodically). It simplifies the paperwork but means people with low-earning cash still have assumed income.

Assets Test

Your "assessable assets" include almost everything except your principal home. As of April 2026 (approximate — always verify the current thresholds):

Single homeowner: Full pension if assets under $314,000. Part-pension cuts out around $695,500.
Single non-homeowner: Full pension if assets under $566,000. Cut-off higher accordingly.
Couple homeowner (combined): Full pension if assets under $470,000. Part-pension cuts out around $1,045,500.

The test that gives you the lower payment applies (income test or assets test — whichever reduces your pension more).

Age Pension Maximum Fortnightly Rates (Approximate April 2026)

After the 20 March 2026 indexation:

Single: up to about $1,149.00/fortnight (base + pension supplement + energy supplement)
Couple (each): up to about $866.10/fortnight each (approximately $1,732.20 combined)

Verify exact current rates at servicesaustralia.gov.au/age-pension before planning around specific dollar amounts.

Step 1: Set Up A myGov Account (If You Do Not Already Have One)

myGov is the Australian Government's single sign-on for online services (Centrelink, Medicare, ATO, My Health Record).

Go to my.gov.au. Not myGov.com — only .gov.au is official.
Click "Create a myGov account."
Enter a personal email address only you have access to.
Create a strong password and set up two-factor authentication (SMS code to your mobile, or Code Generator app).
Set three secret questions and answers — these unlock the account if you lose your phone.

myGov also offers myGovID (being renamed to myID in 2026) — a digital identity app that can strengthen sign-in. You do not strictly need it for Age Pension, but it is useful for other services.

Step 2: Get Your Centrelink Customer Reference Number (CRN)

To link Centrelink to myGov, you need a Customer Reference Number (CRN) — a 9-digit number + a letter (e.g., 123 456 789 A) assigned by Services Australia.

If you already have a CRN (perhaps from Medicare, family payments, or any past Centrelink contact), find it on an old Centrelink letter, a Medicare card if combined, or by calling 132 300.
If you do not have one, visit a Services Australia service centre with 100 points of identity documents (driver's licence, passport, Medicare card, birth certificate, bank statement). They issue a CRN on the spot. Or use the "Prove your identity online" tool within myGov that can issue a CRN without visiting an office.

Step 3: Link Centrelink To myGov

Sign into my.gov.au.
Click "Services" → "Link another service" → Centrelink.
Choose "I have a Customer Reference Number."
Enter your CRN and answer two identifying questions (e.g., payment amount on a recent letter, or a recent Centrelink contact detail).

If the system cannot verify you online, it offers a link code by phone — call 132 300 and Centrelink issues a one-time code you type in to complete the link.

Once Centrelink is linked, you will see a Centrelink tile on your myGov dashboard.

Step 4: Start Your Age Pension Claim

You can claim the Age Pension from 13 weeks before you turn 67.

In myGov, click the Centrelink tile.
Go to Payments and claims → Make a claim.
Select Age Pension from the list.
Answer the pre-claim questions (residency, age, relationship status, income, assets).
The system generates a claim file with a reference number — write it down.

The online claim has multiple sections: personal details, relationship history, employment history, residency, income, assets, accommodation, nominees. Budget 90 minutes to two hours if you have never done it before. You can save and resume.

Step 5: Upload Supporting Documents

Centrelink will list documents it needs — common ones:

Photo ID (passport, driver's licence)
Birth certificate or citizenship certificate (residency proof)
Recent bank statements (all accounts, all joint accounts)
Superannuation balance statements
Share holdings or managed funds statements
Property valuations (if you own investment property)
Partner's details and income (if partnered, even if they do not claim)

To upload:

From the Centrelink tile, click Documents and statements → Upload documents.
Scan or photograph each document — PDFs or images up to 5 MB each.
Label clearly (e.g., "Drivers Licence.pdf").

Upload everything even if it seems excessive. A missing document is the most common reason claims stall.

Step 6: Track Your Claim

From the Centrelink tile, Payments and claims → Claim history shows the claim status:

"In progress" — being assessed
"Further information required" — check what Centrelink is asking for; respond quickly
"Completed — granted" — you are approved
"Completed — rejected" — you can request a review within 13 weeks

Typical processing time in 2026 is 4–12 weeks, sometimes faster. Centrelink backdates payments to the day you lodged the claim (or the day you reached 67, whichever is later), so a delay does not lose you money.

Set Up Payment

Once granted, Centrelink pays into a nominated bank account fortnightly. In myGov → Centrelink → My details → Payment destination, confirm the correct BSB and account number.

Applies from the same fortnight you are assessed as eligible.

Pensioner Concession Card

When your Age Pension is granted, you automatically get a Pensioner Concession Card (PCC). It comes by post within a couple of weeks. It discounts:

Medicines on the PBS (Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme) — around $8.50 or less per prescription as of 2026
Public transport (concession fares in every state and territory)
Some local council services (rates, water)
Energy companies (state-run rebate schemes vary)
GP bulk-billing is more commonly offered to PCC holders

Show the PCC at every eligible transaction — pharmacies, train stations, utility providers.

Common Mistakes

Based on the messages I get from Australian readers:

Forgetting to declare a partner's income. Couple assessment is mandatory even if the partner does not claim. Undeclared partner income is a fraud-review trigger.
Missing the 13-week pre-claim window. You can lodge the claim up to 13 weeks before turning 67 — no reason to wait until the exact birthday.
Not uploading joint bank statements. Must show all accounts in your name and joint accounts.
Leaving the "Pension Bonus Scheme" question blank. The scheme closed to new entrants in 2014 — answer "No" unless you were registered before then.

Watch For Age Pension Scams

In 2026 the scam patterns targeting Australian pensioners are mature:

SMS "MyGov" or "Centrelink" messages with links to sign in. myGov does not text claim-action links. See our guide on how to spot scam emails (same patterns apply to SMS).
Phone calls claiming to be "Services Australia" demanding payment or threatening cancellation of your pension. Hang up and call 132 300 directly.
Fake "tax refund" scams impersonating the ATO. Genuine ATO contact never demands immediate payment via gift cards or cryptocurrency.
Doorstep "energy rebate" callers asking for your CRN. Energy rebates are claimed through your energy retailer or state portal — never by someone at your door.

Report scams to Scamwatch at scamwatch.gov.au and to Services Australia's scam reporting line if it impersonated Centrelink.

Final Word

The Age Pension is a right, not a favour. If you are eligible, the only sensible thing to do is claim it. The myGov setup is the hardest part — once you are through it, the ongoing relationship with Centrelink is mostly just checking a monthly statement. Give yourself an afternoon, have your documents together, and work through it one section at a time. Always verify current rates and rules at servicesaustralia.gov.au/age-pension before acting.