Centrepay changes on 1 November 2026: what pensioners need to do now

If part of your Age Pension goes out each fortnight through Centrepay to a funeral provider, a state registration authority, a furniture retailer or a club, that deduction stops on 1 November 2026. Services Australia has removed those "service reasons" from Centrepay, and it will not move the payment to another method for you. If you do nothing, the bill still exists and you can fall into arrears.

Most pensioners who use Centrepay for rent, electricity, water or council rates are not affected by the removals. But the reform also tightens how other deductions are set up, and it is a good moment to check every deduction you have. This article covers what stops, what carries on, and what to do before the cut-off. All rules and dates below come from Services Australia's Centrepay pages as at 19 September 2026.

What is Centrepay, and how does it work for an Age Pension recipient?

Centrepay is a voluntary bill-paying service that is free for Centrelink customers. Services Australia takes a fixed amount from your payment on the same day you are paid and sends it to a business you have chosen. You decide when a deduction starts, changes or stops. Your available payment balance is reduced by the deduction, so it is a way of paying, not a change to how your pension is assessed. In our reading, the income and assets tests work exactly as they do for someone who pays the same bills by direct debit.

A few mechanics worth knowing:

• It costs you nothing. Services Australia charges the business $0.99 per transaction, and businesses are not allowed to pass that fee on to you.
• Only approved businesses. You can pay only a business approved for Centrepay. Services Australia has a search tool for finding one near you.
• It comes out last. Centrepay deductions are taken after other amounts, including participation penalties, urgent and advance payment repayments, Income Management amounts and Rent Deduction Scheme amounts.
• Minimum $10 a fortnight. A request won't go through if it is under $10 (or the business's own minimum), if you already have a deduction to the same business for the same service reason, or if there isn't enough money in your payment.
• Timing. A deduction can start from your next payment or up to eight weeks ahead. Tell Services Australia at least five business days before your next payment, or it may not start until the following fortnight.
• Set-up options. myGov, the myGov app, the payment line, a service centre, or by asking the business to set it up with your authority.

What stops on 1 November 2026?

Services Australia lists these service reasons as removed from Centrepay:

• Funeral expenses: funeral plans, funeral bonds, prepaid funerals and actual funeral costs
• Motor vehicle registration (including compulsory third party insurance)
• Basic household items: clothing, footwear, furniture and appliances
• Household goods lease and rental: regulated leases of whitegoods, electrical items or furniture
• Employment expenses: tools of trade, uniforms, training, protective clothing
• Social and recreational commitments: sporting and musical activities and equipment, church donations, sponsorships
• Savings deposits to microfinance savings plans

No new deductions can be set up for these. Existing deductions can continue only until 1 November 2026. Services Australia's wording is that you need to speak to the business and arrange another way to pay by that date, or you may be at risk of arrears.

Why funeral plans and car registration need the most care

For most retirees these are the two removals that matter, and the risk is the same in both: the obligation carries on after the deduction ends.

Funeral plans and bonds. Only the payment method is changing. Your plan or bond contract with the provider is not cancelled by Centrepay ending. But if instalments simply stop arriving, what happens next depends on the provider's terms. Contact the provider well before 1 November and ask how to move to direct debit or another payment method, and whether your existing balance and terms are unaffected. For how the different products compare, see funeral plan vs funeral bond vs prepaid funeral and funeral bonds and prepaid expenses.

Vehicle registration. Registration is set by your state or territory authority, so the alternatives depend on where you live. Ask the authority how it accepts instalments or advance payments, and put the renewal date in your diary. A lapsed registration is a bigger problem than a missed instalment.

What still works, and what now needs an end date or target amount

Centrepay is not going away. Services Australia says you can continue to use it for approved businesses including:

• Accommodation: rent, bond and arrears (including private rent, board, and caravan park fees)
• Utilities: electricity, gas, water and council rates
• Health: medical expenses, pharmacy, ambulance travel and veterinary bills
• Finance and insurance: approved loans, infringement notices and court fines, and home, contents or car insurance
• Education: school fees, child-care fees

The reform also added conditions to some categories so that deductions cannot run on indefinitely without review. Deductions set up before 3 November 2025 were required to have an end date or target amount added by 4 May 2026, and every new deduction must have one from the start. The ones most relevant to older Australians:

A target amount is the total you will pay; when it is reached the deduction stops. An end date cannot be more than 12 months away. Any deduction with neither will keep paying until you cancel it, and if you want to keep paying a business after a target is reached, you need to set up a new deduction.

If you use Centrepay for a home care provider or meals on wheels, note the six-month limit: the deduction will stop on its end date, so diarise a renewal. See home care packages for how home care fees are structured.

What happens if your payment changes?

Deductions are fixed dollar amounts that you choose, so they do not adjust themselves when your income or your bills change.

• If your payment is reduced, Services Australia keeps paying your deductions unless you change them, which can use up all your payment. If your payment does not cover them, it makes a part payment where possible.
• If your payment is suspended for more than 14 days, deductions are not paid during the suspension and you may need to arrange another way to pay each business.
• If your payment is cancelled for more than 14 days, your Centrepay deductions are cancelled and you must contact each business.
• If you move to another Centrelink payment, there can be a gap between the old payment ending and the new one starting. Tell Services Australia you want to keep your deductions. This is worth knowing for someone moving from a working-age payment to the pension; see JobSeeker for older Australians before pension age.

You can also make a temporary change of up to 13 weeks to an amount, or suspend a deduction for up to 13 weeks, after which it starts again. If you have paid a business too much, you can reduce the ongoing amount or ask the business for a refund.

Your checklist before 1 November 2026

1. List every deduction you have. Sign in to myGov and open your Centrepay deduction summary, or call the payment line.
2. Identify the service reason for each. Any funeral, registration, household goods, employment, social or savings deduction stops on 1 November.
3. Contact each affected business now, not in late October, and set up a replacement payment method.
4. Check the deductions that continue. Do they have the end date or target amount now required? Is the amount still right?
5. Check what is left. With the deductions gone from the payment, more of your payment will reach your bank account on 1 November, and you will be responsible for paying those bills on time yourself. Budget for it.
6. If someone helps with your money, make sure it is you, or a properly appointed nominee, who makes the changes. See Centrelink nominee arrangements and, if you are worried about someone else controlling your deductions, financial abuse of older Australians.

If you would like free help thinking through a budget, Services Australia's Financial Information Service officers can walk through options at no cost.

Common mistakes

• Assuming Services Australia will contact the business for you. It will not. The deduction simply ends.
• Cancelling a funeral plan when the deduction ends. The deduction stopping does not end the contract, but cancelling it may.
• Forgetting six-month end dates on home care deductions, then finding the service unpaid.
• Setting a target amount too low or too high. A target should reflect what you owe or expect to spend.
• Not checking the business is approved for Centrepay before relying on it.

Sources

• Services Australia — Centrepay is changing
• Services Australia — Centrepay goods and services
• Services Australia — Set up Centrepay deductions
• Services Australia — What Centrepay is
• Services Australia — Changes to your Centrelink payments can affect your Centrepay deductions
• Services Australia — Centrepay reform