Latest news with #LeaŠimić
Daily Mail
06-08-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
The little-known Centrelink hack that allows some Aussies to get free flights
A university student has lifted the lid on a little-known Centrelink hack to help those studying away from home. Lea Šimić, 20, left her family in Sydney to study at the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts in Perth three years ago. Although she was determined to go to the world-renowned school, which boasts alumni like Hugh Jackman, she was worried about being separated from her family and the high cost of flights across the country. However, she couldn't pass up the opportunity to study at WAAPA—especially as it offered a directing component to undergraduate students, a rarity. Fortunately, last year she discovered Centrelink Fares Allowance. As Ms Šimić receives a Centrelink allowance, she can claim the cost of flying to Perth at the start of the academic year, back to Sydney at the end, and a return flight in between. The allowance is available to those who receive Youth Allowance, Austudy, or the Pensioner Education Supplement for more than three months a year. 'To have the option to see your family and a reminder of why you're doing these programs, I think it's really beneficial,' Ms Šimić told Yahoo. Those who receive eligible Centrelink payments less than three months a year can only claim two flights, one to their place of study and one home. Ms Šimić recently used the Fare Allowance to claim back a $600 flight from Sydney to Perth. While she tries her best to book flights in advance, she said one-way fares across the country can cost more than $1,000. Services Australia will also reimburse the cost of standard luggage fees, in addition to 'the least expensive and most available' transport. That includes people taking public transport back to their university. It could apply to claiming the cost of a train trip from your home to the airport on top of the airfare. It could also be used to reimburse the cost of taking a train from Sydney to Bathurst, a nearly four-hour trip. Ms Šimić is glad she accepted her position at WAAPA as it opened 'so many avenues and opportunities' and is still able to regularly see her family. 'Being able to come back and forth was really vital for me, because I have a very close connection to my family, and they're part of the reason why I want to create a very specific art,' she said. 'Centrelink has definitely helped me out in that regard.'
Yahoo
05-08-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Little-known Centrelink perk offers these Aussies free flights: ‘I claimed $600'
A university student in Western Australia has lifted the lid on how she scored free flights back home to see her family on the other side of the country through Centrelink. Crossing back and forth across the country to balance your education and connection with loved ones can come at a significant cost. Lea Šimić was worried about applying to the Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts (WAAPA) because it was going to be so far away from her home in Sydney. But the 20-year-old told Yahoo Finance she discovered a way to drastically reduce those costs. "I found out about it last year through a mate at uni who was also trying to claim flights back to Melbourne... we were just looking at ways to be able to go see our family while we were studying here in WA," she said. RELATED Centrelink update on little-known support for Aussies in crisis ATO warns workers after tax return estimate promises $3,442 refund Commonwealth Bank reveals LMI home loan changes for borrowers WAAPA is an internationally recognised institution that has had the likes of Hugh Jackman, Frances O'Connor, Marcus Graham, Lisa McCune, Lucy Durack, Eddie Perfect, and Tim Minchin attend as students. Šimić said one of the big drawcards for her to apply was that it offered a directing component, which she said was very rare for an undergraduate course in Australia. "I was very interested in that," she said. "And now that I've been in this course for three years, so many avenues and opportunities in the actual arts industry are shaping out." Because the 20-year-old was on a Centrelink payment, she was able to tap into the Fares is Centrelink's Fare Allowance? This is available for those on Youth Allowance, Austudy or the Pensioner Education Supplement and it permits you to get a refund on your flights if you study away from home. "It's a really great program that I think should be extended to more people," Šimić said. "To have the option to see your family and a reminder of why you're doing these programs, I think it's really beneficial." She recently took advantage of this offer and was able to claim back a $600 flight from Sydney to Perth. The performing arts student said she usually tries to have her flights booked far in advance to keep costs low, but flying across the country can cost upwards of $1,000 one way. How does the Fare Allowance work? If you're on Youth Allowance, Austudy or the Pensioner Education Supplement as a tertiary student for three months or more a year, then you'll get up to four flights to claim each year: One flight from home to your place of study at the start of the study year One flight back home at the end of the study year A return trip between your place of study and your home during the study year If you're on those Centrelink payments for less than three months a year, you are only eligible for the first two flights. If you study online or by distance and have to travel for tertiary study, you can get one return trip between your permanent home and your place of study for each course per year. Services Australia will reimburse you for your flight, along with the cost of standard baggage fees. But this isn't just confined to flights. You can use the Fare Allowance to pay for "the least expensive and most available" mode of public transport like ferries, coaches, trains, and buses. If you caught a bus or train to the airport and then flew from Perth to Sydney, you could claim the flight and the public transport. Or if you needed a train from Queensland to Mt Isa, you can use it for that too. "Where it's not practical to use public transport, you can travel by private transport, though you need to explain why public transport couldn't be used when you claim," a Services Australia spokesperson told Yahoo Finance. Centrelink cash boost a 'game changer' There's no denying that some university students struggle to make ends meet, especially if they're studying away from home. Students can fork out a significant part of their cashflow on rent while trying squeeze in a part-time job that keeps food on the table. That's all while attending lectures, tutorials and trying to finish off assessments. This is why Šimić believes the Fare Allowance is such a "game changer" as it eliminates the financial burden she would have shouldered qover her three-year course. "I was very fortunate that I got into this course straight out of uni," she told Yahoo Finance. "A lot of people usually do another degree to get in. I was fresh 18. "But being able to come back and forth was really vital for me, because I have a very close connection to my family, and they're part of the reason why I want to create a very specific art. "Centrelink has definitely helped me out in that regard."Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data
