The personal income test
The personal income test looks at your gross income — what you earn before tax and other deductions. Child support payments do not count as personal income for this test. Services Australia checks your income when you claim and again each fortnight when you report, so a good week at work and a quiet week can produce different payments.
The free area and the two taper steps
You can earn up to $539 per fortnight without any reduction to your Austudy. Above that, the reduction comes in two steps. Between $539 and $646 per fortnight, your payment falls by 50 cents for every dollar over $539. Above $646, it falls by the $53.50 already lost in the first band plus 60 cents for every dollar over $646. The table below, published by Services Australia, shows where the payment reaches zero.
| Your situation | Reduction $539–$646 | Reduction above $646 | Income where payment reaches $0 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single or in a couple, no children | 50 cents per dollar over $539 | $53.50 plus 60 cents per dollar over $646 | $1,697.17 |
| Member of a couple with children | 50 cents per dollar over $539 | $53.50 plus 60 cents per dollar over $646 | $1,791.67 |
| Single with children | 50 cents per dollar over $539 | $53.50 plus 60 cents per dollar over $646 | $1,995.84 |
A worked example
Take a single student with no children earning $600 per fortnight. That is $61 over the $539 free area, so the reduction is 50 cents times $61, or $30.50 per fortnight, leaving $646.70 of the $677.20 basic rate before any other test. Now take the same student earning $800 per fortnight: the reduction is $53.50 plus 60 cents times $154 (the amount over $646), which is $53.50 plus $92.40, or $145.90, leaving $531.30. The taper is deliberately gentle at first so that part-time work still pays, but it steepens once earnings pass $646.
The Income Bank
The Income Bank is the feature that makes uneven work manageable. In fortnights when you earn less than $539, you bank credits. In fortnights when you earn more, you spend those credits before your payment starts to fall. This matters enormously for students whose hours bunch around holidays or quiet study periods: without the Income Bank, a single busy fortnight could cost you payment you would otherwise keep. Check your Income Bank balance in your Centrelink online account before you turn down extra shifts — you may have credits to spare.
If you have been on another payment
If you have been receiving a non-student income support payment for at least 26 of the last 39 weeks, have no dependent child, and started a course of at least 12 months or an Australian Apprenticeship after turning 22, your cut-out point is higher: $1,904.00 per fortnight for a single person with no children, and $1,791.67 for a member of a couple with no children, on the same taper steps. If your payment falls to $0 because of your income for 12 fortnights in a row, it will be cancelled, and you will need to reapply if your income later drops.
Sources: Services Australia, Austudy pages (income tests for Austudy; assets test for allowances); Department of Social Services, Guide to Social Policy Law (Austudy current rates, last reviewed 2 January 2026).