Paying for a funeral

After organising the details of the funeral, you will have a few different options on how to pay for it.

If the deceased had a prepaid funeral, this may cover most or all of the costs of the funeral. These can be arranged with many funeral providers months or even years in advance.

Alternatively there are a number of allowances that may be available to help pay for the funeral cost.

Allowances

Centrelink offers a variety of bereavement payments for Australian residents:

Married Pensioners: If your spouse dies, you may be eligible to receive a further 14 weeks of their pension. This would normally be paid in a lump sum.

Single Pensioners: The estate will receive one full pension payment after the person's death.

Carers Pension: If you were caring for someone who dies, you may be entitled to a further 14 weeks of pension following their death. This will be paid in fortnightly repayments. If the deceased was single/widowed/divorced, there may be an additional lump sum payment.

Sole Parent Pension: If a child dies, the parent may be entitled to a further 14 weeks following death and this will be paid in a lump sum.

Surviving Spouse - Bereavement Allowance Pension: If your spouse dies, and you do not have sufficient means to support yourself then the bereavement allowance is available for 14 weeks of payments.

Widows Allowance: If the surviving wife has no recent workforce experience and she is over 60, she may be entitled to regular payments.

You may also be eligible for allowances payable through the following institutions:

• Department of Veterans Affairs
• Insurance companies
• Some private health funds
• Unions

Please Note: Entitlements can change without notice and we recommend you contact your nearest Centerlink Office for further information on 13 23 00.