primary · Department of Social Services
Assistance
Varies by provider — vouchers, part-paid bills, food parcels, not a cash rate
No fixed amount or national schedule — contact the local provider.
Emergency relief · Commonwealth-funded community organisations (Salvation Army, St Vincent de Paul, and others via serviceproviders.dss.gov.au)
Emergency relief and food/practical support
One-off, non-statutory support during acute financial hardship — vouchers, part-payment of utility bills, food parcels or clothing, budgeting assistance, and referral to financial counselling, mental health, or drug/alcohol support. Not a Centrelink payment and not means-tested in the way a statutory payment is.
Varies by provider — vouchers, part-paid bills, food parcels, not a cash rate / varies
Who it is for
Anyone in immediate financial crisis — low or no income, sudden shock such as a high utility bill, illness, or family violence.
Community/charity referral network, not a government payment or insurance product. Sits outside private income protection, TPD, and statutory pension entirely — a bridge for immediate hardship, not an ongoing income replacement.
Conditions
- Nature
- One-off or short-term assistance, not an ongoing entitlement.
- Provider discretion
- Each funded organisation sets its own eligibility and type of help offered — no single national rule.
Primary source first. A disputed or stale figure stays visible. Hover a rand or dollar figure for four other currencies. W weekly · F fortnightly · M monthly · A annually.
Cross-checks
- agrees Income support payments (index) DSS's Income support payments index links to this same emergency relief network for people who need help before/alongside a Centrelink claim.
- agrees Food relief and practical support Food relief and practical support is the companion DSS page — same referral network, food/goods-specific framing.
- agrees Drug Help Drug Help is the AU alcohol/other drugs support directory — same crisis_support family, different need.
How to apply
Contact a provider directly — Salvation Army financial assistance line, St Vincent de Paul emergency relief hotline (13 18 12), or search serviceproviders.dss.gov.au / Ask Izzy for a local service.
Methodology
Amounts and conditions are stored on this payment in Core AU (coreau_ss_*). Verify with the administrator before you rely on a number.