The legislative changes kicking in on January 1, 2023

From cash boosts to higher fines here's what's changing on New Year's Day in 2023.

Cash boost for welfare recipients

Around 1 million Australians will benefit from a more than 6 per cent indexation of welfare payments, giving recipients an additional $20 a week from the start of the year.

Youth allowance will increase by between $19.10 and $41.40 a fortnight while people on Austudy will receive between $32.40 and $41.40 more each fortnight.

People on the disability support pension aged under 21 and without children will receive between $27.40 and $40.70 a fortnight.

The rates for ABSTUDY, isolated children assistance, mobility allowance, double orphan pension, carer allowance and pharmaceutical allowance will also increase.

January 1 not only signals the start of the new year, but is also the date set for many government changes and new laws to commence. Picture Getty Images

Cheaper prescription medication

Medications listed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme will be $12.50 cheaper from the new year.

The government legislated a decrease to the maximum general co-payment of medications on the PBS From $42.50 to $30 in October.

It's the first time in the 75-year history of the PBS the maximum cost of prescriptions will fall.

Subsidised psychologist visits halved

The amount of subsidised mental health sessions will decrease, back to the pre-pandemic amount, from a maximum of 20 to 10 sessions per year.

Health minister Mark Butler announced Labor would be cutting back on the number of subsidised sessions, citing an independent review by the University of Melbourne that reported vulnerable people found it difficult to access to mental health services.

The medicare rebate amount was doubled by the Morrison government as COVID-19 lockdowns increased mental health concerns among Australians.

The Labor government has been criticised for halving amount of sessions, including by its own MPs.

Asset test changes for home sellers

People who sell their principal home after January 1 and intend to use the proceeds to purchase a new principal home won't have to include the sale amount in their asset test.

Services Australia states "This applies if you use the funds to buy, build, rebuild, repair or renovate your new principal home" and may help people who want to downsize or move."

The changes apply to income support payments, certain allowances, and Low Income Health Care Card holders.

Higher fines

People breaching federal laws after the new year will have to pay $53 more under laws set to commence from January 1.

The value of a penalty unit, the basis for determining how much an offence is worth, will rise from $222 to $275.

The increase is expected to raise $31.6 million for the budget bottom line over the next four years.

More Aussies can top-up super with home sale

From 1 January, the eligibility age for people to make contributions into their super from downsizing will be expanded to 55-year-old and older.

Previously people needed to be 60 or older to be eligible for the scheme, which allows people to contribute $300,000 to their superannuation account from the proceeds of the sale of a home.

A couple aged 55 and above can make a total contribution of up to $600,000 from the sale of their home, with each spouse contributing up to $300,000.

All changes kicking in on January 1 2023

180,000 fee-free TAFE and vocational education and training places: Providing immediate support to help equip more Australians for the jobs of the future and to help tackle the skills crisis we inherited.
Cheaper medicines under Medicare; To ease the cost of living, Australians will now pay up to 30 per cent less for prescription medicines on the Pharmaceutical Benefit Scheme, with the maximum co-payment dropping to $30.
$50 million TAFE Technology Fund: Upgrading TAFE facilities and infrastructure.
10,000 New Energy apprentices to receive up to $10,000 in direct support under the New Energy Apprenticeships Program: Helping more apprentices to complete their training and go on to have successful careers, while building a pipeline of skilled workers in sectors essential to Australia's transition to a clean energy economy.
Additional 20,000 Commonwealth supported places at our universities: Places for students from lower socioeconomic families, students from regional Australia, Indigenous Australians, Australians with a disability, and Australians who are the first in their family to ever set foot in a university.
Price caps for Home Care Packages: To reduce excessive administration and management charges, care management prices will be capped at 20 per cent of the package level and package management prices will be capped at 15 per cent of the package level.
Disability Support for Older Australians Program extended: Approximately 2,300 existing clients will benefit from the delivery of consistent, timely, and high quality specialist disability services including support to transition to aged care services where appropriate.
Doubling penalties for foreign investors who break residential property laws: Encouraging investors to do the right thing and to ensure the housing market works as it's supposed to.
Expanding our downsizer super contributions program: Enabling over-55s to boost their retirement savings if they downsize when the kids move out.
Reducing the financial impact on pensioners looking to downsize their principal home: Allowing more time to purchase, build, rebuild, repair or renovate a new principal home, without the worry of significant impacts on pension payments, helping free up larger housing stock for younger families who need it. Thousands of pensioners and other income support recipients (including eligible Veterans) will benefit from a doubling of the asset test exemption to 24 months, and deemed income on the exempt proceeds will be calculated using only the lower deeming rate.
Indexation increases to social security payments: All youth and student payments will increase by 6.1 per cent to help ease the cost of living for around one million young people, students and carers, and Youth Allowance will see the largest increase since the payment began in 1998.
$15.1 million for small business owners across Australia to access free mental health and financial counselling support: Improving the long-term resilience of Australia's small businesses and help them bounce back following significant challenges in recent years.
Source: Office of the Prime Minister

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Centrelink payments, cheaper medication and higher fines: What will change on New Year's Day 2023

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