What is the DVA Service Pension?
The DVA Service Pension provides a regular income to veterans and their partners. It is an income support payment, so your income and assets affect how much you can receive.
DVA recognise that the impacts of service can reduce the length of time you are able to keep working. For that reason, you can get the Service Pension earlier than the Social Security Age Pension.
Who can receive it?
To qualify for a Service Pension as a veteran, you need to:
- meet residency requirements
- have qualifying service.
You must also be either:
- at least 60 years of age (Service Pension Age)
- permanently incapacitated for work (Service Pension Invalidity)
You may be eligible but still not receive a payment if your income or assets are above certain limits.
If you are partnered, your partner may also qualify for a Service Pension Partner.
What is qualifying service?
Qualifying service usually means you have been in danger from hostile enemy forces. There are specific types of service that qualify.
You may qualify as an Australian, Commonwealth or allied veteran or mariner. There are extra residency requirements for Commonwealth and allied veterans and mariners.
Who can receive the Service Pension Invalidity?
You may be eligible for Service Pension Invalidity if you are a veteran with qualifying service, and you are permanently incapacitated for work.
There is no need for your service to have caused your permanent incapacity. You do not need to have reached a certain age.
DVA will automatically consider you permanently incapacitated for work if one of the following applies:
- you are permanently blind in both eyes
- you receive or are eligible for a Disability Compensation Payment at the special rate (TPI)
- you receive or are eligible for a Special Rate Disability Pension (SRDP).
If none of these apply, DVA need to assess whether you are permanently incapacitated for work.
DVA consider you to be permanently incapacitated if you have a significant physical, intellectual or psychiatric impairment that meets all of the following:
- has been rated at 40 or more impairment points using the Guide to the Assessment of Rates of Veterans’ Pensions (GARP)
- is permanent
- prevents you from working more than 8 hours a week.
DVA will let you know if they need you to attend a medical examination to help DVA assess your claim.
If you have already turned 60, you can still apply for Service Pension Invalidity. The Service Pension Age is taxable, but the Service Pension Invalidity is not taxable until you reach Social Security Age Pension age.
How to apply
You can apply for a Service Pension online through MyService. Please note that if submitting a joint claim with your partner, your partner may need to provide additional proof of identity documentation to support their claim if they have not had their identity verified via MyService previously.
How much you can receive
How much you receive will depend on:
- your income and assets
- whether you are single or partnered.
If you are permanently blind, you can receive the maximum rate of Service Pension regardless of your income and assets.
The following tables show the maximum you could receive each fortnight.
If you are single:
| Single rate | Maximum per fortnight |
|---|---|
| Service Pension | $1,079.70 |
| Pension Supplement | $99.00 |
| TOTAL | $1,178.70 |
If you are partnered:
| Couples rate | Maximum per fortnight (each) |
|---|---|
| Service Pension | $813.90 |
| Pension Supplement | $74.60 |
| TOTAL | $888.50 |
These rates are current from 1 January 2026 to 19 March 2026. Payment rates are reviewed every March and September, and adjusted in line with the cost of living.
Depending on your situation, you may also be eligible for:
- rent assistance
- remote area allowance
- pension supplement as included in the rates tables.
If you receive a Service Pension, DVA will send you a Pensioner Concession Card.
Service Pension and the Veteran Gold Card
If you have qualifying service, you will be eligible for a Veteran Gold Card once you turn 70.
You may also be eligible for a Gold Card if you receive a Service Pension and either:
- you have certain impairments
- your income and assets are below certain limits.
What can impact your payment
Your payment rate can change when your circumstances change. Things that are likely to affect your Service Pension include changes to your:
- income and assets, such as buying a new car or giving money away
- relationship status, such as becoming single or partnered
- living arrangements, such as selling your home and moving into a retirement village.
There are many other changes that can affect your payments.
If you stop receiving payments due to an increase in income, which includes employment income, your payments will be suspended for 2 years instead of cancelled. This will make it easier if your income falls below the threshold again. You won’t have to submit a full application to have your payments reinstated.
Income and assets
The amount of Service Pension you can receive depends on your financial circumstances. You may receive:
- the maximum rate, if your income and assets are below certain amounts
- a partial rate, calculated based on your income and assets
- no payment, if your income or assets are above the cut-off limits.
You need to let DVA know about any significant changes so that they can keep paying you correctly.
To work out your payment rate, DVA use an income test and an assets test. The test that results in the lower rate of pension is the one that they apply.
Relationship status
If you are single, DVA assess your income and assets as an individual and pay you the single rate of pension.
If you are partnered, DVA use your combined income and assets as a couple to work out your rate of Service Pension. They do this regardless of whether you actually share your finances. DVA pay you at the couple’s rate.
Becoming partnered
If you are single and become partnered, you need to let DVA know so that they can pay you correctly. DVA need to assess your combined income and assets as a couple and pay you at the couple’s rate. Your partner may be eligible for Service Pension Partner.
Living apart
If you live away from your partner due to illness, DVA may be able to pay you at the single rate. Your partner may also be able to receive Service Pension Partner at the single rate.
Becoming single
If you become single, you need to let DVA know so they can pay you correctly. DVA will need to remove your partner’s income and assets from your assessment and change your pension to the single rate.
You may need to give DVA new bank account details to pay your pension into. If you have authorised your partner to communicate with DVA on your behalf, DVA can update your preferences to remove this authority.
What you need to tell DVA
When you apply for a Service Pension, DVA collect information about your financial and other circumstances to work out how much DVA can pay you.
While you receive a Service Pension, you are obliged to keep DVA updated about any changes to your situation within 14 days. If you live overseas or receive the remote area allowance, you must tell DVA about these changes within 28 days.
Changes DVA need to know about include your:
- financial circumstance
- living arrangements
- relationship status.
If a change results in a higher rate of Service Pension, DVA can only pay the higher rate once the change has occurred and you have told DVA about it.
It is important that you take time to understand your obligations.
The amount of Service Pension you can receive will always depend on your circumstances at the time. If you do not keep DVA informed about changes, they may pay you too much, and you will need to pay the extra amount back.
What happens to payments when someone dies
When someone receiving a Service Pension dies, DVA may pay a bereavement payment to their surviving partner or estate. In some situations, DVA may also help with the cost of a funeral.
If your partner dies while you are receiving a Service Pension, your payments will change to the single rate.
If your partner is receiving a Service Pension Partner payment at the time of your death, they may either:
- continue to receive this if they are not eligible for a War Widow(er)’s Pension
- receive an Income Support Supplement instead of a Service Pension if they are eligible for a War Widow(er)’s Pension.