Are you thinking of giving or lending money to adult children (or other family members) who are in financial hardship?

Parents are often called on to help during times of crisis. Now, with a growing number of people experiencing financial hardship as a result of the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19), there’s an increased chance that parental assistance might extend to financial support.

“Money can be a very emotional thing, particularly when you get family involved,” John Dani, a financial adviser with AMP, explains. “The reality is, we all want to help our kids and our first instinct is to provide assistance if they’re in need. We just need to do so prudently.”

If you're considering giving or lending money during the COVID-19 crisis, here are some things to think about.


Exceeding gift limits to children may affect your Age Pension

The current Age Pension rules allow you to gift up to $10,000 per financial year, to a total of $30,000 over a rolling five-year period1. For instance, you may choose to take a lump sum from your retirement savings to do this.

If you give away amounts above these limits, the excess will still be counted as an asset of yours, and subject to deeming under the income test for 5 years, so you may not receive the increase in Age Pension that you might otherwise expect.

“This means you can’t give away $100,000 and then suddenly go on the full Age Pension,” Dani explains. “The limits allow people to be generous, but at the same time not artificially qualify for a higher Age Pension as a result of giving all their money away.”

Explore financial hardship assistance before giving

COVID-19 hasn’t altered any of the current rules regarding giving, but it has opened up more options for people in financial hardship, which may prevent the need for assistance in the first place, Dani notes.

“Your children [now] have access to a lot of avenues for financial assistance before they need to draw upon the bank of Mum and Dad,” Dani points out. “Have they applied for the JobSeeker payment?

Your children may also be able to access money from their superannuation2. They need to do this with care, but it’s another avenue that your children may have available.”

There's also more affordable access to education3 for upskilling and additional measures for rental relief. Dani suggests exploring these options if your children are experiencing financial difficulties before you turn to giving.

Setting boundaries if you do help out

If you're thinking about giving money you should be prepared to communicate clearly. “You want to make sure that everyone is really, really clear: the money that I’m providing to you, is it a loan or is it a gift?” Dani says. “Communication and clarity are absolutely vital. If it’s a loan, set clear expectations about how and when it will be paid back.”

Dani advises that if you don’t have a formal legal contract, it's important to retain emails or text messages that state your intentions, including the payment arrangement.

It’s also important to note, if it's a loan, Centrelink will treat it differently to a gift. While the gifting limits discussed above will not apply, the outstanding balance of a loan will be counted as an asset. Further, the outstanding balance will be treated as a financial investment and subject to the Centrelink deeming under the income test until it is repaid.

Keeping things fair

“If you have more than one child and you’re only providing financial assistance to one of them, you may want to give some thought to how you’re going to respond to another child saying, ‘You helped Jenny, can you help me?’”

Dani suggests thinking about whether each of your children needs help. Or if you could prepare an explanation as to why you’re only extending financial generosity to one family member.

Additional considerations

When making a decision about gifting or loaning money, it is important to bear in mind:

  • That you'll be foregoing the opportunity to earn any income or potential growth from the amounts you'll loan or give away
  • That there may be implications to your estate planning to consider
  • Any potential tax implications or costs you may incur if you need to sell assets to raise the gift or loan amount.

Ask an expert

Before making any decisions, it may help to speak to an expert  - you can contact us on 131 267 or use our find an adviser search function.

If you want to understand more about the impact of COVID-19 on your finances and the investment markets visit our dedicated COVID-19 help hub. You could also register for one of the webinars AMP is running to keep you up to date.



1
Services Australia, How much can you gift
2Australian Taxation Office, COVID-19 early release of super
3Department of Education, Skills and Employment, Higher Education Relief Package

More COVID-19 insights

What you need to know

This information is provided by AMP Life Limited ABN 84 079 300 379 (AMP Life). It is general information only and hasn’t taken your circumstances into account. It’s important to consider your particular circumstances and the relevant Product Disclosure Statement or Terms and Conditions, available by calling 13 30 30, before deciding what’s right for you. Read our Financial Services Guide for information about our services, including the fees and other benefits that AMP companies and their representatives may receive in relation to products and services provided to you.

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