$780 Centrelink boost for those who make this morbid move

While it might seem grim to think about, pensioners who pay for their funeral in advance could get some financial relief now.

Video transcript

Aussies who make this morbid move could boost their centrelink payments by $780.

While it might seem grim to think about, pensioners who pay for their funeral in advance could get some financial relief.

Now prepaid funerals have become more popular because they allow you to lock in prices and give you peace of mind that costs will be covered.

Funeral prices have skyrocketed recently, with Australian seniors finding basic burial costs up to $18,652 and a basic cremation can cost up to $5953.

Funeral costs you pay for in advance are exempt from the aged pensions assets Test financial advisor Alex Jamieson told Yahoo Finance.

Centrelink for the age pension says Look, we won't assess those as being assets anymore.

So hypothetically, if one pays $10,000 as the prepaid funeral cost, that would reduce their accessible assets.

If you're affected by the asset test, which includes most pensioners who aren't working, each $1000 you spend on your funeral could increase your pension by $78 a year.

So if you spent $10,000 on a prepaid funeral, it could increase your pension by $780 a year or $30 a fortnight.