Before You Help Your Kids With Money

Helping your children with money is one of the most natural things in the world, and one of the easiest to get expensively wrong. Centrelink's gifting rules let you give away only $10,000 a year, and no more than $30,000 over five years, before the excess is still counted as your asset for five years — deeming income and all.

Then there's the trap most families never see: a gift to a child can end up split with their ex in a divorce, while a properly documented loan doesn't. Going guarantor can put your own home at risk. And granny-flat arrangements have their own reasonableness test and a five-year shadow.

This guide is about helping your family in the ways that hold up — to Centrelink, to the ATO, and to a family-law court.

— Steve

What's inside the guide

The gifting limits — $10,000 a year, $30,000 over five years — and the five-year deprivation rule
Why a documented loan survives a child's divorce when a gift may not
Going guarantor — the risk to your own home, and how to limit it
Granny-flat arrangements — the reasonableness test and the five-year trap
Keeping help from quietly cutting your own Age Pension

Each section is short, with worked examples in real dollars, the exact figure for this year, and the conversation to have next — and who to have it with.

Who this guide is for

This guide is for you if:

You're planning to help adult children with a deposit, a loan, or a guarantee
You're considering a granny-flat arrangement
You want to help without losing pension or control of the money

This guide isn't for you if:

You have no intention of giving or lending to family
Your estate plan already covers all of this with a solicitor

Who Steve is

Stephen Caldicott is the retired Australian accountant who presents this series. Nearly forty years in private practice on Sydney's North Shore — tax, super, the Age Pension, Centrelink, CGT, and ATO matters. He retired in 2022.

Steve is a character: the figures and procedures are real and verified against the ATO and Services Australia; the face and voice are not. He is not a registered tax agent or a licensed financial adviser, and this guide is general educational information, not personal advice.

Before you check out — one thing worth knowing

This guide is one of six in the complete set — Everything Steve Knows. The set covers the rest: the Age Pension, the family home, widowhood, helping your kids, the super death tax, and the handover file your family will need when you're gone.

Bought individually, the four sold-separately guides come to $1,096. The two set-only guides bring the full value to $1,694. The complete set is $497.

Most people reading this guide will recognise at least three of the six worries. At three, the set is the better buy.

Get this guide — $299 Get the complete set — $497

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Common questions

How is the guide delivered?

A PDF emailed to you within a few minutes of checkout, through our checkout provider, Paddle. Read it on any device, or print it.

Is it current for 2026–27?

Yes. Every figure is verified against the ATO and Services Australia for the 2026–27 financial year, with the version date on the front of the PDF. Figures change — the Age Pension is indexed twice a year, and many thresholds change on 1 July.

Is this regulated financial advice?

No. Steve is not a registered tax agent or a licensed financial adviser. It's general educational information, written from a practitioner's perspective, that points you to the right professional for your own decisions.

What's the refund policy?

30 days, no questions asked — on top of your rights under the Australian Consumer Law. Email the refund address in the PDF and you'll get your $299 back.