Applying for financial assistance

How do I apply for financial assistance and what do I need to provide?

The best way to apply for financial assistance is through Macquarie Online Banking or our Macquarie Mobile Banking app.

Log in to your Macquarie Mobile Banking app
Tap the Menu icon
Select Help
Choose Financial assistance and follow the prompts.

Alternatively, you may contact us via chat, or call us on 02 8550 5686 between 9am to 5pm (AEST, Sydney time), Monday to Friday.

To help us understand your situation and assess your application for financial assistance, we may require you to provide:

details about your financial position - including your income, expenses and liabilities
additional documentation based on the reason for your application, and
confirmation that you have a plan to resume your repayments once the assistance period ends.

Tips for providing financial information

When providing information on your financial position, please remember to:

include your monthly combined income and expenses (if your spouse or partner contributes to household expenses).
include all monthly income sources after tax, including rental income, overtime, dividends and government benefits.
exclude any loan repayments in general expenses and additional expenses.

Below are examples of general and additional expenses that you should consider when reporting your monthly expenses.

General expenses

Medical and Health – e.g. regular prescriptions, doctor visits, dental, physio, vet bills
Groceries – e.g. meat, fruit, vegetables, toiletries, cleaning products
Clothing and personal care – e.g. footwear, beauty products
Recreation and entertainment – e.g. movies, concerts, shows, eating out, travel
Childcare – e.g. day care and preschool fees, nannies, before and after school care
Telephone, internet, pay tv, media streaming – e.g. mobile and land lines
Transport – e.g. all public transport costs, motor vehicle costs such as petrol, maintenance, registration (excluding any motor vehicle loan repayments)
Higher education, vocational training – excludes HECS
Public primary and secondary education – e.g. school fees and contributions
General insurance – includes home, contents, car.
Primary residence costs (includes owner occupied strata fees)

Additional expenses

Personal insurance – includes health, life, personal accident
Private education
Secondary residence and holiday home costs – e.g. water and council rates, body corporate, electricity, ongoing maintenance costs
Other regular expenses.

Additional documentation required

Depending on your main reason for financial difficulty, you may be asked to provide additional documentation to support your financial assistance application.

We'll confrim exactly what you need to provide when you apply. Below are some examples of what might be required.

Main reason for financial difficulty	Supporting document required (no more than 60 day old)
Reduced income, increased cost of living or overcommitted	For PAYG income: 2x computer generated pay slips, OR Letter from your employer explaining the reduction in income, OR Most recent financial year’s ‘Tax Ready’ ATO Income statement, OR Centrelink Income statement, OR Evidence of Centrelink entitlement. For Self-employed income: Year-to-date Business Activity Statements (BAS), OR Year-to-date management accounts including your Profit and Loss.
Unemployment	Separation certificate, OR Letter of termination from your employer, OR Evidence of Centrelink entitlements.
Serious illness or injury	Letter from your doctor or specialist outlining your illness and recovery time, AND If injured, a letter from your insurer, compensation documents, or work cover documents, AND Evidence of Centrelink entitlements (Centrelink Income Statement).
Loss of a family member	We'll contact you if any supporting documents are required.
Relationship breakdown	Family law court documents, AND Letter from your solicitor.
Assistance required while you sell your property	If sold, front page of contract of sale and any special conditions If not sold, copy of agency agreement and marketing campaign.
Unexpected expenses	Satisfactory evidence of your unexpected expenses or liability.
Other reasons	We'll contact you if any supporting documents are required.

What if I have a joint account and I apply for financial assistance?

If you have a joint account and are experiencing financial difficulty, we are here to help you. If you ask us, we can do so without involving the other joint account holders initially. See Domestic Violence and Financial Abuse Support if you're experiencing domestic violence or financial abuse.

Once a financial assistance arrangement is approved, please be aware that all borrowers and guarantors to the loan will be notified.

What happens if my application is approved?

If your application for financial assistance is approved, here’s what you can expect:

Confirmation: We’ll send you a confirmation letter with the details of your assistance arrangement, including start and end dates.
Direct debits: We’ll automatically update your existing direct debit arrangements for your home loan to reflect the agreed repayment amount during the financial assistance period. Any existing direct debit arrangement for any:
- applicable fees will be paused during the financial assistance period
- additional repayment amounts will be cancelled.
After your financial assistance period ends: We’ll notify you of any changes to your ongoing repayments. We’ll automatically reactivate your new minimum monthly payments via direct debit. In preparation, you should ensure there are sufficient funds in your bank account. If you don’t have a direct debit set up, you’ll need to adjust your regular payment method.

For more information see Understanding the impact of financial assistance.

What happens if my application is declined or if I’m not happy with the decision?

When assessing your application for financial assistance, we take into consideration your financial position and your ability to resume your contractual repayments at the end of the assistance period.

This may result in us declining your application where we decide that it's not in your best interests to enter into a financial assistance arrangement. In these cases we may recommend alternative options like repayment support while you sell your property, speaking with a financial counsellor or other external support services.

If you're not satisfied with our handling of your matter, you can get in touch with our Client Care team at Macquarie feedback and complaints or with the independent Australian Financial Complaints Authority.

What should I do if my circumstances change during the assistance period?

If your circumstances have changed, please contact us as soon as possible to discuss alternative arrangements. We may be able to withdraw or review your existing arrangement based on your new needs. Please be aware that any changes to your existing arrangements may be subject to re-assessment.

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