A pension or allowance may be portable if the person was receiving a payment immediately before they left Australia, or if the payment is granted after they have left Australia. The period a payment may be paid overseas will depend on whether the particular payment has unlimited portability or limited portability, and whether an International Agreement (see above) applies.

Unlimited portability applies to Age Pension, certain terminally ill Disability Support Pensioners, Bereavement Allowance, and certain recipients of Wife Pension and Widow B Pension. (Note that the Wife Pension and Widow B Pension are being phased out.) After 26 weeks the rate of payment of these pensions may be affected by the period of the person's working life residence. "Working life residence" is the person's period of Australian residence occurring between the age of 16 and age pension age. If a person has spent 25 years or more in Australia they are entitled to the maximum rate of pension.

Limited portability of up to 13 weeks applies to Disability Support Pension, Carer Payment, Widow Allowance, Parenting Payment, Youth Allowance (full-time student), Austudy, Partner Allowance and Carer Allowance for a temporary absence. A person is temporarily absent from Australia if they remain an Australian resident while absent. Carer Payment recipientstravelling without the caree are restricted to payment for 63 days of respite in a calendar year.

Limited portability also applies to Youth Allowance (not undertaking full-time study), Newstart Allowance, Sickness Allowance and Special Benefit for a temporary absence from Australia. However, the temporary absence must generally be for one of the following purposes:

Limited portability is up to 13 weeks.

For temporary absences from Australia, ancillary payments (such as Rent Assistance) are payable for the same length of time as the substantive payment or up to 26 weeks, whichever occurs first. The person must also remain qualified for the ancillary payment.

The portability period can be extended only for the following:

No payments are portable if they are based on a short-term residence of two years or less.