This document presents a summary of insights from the 30 June 2022 actuarial valuation of the Australian income support and social security system. The actuarial valuation is part of the Australian Priority Investment Approach to Welfare (the Approach), implemented by the Australian Department of Social Services.

The Approach uses actuarial analysis to support a better understanding of how Australians use the social security system, both at the population level and for various groups within the population. This is the fourth such annual valuation carried out with the assistance of the office of the Australian Government Actuary. The report marks a change from the previous valuation reports, with a greater focus on presenting an overview of insights at different life stages. The overview of each life stage is necessarily brief for the purposes of this report, but gives an indication of the sorts of insights that are possible when applying an actuarial modelling approach to social security data and experience.

Report highlights:

• 1 in 6 Australians who are not currently receiving social security (or 11 per cent of the population) are expected to start receiving payments over the next five years.
• All Australians, including those who have not yet accessed the social security system, are expected to access social security, on average, for 18.3 years of their future lifetime. The expected average total time on payment for a new recipient varies significantly between payment types.