一步一个脚印

Briefing

Mr Gu, a Mandarin-speaking man, has applied for an Age Pension at Centrelink. He has come in to a local branch to speak to a Centrelink Officer and to ask a few questions.

Listen to Dialogue

Mandarin-English Dialogue #27 – Age Pension Application

Transcript and reference translation

Centrelink Officer: OK, Mr Gu, now that we’ve got your CRN and I can see your details on the screen here we can get started.From what I can see, ah, you applied for an age pension last Thursday, is that correct? According to my records your application is currently being processed…? [好的，顾先生。我已经拿到了你的用户编号。我在屏幕上看到你的信息了，那么我们就可以开始了。 从我看到的信息上看，你上周四申请了养老金，对吗？根据我的记录显示，你的申请表还在审理过程中？]

Mr Gu: 啊？这么快呀？我还有很多问题要问呢。上个星期我来这的时候，翻译员翻得不是很好，我还不大清楚是怎么回事。[Ah? So quick? I still have a lot of questions I want to ask. When I came here last week the interpreter didn’t do a very good job and I didn’t really understand what was going on.]

Centrelink Officer: Well, I’m sorry that you didn’t have a very good experience last time, Mr Gu, but I’ll try my best to answer all your questions today. [顾先生，对于你上次的不太愉快的经历我表示抱歉，但是今天我会尽所能回答你所有问题的。]

Mr Gu: 那就好。上次我问了很多问题，但是都被你们的工作人员回避了。真是不人性化。我要问的第一件事儿是，非常简单，如果我申请成功的话，究竟能拿多少钱呢？我穷得都快揭不开锅啦。[That’s good. Last time I asked a lot of questions but your employees evaded all of them. Not user-friendly at all. The first thing I want to ask – it’s very simple – how much money will I be able to get? I’m so broke at the moment it’s beyond a joke.]

Centrelink Officer: Well since you’re married, the couple rate applies – that’s $524.10 each or $1048.20 combined. However, all applicants for the Age Pension need to go through an income and assets test to determine their fortnightly payment. [既然你已经结婚了，我们会用夫妻费率计算，那就是每人524.10澳元，或者两人共1048.20澳元。但是每一位养老金申请者需要接受收入和财产测评来决定他们的每两周能收到的金额。]

(…)

In your case, since you earn more than $152 a fortnight, there will be a reduction in your payment for every 50 cents for each dollar over. And you’ll be notified of the exact payment after your application is processed. [你现在的情况，由于你每两周可以拿到152澳元，你收到的钱会所减少，每超过的一澳元，都会有50分的减少。并且，在你的申请经过审批之后，你会收到具体支付金额的通知。]

Mr Gu: 那我怎么能拿到这笔钱？我是不是得每两个星期来Centrelink领钱呢？我腿脚不大利索，跑来跑去腿都断啦。[And how do I get this payment? Will I have to come into Centrelink every two weeks to collect the money? I’ve got mobility issues, and running back and forth will hurt my legs.]

Centrelink Officer: The amount is paid directly into your bank account each fortnight. [这笔钱会每两周直接达到你的银行账户上。]

Mr Gu: 那就好。我记得上次你们这的一个员工提到了可以预付款项。我老婆跟我现在在家里边装修呢。我们打算把这笔钱用于人工和材料费。所以我想看看我有没有资格申请。[That’s good. I remember last time one of your employees mentioned something about an advance payment option. My wife and I are currently doing some rennovations at home. We could use the extra money to cover labour and materials. So I would like to see if I’m eligible to apply for it.]

Centrelink Officer: Well this should be no problem but there are a couple of things I need to confirm. So do you currently owe any debt to Centrelink or the Australian government? [这应当没有什么问题，不过有几件事情我需要确认一下。你现在欠Centrelink或者澳洲政府什么钱吗？]

Mr Gu: 没有，当然不可能。我很有远见的，年轻的时候就开始攒钱准备养老，从来没欠过别人一分钱。[No, of course not. I’ve always had foresight. I started saving money to prepare for my retirement at a young age. I’ve never owed a penny to anyone.]

Centrelink Officer: I understand. The reason I asked is because you won’t be able to receive an advance payment if you have outstanding debt. So basically advance payments are available only if reducing your payment won’t result in you suffering financial hardship. [我明白，我问的原因是因为如果你还有未付清的借款，你将不能提前预支这笔钱。所以基本上只有当付款金额的减少不会造成你财政困难的话，提前预支是可以的。]

Mr Gu: 应该不是问题。但我还是有一点比较担心。三个月之后我跟我老伴儿要回中国去参加我们孙女的婚礼。然后我们会去吉隆坡见一个老朋友。我在国外的时候还能够领到养老金吗？[That shouldn’t be a problem. I do have one more concern, though. In three months my wife and I are planning to go back to China to attend our granddaughter’s wedding. Afterwards we’ll be seeing an old friend in Kuala Lumpur. Will I still be able to receive my pension while I’m overseas?]

Centrelink Officer: How long are you planning on staying overseas? If it’s for less than 13 weeks you’ll be able to keep receiving your Age Pension payment. If it’s for more than 13 weeks your payment rate may be affected. [你打算在海外呆多久呢？如果少于13个星期，那你还是可以收到养老金的。但是如果超过13个星期，这可能会影响到付款的金额。]

Mr Gu: 那真是太好啦。我只会离开澳大利亚几个星期而已。嗯，我想我只用等Centrelink的来信告诉我申请是否成功就行啦。你们澳大利亚的福利真好。[That’s great. I’ll only be leaving Australia for a couple of weeks. Well, I guess I’ll wait for a letter from Centrelink to see if I’ve been successful in my application. Australia’s welfare system is really fantastic.]

Centrelink Officer: Well that’s great.You can also view information about your application online. I’ll take you over to the computers now and show you how to access online services. [那真是太好了。你还可以在网上看到有关你的申请的信息。我现在带你去电脑那里，教你怎么样使用网上服务。]