Do you need to notify Medicare separately from Centrelink?

In most cases, no. Medicare and Centrelink both sit under Services Australia, and notifying Services Australia (by phone or through the Australian Death Notification Service) generally updates both. It's still worth confirming directly with Services Australia if the person was receiving a Medicare Safety Net benefit or a specific Centrelink payment, since some payments are handled by separate internal teams.

What happens to the person's superannuation if you don't notify the fund?

Superannuation death benefits are not paid automatically. The fund needs to be notified and a claim made, usually by the executor or a nominated beneficiary, with a certified death certificate. Delaying notification doesn't forfeit the benefit, but it does delay the payout, and some funds continue charging account fees until the fund is formally notified and the account closed or transferred.

Do you have to tell the electoral roll?

The Australian Electoral Commission is routinely updated using death registration data supplied by state registries, so most families don't need to contact the AEC directly. But if a family member still receives election-related mail or a fine notice for non-voting after a death, contacting the AEC directly resolves it faster than waiting for the automatic update.

How soon does each organisation need to be told?

There's no single deadline, but a rough order of urgency helps: the person's employer and any ongoing services that bill regularly (this avoids a bounced payment causing account issues) are worth an early call; government agencies and financial institutions can generally wait one to two weeks while the death certificate is being organised; smaller subscriptions and memberships can be handled whenever it suits, often weeks later.

Funeral Planning

Who Do You Need to Notify When Someone Dies? A Complete Checklist

Last updated 4 July 2026 · 5 min read

Direct Answer

After a death in Australia, the people and organisations who typically need telling fall into five groups: government agencies (Services Australia/Centrelink, Medicare, the ATO, and the electoral roll), financial institutions (banks, superannuation funds, and insurers), the person's employer or income sources, utilities and subscriptions (electricity, phone, streaming services, memberships), and professional contacts (their solicitor and accountant, if they had one). The Australian Death Notification Service (deathnotification.gov.au) can notify many banks, super funds, and government agencies in one go once the death is registered, but not every organisation is covered. Some, like the employer and smaller subscriptions, still need a direct phone call or email.

Detailed Explanation

Working through who actually needs to know about a death is one of the more tedious parts of the weeks that follow. It's not urgent in the way the funeral itself is, but it's easy to lose track of amid everything else. Breaking it into groups makes it manageable. For the rest of the funeral-planning sequence this fits into, see the Funeral Planning hub.

Government and statutory bodies

Services Australia (Centrelink and Medicare): notify if the person received any government payment (Age Pension, Disability Support Pension, JobSeeker, Family Tax Benefit) or had a Medicare card. This also stops payments being made in error, which otherwise sometimes need to be repaid by the estate.
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO): the estate's executor will generally need to lodge a final tax return and may need to notify the ATO of the death directly, separately from any notification made through a bank or the Death Notification Service.
The state or territory electoral roll: usually updated automatically from death registration data, but worth confirming directly with the Australian Electoral Commission if official mail keeps arriving.
Motor vehicle and licensing authority: to cancel a driver's licence and transfer or cancel vehicle registration.

Financial institutions

Banks and credit unions: every account the person held needs notifying; most banks will freeze the account to new transactions but can release funds for funeral costs before probate is finalised.
Superannuation funds: a death benefit claim needs to be lodged with each fund the person belonged to; this doesn't happen automatically and can take weeks once started.
Insurers: life insurance, income protection, and even home and contents or car insurance (to update the policyholder or cancel cover) all need separate notification.
Mortgage or loan providers, if applicable, since repayments and any linked insurance (loan protection) are affected.

Employer and income sources

If the person was still working, their employer needs to be told promptly. This affects final pay, unused leave entitlements, and any employer-provided insurance or superannuation contributions. If they were self-employed, an accountant or bookkeeper should be looped in early to manage outstanding invoices and business obligations.

Utilities, subscriptions and memberships

Electricity, gas, water, phone, and internet providers: either to close the account or transfer it into a family member's name if the property is still occupied.
Streaming services, gym memberships, professional associations, and other recurring subscriptions: easy to overlook, and often the ones that keep quietly charging a card for months if nobody notices.
Loyalty and rewards programs, if there's a balance worth claiming or transferring.
The person's email, social media, and photo storage accounts: these need a different process from a simple cancellation, and closing them in the wrong order can lock the family out of everything else. See what happens to digital accounts when someone dies before deleting anything.

Professional and legal contacts

A solicitor (if the person had a will lodged with one) and an accountant should be told early, since they may hold the original will or records the executor needs. See what is probate and when is it required and what does an executor do for how these documents come into play once the estate is being administered.

Using the Australian Death Notification Service

The Australian Death Notification Service lets you notify a growing list of banks, superannuation funds, and government agencies in a single online process, once the death has been registered. It's a genuine time-saver, but it doesn't cover everything. Employers, smaller subscriptions, and some insurers still need a direct call or email, so treat it as a strong starting point rather than the complete list. For the fuller sequence of what happens before you reach this stage (certification, the funeral director, and getting the death certificate), see what to do when someone dies in Australia.

Things to Consider

Keep a simple running list. A spreadsheet or notebook tracking who's been told, what they asked for, and what's outstanding saves enormous frustration a few weeks in, when memory of who you've already called starts to blur.
Several certified death certificates make this faster. Many of these organisations want to see one, and running out partway through the list just adds delay. See how to get a death certificate in Australia for typical costs and wait times.
Share the list with other family members. There's no need for one person to make every call; splitting the list by category (one person handles finances, another handles subscriptions) spreads the load.
This isn't all urgent. Aside from stopping active payments and closing obvious financial exposure, most of this list can be worked through over several weeks rather than in the first days.
This list is institutional, not personal. Telling banks and government agencies is separate from telling the people who loved the person. See how do you announce a death and share an online memorial respectfully for the social side of sharing the news.

Common Mistakes

Forgetting recurring subscriptions. Streaming services and memberships often keep billing a card for months after a death simply because nobody thought to check the statement.
Assuming one notification updates everything. Notifying a bank doesn't automatically notify the person's superannuation fund or insurer, even if they're related companies. Each needs its own contact.
Waiting for probate before notifying anyone. Most notifications (aside from finalising an estate distribution) can and should happen well before probate is granted. Don't hold off contacting agencies and institutions while waiting on the court process.
Not telling the employer promptly. Delaying this can hold up final pay and entitlements the family may need sooner rather than later.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you need to notify Medicare separately from Centrelink?: In most cases, no. Medicare and Centrelink both sit under Services Australia, and notifying Services Australia (by phone or through the Australian Death Notification Service) generally updates both. It's still worth confirming directly with Services Australia if the person was receiving a Medicare Safety Net benefit or a specific Centrelink payment, since some payments are handled by separate internal teams.
What happens to the person's superannuation if you don't notify the fund?: Superannuation death benefits are not paid automatically. The fund needs to be notified and a claim made, usually by the executor or a nominated beneficiary, with a certified death certificate. Delaying notification doesn't forfeit the benefit, but it does delay the payout, and some funds continue charging account fees until the fund is formally notified and the account closed or transferred.
Do you have to tell the electoral roll?: The Australian Electoral Commission is routinely updated using death registration data supplied by state registries, so most families don't need to contact the AEC directly. But if a family member still receives election-related mail or a fine notice for non-voting after a death, contacting the AEC directly resolves it faster than waiting for the automatic update.
How soon does each organisation need to be told?: There's no single deadline, but a rough order of urgency helps: the person's employer and any ongoing services that bill regularly (this avoids a bounced payment causing account issues) are worth an early call; government agencies and financial institutions can generally wait one to two weeks while the death certificate is being organised; smaller subscriptions and memberships can be handled whenever it suits, often weeks later.

References

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