Aljbour and Secretary, Department of Social Services (Social services second review)

This matter concerned an appeal by the applicant, Ms Aljbour, against a decision by the Secretary of the Department of Social Services regarding her claim for carer payment backdating. The core of the dispute revolved around when Ms Aljbour's claim for carer payment should be considered to have commenced, and consequently, the period for which she was entitled to receive payments. The decision was made by Senior Member Chris Puplick AM of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

The legal issues before the Tribunal were whether Ms Aljbour had made a valid claim for carer payment on earlier dates, specifically in October 2017 and February 2018, and if so, whether those claims should be backdated. This involved determining the requirements for making a valid social security claim under the relevant legislation and whether any provisions existed for deeming a claim or backdating payments in circumstances of misinterpretation or administrative misadventure.

The Tribunal accepted the applicant's evidence that she was entitled to carer allowance and carer payment from at least October 2017 and that she genuinely believed she had submitted valid applications on two prior occasions. However, the Tribunal found that despite the applicant's good faith and the department's potentially confusing record-keeping, the applications submitted in October 2017 and February 2018 did not meet the specific procedural requirements mandated by the legislation for a valid claim. Consequently, the Tribunal concluded it had no power to alter the law or backdate payments beyond the date of the properly submitted claim in May 2018, even though the situation was regrettable and not entirely the applicant's fault. The decision under review was affirmed.