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

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered the case of Germain and the Secretary, Department of Social Services concerning an application for family tax benefit for the 2013-2014 financial year. The applicant and his wife had failed to lodge their application by the prescribed due date.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether there were "special circumstances" that prevented the applicant and his wife from lodging their application for family tax benefit by the due date, as required by the relevant legislation.

The Tribunal affirmed the decision under review, finding that no such special circumstances existed. The Tribunal's reasoning, while not detailed in the provided text, would have involved an assessment of the facts presented against the legislative criteria for "special circumstances" in relation to lodging a family tax benefit application. The outcome was that the applicant's failure to lodge on time was not excused.