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

This matter concerned a review of a decision by the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) concerning an Assurance of Support (AoS) debt owed by the applicant to the Commonwealth. The AAT had affirmed an earlier decision by Centrelink that the applicant was liable for an AoS debt arising from recoverable social security payments made to his sister, Nima Hassan, and that no part of this debt should be written off or waived. The applicant had provided the AoS in support of his mother and sister's application for a Contributory Parent visa.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the AoS entered into by the applicant created a debt due to the Commonwealth in respect of recoverable social security payments made to his sister, and if so, the quantum of that debt. A secondary issue was whether there were grounds to write off or waive all or part of this debt. The Tribunal considered the provisions of the *Social Security Act 1991*, specifically those governing assurances of support, including sections 1061ZZGA, 1061ZZGEA, 1061ZZGF, 1061ZZGG, and 1227.

The Tribunal found that the applicant, by entering into the AoS, had assumed liability for recoverable social security payments made to his sister between 18 September 2006 and 17 September 2016. These payments included parenting payments and the pensioner education supplement, totalling $118,159.79. The Tribunal was satisfied that section 1237AAE of the Act did not prevent a waiver in these circumstances. It concluded that a waiver was justified on grounds other than the applicant's lack of awareness of the AoS's legal effect. Although a security bond had been in place, it had been released, and the amount already recovered against the debt exceeded the original bond amount.

The Tribunal set aside the previous decision and substituted its own. It determined that the applicant was liable for the full AoS debt of $118,159.79 in respect of his sister. Crucially, the Tribunal ordered that any unpaid or unrecovered amount of this debt be waived with effect from the date of its decision.