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

This matter concerned an application by Miss Holland for arrears of rent assistance. The dispute arose after Centrelink cancelled Miss Holland's rent assistance from 13 November 2015 due to a failure to provide requested information. Miss Holland contended she never received the relevant correspondence from Centrelink, including a rent certificate and a letter notifying her of the cancellation. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal was required to determine whether Miss Holland was entitled to rent assistance arrears, given her claim of non-receipt of official communications and the timing of her request for a review.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether Miss Holland could claim rent assistance arrears for the period between the cancellation of her entitlement and her subsequent request for a review. This involved considering the deeming provisions of section 237 of the *Social Security (Administration) Act 1999* (Cth), which deems a decision to have been given to a person if it is sent to their last known postal address. The Tribunal also had to assess the impact of section 109 of the *Administration Act*, which imposes a 13-week time limit for seeking a review of a decision, and whether any discretion existed to extend this period.

The Tribunal accepted Miss Holland's evidence that she did not receive the rent certificate or the cancellation letter. However, pursuant to section 237 of the *Administration Act*, the Tribunal was bound to treat the correspondence as having been received by Miss Holland at her new address. Miss Holland sought a review of the decision on 2 August 2018, which was significantly outside the 13-week period stipulated by section 109 of the *Administration Act* from the date of the original cancellation decision on 13 November 2015. The Tribunal found that, despite Miss Holland's personal circumstances potentially hindering an earlier review, the *Administration Act* provided no discretion to extend the 13-week review period. Consequently, the Tribunal affirmed the decision under review, meaning no arrears of rent assistance could be paid for the period prior to her review request.