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

This matter concerned an appeal to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) by an applicant who had been overpaid Newstart Allowance (NSA) and Parenting Payment (partnered) (PPP). The core dispute revolved around whether the overpayments constituted a legally recoverable debt and, if so, whether provisions for write-off or waiver should apply. The applicant conceded that she had received payments in excess of her entitlement due to her partner's income not being correctly factored into the calculations.

The legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the overpayments of NSA and PPP were legally recoverable debts and, if so, whether there were grounds to write off or waive the recovery of these debts. The Tribunal was required to consider the relevant provisions of the *Social Security Act 1991* (Cth) and the *Social Security (Administration) Act 1999* (Cth), as well as applicable policy guidelines.

The Tribunal found that the applicant had been overpaid NSA and PPP, creating a debt due to the Commonwealth under section 1223(1) of the *Social Security Act 1991*. While the applicant argued for waiver or write-off, the Tribunal determined that sole administrative error by the Department of Social Services had not been established. Crucially, the Tribunal found that the applicant had intentionally misled Centrelink regarding her partner's earnings, which precluded the application of special circumstances for waiver. The Tribunal noted that the applicant had been repeatedly notified of her obligation to report earnings and that her payments were being calculated based on nil income for her partner.

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal set aside a previous decision and substituted its own. It found that the applicant had incurred a debt of $2,421.50 for NSA and $26,387.53 for PPP. However, the Tribunal ordered that recovery of the portion of the debt arising before 14 September 2016 be waived, as this was attributed to sole administrative error. The remaining debt was deemed recoverable.