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

This matter concerned an appeal by Ponnahennadige against a decision of the Secretary of the Department of Social Services regarding eligibility for an age pension. The core of the dispute revolved around the determination of the "start day" for the applicant's age pension claim, which in turn affected the period for which the pension was payable. The case was heard by Deputy President McDermott.

The legal issues before the court were whether the applicant qualified for the age pension from 1 April 2015 or an earlier date, specifically 22 March 2015, and how the provisions of the *Social Security (Administration) Act 1999* (Cth), particularly section 11 and Schedule 2 concerning the start day of a claim, and section 13 regarding deemed claims, applied to the applicant's circumstances. The court was also required to consider the impact of any relevant international agreements, though the provided text focuses primarily on the domestic legislative provisions.

Deputy President McDermott's reasoning centred on the interpretation of the "start day provision" as outlined in Schedule 2 of the *Administration Act*. This provision establishes that the start day for a social security payment is the day on which the claim for that payment was made. The court examined section 13 of the *Administration Act*, which details circumstances under which a claim can be deemed to have been made on an earlier date than when it was formally lodged. However, based on the provided decision, it appears that the conditions for a deemed claim under section 13 were not met in a way that would allow for the earlier start date of 22 March 2015. Consequently, the court found that the applicant was eligible for the age pension from 1 April 2015. The court set aside the decision under review and substituted a new decision reflecting this finding.