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

The applicant sought a review of a decision by the Department of Human Services to reject her application for registration in the Pension Bonus Scheme. The Department had notified the applicant of this original decision on 8 May 2014. The applicant subsequently sought an internal review of this decision on 11 September 2015, which was dismissed by an Authorised Review Officer for want of jurisdiction. The applicant then applied to the Social Security Appeals Tribunal (SSAT) for a review of the Authorised Review Officer's decision. The SSAT, presided over by Deputy Bernard J McCabe P, was required to determine whether it had jurisdiction to review the original decision.

The central legal issue before the SSAT was whether the applicant's application for internal review was made within the time limit prescribed by the *Social Security (Administration) Act 1999* (Cth). Specifically, the Tribunal had to consider the effect of section 129(3) of the Act, which stipulates that a person is not entitled to apply for a review of a decision concerning pension bonus more than 13 weeks after being given notice of that decision. The applicant also sought to rely on section 126 of the Act, which allows for internal reviews outside the usual time limits in certain circumstances.

The Tribunal reasoned that the applicant's application for internal review was lodged significantly more than 13 weeks after she was notified of the original decision. Consequently, section 129(3) of the *Social Security (Administration) Act 1999* precluded her from making an application for review of the original decision. The Tribunal found that section 126 of the Act, which the applicant sought to rely upon to overcome the time limitation, was strictly limited in its application to internal reviews initiated by the Secretary of the Department of Social Services and therefore had no application to the facts of this case.

Accordingly, the Tribunal concluded that it did not have jurisdiction to review the application and affirmed the decision under review. The Tribunal noted that a potential avenue for the applicant might exist under the Scheme for Compensation for Detriment caused by Defective Administration, but stated it had no jurisdiction to make such an award.