Wagner and National Disability Insurance Agency

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) considered an application by Mr. Wagner concerning his eligibility for the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). Mr. Wagner sought to challenge a decision made by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA). The core of the dispute revolved around whether Mr. Wagner met the age requirements stipulated by the *National Disability Insurance Act 2013* (Cth) for accessing the NDIS.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether Mr. Wagner satisfied the age criteria set out in section 21(1)(a) of the *National Disability Insurance Act 2013*. This section requires an applicant to be under 65 years of age when they first become a participant in the NDIS. A secondary issue was whether the Tribunal had jurisdiction to hear the matter, given that Mr. Wagner had not lodged an earlier application for an internal review of the NDIA's decision.

Deputy President Forgie P reasoned that Mr. Wagner was over 65 years of age at the time he made his application to the NDIA. Consequently, he did not meet the fundamental eligibility requirement under section 21(1)(a) of the Act. Furthermore, the Tribunal noted that Mr. Wagner had not undertaken the mandatory step of seeking an internal review of the NDIA's decision prior to lodging his application with the AAT.

Applying section 42B(1)(b) of the *Administrative Appeals Tribunal Act 1975* (Cth), which requires an applicant to have exhausted internal review mechanisms before appealing to the Tribunal, and finding that Mr. Wagner failed to meet the age eligibility criteria, the Tribunal dismissed the application.