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

This matter concerned an appeal by Ms Watts against a decision of the Secretary, Department of Social Services, regarding the start date for her disability support pension. Ms Watts had made two previous unsuccessful claims for the pension in November 2020 and March 2021, both of which were rejected on the grounds that she did not meet the required 20 impairment points. Her subsequent successful claim, lodged on 10 March 2022, led to the current dispute over whether she was entitled to payment from an earlier date. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) was tasked with determining the appropriate start date for Ms Watts' disability support pension.

The primary legal issue before the Tribunal was whether Ms Watts could be paid disability support pension from the dates of her earlier, unsuccessful claims, specifically 9 November 2020 and 22 March 2021, or if her entitlement commenced only from the date of her successful claim on 10 March 2022. This required the Tribunal to consider the provisions of the *Social Security Act 1991* (Cth) and the *Social Security (Administration) Act 1999* (Cth) concerning qualification criteria for the pension, the requirements for making a claim, and the determination of a payment's start date.

The Tribunal found that Ms Watts' previous claims made on 9 November 2020 and 22 March 2021 were rejected because she did not meet the statutory requirement of having an impairment rating of 20 points or more. These rejections were affirmed on review, and Ms Watts did not pursue further review of those decisions. Under section 3(1) of Schedule 2 to the *Social Security (Administration) Act 1999*, the start date for a payment is generally the day on which the claim is made, provided the claimant is qualified on that day. As Ms Watts was not qualified on the dates of her earlier claims, the Tribunal concluded that she could not be paid disability support pension prior to 10 March 2022, the date she made her successful claim and met the qualification criteria. Consequently, the decision under review was affirmed.