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

This matter concerned an application for review by the applicant, Ms Zilioli, against a decision by the Secretary of the Department of Social Services regarding an Austudy overpayment. The applicant sought to have the debt waived or written off. The Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) had jurisdiction to review the merits of the application.

The legal issues before the Tribunal were whether the applicant was engaged in qualifying study during the relevant period, whether she had been overpaid Austudy, whether the overpayment constituted a legally recoverable debt, and whether any part of the debt should be waived or written off. The Tribunal considered the provisions of the *Social Security Act 1991* (Cth) and the *Social Security (Administration) Act 1999* (Cth) concerning Austudy qualification, including the requirements for undertaking qualifying study and satisfying the activity test.

The Tribunal noted that a previous AAT decision had already waived a portion of the debt due to special circumstances, reducing the total debt. The current review focused on the remaining debt. The Tribunal's reasoning and final orders are not fully detailed in the provided text, but it is indicated that the Tribunal was satisfied it had jurisdiction to conduct a merits review of the application.