EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Military Rehabilitation and Compensation (Injuries and Diseases Attributable to Defence Service—Presumptive Liability) Determination 2026
EMPOWERING PROVISION
The Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission makes this determination under section 27A(3) of the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004 (the Act). This instrument is made in reliance upon section 24A of the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation (Consequential and Transitional Provisions) Act 2004 and section 4 of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.
PURPOSE
This determination specifies injuries and diseases that are attributable to one or more kinds of defence service. These arrangements will allow claims to be accepted on a presumptive basis. This will result in an easier and faster claims pathway by needing less evidence and a simplified assessment process to determine eligible claims. It will also produce a reduction in the overall time taken to process other claims by reducing the number of claims that need to go through a full assessment process.
OVERVIEW
The Veterans’ Entitlements, Treatment and Support (Simplification and Harmonisation) Act 2025 (the VETS Act) operates to simplify and harmonise the longstanding tri-Act framework of legislation governing veterans’ entitlements, rehabilitation and compensation arrangements. The legislation governing veterans’ entitlements, rehabilitation and compensation is widely acknowledged as being complex and difficult to navigate. Calls to simplify these arrangements are longstanding.
The VETS Act provides for the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986 (VEA) and the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation (Defence-related Claims) Act 1988 (DRCA) to close to new compensation and rehabilitation claims from 1 July 2026, and for all new claims to be determined under an improved Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004 (MRCA). The MRCA will operate as the single ongoing Act going forward and provide coverage for all future claims for compensation, irrespective of when and where the veteran served, or when their injury or illness occurred. This single Act will provide greater clarity, simplicity and consistency around entitlements for veterans and their families.
As part of these changes, the Repatriation Commission will be able to specify injuries and diseases that may be accepted on a ‘presumptive’ basis, that is automatic unless proven otherwise, where they meet listed service requirements. This new head of liability is intended to reduce claim processing times and complexity and provide veterans with earlier access to treatment and compensation. Supporting the expanded use of presumptive liability in veterans’ compensation was a recommendation (Recommendation 95) of the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide.
The initial tranche of presumptive conditions broadly reflects a range of existing policy, administrative and legislated arrangements for particular cohorts and/or types and lengths of service. While the specific criteria and service-requirement will vary, the initial tranche of presumption includes more than 150 medical conditions. These include:
- Specified conditions for F-111 deseal/reseal workers;
- Specified cancers for Australian Defence Force (ADF) firefighters;
- Specified conditions for ADF Firefighters at Point Cook;
- ‘Decision-ready’ (streamlined and straight-through-processing) conditions currently contained in policy arrangements; and
- ‘Deemed diseases’ currently under the DRCA.
The Presumptive Liability changes will centralise in legislation a range of arrangements that have across the three Acts, such as the Streamlining and Straight-Through Processing under the VEA and MRCA and the firefighter and F-111 Deseal/Reseal provisions under the DRCA. This coverage will continue from under the banner of ‘Presumptive Liability’. Presumption will apply to claims without reference to the Statements of Principles administered by the Repatriation Medical Authority and the usual ‘standard of proof’ provisions, simplifying the claims assessment process where relevant criteria are met. If criteria for application of presumption are not met, a claim will still be able to be assessed using usual liability processes.
EXPLANATION OF PROVISIONS
Section 1 states the name of the determination.
Section 2 provides that the determination commences on 1 July 2026.
Section 3 sets out the authority for the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission to make the determination, namely section 27A(3) of the Act.
Section 4 defines a number of expressions used in this determination.
Section 5 sets out the application provisions, that the determination is to be used for the assessment of claims for liability for injuries and diseases, where the claims are received by the Commission on or after 1 July 2026.
Section 6 provides the types of defence service that are subject to Part 2.
Section 7 lists injuries and diseases that can be determined under Part 2 to be attributable to specified defence service.
Section 8 lists secondary injuries and diseases under Part 3 that can be determined to be attributable to any defence service where an initial causal condition has been previously accepted.
Section 9 lists injuries and diseases under Part 4 that can be determined to be attributable to certain defence service involving abuse.
Section 10 lists diseases under Part 5 that can be determined to be attributable to certain defence firefighting service at Point Cook between 1 January 1957 and 31 December 1986.
Section 11 lists diseases under Part 6 that can be determined to be attributable to certain defence service involving F-111 deseal/reseal work.
Section 12 defines a firefighter, for the purposes of attributing cancers to certain ADF service.
Section 13 lists diseases under Part 7 that can be determined to be attributable to certain defence service as a firefighter.
Section 14 lists occupational diseases under Part 8 that can be determined to be attributable to certain defence service.
Section 15 lists specified defence service under Part 9 that can be determined as contributing to occupational asthma.
Consultation
As part of the development of the VETS Act, DVA undertook extensive consultation with stakeholders, including three rounds of public consultation on the simplification and harmonisation of veterans’ portfolio legislation. The outcome of this process revealed strong support from veterans and other stakeholders and informed the pathway to establish an improved MRCA as the sole, ongoing scheme for veterans’ compensation and rehabilitation from 1 July 2026. This consultation included the proposed presumptive liability arrangements and stakeholders indicated strong support for this aspect of the reforms. The Office of Impact Analysis was consulted in the preparation of the VETS Act.
From 1 July 2026, the VEA and the DRCA will close to new compensation and rehabilitation claims, and all new claims will be determined under an improved MRCA. As part of these changes, the Repatriation Commission will be able to formally specify a list of injuries or diseases that may be accepted on a ‘presumptive’ basis.
Consultation with ex-service organisations (ESOs) will continue. It is proposed to maintain the currency and relevance of this determination going forward through ongoing consultation with ex-service organizations and research and analysis, with any future amendments subject to approval by Government. It is envisaged that the views of ex-service organisations and emerging evidence of conditions arising due to exposures attributable to ADF service will be assessed, as will developments in other jurisdictions and overseas presumptive arrangements.
Human rights implications
This determination is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared under section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011. A full statement of compatibility is set out in Attachment A.
Making the instrument
The determination is made by the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission.
Approved by
Minister for Veterans’ Affairs
Attachment A
Statement of Compatibility with Human Rights
Prepared in accordance with Part 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011
Military Rehabilitation and Compensation (Injuries and Diseases Attributable to Defence Service—Presumptive Liability) Determination 2026
This determination is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011 (the recognised rights).
Overview of the written determination
The Military Rehabilitation and Compensation (Injuries and Diseases Attributable to Defence Service—Presumptive Liability) Determination 2026 (the determination) provides a list of injuries and diseases that can be presumed to be attributable to defence service where relevant Defence service criteria are met.
The legislative framework underpinning the provision of veterans’ entitlements has been based on three pieces of legislation and is widely acknowledged as complex, difficult to navigate and challenging to administer. Under the modified framework, two of the veterans’ portfolio Acts will close to new rehabilitation and compensation claims from 1 July 2026, with the MRCA remaining as the sole ongoing scheme for all new claims, irrespective of where the veteran served or when their injury, illness or death occurred.
A prominent change to the claims-processing arrangements will be the use under MRCA of ‘presumptive liability’. Under this change, the Repatriation Commission can specify injuries and diseases that may be accepted on a ‘presumptive’ basis, that is, automatic unless proven otherwise, where they meet listed service requirements. This new head of liability is intended to reduce claim processing times and complexity and provide veterans with earlier access to treatment and compensation. The initial tranche of presumptive conditions will broadly reflect a range of existing policy, administrative and legislated arrangements for particular cohorts and/or types and lengths of service.
Human rights implications
This written determination is compatible with the human rights and freedoms recognised or declared in the international instruments listed in section 3 of the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011, and specifically engages with the right to social security, under article 9 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR).
This determination is also compatible with the right to health, under article 12(1) of the ICESCR, as the availability of presumptive liability will in many cases expedite access to health care as well as to compensation.
The amendments to the liability provisions of the Act are intended to improve the physical and mental health outcomes for former ADF personnel by simplifying their access to compensation and health care.
These improvements are achieved by making the most modern Act, the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004, the only legislation that will apply to new compensation claims going forward from 1 July 2026, with existing entitlements under the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 and the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation (Defence-related Claims) Act 1988 grandparented to preserve existing payments. The reforms to veterans’ compensation legislation will address longstanding complexities and difficulties inherent in the current framework and ensure maximum simplification for the administration of claims by removing complexities associated with the existing tri-Act framework. This will result in a system that veterans, families and advocates find easier to navigate and less confusing. Presumptive liability arrangements will further simplify access to veterans’ benefits where relevant criteria are met.
The availability of expedited liability determinations will operate to continue the availability of medical treatment for veterans (and some dependants), on the basis that the Commonwealth has accepted liability for medical conditions that were caused by service in the ADF. The access to medical treatment for veterans and some dependants is compatible with the right to health.
The presumption of a connection to service will also operate to simplify and streamline access to compensation for service-related conditions where relevant criteria are met, as a pathway to accessing permanent impairment and incapacity payments or, for dependents of a deceased veteran, to dependant benefits where the veterans’ death relates to service.
The determination is compatible with human rights. It advances the right to social security and health.
Conclusion
This determination is compatible with human rights as it does not limit any human rights.
Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Commission
Rule-Maker