EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Veterans’ Entitlements (Delayed Lodgment of Claims for Pension Bonus) Guidelines 2007
Summary
Under subsection 45UK(6) of the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 (the Act), the Repatriation Commission (the Commission) is given the power to make guidelines setting out special circumstances for the purposes of subsection 45UK(5). The effect of these guidelines is to indicate (without doing so exclusively) special circumstances that may be sufficient for the Commission to determine that a person’s claim for pension bonus that is lodged after that person’s claim for age service pension, partner service pension or income support supplement is taken to have been made at the same time as the pension claim.
The intention of these guidelines is to specify the circumstance where a person makes a claim for pension bonus within two years of their pension claim due to a failure, either by the Secretary of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (the Secretary) or by the person, to meet the requirements for claims in subsection 45UK(1) of the Act. However, this circumstance is not intended to fall within the ambit of “special circumstances” if the person knowingly gives the Secretary incorrect information and this is the reason why the Secretary does not invite the person to make a claim under subsection 45UK(3) of the Act.
These guidelines are a legislative instrument for the purposes of the Legislative Instruments Act 2003.
Background
The Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs Legislation Amendment (Further 2007 Budget Measures) Act 2007 added into the Act subsections 45UK(5) and (6) to enable greater flexibility with regard to claims for pension bonus. Under the existing section 45UK of the Act, a claim for pension bonus by a person must either be attached to a proper claim made by the person and lodged together with it or, if the person’s claim for pension is made on a form which does not require the person to indicate their membership of the pension bonus scheme and the Secretary is aware of their membership, made in accordance with an invitation that the Secretary is required to offer to the person under subsection 45UK(3) of the Act.
The changes made by the new subsections 45UK(5) and (6) give the Commission the discretion, if satisfied that special circumstances exist in relation to the lodgment of a person’s claim for pension bonus, to deem that the person claimed pension bonus at the same time as his or her claim for pension. New subsection 45UK(6) enables the Commission to make guidelines for what constitutes “special circumstances” for this purpose.
Explanation of Provisions
Section 1 states the name of the instrument.
Section 2 states that the instrument commences on 1 January 2008. This means that the instrument will have effect on and from that date.
Section 3 defines certain terms used in the Guidelines.
Section 4 contains the guidelines for when special circumstances apply in relation to the lodgment of a person’s claim for pension bonus. There are two circumstances that are specified.
The first circumstance is intended to apply where the person lodges a claim for pension bonus within two years of their pension claim and the Secretary should have invited, but did not invite, the person to make the claim for pension bonus according to subsection 45UK(3) of the Act because the person’s pension claim was made in accordance with a form that did not require the claimant to disclose whether the person was a registered member of the pension bonus scheme or the corresponding scheme under Part 2.2A of the Social Security Act 1991. However, this circumstance is not a “special circumstance” for the purposes of paragraph 45UK(5)(c) of the Act if the invitation was not offered to the person because the person knowingly gave the Secretary incorrect information that led the Secretary to conclude that the making of the invitation would be inappropriate.
The second circumstance is intended to apply where the person lodges a claim for pension bonus within two years of their pension claim and the person’s pension claim was made in accordance with a form that did require the claimant to disclose whether the person was a registered member of the pension bonus scheme or the corresponding scheme under Part 2.2A of the Social Security Act 1991 and the claimant did not disclose that they were a member and the Secretary did not seek disclosure of that information before granting the claim for pension.
Consultation
The Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs was consulted during the preparation of this instrument. This was done to ensure a co-ordinated and consistent approach to the treatment of claims for pension bonus under both the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 and the social security law.
This instrument is beneficial to persons who are members of the pension bonus scheme because it allows more flexibility in relation to their lodgment of claims for pension bonus. Public consultation was therefore seen as unnecessary.
Business Cost Calculator Figure
This instrument does not require a Regulatory Impact Statement (RIS) and/or a Business Cost Calculator Figure. This instrument is not regulatory in nature, will not impact on business activity and will have no, or minimal, compliance costs or competition impact. It is not expected that any compliance costs will be incurred by business as a result of the effect of this instrument.