Return to Australia procedures for Centrelink International Services (CIS) staff 061-03010000

The Department of Home Affairs generally advises when a customer or child leaves or returns to Australia. The Centrelink system uses the information to assesses the portability of payments and concession cards. The assessment will happen regardless of whether the customer has told Services Australia their travel details. Note: do not cancel Department of Home Affairs datalink activities.

Where the customer gives evidence they travelled on different dates, the agency should consider using those different dates, if both the following apply:

• the new dates are logical
• the results will be a better outcome for the customer

This most often happens if a customer passes through Australian customs on one day but the flight leaves the next day.

In many cases, customers do not have to tell the agency if they are leaving Australia temporarily for less than 6 weeks, or when they have returned from a temporary absence.

When customers do need to tell us about a departure before leaving Australia or when they have returned to Australia they can use the Travelling outside of Australia service. This service is in their Centrelink online account. If the travel or portability assessment is complex the online service will ask them to contact the agency.

Services Australia website lists when customers must tell the agency they are leaving or returning to Australia. The Resources page has a link.

If the customer and/or child:

• has an active immigration datalink, their return date will generally be automatically updated when they return to Australia
• does not have an active immigration datalink, the date they returned to Australia will need to be manually recorded

The Portability Script - Departures and Returns can be used to assess a return to Australia. The purpose of the portability script is to assess the return rules associated with the payment and, where possible, update the record. The portability script cannot process a return in all cases (for example, customer returning to Australia after living overseas or paid under the New Zealand (NZ) Agreement).

If the script cannot complete the assessment or coding, it will advise the Service Officer and create a review for manual follow-up of the activity where required. In these cases, procedures relevant to the payment type should be followed to manually action the return to Australia.

At every customer contact, Service Officers must check, and update if needed, the customer's:

• address (including postal address), and
• telephone contact details (including mobile phone numbers)

If a customer remains outside Australia after their payment has stopped for a portability related reason, continuation of payment on their return to Australia may be possible. Generally, payment can be automatically or manually restored if they return to Australia within 13 weeks of their payment stopping.

Where a customer on a pension payment returns to Australia and has been on a proportional rate, the rate generally ceases to be proportional from the date of return. Some international agreements have provision for the rate paid under the agreement to continue for the first 26 weeks of a temporary return to Australia.

Australian residents who return to Australia will be issued with a concession card from the date of return or once their payment has been restarted.

If a customer returns to Australia temporarily and is not an Australian resident they are not entitled to any add-ons, including concession cards, unless they are paid under the Agreement with New Zealand. For more information, see New Zealand Agreement and foreign pension information.

If a customer returns to Australia and leaves again the same day, the portability period is reset. A new portability period begins for the latest departure. For example, an Age Pension customer will cease to be on a proportional rate on the day of return and for the first 26 weeks of the subsequent departure. The resetting of portability rules does not apply to customers who have limited payments such as Disability Support Pension or if they are subject to return rules.

Returning to Australia may affect subsequent portability if the customer is receiving one of these payments:

• Child Care Subsidy (CCS)
• Dad and Partner Pay (DAP)
• Double Orphan Pension (DOP)
• Family Tax Benefit (FTB)
• Newborn Supplement (NBS)
• Paid Parental Leave (PPL)
• Parenting Payment (PP)
• Pension Education Supplement (PES)
• Single Income Family Supplement (SIFS)
• Stillborn Baby Payment (SBP)

If these payments have ceased to be payable or are reduced for portability reasons (the customer was outside Australia for more than 6 weeks) and they return to Australia and resume payment they must generally remain in Australia for at least 6 weeks before these payments are portable. The exact rules vary according to which payment(s) the customer receives.

It is very important that a customer who is planning on returning to Australia and going overseas again contacts before they return to Australia. The Service Officer can then advise them what effect any return to Australia may have on their future payments if they travel outside Australia again.

Returning to Australia may affect subsequent portability if the customer has returned to live in Australia and then claimed or transferred to one of these payments:

• Age Pension (AGE)
• Disability Support Pension (DSP)

If these customers leave Australia within 2 years of their return for residence, their payments are unlikely to be portable at all.

It is very important that a customer planning to leave Australia within 2 years of a return for residence (and subsequent grant/ transfer to one of these payments) contacts before leaving. The Service Officer can then advise them what effect the departure may have on their future payments if they travel outside Australia.

For more information, see Former resident provisions.

If the customer repeatedly goes overseas for long periods with short returns to renew their portability, this may indicate that the person is actually residing overseas. Customers receiving Age Pension do not need to remain Australian residents to continue to be entitled to payment. Disability Support Pension (DSP) customers exempt from the ongoing residence requirement may also continue to be paid if they cease residing in Australia. These customers do not have to remain in Australia for any minimum period before payment is portable again and, if the customer is paid a proportional rate, their rate will increase from the date of their return to Australia.

However, determining whether customers receiving the above payments are Australian residents or not is still important as it can affect:

• entitlement to either the 20 September 2000 portability savings provisions or the 1 July 2004 portability provisions
• entitlement to add-ons during any temporary return and for up to 26 weeks after departure
• entitlement to a concession card during any temporary return to Australia
• whether working life residence or working age residence is increased during any absence from Australia
• the rate of payment under certain agreements, and
• qualification for payment if they receive payment solely because they have a qualifying residence exemption because they are a refugee

If an absence, or multiple absences with short returns to Australia between the absences, exceeds approximately 3 years, continuing Australian residence is questionable.

Customers who were overseas on 1 July 2004 and receiving Disability Support Pension (DSP), which was portable indefinitely, will retain the same portability rules, unless they return to Australia for residence.

Customers could receive DSP indefinitely while overseas if they were:

• severely disabled, or
• granted pre 12 November 1991 and saved under the pre 20 September 2000 portability rules

Return to Australia for residence

If a customer with pre 1 July 2004 savings provisions returns to Australia for residence, they will lose these savings and future payments are likely to be only portable for 28 days in a rolling 12 month period. However, the customer may have entitlement to:

• Add-ons including Rent Assistance and Pension Supplement. Note: transitional rate customers would be entitled to the Transitional pension rate inside Australia
• A Pension Concession Card
• A family assistance payment including Family Tax Benefit (FTB) and Child Care Subsidy (CCS)

Return to Australia temporarily

If a customer with pre 1 July 2004 savings provisions returns to Australia temporarily, they will retain these savings and will be payable indefinitely for any future absence from Australia under the same conditions of the previous departure. However, while in Australia and during the subsequent absence, the customer will not be entitled to:

• Add-ons including Rent Assistance or the full Pension Supplement (the Pension Supplement Basic Amount will still be payable, if eligible). Note: transitional rate customers would not be entitled to the full Transitional pension rate inside Australia
• Any Pension Concession Card
• Any family assistance payments including FTB or CCS

It is important to ensure that a customer with these savings is aware of the effect their return to Australia will have on their payments.

Payments to customers who were overseas immediately before 20 September 2000 were portable according to certain rules, which changed on 20 September 2000. Certain customers will retain these savings provision on their return to Australia. Other customers will lose their savings provision immediately on return to Australia, whether that return is temporary or not.

• Customers receiving Age pension may continue to be paid according to the pre 20 September 2000 rules. If a customer paid under these old rules returns to Australia and remains for more than 26 weeks, they lose the savings provision and any future departure will be according to current portability rules. It is not relevant whether they are returning to Australia for residence or not - only the length of presence in Australia is important
• If the customer is still an Australian resident, they may be entitled to some add-ons (for example, Rent Assistance) and concession cards during their return but entitlement will cease immediately on their departure. These customers will not be entitled to receive the full Pension Supplement or the full Transitional pension rate inside Australia while they are in Australia
• If the customer is not an Australian resident, they will not be entitled to any add-ons or concession cards during their return
• Disability Support Pension (DSP) customers who were paid under the pre 20 September 2000 portability rules who are not portable indefinitely lost their savings provision immediately on their return to Australia. If the customer goes overseas again, payment will be portable under the current rules

A customer unable to depart within 26 weeks due to unforeseen circumstances, may be able to maintain the portability savings for a negotiated period. This is known as a discretionary portability savings extension. For more information, see Customers overseas on 20 September 2000.

Customers who were overseas immediately before 1 July 2014 were payable according to rules that applied prior to 1 July 2014. Customers will retain this savings provision on their return to Australia, however they will lose this provision if they remain for 26 weeks or more. When they lose this savings provision, payment for any future absence will be according to the rules that apply at departure. It is not relevant whether the return to Australia is temporary or not, only the length of presence in Australia is important.

If a customer is unable to depart Australia within 26 weeks due to unforeseen circumstances, they may be able to maintain the portability savings for a negotiated period. For more information about discretionary portability savings extensions, see Customers assessed under pre 1 July 2014 Australian Working Life Residence (AWLR) rules.

The savings provision also applies to customers who resided outside Australia and who were temporarily inside Australia immediately before 1 July 2014. These customers retain the savings provision if they departed Australia on or before 29 December 2014.

The payments affected are Age Pension, Disability Support Pension (DSP) or payments made under the terms of an International Agreement.

Customers saved from the 1 July 2014 AWLR changes are generally paid a proportional rate using their own AWLR (international agreement and certain saved 20 September 2000 customers may use their partner's AWLR).

Customers who have the savings provisions generally require 300 months (25 years) AWLR in order to receive the maximum means tested rate of payment (some international agreements apply different rules).

From 1 July 2014 customers who do not have the savings provisions will generally require 420 months (35 years) AWLR in order to receive the maximum means tested rate of payment (some international agreements apply different rules).