Return to Australia procedures for service centre and Smart Centre staff for pension payments 061-03020000
This document outlines the actions for service centre and Smart Centre staff to take when a pension payment customer advises of a return to Australia, as well as the possible effect on their payment upon return.
On this page:
Customer advises of return to Australia
System coding and updating customer details
Finalising processing for return to Australia
Customer advises of return to Australia
Table 1
Step |
Action |
1 |
Pension customer advises of return to Australia (RTA) + Read more ... This includes Age Pension, Disability Support Pension (DSP), Carer Payment (CP), or Parenting Payment Single (PPS) customers. For non-pension and concession card customers, see Return to Australia procedures for service centre and Smart Centre staff for non-pension payments and cards. In most cases, customers do not need to advise the agency they have returned to Australia from a temporary absence, but there are situations where customers should contact when they have returned to Australia. Certain customers need to be referred to International Services (CIS) to do the RTA procedure. CIS staff should use Return to Australia procedures for CIS staff. If the customer is not correctly advised of the effect the return has on their payments, they could be financially disadvantaged leading to a claim under the Compensation for Detriment caused by Defective Administration (CDDA) scheme. Is the customer advising the return to Australia for their dependent child/ren only (the customer has not recently been outside Australia)?
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2 |
Return to Australia + Read more ... Has the customer already returned to Australia?
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3 |
Portability savings provisions + Read more ... For DSP customers, check the Residence Savings (RSS) screen. If the DSP Port. 1 July 2004 status field is 'Y' the customer has this savings provision. For other customers, go to the Pensions Savings Provisions and Entitlement (PSVI) screen. If the 20 Sept 2000 Portability Savings Ind field is 'Y', the customer has this savings provision. For all customers, including DSP, go to the Residence Savings (RSS) screen. If the 300 Month denominator Ind field is 'Y', the customer is subject to these savings. Is the customer currently subject to any of these portability savings provisions?
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4 |
Check if CIS customer + Read more ... Check if any of the following apply to the customer:
Do any of the above apply to the customer?
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5 |
Check if the customer has returned temporarily or to live + Read more ... Ask the customer if they have returned to Australia temporarily or to live. In more complex cases, see Assessing if a customer is an Australian resident to assess whether the customer is returning to reside in Australia. Has the customer returned to Australia temporarily?
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6 |
CIS customer concession card entitlement determination + Read more ... In some cases, a CIS customer who has temporarily returned to Australia may be entitled to a concession card while in Australia. They are only entitled if they are:
CIS will determine if the customer is eligible to receive a concession card during their temporary stay in Australia, but the service centre will need to issue the interim card. Has CIS previously recorded a DOC regarding the customer's concession entitlement?
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7 |
Concession card entitlement DOC for CIS customer + Read more ... Does the DOC advise that the customer is entitled to a concession card?
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System coding and updating customer details
Table 2
Step |
Action |
1 |
Check the return has been recorded + Read more ... Has the return been automatically recorded on the Immigration Advised Movements (RSIM) screen?
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2 |
Request the Immigration Datalink + Read more ... Request the Immigration Datalink on the Immigration Enquiry (RSIMME) screen. This should provide the customer's movement information.
Has the return date been recorded on the RSIM screen?
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3 |
Return date has not been recorded after requesting the Immigration Datalink + Read more ... Refer the case to CIS. See Referring inconsistencies in overseas departure and arrival information to Centrelink International Services (CIS). If the customer left Australia (and/or returned) on a cruise, collect and include the following information in the referral to CIS:
When CIS completes the request (either by phone or through actioning the referral), go to Step 4. |
4 |
Update customer's address details if necessary + Read more ... Go to the Address History (ADH) screen.
See Table 3 > Step 1. |
Finalising processing for return to Australia
Table 3
Step |
Action |
1 |
Update customer information if necessary + Read more ... Check and update, if needed:
Does the customer have dependent children also recorded as overseas?
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2 |
Payment current + Read more ... Is the customer's payment current?
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3 |
Suspended or cancelled payment + Read more ... Check to see if the customer is able to have continuation of payment on their return to Australia. If the customer has remained outside Australia after their payment has stopped for exceeding their maximum portability period, their payment may be restored if they have returned to Australia within 13 weeks of their payment suspending. However, if they were receiving a transitional rate of payment, they will lose entitlement to this rate and will be paid under the current rules upon restoration. A saved DSP customer will lose their portability savings if their payment is cancelled. If they reclaim DSP, they will be assessed under current rules and may no longer qualify for DSP. A Carer Payment (XWP) customer loses their qualification for CP under grandfathering provisions if they have a break in payment level Carer Allowance (CA) entitlement. Carer Payment (XWP) can only be restored if their CA is reinstated without a gap in entitlement. For more information, see Transfer from Wife Pension (WP) to Carer Payment (CP). Pensioner Education Supplement (PES) cannot be restored once there is a gap in entitlement (even if the primary payment for example, JobSeeker Payment can be restored). If PES suspends (EPF/SUS), the customer will need to reclaim PES when they return to Australia, even if the suspension is less than 13 weeks. If PES is suspended it will need to be cancelled so the primary payment can be restored (if applicable). See Cancellation of Pensioner Education Supplement (PES) and ABSTUDY PES Check whether payment should:
Some reasons for restoring payment without a claim include:
Payment will only continue from the date of entitlement which is usually the date of return to Australia A new claim will generally be needed if the customer returns to Australia:
An abridged claim may be used depending on the rules applicable to the relevant payment type. Refer to the relevant new claim procedures for the payment type. Does customer need to lodge a new claim for payment?
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4 |
Payment cancelled RTA or suspended for portability related reason + Read more ... If Family Tax Benefit (FTB) cancels as a result of income support payments stopping, and the customer is eligible for Rent Assisance, restore FTB first. See Restoration of Family Tax Benefit (FTB). If the customer is CAN-RTA in Environment I, transfer the record to local environment and restore from date paid to + 1. CIS staff will generally complete this action. Transfer to the local environment any records in Environment I that are not current on payment (for example created as a shell partner record in a new claim) or cancelled for any reason other than RTA. There must be no started activities or open referrals on the record to be transferred. See Inter-environment change of address (ICoA) transfer of a customer record for more information. For restoration of Carer Payment and/or Carer Allowance, see Carer Restoration workflow for Carer Payment (CP) and/o Carer Allowance (CA). Procedure ends here. If cancelled, payments may generally be restored from the date the customer returns to Australia, if satisfied they regained qualification/payability within 13 weeks of their payment ceasing. On the Benefit Action (BA) screen:
Note: if the customer advises that any payments sent overseas have not been received, call CIS. Has the customer's payment restored from the correct date?
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5 |
Concession card reissue + Read more ... A concession card will generally remain current for up to 6 weeks if a customer temporarily leaves Australia. If the concession card is still current, a new card does not need to be reissued. If the customer has lost entitlement to their card because they have been absent for more than their maximum portability period for the card, but payment is restored when they return to Australia, any concession card associated with the payment will be automatically reinstated. For example, if PPS entitlement is lost but then regained within 13 weeks of suspension, the PCC is reinstated automatically. A new PCC will not be issued unless it reached its expiry date while the customer was overseas. If the customer needs a concession card before the replacement card arrives, they should contact their nearest Service Centre for an interim voucher. If the customer is the holder of a non-income tested PCC the card will automatically reissue if the customer returns to Australia within 13 weeks of cancellation. If the return is outside the 13 weeks of cancellation the card has to be reissued manually. For help, see Non-income tested (NOI) concession cards. The system issues the concession cards automatically based on:
If the system is not issuing or reactivating the card, check the:
If not coded correctly, information can be obtained directly via the Immigration Datalink. For more information, see Activating the Department of Home Affairs datalink and contingency procedures if datalink is unavailable. Record all information regarding the return to Australia in a DOC. |