Initial contact by customers claiming Double Orphan Pension (DOP) 007-01010050

If the customer is:

• enquiring about eligibility for Double Orphan Pension (DOP), go to Step 2
• lodging their Claim for Double Orphan Pension (SC003) and Claim for Paid Parental Leave and Family Tax Benefit (FA100), see Table 2 > Step 1

Is the customer currently receiving Family Tax Benefit (FTB) for the DOP child?

• Yes, go to Step 3
• No, invite them to claim Family Tax Benefit (FTB) verbally, or send the customer a Q888 with approved text. See Resources for link
  Note: before DOP can be granted, the child must be assessed as an FTB child of the customer. Go to Step 3

See Intent to claim and vulnerable customers for detail about vulnerable circumstances.

Is the customer considered a vulnerable customer?

• Yes, document the customer contact, including the vulnerable circumstance the customer is experiencing. Advise the customer for them to be backdated to the earliest date, they must submit their claim within 14 days from the first date of contact. Go to Step 4
• No, go to Step 4

Tell the customer that the claim must be made in the same name as the person receiving/claiming FTB Part A for the DOP child.

In Customer First, use the Mail Forms workflow to issue a Claim for Double Orphan Pension (SC003).

Advise the customer to lodge the claim as soon as possible, as eligibility will be assessed from the date the claim is submitted unless backdating provisions apply.

Record a DOC.

The customer will need to provide:

• Proof of the child's birth (if not already provided)
• Evidence that the child is a DOP child

Check the following details on the SC003, and that the:

• claim is complete and that the customer has signed it
• customer (and partner) details are provided
  If there is doubt about the customer's current living arrangements, ask the Living Arrangements question set
• payment account details must be in the customer's name
• details of the young person (orphan) indicates whether the:
• customer or another person intends to adopt the child
• child has claimed or receives a Centrelink payment in their own right, or a payment from another government department (for example Department of Veterans’ Affairs Orphan’s Pension or Veterans’ Children Education Scheme), and
• the child is a refugee
• details of the young person's parents, and if
• both parents are deceased, evidence must be provided
• parentage is unknown, the child's birth certificate should be provided
• one parent is alive, details of their whereabouts (if known) must be provided

Note: required documentation, including evidence that the child is a DOP child, must be provided before the DOP claim can be assessed.

If the DOP claim has not been indexed, see Table 3 > Step 3 in Indexing, re-indexing, and cancelling claim activities.

Advise the customer their claim for DOP will be assessed and they will be advised of the outcome.

Advise the customer of the following information:

• DOP is reviewed periodically when there is a change in circumstances
• Formal reviews are conducted every two years
• Availability and role of a social worker, if applicable
• The Bereavement/DOP Helpdesk contact number
• They have an obligation to notify of changes within 14 days, including if:
• the surviving parent is released from remand/prison, or a sentence is delivered of less than 10 years
• the surviving parent is released from the psychiatric institution/nursing home
• for refugee children, one or both parents enter Australia
• the surviving parent's whereabouts become known to the child or customer, or they become aware of who the surviving parent is
• a child aged 16-19 ceases to meet FTB study requirements (for example, child leaves care or level of care reduces to less than 35%)

Note: in each of the above cases, payment of DOP will cease.