Parental Leave Pay (PPL) for children born or entered care after 1 July 2020 and before 1 July 2023 007-09020010

To have been eligible for PPL, a customer must have been the primary carer of the PPL child.

The primary claimant could receive up to 18 weeks of PPL (90 payable days).

Primary claimants could claim the full amount for themselves or choose to:

• transfer some or all of their PPL period to another person
• give permission for another person to claim some or all of their Flexible PPL days

If transferring some or all of the PPL period or Flexible PPL days to another person, the other person must have:

• lodged an effective claim
• had primary care of the child, and
• been an eligible secondary/tertiary claimant

Most often, the primary claimant was the birth mother or the initial primary carer of an adopted child. Another person may have been eligible as a primary claimant if exceptional circumstances eligibility criteria applied e.g. gaining parent in surrogacy arrangement.

Note: primary claimants in exceptional circumstances could claim the full amount of PPL if they were eligible. Secondary claimants who become the primary carer in exceptional circumstances were only eligible for up to the remainder of the PPL that had not been claimed by the primary claimant. For secondary claimants, the amount of PPL depended on how much PPL was paid to the primary claimant.

Was the customer the child’s birth mother (or the initial primary claimant of an adopted child)?

• Yes, see Table 2 > Step 1
• No, go to Step 2

For a customer who was not the birth mother or initial adoptive parent to be assessed as the primary claimant for the child exceptional circumstances needed to exist. They had to also expect the child would be in their primary care for at least 26 weeks.

Did the customer expect the child to remain in their primary care for at least 26 weeks?

• Yes, go to Step 3
• No, the customer may have been eligible for the remainder of the PPL entitlement if the primary claimant was incapable of caring for the child for a temporary period of less than 26 weeks. The customer would need to have lodged a claim as a secondary/tertiary claimant within the allowable claiming timeframes

Formal Foster carers were not eligible to receive PPL for a child entrusted to their care by a State or Territory welfare authority or approved agency (e.g., Barnados, Anglicare).

An exception to this rule applied when:

• the child was placed in the customers care as part of an adoption process, and
• the customer was expected to become the child’s adoptive parent

Note: the adoptive parents generally do not have the child’s birth certificate or the biological parent’s information. There would have been pre-adoption court or agency documents confirming the customer was in the process of adopting the child.

If:

• the child had been placed in the customers care as part of a formal foster care arrangement, and it was:
• as part of the process of an adoption, the customer must have provided evidence of the adoption. Go to Table 2 > Step 1
• not as a part of the process of an adoption, the customer was not eligible for PPL for the child. They were invited to claim FTB
• there was no formal foster care arrangement, go to Step 4

Customer may have entered into an Australian altruistic surrogacy arrangement or an overseas surrogacy arrangement, which could be commercial or altruistic. Depending where the arrangement was made will determine what evidence was required.

For more information see Claiming payments for children entrusted to care as part of the process of adoption or surrogacy.

If:

• the child was entrusted to the customers care as part of a formal surrogacy arrangement, did they provide the surrogacy agreement and/or court documents to confirm?
• Yes, go to Step 8
• No, see Information requests for FTB and PPL claims, and Add Newborn and PPL change of circumstances activities
• there was no formal surrogacy arrangement, go to Step 5

Where exceptional circumstances resulted in the customer becoming the primary carer of the child acceptable evidence such as a court order (i.e. parentage order) or other documents had to be provided.

Did the customer provide evidence, such as a court order (i.e, parentage order) or other documents to confirm exceptional circumstances exist?

• Yes, go to Step 8
• No, the customer needed to provide the evidence:
• See Information requests for FTB and PPL claims, and Add Newborn and PPL change of circumstances activities
• Collect all documentation the customer has available to confirm the exceptional circumstance, go to Step 6

The birth mother (or initial primary carer in the case of adoption) must have been incapable of caring for the child for an expected period of at least 26 weeks.

For the purposes of PPL, incapable of caring means:

• there was a parenting order that removed care of the child from the birth mother (or initial primary carer in the case of adoption), or
• the birth mother (or initial primary carer in the case of adoption):
• had died, or
• was in prison or institutionalised, or
• whereabouts were unknown and all reasonable efforts were made to locate them, or
• suffered a medical condition, or
• another reason, beyond the birth mothers (or initial primary carer in the case of adoption) control that prevented them being able to care for the child.

Where the birth mother (or initial primary carer in the case of adoption) voluntarily choose not to care for the child, it was not considered an exceptional circumstance.

Was the birth mother (or initial primary carer in the case of adoption) incapable of caring for the child for at least 26 weeks?

• Yes, the customer must have provided evidence to confirm the reason why the birth mother (or initial primary carer in the case of adoption) was incapable of caring for the child i.e. hospitalised. If the customer was:
• the partner of the birth mother, adoptive parent or the other legal parent, go to Step 8
• not the partner of the birth mother, adoptive parent or the other legal parent, go to Step 7
• No, the customer may be eligible for the remainder of the PPL entitlement if the primary claimant was incapable of caring for the child for a temporary period of less than 26 weeks. The customer needed to test their eligibility as a secondary/tertiary claimant

For another person (i.e. grandparent, extended family member) to have received PPL for the child in exceptional circumstances both the birth mother (or initial primary carer in the case of adoption) and their partner (if they had one) must have been incapable of caring for the child for a period of at least 26 weeks.

The customer must provide evidence to confirm:

• they were the primary carer of the child such as a court order, medical evidence etc. the birth mother (or initial primary carer in the case of adoption) was incapable of caring for the child
• the birth mother’s (or initial primary carer in the case of adoption) partner (if they had one) was incapable of caring for the child

Where the birth mother (or initial primary carer in the case of adoption) and their partner (if they have one) voluntarily choose not to care for the child, it would not be considered an exceptional circumstance.

Were the birth mother (or initial primary carer in the case of adoption) and their partner (if they had one) both incapable of caring for the child for at least 26 weeks?

• Yes, if the customer had
• provided sufficient evidence to confirm the exceptional circumstance, go to Step 8
• not provided sufficient evidence, ask them for more information. See Information requests for FTB and PPL claims, and Add Newborn and PPL change of circumstances activities
• No, the customer may have been eligible for the remainder of the PPL entitlement if the primary claimant was incapable of caring for the child for a temporary period of less than 26 weeks. The customer needed to test their eligibility as a secondary/tertiary claimant.

Based on the evidence provided did the customer met the eligibility for PPL under the exceptional circumstances criteria?

• Yes, the customer could be paid up to 18 weeks of PPL as a primary claimant. If:
• no one had received PPL for the child, go to Table 2 > Step 1
• PPL has previously been paid for the child (and meets all other PPL eligibility), Additional Primary Claimant coding and claim finalisation is required by a Families Override Officer. See Recording overrides for Paid Parental Leave scheme claims

Note: if a customer had met the exceptional circumstances criteria but failed either the work test or the income test when assessing the primary claimant eligibility, they needed to test their eligibility as a secondary/tertiary claimant

• No, the customer may still had been be eligible for the remainder of PPL if there was an existing eligible primary claimant receiving PPL for the child and the primary claimant transferred some of the PPL entitlement to them as a secondary claimant. Otherwise, their claim for PPL will reject ACN (additional circumstances not met)

To receive PPL, a person must have been the primary carer of the PPL child (or would have been the primary carer had the child not been stillborn or died).

• Birth mother who ceased caring for the child could remain eligible for PPL in the 18 weeks immediately after the birth, if they:
• relinquished care of the child for adoption
• relinquished care of the child as a part of a surrogacy arrangement
• had the child removed from their care by a state or territory child protection authority, acting under child protection legislation
• If the birth mother was in prison they could meet the primary carer rule if they gave birth in prison and cared for their child in prison or, if imprisoned after the birth, they continued to care for the child in prison
• If the primary carer was temporarily unable to care for the child, they may have remained eligible if it was due to circumstances beyond their control and the period was expected to be less than 26 weeks
• If the primary carer lost care of the child, they may have remained eligible if care was:
• lost without legal authority, or
• disputed, and the customer took reasonable steps to have the child returned to their care. This included periods before a claim was made
• Adoptive and gaining parents in a surrogacy arrangement could also be eligible for 18 weeks of PPL immediately following the birth as the primary claimant regardless of any period the birth mother received PPL. In these cases, the child will have 2 separate CRN’s:
• one with the birth mother, and
• another one with the adoptive/gaining parent

Temporary absences from caring for the child may be permitted, but were limited to the time necessary for respite care or other reasonable purposes

Were the primary care requirements met?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No, the customer would not be eligible for PPL. Check if NBS/NBU can be assessed with the customer's (or their partner's) FTB. Procedure ends here

Claimants must generally have met the PPL scheme work test. Exceptions and exemptions may apply. For example:

• medical conditions
• premature births
• natural disasters
• special circumstances, and
• exemptions for secondary claimants in exceptional circumstances

The customer may be requested to provide evidence to support the PPL work test.

Did the customer satisfy (or were exempt from) the PPL work test?

• Yes, go to Step 3
• No, the customer was not eligible for PPL. See Eligibility for Family Tax Benefit (FTB) and Eligibility for Newborn Supplement (NBS)/Newborn Upfront Payment (NBU). Procedure ends here

There was only an individual income test for PPL claimants with a child born between 1 July 2020 and 30 June 2023. The customer must have met the PPL income test. For the PPL income test threshold, see Individual PPL income limit.

The customer may be required to provide evidence to support the PPL income test.

Note: if the customer indicated in their online claim they have other income components, for example foreign income, negatively geared investments, net rental property losses etc. than a tax notice of assessment (NOA) issued by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) will not be sufficient as evidence. The customer will need to provide additional evidence such as their full Income Tax Return (ITR).

For more information, see Paid Parental Leave income test and previous financial year income estimate.

Did the customer satisfy the PPL income test?

• Yes, go to Step 4
• No, the customer was not eligible for PPL. Procedure ends here

The customer must have:

• met the Australian residence requirements for the full PPL Period and each of their nominated Flexible PPL days
• been residentially qualified from the PPL child's date of birth or entry to care

Newly Arrived Residence Waiting period (NARWP)

New Australian residents claiming PPL were subject to a NARWP if their first permanent resident or partner provisional visa (309 or 820) was granted on or after 1 January 2019. This means before the customer became payable they must have met one or more waiting period/s totalling at least 104 weeks before the child’s date of birth/adoption.

To be eligible for PPL a customer must either have served the NARWP or be exempt from the NARWP.

• Primary claimants: must have completed the NARWP before the child's date of birth or entry into care
• Secondary claimants: must have completed the NARWP before their PPL start date. Note: payment could not be transferred to a secondary claimant if a primary claimant was still serving their NARWP on or after their child's date of birth or entry to care

If a customer was eligible for an exemption to the NARWP, it applied for their full PPL period and any connected Flexible PPL days. However, any Flexible PPL days not connected to the end of the PPL period had a residence assessment applied on the nominated Flexible PPL day. This may have affected the customer’s eligibility for the Flexible PPL day if their NARWP exemption no longer applied.

PPL may be paid while the customer is overseas during a temporary absence. See Australian residence requirements for more information.

Did the customer satisfy the residence requirements for PPL?

• Yes, go to Step 5
• No, the customer was not eligible for PPL. Procedure ends here

The PPL period ceased to be payable when the customer returned to work after they became the primary carer of the child until the end of their PPL period, unless for a permissible purpose, such as a ‘keeping in touch’ (KIT) day.

There are some exceptions that can be applied where the customer has returned to work.

Generally a customer must have lodged their PPL claim before they returned to work. There are some of exceptions to this rule:

• the customer:
• lodged an effective claim within 28 days of the child's date of birth (DOB), and
• nominated a start date of the child's DOB or a date before they returned to work, or
• was transferring the full amount of their PPL to another person
• met the PPL extended work test or received COVID-19 Disaster Payment (paid by Services Australia on or after 3 June 2021) during their 10 month qualifying period, and
• nominated a start date which was before their return to work date

In Process Direct

To record the customer has returned to work for the first time since the child’s birth or adoption:

• Go to PPL Employment Dates (P1ED) screen
• Select Add
• Return to Work: date the customer returned to work
• Exception Reason: leave blank

To record the customer has performed work for an allowable exception reason:

• Go to PPL Employment Dates (P1ED) screen
• Select Add
• Return to Work: date the customer returned to work
• Exception Reason: select relevant reason from the drop down box:
• CIC - Change of care without consent
• NCH - Newborn child remains in hospital
• CYC - Court ordered summons
• DLW - Defence force/ law enforcement worker
• HEW - Health/emergency/other essential worker
• SID – Stillborn or child died

Go to Step 6.

Customers could:

• transfer some or all of their PPL period to another person, such as their partner or the child’s other parent
• give permission for another person to claim some or all of their Flexible PPL days

Was the customer transferring some or all of their PPL period to another person?

• Yes, for:
• a partial transfer of the PPL period, go to Step 7
• a full transfer of the PPL period, go to Step 8
• giving permission to Flexible PPL days only, go to Step 11
• No, go to Step 12

For a partial transfer of PPL period:

• the primary claimant must have met the full PPL eligibility criteria for each day of the PPL period between the child’s date of birth or entry into care date and the end of their PPL period (transfer date)
• the secondary claimant must have lodged an effective claim for PPL and meet the full PPL eligibility criteria for each day beginning on their PPL period start date (transfer date) and ending at their maximum PPL period end date

The primary claimant’s application must have been assessed before the secondary claimant's claim could be assessed. This ensured the secondary claimant's entitlement was assessed correctly once their PPL period commenced.

When processing the partial transfer of the PPL period, transfer details were updated in:

• Process Direct: Child in Primary Care (CIPC) screen for a new claim
• Customer First: Child in Primary Care (!CiPC) screen for a change of circumstances

To record the child as leaving the customer’s primary care:

• Date of event: date primary care is being transferred
• Carer: primary claimant
• In Primary Care: No
• Reason: Transfer unused portion of PLP to the partner or Transfer unused portion of PLP to another person

Note: the secondary claimant's PPL period start date is the day after the primary claimant’s PPL period end date. There cannot be a break in the PPL period.

Was the primary claimant eligible for PPL?

• Yes, go to Step 10
• No, reject the PPL claim. Procedure ends here

Primary claimants only needed to meet limited eligibility criteria when transferring their full PPL period entitlement to a secondary claimant.

In cases where the primary claimant was transferring their full PPL period entitlement to a secondary claimant such as their partner, because they only meet the limited eligibility criteria (for example they have returned to work), it was essential that both the primary and secondary claimants lodged their claims at the same time.

When processing the full transfer of the PPL period, was updated in:

• Process Direct: Child in Primary Care (CIPC) screen for a new claim
• Customer First: Child in Primary Care (!CiPC) screen for a change of circumstances

To record the child as leaving the customer’s primary care:

• Date of event: date primary care is being transferred
• Carer: primary claimant
• In Primary Care: No
• Reason: Transfer full PLP Ent to Another Person or Transfer Full PPL Ent to Partner

The Resources page contains examples of scenarios for these types of cases.

When a primary claimant requested a full transfer to a secondary claimant, the Service Officer processed the secondary claim immediately after processing the primary claim. This applied to both pre-birth claims and post birth claims.

Did the secondary claimant lodged a claim for PPL at the same time?

• Yes, go to Step 10
• No. If the primary claimant:
• met the limited eligibility criteria, go to Step 9
• did not meet the limited eligibility criteria, the PPL claim will automatically reject for the relevant reason i.e. Work Test (WHT)/ Income (INC) etc.
• As the primary claimant didn’t meet the limited eligibility criteria, a secondary claimant was not eligible for any PPL. The secondary claimants claim for PPL automatically rejected additional circumstances not met (ACN) when the claim was processed. Procedure ends here.

If a secondary claimant's claim:

• had not been lodged, the primary claimant’s claim was placed on 'H'old to await the secondary claimant's claim lodgement
• had not been lodged within the required timeframe, the primary claimant's claim was manually made non-effective 'OTH'er (NEF/OTH) in:
• Process Direct (PPL standalone claims): code NEF with reason 'OTH' on the PPL Claim Action (P1CA) screen
• Customer First (FTB/PPL combined claims): code NEF with reason 'OTH' on the PPL Claim Action (P1CA) screen after keying 'A' next to the relevant claim line on the PPL Claim Summary (P1CS) screen

Note: claims that have been deemed NEF because the 'missing claim' was not lodged within the required timeframe could be re-indexed when the missing claim was lodged. See Not effective, rejection or withdrawal of claim for Parental Leave Pay (PPL) for details on re-indexing the claim.

For information about issuing requests and managing customer tasks, see Information requests for FTB and PPL claims, and Add Newborn and PPL change of circumstances activities.

The PPL period start date for a secondary claimant was determined by the primary claimant. Secondary claimants could not nominate the start date for the PPL period.

In their claim, the primary claimant must have nominated the start date for the PPL period. See nominated start date definition on the Resources page.

Full transfer: If the primary claimant transferred all of their PPL period to the secondary claimant, the start date for the secondary claimant depended on the following factors:

Establishing the primary claimant's nominated start date (NSD)

• If proof of birth and an effective PPL claim were provided by the primary claimant's NSD, the secondary claimant’s PPL start date was the primary claimant's NSD
• If proof of birth and an effective PPL claim were provided after the primary claimant's NSD but within 28 days of the birth/entrustment to care, the secondary claimant’s PPL start date was the primary claimant's NSD
• If proof of birth and an effective PPL claim were provided after the NSD and more than 28 days after the birth/entrustment to care, the date the proof of birth and/or the date the claim was lodged will be the primary claimant’s NSD and therefore became the secondary claimant’s PPL start date
  Note: the NSD could be backdated to the child’s date of birth/entrustment to care date if the customer:
• met the PPL Extended Work Test (EWT). JobKeeper Payment cannot be paid for the same period the customer was claiming PPL
• received a COVID-19 Disaster Payment (paid by Services Australia on or after 3 June 2021) during their 10 month qualifying period.
  Note: customers who nominated a PPL period start date in the past, had ‘28D - Backdating the start date’ displayed on the Paid Parental Leave Exemption (P1EX) screen. This code is system generated for advice only. It could not be applied by a Service Officer
• If the primary claimant had nominated an NSD in the future which is a later date than the date proof of birth and/or claim is lodged, then the secondary claimants NSD was the future date

Date the child entered the secondary claimant's primary care

• If this was on the date that would have been the primary claimant's start date, this date was the secondary claimant's start date
• If this was after the date that would have been the primary claimant's start date, the date the secondary claimant gained primary care was the secondary claimant's start date. In this situation the PPL period for the secondary claimant was reduced by the time between the primary claimant's start date and the date the secondary claimant gained primary care

The secondary claimant's claim for PPL should be:

• finalised at the same time, and
• the secondary claimant notified of the claim outcome/status

Go to Step 12.

Primary claimants gave permission for another person to claim some or all of their 30 Flexible PPL days.

This could be done when they claimed PPL or later.

If a customer gave permission for another person to claim some or all of their Flexible PPL days, the secondary claimant:

• had to submit a claim, and
• be found eligible for PPL

The primary claimant’s claim had to be assessed before the secondary claimant’s claim.

The primary claimant could remove permission at any time:

• during the pre-birth assess stage (pre-birth claims only)
• before the secondary claimant had claimed and nominated dates for the Flexible PPL days

For the purposes of claiming Flexible PPL days, multiple secondary claimants could be linked to a child.

PPL claim status

The primary claimant’s PPL claim level status was CZR-FLX (current zero rate) until all Flexible PPL days had been claimed. Note: this included where the primary claimant had transferred their full entitlement.

This enabled the primary claimant to remove permission for the secondary claimant to claim remaining Flexible PPL days that had not been claimed by a secondary claimant.

Customers who were CZR-FLX received an 18 month reminder if remaining Flexible PPL days have not yet been taken.

If the primary claimant indicated in their PPL claim that they were not transferring any of their PPL entitlement to another person, no other person could be paid the PPL period or Flexible PPL days for the child.

Where a secondary claimant submitted a claim for PPL and the primary claimant had not transferred any of the period to them, the secondary claimants PPL period was rejected. The secondary claimants’ overall PPL claim status would be PPL/ASS-AFN on the PPL Claim Summary (P1CS) and Entitlement (ELD) screens. This enabled the secondary claimant to claim any Flexible PPL days the primary claimant may give permission for them to claim at a later date.

Go to Step 13.

A customer could not receive JobKeeper Payment for the same period they received PPL. It was the customer’s responsibility to advise their employer the start date and end date of their PPL period (not the dates PPL was received).

A customer could select a Nominated Start Date (NSD) for their PPL period that was after their JobKeeper Payment period only where they have not returned to work.

Customers could not receive a Disaster Recovery Allowance (DRA) from the Commonwealth government (i.e. Services Australia) for the same period they receive PPL.

Did the customer (or their partner) receive NBU/NBS for the child with FTB Part A?

Note: FTB Part B is not payable at the same time as PPL. If the customer was already paid FTB Part B and was later granted PPL for the same period, the FTB Part B will be a recoverable debt. See Assessing Parental Leave Pay (PPL) claims for more details on FTB Part B.

• Yes, the customer cannot be paid PPL and NBU/NBS for the same child. However, customers could choose to claim PPL after NBS has been paid. If the customer chose to change their claim choice within the allowable timeframe, the NBS and Newborn Upfront Payment (NBU) already paid will be a recoverable debt. Go to Step 14
• No, go to Step 14

Customers had to provide proof of the child's birth or verification of the child entering the customer's care if it had not already been given to Services Australia. This included proof of a stillborn child.

Multiple birth

PPL was only paid for one child in a multiple birth.

Exception: PPL could be paid if there was a significant delay (e.g. 5 days or more) between the separate birth events for each child.

In these cases:

• the customer had to provide a letter from the doctor/midwife who attended the births confirming that the children were:
• of the same pregnancy, and
• born in separate birthing events

These claims were referred to Level 2 Policy Helpdesk for assessment before being processed by a Service Officer.

The separate birthing events could be less than 5 days apart, but this would be confirmed by the doctor/midwife.

Birth registration

To be eligible for a newborn child, parent(s) must have notified Services Australia they had registered, or had applied to register, the child's birth with the State/Territory Births registry. Customers could notify this verbally.

Exception: This did not apply to:

• stillborn children
• adoptions
• children born overseas, or
• children entrusted to care as part of a surrogacy arrangement

To be eligible for Flexible PPL days a person must have met the eligibility requirements for PPL period, or would have been eligible for a PPL period had they not:

• returned to work,
• transferred the PPL period to a secondary claimant, or
• lost their NARWP exemption after their child's date of birth/entry into care and before the PPL period start date

Customers were required to choose how and when they wanted to be paid their Flexible PPL days. Flexible PPL days could be:

• connected to the PPL period, as a block of up to 6 weeks (30 days). This gave them a continuous block of PPL of up to 18 weeks. Connected days were paid on the weekdays immediately after their PPL period. Connected Flexible PPL days were delivered the same way as their PPL period, except where the connected days were 52 weeks after the child’s birth/adoption. Services Australia was the paymaster for any PPL days after this date
• paid separately at any time after the PPL period and up to the PPL child’s second birthday / anniversary of adoption. These days were paid by Services Australia and could be paid on any day of the week, including weekends. The customer selected the dates they wanted to get these days
• given to another person to claim, primary claimants could give permission for another person to claim some or all of their Flexible PPL days (such as their partner or the child’s other parent). The other person (secondary claimant) had:
• to claim,
• meet eligibility criteria, and
• choose how and when they want to receive these days

Customers told Services Australia when they wanted to claim Flexible PPL days in their initial claim for PPL or at a later time online, by phone, or in person.

To be eligible to get Flexible PPL on a day the customer must have:

• been the primary carer of the PPL child
• not been working (they can be on paid or unpaid leave). Note: exemptions applied for work performed for permissible purpose, Keeping in Touch (KIT) days and allowable exception reasons
• met Australian residence requirements
• completed the Flexible PPL declaration. (The Resources page contains the declaration text)

Customers could not be paid Flexible PPL on any day that:

• they or another person were being paid PPL for the same child
• they had been paid Dad and Partner Pay (DAP) for the child
• was before or during the PPL period (or their nominated PPL period dates if they are not eligible for the PPL period) if
• was before the child’s date of birth/adoption
• was after the child’s second birthday/anniversary of adoption
• they were receiving Flexible PPL for another child

In limited circumstances, customers could be granted a Flexible PPL day on a date that was more than 42 days in the past. This included customers that had attempted to claim Flexible PPL within the required timeframe, however their claim was not finalised in time due to a system issue or other circumstances.

When actioning Flexible PPL updates for a customer, ensure where PPL updates are required:

• within a new claim (NCL), these updates are to be made within the NCL activity in Process Direct
• after a claim is assessed due to a customer advising a change in circumstance, these updates are to be actioned from Customer Summary
• Enter START in the Super Key
• select the PPL Change of Circumstances workflow from the Task Selector

Flexible PPL days must not be updated by navigating to individual specific screens and making the updates outside of a new claim or the PPL change of circumstance workflow.

To:

• claim new Flexible PPL days (single or multiple days), see Step 4
• claim Flexible PPL days more than 42 days in the past, see Step 5
• rejecting previously paid Flexible PPL days, see Step 6
• give or remove primary claimant permission for another person to claim Flexible PPL days, see Table 4

A customer could only claim a Flexible PPL day if they had days in their Flexible days available balance. They would need to withdraw one or more of their future claimed days before they could nominate a new date. It will then return to their Flexible days available balance. See Table 4 for rejecting/withdrawing a claimed Flexible PPL day.

To launch the PPL Change of Circumstances workflow:

• Key START into the Super Key and select the PPL Change of Circumstances workflow from the Task Selector
• Select the Parental Leave Pay Days and select Start
• On the P1FLX screen select to expand the PPL Summary tab
• On the Flexible PPL days table select Add

Adding single PPL days

Complete the details of the date nominated by the customer:

• Entry type: Single Entry (single entry with default to the radio button selected)
• Flexible start date: key the date 'dd/mm/yyyy' or use the calendar icon to select the date the customer is claiming
• Source: select the relevant source (CSO, CUS or EMP)
• Reason: NOM - Nominated by customer (will default for adding a day)
• Customer Declaration: Yes

Adding multiple PPL days

If the customer chose to have the same days for a number of weeks e.g. 4 weeks:

• Entry type: Multiple Entries (radio button will default to single entry)
• Recur frequency: enter the number of weeks the consecutive pattern is to recur
• Days Checkbox: select the day(s) of the week the customer wants the PPL days to occur on
• Flexible start date: enter the date 'dd/mm/yyyy' or use the calendar icon to select the date/s the customer is claiming. The start date must be at least the day after the PPL period end date
• No of days: enter the number of days the customer wishes to use as Flexible days. The No. of days will only be applied up to the number of Flexible PPL days the customer has available
• Source: select the relevant source (CSO, CUS or EMP)
• Reason: NOM - Nominated by customer (will default for adding a day/s)
• Customer Declaration: Yes

If the customer chose to have a recurring pattern of days for a set period. For example, when a customer nominates to have Flexible PPL days every 4 weeks on Monday and Fridays.

• Entry type: Multiple Entries (radio button will default to single entry)
• Recur frequency: select relevant frequency e.g. 4-4 week (this will allow the Flexible days to repeat every 4 weeks
• Days Checkbox: select the day(s) of the week the customer wants to use for PPL days.
• Flexible start date: enter the date 'dd/mm/yyyy' or use the calendar icon to select the date the customer is claiming. The start date must be at least the day after the PPL period end date
• No of days: enter the number of days the customer wishes to use as Flexible days.
• End Date: the end date will be calculated based on the no of days.
• Source: select the relevant source (CSO, CUS or EMP)
• Reason: NOM - Nominated by customer (will default for adding a day/s)
• Customer Declaration: Yes

Select Save.

The number of days will only be applied up to the number of Flexible PPL days the customer has available.

If a recurrence crosses over with a date they have already claimed, this date will only be paid once.

These updates will be provisional until the Change of Circumstance activity has been finalised:

• Update Receipt date, Channel and Service Reason fields
• Select Save

Once all updates are completed finalise the change of Circumstances transaction.

Customers could claim a Flexible PPL day for a date that is more than 42 days in the past if:

• the customer attempted to claim the Flexible PPL day/s within the allowable 42 day claim period, and
• the activity failed to complete due to a system issue or processing delay

DOCs on the customers record and/or activity dates can be used to verify any issues.

An error 'E307P1' Flexible PPL day is more than 42 days in the past will present if a date nominated is more than 42 in the past.

Not part of a New Claim (NCL) activity

• Key START in the Super Key, select the PPL Change of Circumstances workflow from the Task Selector
• Select the Parental Leave Pay Days, then select Start
• From the Parental Leave Pay Days (P1FLX) screen, select for the relevant claim ID to open the PPL Summary tab
• To update Flexible Days, go to the Flexible Days tab and select Add.
• Ensure the Reason is coded as: 42D - Date is greater than 42 days in the past
• Source: CSO - service officer
• Customer Declaration: Yes
• Select Save

Note: an override in this circumstance will only be applied if the source is 'CSO'.

• Update Receipt date, Channel and Service Reason fields
• Select Save

Once all updates are completed finalise the change of circumstances transaction.

Within a New Claim (NCL) activity

To record a Flexible PPL day more than 42 days in the past:

• within the new claim, navigate to the P1FLX screen
• Select Edit next to the unconfirmed line
• Select from the drop down box:
• Source: CSO
• Reason: 'Date is greater than 42 days in the past'
• Declaration: Yes
• Select Save
• Update Receipt date, Channel and Service Reason fields
• Select Save

Note: an override in this circumstance will only be applied if the source is 'CSO'.

Where the nominated Flexible Day is no longer required or payable, within a New Claim (NCL) activity

To remove a Flexible PPL more than 42 days in the past within the new claim, go to the P1FLX screen:

• Select Edit next to the unconfirmed line. This will now change the line to provisional and the delete option available
• Delete the nominated Flexible PPL day/s that are more than 42 days in the past that are no longer required. These days will be returned to the customers Flexible PPL balance to claim later

Flexible PPL day claimed for a date in the past

Previously claimed Flexible PPL days can be rejected if:

• there has been a change in circumstances, and
• the customer is no longer eligible for PPL on the day (such as returning to work, change in care of the child, change in residency)

If the customer's PPL entitlement has been reassessed and:

• an overpayment is identified, it may be offset against any PPL arrears
• a debt is identified, DOC the customer's record. The debt shell will auto-allocate to the appropriate debt team for investigation

The Resources page contains a full list of Flexible PPL component level rejection codes.

To reject a Flexible PPL day claimed for a date in the past due to:

• when the customer has worked on a claimed Flexible PPL day/s in the past, go to Step 7
• is no longer primary carer on claimed Flexible PPL day/s in the past, go to Step 8

If the customer is advising they worked on a day or days they received Flexible PPL the day must be rejected.

A customer is considered to be working on a day if, on that day:

• they perform 1 hour or more of paid work, and
• an allowable exception reason does not apply or the work performed is not for a permissible purpose

To reject a Flexible PPL day the customer has worked on:

• Key START in the Super Key, select the PPL Change of Circumstances workflow from the Task Selector. Select the Parental Leave Pay Days, then select Start
• From the Parental Leave Pay Days (P1FLX) screen, select for the relevant claim ID to open the PPL Summary tab
• To remove a Flexible Day due to working on a flexible day, go to the Flexible Days tab
• Select the relevant Flexible Day line and select Edit
• Flexible start date: will display the date previously chosen as a flexible day
• Reason: If rejecting the number of day, use 'WOF - Working on Flexible Day'
• Source: CUS – select the relevant source (CSO, CUS or EMP)
• Customer Declaration: Yes
• Select Save
• Update Receipt date, Channel and Service Reason fields
• Select Save

Note: repeat process if there are multiple days the customer is working on.

Once all updates are completed finalise the change of Circumstance transaction.

To reject/withdraw days for a different reason repeat the process for each reason. Multiple rejections can be completed in the one activity.

See Parental Leave Pay (PPL) debt raising, debt offsetting and recovery.

If the customer advises they did not have primary care of the child on a previously paid Flexible PPL day, the day must be rejected.

To reject a Flexible PPL day the customer does not have Primary Care of the PPL child:

• Key START in the Super Key, select the PPL Change of Circumstances workflow from the Task Selector. Select the Parental Leave Pay Days, then select Start
• From the Parental Leave Pay Days (P1FLX) screen, select for the relevant claim ID to open the PPL Summary tab
• To remove a Flexible Day due to not having Primary Care of the PPL child, go to the Flexible Days tab
• Select the relevant Flexible Day line and select Edit:
• Flexible start date: will display the date previously chosen as a flexible day
• Reason: If rejecting the number of day, use 'NPF - Customer not primary care of child'
• Source: CUS - select the relevant source (CSO, CUS or EMP)
• Customer Declaration: Yes
• Select Save
• Update Receipt date, Channel and Service Reason fields
• Select Save

Repeat process if there are multiple days the customer is not the primary carer on.

Once all updates are completed finalise the change of circumstances transaction.

To reject/withdraw days for a different reason repeat the process for each reason. Multiple rejections can be completed in the one activity.

See Parental Leave Pay (PPL) debt raising, debt offsetting and recovery.

Note: the Flexible PPL Days section does not need to be updated when claiming and managing connected Flexible PPL days. This section relates to updates to connected and transferred (given permission) days only. An error will present if fields in this section are updated when managing not connected Flexible PPL days.

Primary claimants could give permission for another person to claim some or all of their Flexible PPL days, up to the number of days in their Flexible days available balance.

If the customer's available balance of Flexible days was zero:

• future dates already claimed could have been rejected
• paid days could be rejected where the customer was ineligible for the day

These days would be returned to their available balance. The customer could then give permission for another person to claim them. An overpayment may occur if:

• a rejected day is in the past, and
• is has already been paid to the customer or their employer

To give permission:

• Key START in the Super Key, select the PPL Change of Circumstances workflow from the Task Selector. Select the Parental Leave Pay Days, then select Start
• From the Parental Leave Pay Days (P1FLX) screen, select for the relevant claim ID to open the PPL Summary tab
• To give permission to another person, go to the Flexible Days given to others tab
• Select Edit
• PPL days given to others: will display the current number of days given to others. To update, change the number to the number of days advised by the customer. E.g. If '0' days is listed, change to '5'
• Select Save
• Update Receipt date, Channel and Service Reason fields
• Select Save

Once all updates are completed finalise the change of circumstances transaction.

Within a New Claim (NCL) activity in Process Direct

If the PPL claim has not been finalised, and is showing a status of NCL, updates can be made within the new claim in Process Direct.

• Select the new claim transaction in Process Direct, select Process
• Go to the Parental Leave Pay days (P1FLX) screen
• Expand the relevant claim to show Flexible Days Given To Others
• Add a row or Edit the existing row if there is existing provisional data
• Enter the number of Flexible PPL days the customer wants to give to others
• Reason: select 'Nominated by customer'
• Source: select the relevant source (CSO, Customer or Employer)
• Customer declaration: select 'Yes'

If the primary claimant has given permission for another person to claim some or all of their Flexible PPL days, this permission could be removed during the:

• pre-birth stage, at any time
• post-birth stage, before a secondary claimant had claimed and nominated a date for the days

On the Parental Leave Pay Days (P1FLX) screen, select for the relevant claim ID to open the PPL Summary tab.

To give permission to another person:

• go to the Flexible Days given to others tab
• select Edit
• PPL days given to others: will display the current number of days given to others. To update, change the number to the number of days advised by the customer. E.g. If '5' days is listed, change to '0'
• select Save