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Claiming Youth Allowance (YA) (job seeker) 001-04020000

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This page contains information on how to help a customer claim YA (job seeker).

Select the relevant tab:

  • A self service option is available The Self service tab explains how to help a person make a claim online
  • The Assisted tab explains how to check a person's circumstances to make sure a new claim is required, complete an Assisted Customer Claim (ACC) with them, and lodgement of claims and documentation

Assisted

On this Page:

Contact about claiming YA (job seeker)

Assisted Customer Claims (ACC)

Actioning a facilitated claim review work item following a Disability Support Pension (DSP) Medical Risk Based Review with a notifiable event

Contact about claiming YA (job seeker)


Table 1

Expand table

Step

Action

1

Initial contact

For information about eligibility, see Eligibility for Youth Allowance (YA) (job seeker).

Where the customer is unable or unwilling to claim online, they can claim JSP via:

  • Assisted Customer Claim (ACC), or
  • Paper claim (SY001). The Job Seeker Snapshot Offline form must also be completed where the customer will be uncontactable to complete the Participation Interview. For example, a customer being serviced via Outreach who does not have access to their phone. See the Resources page for a link to the form

Smart Centre Service Officers can transfer the call to the Remote Claims Processing (RCP) team, using Services Australia workspace, if:

  • the remote indicator is showing on the Customer Overview, or
  • the residential address is in a remote location

A claim for YA (job seeker) can be lodged up to 13 weeks before the first day on which a person is qualified. The claim is taken to be made on the day on which they qualify.

There is an exception to this rule. A detained person may lodge a claim up to 3 weeks before release from prison. These claims are not considered early claims, as the customer is qualified for the payment at the time of claiming.

Customers cannot submit an early claim online.

Is the customer under 16 and unsupported?

2

Customer under 16

If the customer is under 16 and unsupported, refer them now to a social worker.

Consider and record an Intent to claim for vulnerable customers.

Once the customer has spoken to a social worker and YA (job seeker) has been deemed the most appropriate payment, the customer must complete a paper claim (SY001).

When the paper claim is:

  • scanned onto a customer's record, the system creates a Social Online Application (SOA) Shell. This is created as a Youth Allowance (student) claim
  • uploaded by the customer through Upload Documents, a SOA Shell does not auto-create. Manually create the claim using the SOA Shell application in Process Direct by selecting Youth Allowance (student)

The SOA shell must be re-categorised to the correct work item:

  • Youth Allowance job seeker (ZALL_ZJSP_NCL_PAPER)

Procedure ends here.

3

Transfers

Is the customer currently receiving an income support payment?

4

Online claim offer

Is the customer willing and able to complete the claim online?

  • Yes, make sure they have a Centrelink online account linked to myGov and help them to complete their claim online. See the Self service tab
  • No, go to Step 5

5

Assisted Customer Claims (ACC)

The Assisted Customer Claim (ACC) replicates the questions in the online claim. Service Officers are to use ACC when a customer:

  • is unable or unsuitable to complete an online claim
  • is unwilling to claim online, or
  • has lodged a paper claim (SY001), where the SY001 is:
    • uploaded by the customer through Upload Documents:
      - the ACC must be run to create a claim activity
    • scanned onto a customer's record:
      - the system creates a Social Online Application (SOA) Shell, which is created as a Youth Allowance (student) claim and must be re-categorised to the correct work item: Youth Allowance job seeker (ZALL_ZJSP_NCL_PAPER)

ACC will identify all documents required from the customer before the claim can be submitted. The Service Officer or the customer can upload any required documents.

If the required documents include a form, the customer can print it from the Services Australia website, or the Service Officer can issue it.

For information about completing the ACC with the customer, see Table 2.

Intent to claim provisions apply for vulnerable customers.


Assisted Customer Claims (ACC)


Table 2

Expand table

Step

Action

1

Before starting ACC

Check the Document List (DL) screen for any DOCs relevant to a claim for YA.

Update the customer's personal details via the Change in Contact Details workflow, as the Assisted Customer Claim (ACC) no longer asks them.

If the ACC was started before that workflow was run, exit the claim and make the updates outside of the claim before submitting it. The updates will appear on the Review page in the ACC.

Note: do not update accommodation details using the Change in Contact Details workflow, they are updated in the ACC.

If the customer has ceased or deferred study:

  • update the Customer Study Details/Education Course Details (EDC) screen, see Coding new study details, and
  • update the Newstart Education Status (NES) screen
    • In the Event Date: field, enter the date study ceased + 1
    • In the Student Status: field, key 'NTS' for 'not a student'
    • In the Educ Level Attained: field, update the customer's level of education attained, if applicable
    • If the customer is under 18 years of age and has an exemption to study key the exemption reason in the U18 Study Exemption Rsn: field. See field help (‘?’) for assistance
      Note: do not record an exemption for under 18 year old customers who cease full time study from 1 January 2008 or later, and did not advise Centrelink within 14 days
    • In the Exemption End date: field, record the end date for the exemption
    • Complete the Source: and DOR: fields
    • Key 'I' in the Action: field and press [Enter]

When a customer advises:

2

Start ACC

Access the ACC via the ACC desktop icon or Workspace > Claims Online > Assisted Customer Claims.

The Customer Claim Summary page will display any current and historical claims.

  • Select the Make a claim link
  • Select the Get started link under the Looking for work category
  • Information about JobSeeker Payment (JSP) and YA will display, depending on the customer's age
  • On the Check Eligibility section:
    • read the privacy message and select the customer's response
    • answer the streaming questions to check their eligibility for the payment
    • update the Source and Date of Receipt fields, if necessary
  • Select Claim now

3

Claim progress

A Claim progress window on the left of the screen lists all question sets to be completed.

As each section is completed, it will display as green with a tick. Once completed, select the tile to go to the question set to change the customer's responses.

If the customer is unable to answer questions, the claim can be continued later.

At the end of each set of questions, select:

  • Next to go to the next set of questions (on some pages, information may have to be saved first)
  • Back to check previous answers

4

About me

Question sets include:

  • Relationship Details
  • Contact Requirements
  • Australian Residence
  • Accommodation
  • Child Details

5

My Circumstances

Questions will ask the customer to provide information on their previous circumstances before applying for payment. Circumstances the customers may select include:

  • wage/salary earner (full-time, part-time, or casual)
  • seasonal, contract or intermittent wage/salary earner
  • self-employed
  • self-employed and wage/salary earner
  • student - full-time education
  • student - part-time education
  • student receiving ABSTUDY
  • apprentice or trainee
  • Community Development Employment Project
  • caring
  • in psychiatric confinement (14 days or more)
  • in gaol (14 days or more)
  • unemployed
  • other

Based on their selection, they will be asked further questions on the following pages:

  • Previous Employer details
  • Leave and Redundancy Payments
  • Seasonal Contract or Intermittent work details

If the customer selects any of the work-related circumstances, they must provide the date they last worked, if they are still employed, and details of their former employment such as the employer's name and contact details.

Additional circumstances

The customer will be asked a series of questions which will help determine if they are eligible for other assistance and services:

  • if they are pregnant and expect to give birth within the next 13 weeks, they must provide the expected date of delivery
  • if they are unable to look for work or participate in a suitable activity due to a medical condition or other reasons
  • if they are currently studying
  • if they are unemployed due to a voluntarily act or misconduct, see Unemployment due to a voluntary act or misconduct

6

My situation - specific questions for YA (job seeker)

For YA (job seeker), the customer will be asked the independence question set which includes:

  • independence question
  • Unreasonable to Live at Home (UTLAH)
  • away from home, and
  • regional classification

This question set will not display for the customer if:

  • they already have a non-reviewable independence coded on their record
  • in the relationships question set they indicate they are currently in a married or registered relationship
  • they have been partnered for more than 12 months
  • they have been in a partnered relationship that lasted at least 6 months and ended due to special circumstances

Select Save once all components are complete.

Note: if the customer indicates it is unreasonable for them to live at home, they may have to see a social worker.

When the claim is submitted, a work item is created to have a social worker UTLAH appointment booked.

7

My finances

Questions include:

  • payment instructions
  • income and asset modules based on the customer's responses to trigger questions in the claim

The customer is advised if there is existing income and asset information.

Employment details may be pre-filled through Single Touch Payroll (STP) in the online claim for the customer to confirm. To identify if:

  • a current STP employer was presented, the question 'Do you work for (employer)' will display in the claim slider
  • a previous STP employer was presented, 'Employer Reported' will be listed directly under 'Reason ceased work for employer'

If the customer has been presented with pre-filled STP data, see Single Touch Payroll (STP) in Centrelink claims

Online income and asset collection includes managed investments, shares, real estate, superannuation, income streams, funeral bonds, home equity conversion loans, gifting, foreign pensions, other government payments, compensation and/or damages, income and assets outside Australia, scholarships, other income, other assets, savings, and earnings.

Some question sets still require paper forms to be completed:

  • Private Trust (MOD PT)
  • Special Disability Trust (MOD SDT)
  • Private Company (MOD PC)
  • Business details (MOD F)

Customers can upload their supporting documents for income and assets by using the Upload documents service.

8

Review claim and customer declaration

Check all information is correct on the Review your claim page.

  • If mandatory information is missing, a red Update required message will display
  • Confirm the customer's contact details are correct. If required, exit ACC and update using the Change in Contact Details workflow. If contact or interpreter details need to be updated, go to the Other Contact Details (OCD) screen in Customer First to update

Customer declaration

Where ACC is used to support the claim process, encourage the customer to submit the claim using their Centrelink online account or the Express Plus Centrelink mobile app.

Note: nominees cannot access the Express Plus Centrelink mobile app on behalf of a customer. They can select Nominee access from the More menu in the app, which will securely redirect them to their Centrelink online account on their mobile internet browser.

If a customer is willing to do so, remind them they need to submit the claim, or it will expire after 13 weeks.

If the customer declines or is unable to submit their claim online:

  • read the customer the verbal declaration script from ACC
  • if they accept, tick the box on the Review your claim page to confirm the:
    • declaration script has been read, and
    • customer accepts

Once the verbal declaration is accepted and ACC submitted, a DOC containing this information will auto-display in the:

  • Process Direct notes
  • Customer First Super Case, and
  • Customer Claim Summary

9

New claim appointment

If the customer has provided all required documentation and can complete any required tasks at the time of running the ACC, assist them to book a new claim appointment from the Next steps section.

Until all other required tasks are actioned, a view button will display, unless exceptions apply. Once other required tasks are completed, a Book button presents.

Use the Book Appointment screen. The system sets the appointment and contact type, assist the customer to:

  • find an available date and time
  • if they have a current correspondence nominee, select who will be attending
  • what number they wish to be contacted on, they can select an existing number or 'other' where they are prompted to enter a number

Select Next to show their appointment details including:

  • date and time
  • appointment type
  • contact type
  • nominee details (if applicable)
  • what details to bring (where applicable)

A Reschedule button displays allowing rescheduling of the appointment, if needed.

If the customer has indicated they require an interpreter, they are prompted to contact Multilingual Services rather than booking an appointment online. Multilingual Services will book an appointment with an interpreter at the customer's local service centre.

If the customer does not have a contact number recorded in My profile, a message will display advising them to contact the agency or visit their nearest service centre to make an appointment or have their mutual obligation requirements assessed.

To manually book a job seeker online claim appointment for a customer, complete the relevant fields as below:

  • Appointment Type Jobseeker Online Claim Appointment
  • Service Reason Youth Allowance
  • Appointments Booking page will display the next available appointments within the customer's Service Zone area. Change the On this day field to the current days date and select Find to allow all available appointments to populate
  • Select the most appropriate Time
  • Confirm details with customer before selecting the Finish button

Once an appointment is booked the customers task will display as Done. They display with the View button, which allows them to view or reschedule the appointment.

The customer is prompted to submit their claim. Note: the system will check each night if appointments for the following day link to a submitted claim. If the customer has not submitted their claim, the system cancels the appointment, and the customer task will return to a status of Required.

10

Parental Income Test (PIT)

For information on completing the PIT as part of the required tasks of the online claim or ACC, see Step 11 in Table 1 on the Self service tab.

11

Completing tasks

Encourage customers to use their Centrelink online account or the Express Plus Centrelink mobile app to complete tasks and submit their claim.

On the Next steps page, there is an Upload button to upload documents.

If the customer uploaded or provided documents before starting the online claim or ACC, the document displays as Required on the Next steps page. The customer can either:

  • re-upload the document from the Next steps page
  • contact by phone or in person to have the Request & Manage Customer Tasks guided procedure run to change the document status from Required to Provided

Help the customer upload the documents and submit their claim online.

If necessary, scan the documents and run the Request & Manage Customer Tasks guided procedure to submit the ACC for the customer. Note: if this is done, the customer will not have access to the Claim Tracker or notification.

12

Jobseeker Online Claim Appointment

Service Officers skilled in Participation Interview and assessing job seeker claims must:

  • mark the book appointment task as 'mark as booked' and submit the claim via the ACC
  • conduct a Participation Interview and assess the claim

Where Service Officers are not skilled in Participation Interview, they must:

  • mark the book appointment task as 'mark as booked' via ACC, and
  • book a Jobseeker Online Claim Appointment via the Appointments icon in Process Direct

From the Booked Appointments screen, select Create new appointment and complete the following fields:

  • Appointment details
    • Appointment Type: Jobseeker Online Claim Appointment
    • Appointment Channel: Phone
    • Service Reason: Youth Allowance
  • Appointment Booking
    • On this day: select required date
    • Location: Participation Appointments Profile 2
    • Select the appointment time. Note: if the available time is in minus this means there are no available appointments currently
    • Select Save

13

Submit claim

To submit the claim via ACC, all mandatory questions must be answered, and all required documents must be provided, including identity documents where there is no Identity Confirmation Indicator (ICI) recorded. Exceptions will be made for some vulnerable customers.

Once all Required tasks are completed, Submit the claim.

The Claim Submission Details page will display:

  • Claim ID
  • Estimated Completion Date Range (ECDR), a date range that can be given to the customer
  • A 'withdraw claim' option
  • Tabs linking to Notifications, Tasks & Review claim details information

Note: complete the Participation Interview and processing of the new claim using Process Direct.

14

Pre-population of claim responses in the Job Seeker Snapshot

Responses to some questions in the Youth Allowance claim will be used to pre-populate similar questions in the Job Seeker Snapshot. The job seeker will have the opportunity to review the responses and make changes where required within the Job Seeker Snapshot online or staff assisted.


Actioning a facilitated claim review work item following a DSP Medical Risk Based Review with a notifiable event


Table 3: This table describes the steps to process an Assisted Customer Claim (ACC) for customers assessed as no longer eligible for DSP.

Expand table

Step

Action

1

Action required after DSP review decision

YA Job Seeker Review (YA/REV) Future Activity List (FAL) activity matures and allocates via Workload Manager. See the MRBR Decision - DSP SOI DOC for DSP cancellation details.

Has the customer applied for a formal review of the DSP review decision being appealed:

  • Yes, the customer is not to be contacted when the FAL activity matures
    • complete the YA Review (YA/REV) activity
    • the Service Officer must annotate the MRBR Decision - DSP SOI DOC with DSP-CUR/PPR - Alt payment unable to be assessed until the formal review of decision outcome is known
    • Procedure ends here
  • No, make 2 genuine attempts to contact the customer. If:

2

First contact with the customer is unsuccessful

Annotate the MRBR Decision - DSP SOI DOC with contact attempts.

  • YA Review claim contact attempt
  • Contact number/s: (what phone numbers were used in attempt to contact)
  • Time: (what time was the attempt to contact and the state code, for example, 10:15 QLD)
  • Message left: Yes/No
  • Call outcome: second attempt will be made

The YA Review work item must be unassigned. Choose service support referral, this reallocates the work item for a second contact attempt to be made. See Workload Management.

3

Second contact with customer is unsuccessful

Annotate the MRBR Decision - DSP SOI DOC with details of the contact attempt.

  • YA Review claim contact attempt
  • Contact number/s: (what telephone numbers were used in attempt to contact)
  • Time: (what time was the attempt to contact and the state code, for example, 10:15 QLD)
  • Message left: Yes/No
  • Call outcome: second attempt unsuccessful YA/REV cancelled
  • complete the YA/REV activity. No further action is required in relation to the ACC

Procedure ends here.

4

Contact with the customer is successful

If the customer applies for a formal review of decision, go to Step 5.

If the customer does not apply for a formal review of decision, complete the following:

  • submit the new claim using the In Crisis exemption to bypass the Circumstances Change Monitor (CCM)
  • run ACC. See Step 2 in Table 1 on the Assisted tab
  • check the customer record to determine if documents listed at Next steps are required. If they are not required, make sure the Provided checkbox is selected
  • hold the new claim until the end of the DSP period of grace (POG) (day 43)
  • add the keyword 'DRBRTRF' to the YA Job seeker NCL activity using the Keywords screen in Process Direct
  • complete the YA/REV activity

Note: the customer must provide additional documents within 14 days. Hold the claim using the held reason 'customer to provide information'. Hold claims for 15 days, or to the expiration of the POG, whichever is greater.

Procedure ends here.

5

Customer applies for a formal review of decision

If the customer applies for a formal review of decision:

  • run the Internal review/Explanation script. See Payment pending review (PPR) of decision to cancel DSP due to loss of medical qualification
  • annotate the MRBR Decision - DSP SOI DOC on the customer's record with: DSP-CUR/PPR Alt payment unable to be assessed until the formal review of decision outcome known
  • complete the YA/REV activity
  • tell the customer DSP will be restored until the outcome of the review is known and that an Authorised Review Officer (ARO) will contact about the appeal

Do not complete the ACC.

Procedure ends here.

6

Customer has contacted inbound to request an ACC

If the customer has contacted inbound to request an ACC, submit the new claim using the In Crisis exemption to bypass the Circumstances Change Monitor (CCM).