Processing Youth Allowance (YA) (job seeker) claims 001-04030100

If the customer is aged:

• under 16 years, go to Step 5
• 16 years and over, go to Step 2

Request or search for the claim work item using Inbox.

Select the work item to view the Customer and Claim Information table on the Transaction Summary (TS) screen.

For claims generated:

• due to Disability Support Pension (DSP) cancellation, go to Step 3
• not due to DSP cancellation, go to Step 4

For paper claims scanned to Documents, staff must run an Assisted Customer Claim (ACC):

• Use the 'Assisted Customer Claim' desktop app to record answers from the paper claim
• Create a YA claim work item
• A Jobseeker Online Claim appointment will not be created:
• Complete a manual Participation Interview
• Review scanned documents for a Job Seeker Snapshot Offline form. This is used to complete the Participation Interview where the customer cannot be contacted by phone

If more information is needed to complete the ACC, make one genuine attempt to contact the customer and get the information verbally. See Requesting information (CLK):

• Issue a pre-call notification (SMS only) between the hours of 8:00 am and 8:00 pm customer's local time to let them know a Service Officer will call them today from a private number, see Centrelink letters online and Electronic Messaging
• If the customer cannot be contacted:
• send a Request client to contact (Q164) letter asking the customer to contact within 14 days
• use Fast Note to create a Display on Access (DOA) DOC advising to complete an ACC when the customer contacts

Go to Step 6.

Service Officers are allocated YA NCL work items via Workload Management. See the MRBR Decision - DSP SOI DOC for cancellation details.

Make one attempt to call the customer to advise outcome of claim. Tell the customer the claim may be subject to a quality check, and this may delay the outcome letter.

Has the customer applied for a formal review of decision at this contact?

• Yes:
• Reject the job seeker new claim Client request - claim withdrawn/voluntary surrender (CLR)
• Annotate the YA rejection DOC with 'DSP-CUR/PPR Alt payment unable to be assessed until review of decision outcome known'
• Run Internal review/Explanation of Decision script. See Payment pending review (PPR) of decision to cancel Disability Support Pension (DSP) due to loss of medical qualification
• Tell the customer, DSP will be restored until the outcome of the review of decision is known and an Authorised Review Officer (ARO) will contact them about the review of decision
• Procedure ends here
• No, process claim, see Table 2

A YA (job seeker) new claim or reindexed claim cannot be granted unless the job seeker online claim appointment has been completed and a RapidConnect determination made.

The job seeker online claim appointment codes a RapidConnect status on the Job Seeker RapidConnect (JMRC) screen to determine the customer's start date of payments. See RapidConnect.

From 12 November 2024, the system does not automatically reject Failed to Attend Interview (FAI).

The claim will allocate for staff action in Work Optimiser if the customer has:

• failed to attend their first job seeker online claim appointment, and
• not booked a new appointment via their online services within 1 business day

Note: these claims have a keyword REJFAI attached in Process Direct.

Has the Participation Interview been completed?

• Yes, go to Step 6
• No, see Rejecting a claim for JobSeeker Payment (JSP) or Youth Allowance (YA) (job seeker). Procedure ends here

The claims are scanned to Documents.

• Manually create the claim using the SOA Shell application in Process Direct by selecting Youth Allowance (student)
• Re-categorise the SOA shell in Work Optimiser to Youth Allowance job seeker (ZALL_ZJSP_NCL_PAPER)
• A Jobseeker Online Claim appointment will not be created:
• Complete a manual Participation Interview
• Review scanned documents for a Job Seeker Snapshot Offline form. This is used to complete the Participation Interview where the customer is unable to be contacted by phone
• If more information is needed to complete the ACC, make one genuine attempt to contact the customer and get the information verbally. See Requesting information (CLK)
• Issue a pre-call notification (SMS only) between the hours of 8:00 am and 8:00 pm customer's local time to let them know a Service Officer will call them today from a private number, see Centrelink letters online and Electronic Messaging. If the customer cannot be contacted:
• send a Request client to contact (Q164) letter asking the customer to contact within 14 days
• use Fast Note to create a Display on Access (DOA) DOC advising to complete an ACC when the customer contacts

Go to Step 6.

These claims are allocated using Inbox

• Check the activity is categorised as Youth Allowance job seeker (ZALL_ZJSP_NCL_PAPER)
• A Jobseeker Online Claim appointment will not be created
• Complete a manual Participation Interview
• Review scanned documents for a Job Seeker Snapshot Offline form. This is used to complete the Participation Interview where the customer is unable to be contacted by phone
• If more information is needed to complete the ACC, make one genuine attempt to contact the customer and get the information verbally. See Requesting information (CLK)
• Issue a pre-call notification (SMS only) between the hours of 8:00 am and 8:00 pm customer's local time to let them know a Service Officer will call them today from a private number, see Centrelink letters online and Electronic Messaging. If the customer cannot be contacted:
• send a Request client to contact (Q164) letter asking the customer to contact within 14 days
• use Fast Note to create a Display on Access (DOA) DOC advising to complete an ACC when the customer contacts

Go to Step 6.

To reassess a previously rejected claim:

• If rejected FSD, FRC or POI, see Request to reassess a rejected claim
• If rejected DNL/FRP, see Early or late lodgement of job seeker reports
• To re-index the claim, refer to directions for SAP online claims in Indexing, re-indexing and cancelling claim activities
• The Participation Interview must be re-run, see Participation Interview

If the customer is claiming DSP, assess the claim as Youth Allowance (YA) Provisional. See JobSeeker Payment (JSP) and Youth Allowance (YA) (Provisional) for more information.

The claim status must be In Process before it can be processed.

Is the claim status In Process?

• Yes, go to Step 7
• No, for claim status definitions and actions to take, see Process Direct navigation, common screens and functions

If the customer's benefit status is YAL/CUR indicating the claim assessment has already been completed, update the claim status to Completed via the Status icon. If Completed is not available, update to Not Required. Procedure ends here.

Was a claim generated for a customer who is currently on ABSTUDY (ABY/CUR) or ABSTUDY Pensioner Education Supplement (PES) (EPA/CUR) payments?

• Yes, go to Step 9
• No, go to Step 8

Complete all pre-assessment checks in Process Direct using the icons on the Transaction Summary (TS) screen. Checks may include selecting:

• and to view the Claim Summary in a new window. If it is blank, press [F5] to refresh the page
• Review the Claim Summary. Key details include:
• relationship status
• date last worked
• accommodation details
• Circumstance Data for customer and claim information including:
• identity confirmation
• claim type, submission date and status
• the Link Summary (LS) and Marital Status (MS) screen data
• Benefit History for previous claim dates and benefit history
• Tasks to view required tasks, supporting documents requested and their due date
• Notes to view:
• the Progress of Claim Note
• any comments made by a previous Service Officer, and
• the Document List (DL) screen. DL also shows confirmation the customer accepts the verbal declaration where an Assisted Customer Claim (ACC) has been run
• Status to view or update the claim status
• Documents to view documents uploaded or scanned, including:
• specific documentation for a CAO assessment where applicable, and
• additional documents provided. Note: documents relating to the customer's claim may also be attached to the partner's, or parent's record
• the Activity List (AL) screen to view outstanding activities

If the customer originally claimed as a student and the claim is to be reassessed as a job seeker, run the Participation Interview. They must have a RapidConnect determination applied and be connected with a provider.

Immediately process an Authorising a person or organisation to enquire or act on your behalf form (SS313) if lodged with a new claim and satisfied of the nominee's identity. This is to make sure the nominee will also receive the outcome of claim letter. See Adding or rejecting a nominee request and the Resources page for a link to the SS313 form.

To prevent incorrect claim assessment, there may be a need to update the customer's record outside the new claim, for:

• Full time Youth Allowance student/Apprentice where there are current education/apprenticeship details displayed on their record:
• end date details for student payment, or
• end date details for Apprenticeship payment
• ABSTUDY customers:
• full time ABSTUDY customers no longer studying or undertaking an Apprenticeship, the payment will need to be cancelled. See Payment of ABSTUDY when a student is deferring or discontinuing study before the end of the course
• part-time ABSTUDY student continuing in the course, remains in receipt of ABSTUDY and will show as ABY CUR. This will not affect the YA (job seeker) claim. These students qualify for allowances under the part-time award and do not receive fortnightly payments The ABSTUDY record will need to be checked and the Customer Study Details (EDC) screen may need to be updated to reflect the part-time course. See Changing study load from full-time to part-time or concessional study load for ABSTUDY or ABSTUDY Pensioner Education Supplement (PES)
• When a customer has a voluntary nominee and in their claim, they answer No to someone acting or receiving payment on their behalf staff must check and update nominee arrangements, see Cancelling a nominee arrangement

Pre-claim vulnerable circumstance

For customers who have pre-claim vulnerable circumstances recorded within the 8 weeks prior to their intent to claim contact date, the system will automatically calculate the start date.

Pre-claim vulnerable circumstances that are not able to be automatically determined by the system, can be manually added:

• on the Pre-Claim Vulnerable Circumstance (PRECLM) screen in Process Direct, or
• via the Create Intent to Claim guided procedure in Customer First

Where the PRECLM displays with a start date that is more than 8 weeks and no end date consider if a pre-claim vulnerable circumstance still exists using the available information.

In these cases, assess if the:

• vulnerable circumstance is no longer active, consider end dating the vulnerable circumstance from the associated circumstance page and regenerate the claim
• pre claim circumstances are required to remain current on a customer's record indefinitely. This includes exemptions from seeking child support due to family and domestic violence. In these cases, assessment for these circumstances is required:
• do not end date the exemption
• manually update the claim start date to the date of submission if required. For more information, see Table 1 > Step 5 in Intent to claim and vulnerable customers

After completing any updates, from the Transaction Summary (TS) screen, select > Regenerate claim.

On the Transaction Summary (TS) screen, check the customer's Identity Status.

If the Identity Status is:

• confirmed, go to Step 11
• not confirmed, code alternative proof of identity:
• Select the Not Confirmed link to open a Customer Summary window
• Select Identity Confirmation > Identity Confirmation Dashboard from the Task Selector. See Table 2 in Coding identity documents
• Code the identity documents or consider applying alternative identity. See Alternative Identity

Close the Customer Summary window to return to the claim.

Review and update the following relationship details before selecting Process.

YA customers must only be partnered on the Marital Status (MS) screen if both the customer and their partner have been assessed as independent. For more information, see Youth Allowance (YA) or ABSTUDY customer becomes partnered.

If the customer is partnered and there is a separate JobSeeker Payment (JSP), Youth Allowance (YA) or Parenting Payment Partnered (PPP) claim submitted on the partners record, staff must:

• complete the claim with the earliest Date of Receipt (DOR) first
• allocate the partner's JSP or YA claim to self in Workload Management (WLM)
• assess the partner's JSP or YA claim

For staff that are not trained to complete PPP claims:

• place the JSP or YA claim on hold for 5 days via the Status icon
• send a request using Fast Note - select Auto text, use Generic > Claim or Update Escalation > Template: Parenting Payment. Select Confirm

On the TS screen:

• Link Summary (LS) table shows linked records, for example:
• Partner and any Relationship Qualifier Code
• Children
• Marital Status (MS) table shows the customer's relationship details. For help with coding, see Process Direct navigation, common screens and functions

If linking customers, check the customer and partner's environments.

Check the Marital Status

Compare relationship details provided in the claim with the information already recorded in the MS table.

If the information recorded in MS does not match with the claim information, attempt to contact the customer by phone. To record the information for a:

• successful phone contact, use the information confirmed by the customer
• unsuccessful phone contact, use the relationship details supplied in the claim

If the customer advises they are separated and living with their previous partner (Member of a Couple (MoC) and Separated under one roof (SUOR) assessments), a MoC assessment is required to be finalised before the claim can be processed. The outcome of the MoC assessment will determine the coding required on the Marital Status (MS) screen.

Note: take extra care when assessing YA claims where a customer advises they are separated under one roof, or where a customer updates their address only and not their partner's.

For more information, see:

• Social work service referral
• Family and domestic violence
• Change in relationship status from partnered to single

To qualify for payment, a YA (job seeker) must:

• be of qualifying age for YA (job seeker)
• meet Australian residence requirements for YA
• be unemployed, or:
• unable to look for work due to a medical condition, illness or injury, or
• employed and are unable to undertake these due to a medical condition, illness or injury and have a job or study to return to
• be prepared to negotiate and enter into a Job Plan if required to do so, or comply with, or renegotiate an existing Job Plan
• not be receiving ABSTUDY Living Allowance
• satisfy the requirements of their Job Plan

Customers under 22 years of age and who have not completed Year 12 (or equivalent) or a Certificate III or higher, are identified as Early School Leavers. They are required to undertake approved activities and/or job search to qualify for payment of YA.

Is the customer eligible for YA or will they become eligible within 13 weeks of the date of lodgement?

• Yes, go to Step 13
• No, reject the claim. See Table 2

The customer must meet the payability provisions for YA (or meet the provisions within 13 weeks of the date of claim). Base the decision on the following:

• Personal/Partner Income Test. For income limits, see Rates and Thresholds
• Parental Income Test (PIT). If PIT reduces the rate to nil from the date of claim, check if YA would be payable from 1 January using base tax year income. If so, contact the customer to confirm they wish to be assessed from 1 January in the following calendar year
• Away from home and accommodation circumstances
• Independence, including unreasonable to live at home (UTLAH)
• Portability provisions
• Compensation preclusion
• Partial Capacity to Work (PCW)
• If customer is granted a PCW, Parental Income information or the Parental Income Test (PIT) may not apply

Is the customer payable now, or will be within 13 weeks of the date of claim?

• Yes, go to Step 14
• No, reject the claim. See Table 2

Note:

• If a UTLAH assessment is in progress, do not reject the claim Failed to supply documents (FSD). Place the claim on hold pending the outcome of the UTLAH assessment
• If an ESAt referral is required or is in progress, do not reject the claim Parental Income too High (PIH) or Parental Income Not Provided (PIA)

To view supporting documents:

• select links at the bottom of the expanded Claim Summary, or
• select from the bottom of the open Process Direct window, or
• select the Documents icon

When reviewing the supporting documents:

• check all required documents have been received
• check the date the document was scanned
• older documents not related to the claim may be used to verify the customer's circumstances and remove the need to request other documents

If the customer states they and/or their partner have ceased work in the previous 12 months, an SU1 is required. The online claim will request an SU1 as part of the Next Steps process within the online claim.

An employer can return an electronic Employment Separation Certificate via the Business Hub. See Employment Separation Certificate (SU1) on how to access the information.

A compliance action investigation may be required where the customer has ceased employment voluntarily or been dismissed due to misconduct.

Has an SU1 been provided?

• Yes, if the SU1 states the reason for unemployment was:
• voluntary or due to misconduct, see Unemployment due to a voluntary act or misconduct and take appropriate action
• not voluntary or due to misconduct, go to Step 16
• No, see Table 1 > Step 2 in Employment Separation Certificate (SU1)

Customers claiming YA supply details of all bank accounts they hold, including balances, as part of the claim and make a legal declaration the information is correct. Evidence of bank account balances is not required.

Bank balance information is collected to confirm income and asset details and assess any waiting periods. Bank account details may be pre-populated into an online claim. Verbal confirmation of bank account balances is acceptable.

Only request bank balance verification if there is doubt about the validity of the information provided by the customer in the claim, and the Service Officer anticipates a different claim outcome.

The online claim will:

• identify what documentation is required
• request documentation in the Next Steps process in the online claim

In some circumstances, staff may determine further documentation or information is required to assess a customer's eligibility for YA. For example, additional evidence may be required to assess a trust, company or compensation.

When information is missing from a claim or module, or clarification is needed about the claim, processing staff can accept and use verbal information from the customer. See Claims received that are incomplete or incorrect.

When assessing a YA claim, staff must:

• only request documents required to grant or reject the claim. See Documents required for Centrelink new claims
• not request documents that have already been requested unless further clarification of the customer circumstance is required
• make one genuine attempt to contact the customer by phone if further information is required to grant or reject the claim

Is further documentation or information required, or has the customer failed to provide requested documentation?

• Yes:
• If the customer has failed to provide requested documentation, see Rejecting a claim for JobSeeker Payment (JSP) or Youth Allowance (YA) (job seeker)
• If further documentation or information is required, issue a pre-call notification (SMS only) between 8:00 am and 8:00 pm in the customer's local time. Go to Step 18
• No, go to Step 19

Make one genuine attempt to contact the customer by phone.

If contact is successful, tell the customer:

• what additional documentation or information is required
• to upload evidence through the requested task in the online claim on the day of the call, if required
• the claim will be placed on hold for one day to wait for the customer to give the extra documentation. If the customer cannot give these details in one day, a Request for information will be sent
• the claim may be rejected if the customer does not give the requested information

Did the customer provide the additional information or documentation?

• Yes, go to Step 19
• No:
• Place the claim on hold for one day
• If the customer cannot provide the evidence in one day, issue a Request for information
  - go to
  - select Request documents
  - the system will place the claim on hold for 14 days
• Annotate the Progress of Claim DOC with the contact outcome
• Procedure ends here

If contact is unsuccessful:

• Issue a Request for information:
• go to
• select Request documents
• Annotate the Progress of Claim DOC with details of the request
• Procedure ends here

Staff may have already decided to streamline reject the claim; however, staff must make sure any changes in care are actioned before finalising the rejection. For example, not actioning a change in care arrangement could result in an overpayment of family assistance payments due to an incorrect principal carer assessment.

A customer lodging a claim may advise details of a change in child care arrangements. For example:

• Child enters care
• Child no longer in care
• Percentage of care
• Principal carer status

Any child details provided within the claim must be checked against information held on the customer's record for each child before proceeding.

A change of child details may impact a customer's rate of payment. Failure to refer a change in care may result in:

• the wrong principal carer assessments, and
• granting the customer the wrong rate of payment
• the incorrect maximum reserve for Liquid Assets Waiting Period (LAWP)

A person the agency assesses as having a dependent child or being a principal carer may get the following benefits:

• a higher 'with child' rate of payment
• a more generous income test
• some mutual obligation exemptions
• the child to be listed on their Pensioner Concession Card (PCC) or Health Care Card (HCC)
• the higher maximum reserve amount for LAWP

A shared care assessment should be completed in all cases, even if only one person is claiming income support or if each person has another qualifying child solely in their care.

The shared care assessment will determine the:

• principal carer status
• customer's entitlement
• rate and income test applied in some circumstances, to the ongoing entitlements for single principal carers

A principal carer is a person with primary care of a dependent child under 16 years. A principal carer assessment must be made if one or both customers caring for a child are claiming income support as a principal carer. For more information, see Principal carer of a dependent child.

A step parent may be a principal carer if they live as a member of a couple with the parent of the child.

To determine if a change in care has occurred, check the Child Details in the Claim Summary against the information held on the customer's record for each child:

• Check the Child Details in the Claim Summary
• In Process Direct, go to and select each child from the left-hand column and then go to:
• Shared Care Assessment (SCA) screen
• Child in Care (CHC) screen
• Check the Assessment explanation and details (AX) screen in the parents record to determine which child is a principal care child
• Go to the NSS Principal Carer Details (PCCD) screen
• Select the Keyword icon and check for a SHAREDJSP or SHAREDYA keyword
• Note: if there is a change in care within a job seeker claim, the system may apply shared care keywords to help identify if a change in care assessment is needed. However, staff must still check all other screens to confirm if a care change has occurred

See the Resources page for examples of how to identify a change in care.

Has there been a change in care and/or is a Principal carer assessment required?

• Yes, an Assessment of Care arrangements referral must be completed as job seeker staff are not suitably skilled to make a care assessment, go to Step 20
• No, go to Step 21

Has an Assessment of Care Arrangement referral already started (including any care assessments currently in progress as part of a Families claim)?

• Yes, and the claim has come off hold, but the referral is still in progress:
• Select the Status icon
• Place the claim on hold for another 7 days using the Third Party to Provide Information reason until the completion of the care referral or the shared care assessment is complete
• Annotate the Progress of Claim DOC with care assessment is still pending
• Procedure ends here until the Assessment of Care Arrangements is determined. The claim must remain on hold until the completion of the care assessment
• No:
• In the claim transaction, go to the Transaction Summary (TS) screen
• Select > Referral
• Select Referral Type: Assessment of Care Arrangements Referral
• Select Next
• Select the appropriate Referral Reason
• In the What is Required? field, add the details below:
  JSP/YA claim lodged 'date'. Care determination and Principal Carer determination is required for:
  Child/ren's Name and DOB:
  Date of care change: if known, otherwise enter the following text:
  'Job seeker claims do not ask for date of care change. Job seeker staff are not suitably skilled to discuss change in care and any further information may need to be requested by staff completing referrals'
  Percentage of Care:
  Other Carer's Name/CRN:
  Additional Information:
• Select Finish
• Select the Keyword icon. Add the keyword SHAREDJSP or SHAREDYA, if not already displaying
• Annotate the Progress of Claim DOC with the referral for a care assessment
• Procedure ends here until the Assessment of Care Arrangements is determined. The system will place the claim on hold. The claim must remain on hold until the completion of the care assessment

Staff may have already decided to streamline reject the claim; however, staff must make sure any changes in care are actioned before finalising the rejection. For example, not actioning a change in care arrangement could result in an overpayment of family assistance payments due to an incorrect principal carer assessment.

If a specialist assessment is required, select > Referral and complete the referral details:

• Complex Assessment Officer (CAO) if the customer's financial arrangements are considered complex, for example, include a trust or company:
• the referral ensures income and assets tests are met
• unless it is clear the claim must be rejected because basic eligibility criteria has not been met, claims requiring a CAO referral should not be finalised until the assessment has been completed
• a single referral can be made for multiple assessment reasons
• Social work services
• Australian residence assessment, only if immigration data is missing. See Referring inconsistencies in overseas departure and arrival information to Centrelink International Services (CIS)
• Confirming the need for a Member of a Couple (MoC) assessment
• Shared care assessment
• Compensation Clearance request

Unreasonable to live at home (UTLAH) assessments

If the Unreasonable to live at home (UTLAH) assessment is in progress:

• do not reject the claim Failed to supply documents (FSD)
• place the claim on hold for 14 days pending the outcome using the Status icon
• the claim remains on hold until the assessment has been completed

Employment Services Assessment (ESAt)

If a job seeker has been identified as having a medical condition or disability that may impact their ability to look for work or obtain work, an Employment Services Assessment (ESAt) referral may have been made during their Participation Interview. If a Partial Capacity to Work (PCW) is granted the job seeker may be eligible for:

• Youth Allowance (YA) as an independent, see Assessing independence for customers with a partial capacity to work, and
• Youth Disability Supplement (YDS), see Youth Disability Supplement (YDS)

Check to see if a referral has been made and is still in progress.

The claim can continue to be assessed if the customer:

• has provided Parental Income details, and
• is payable as a dependent

Has an ESAt assessment been completed and customer would be rejected Parental Income not Provided (PIA) or Parental Income too High (PIH) as a dependant?

• Yes, process the claim, see Table 2
• No:
• do not reject the claim PIH or PIA
• place the claim on hold for 28 days using the Third Party to Provide Information, hold reason until the assessment has been completed
• DOC the record advising the claim is pending an ESAt by creating or updating the Progress of claim DOC in Document List (DL)
• if the ESAt has not been completed within 28 days and the claim was placed on hold:
  - place the claim on hold for a further 14 days
  - DOC the record

Some activities may stop finalisation of YA claims or may need action before finalising the claim.

To check, go to the Activity List (AL) screen.

• If there is another income support payment pending, check eligibility for YA (job seeker)
• Finalise any Parental Leave Pay (PPL) claim activity, before finalising the YA claim:
• place the YA claim on hold for 5 days via the Status icon
• send a request using Fast Note - select Auto text, use Families > Claims > Families Claim Escalation - Hardship
• Check family assistance:
• If there is an unfinalised FTB claim for the customer or partner, see Family Tax Benefit (FTB and income support payment new claim processing interactions
• If the customer has a dependent child (aged under 19 years) in their care and they or their partner are not in receipt of Family Tax Benefit (FTB), issue a Q888 inviting the customer to check their eligibility for family assistance. See the Resources page for standard text

Once all relevant circumstances have been actioned, see Table 2.

Select Process at bottom right of the claim to start coding and assessment of the claim. Do not start coding before selecting Process. This will result in errors.

The Errors (SWE) screen will display.

Before coding any screens:

• Select Assess to send the claim details to ISIS. This will allow the waiting period waivers to be applied
• The Entitlement (ELD) screen will display
• Return to the SWE screen to complete the claim coding by selecting Back or key SWE in Super Key

Message Log

This section displays any errors with existing coding. These must be fixed before the claim can be assessed. For help, see Using Digital Assistant Roxy in Process Direct.

Task Selectors

These list common screens. Task selectors that contain mandatory screens are pre-selected.

Task selectors may not list all screens that need to be checked or coded. Check screens to compare historical details with the claim details.

A flag will display against the screens that contain provisional claim data. These may not need to be accessed to process the claim.

• Select screens to be checked or updated. There is an option to select all screens
• Select Next or press [Enter] to go through the selected screens

Key Screens in the Super Key to view a full list.

See the Resources page for common screens for YA claims.

Before rejecting a customer's claim, check the customer is not vulnerable, at risk, or in crisis.

As the customer has not met all the qualification or payability provisions, the claim will be rejected for the most appropriate reason. Do not request further information unless this will change the decision.

Streamlined rejections

A streamlined rejection can only be coded if:

• the customer is in receipt of a precluding payment (CPP)
• another payment is more appropriate (COP), or
• the customer failed to supply documents (FSD)

Do not streamline reject FSD if customer has failed to supply:

• Tax File Number - REJ-TFN
• Proof of Identity (POI) - REJ-POI
• Parental income (MOD JY) - REJ-PIA
• Unreasonable to Live at Home (UTLAH) documents

For:

• a streamlined rejection, go to Rejecting a claim for JobSeeker Payment (JSP) or Youth Allowance (YA) (job seeker)
• claims rejecting Parental Income too High (PIH) or Parental Income not Provided (PIA) and an ESAt referral has now been completed, go to Step 3
• all other rejections, the entire claim must be coded. Continue to the next steps before finalising the claim, go to Step 3

The date of event on the Accommodation Details (ACS) screen depends on the customers circumstance and if the customer or partner are receiving another payment, such as Family Tax Benefit (FTB). To determine the correct DOV, see Completing the Accommodation Details (AC) screen and assessing Rent Assistance (RA).

If verification has been provided, code the appropriate verification code, see Processing proof of rent for the Verification field on the Accommodation Details (AC) screen.

If verification has not been provided, determine if verification of rent is needed.

To confirm the customers sharing details match the accommodation details, go to the Sharing Details (SDQ) screen.

Rent verification is not required if:

• the customer or partner already receives Rent Assistance (RA) with Family Tax Benefit (FTB) or another income support payment
• the customer or partner already receives RA with another income support payment
• rent has previously been verified within the last 12 months and the address/accommodation details have not changed

For all other circumstances, see Determining proof of rent for the Verification field on the Accommodation Details (AC) screen.

Payments to dependent YA customers under 18 years of age should be directed to a parental bank account unless:

• the parent indicated payments can be made to the customer. They advise this in the MOD JY (electronic or uploaded)
• the customer submitted an unreasonable to live at home (UTLAH) claim. Consider paying the customer directly in this case

For more information, see Payments to parents for under 18 year old Youth Allowance (YA) dependent customers.

Go to the Payment Destination Summary (PAS) screen to review and update the payment destination.

Has the customer provided appropriate bank account details?

• Yes, go to Step 5
• No, see Payment Destination

Savings Bank Accounts (SVS), Direct Investments Accounts (SVDI), Managed Investments (MIS), Other Income summary (OINS) and Shares and Securities (SIS) screens are pre-filled from the online claim.

Customers may be required to provide evidence for SVDI, MIS, OINS and SIS screens. Evidence is not required for bank account balances on the SVS screen. If evidence has been supplied, these screens must be updated to reflect the evidence provided. Specific coding may also be required for these screens.

For more information, see Coding income and assets for Centrelink payments and services.

The OAS screen is pre-filled from the online claim.

For further information, see Coding income and assets for Centrelink payments and services.

Employment income: Employment Income Summary (EANS) screen is pre-filled from the online claim. Select the down arrow to view earnings for each period.

Single Touch Payroll (STP)

Employment details may be pre-filled through Single Touch Payroll (STP) in the online claim for the customer to confirm. This includes the employer's name and ABN. Staff can recognise a STP employer has been presented if the question 'Do you work for (employer)' is displayed in the claim slider. Further details can be seen on the STP Employer Update (EMCF) screen.

If a customer confirms the STP employer, STP pre-filled income may also present on the STP Employer Wage Items (EMGI) screen. Staff can accept the STP data on EMGI if the pay event date is after the customer grant date. Staff will need to contact the customer to confirm the amounts prior to accepting the STP data.

If a customer has previously confirmed an employer and advises they do not work for the employer anymore, the employer will still remain as confirmed on EMCF. This employer should be recorded by the customer in previous employer details for employers ceased within the last 12 months in the claim.

Continuous earnings

Check to see if the customer and/or partner has any previous continuous employment income on their record that is not advised within their online claim.

If the customer has declared they are not currently working or not receiving any income but there is continuous employment income on the NSS Income Summary (NIS) screen, the income must be zeroed off using the Event Date as the date before the claim was submitted. Note: the NIS screen can only be viewed via Customer Summary in Process Direct.

To amend details, select Edit. For help, see Recording and correcting employment income details.

If the customer has declared continuous earnings within their claim, check if the customer is eligible to have a continuous income frequency applied. See Recording and correcting employment income details.

Customer declared 'this is not my usual wage'

If the customer has declared employment income as 'this is not my usual wage', staff can remove this provisional coding from the Employment Income Paid Details (EAPP) screen. The customer will declare any paid employment income when they complete their first report.

Customer and/or partner to receive last employment income payment

If the customer and/or their partner is to be paid a final employment income in the first entitlement period, code the details within the claim. The claim may reject if the employment income is over the threshold. If information from the customer or in the claim, indicates they and/or their partners paid employment income will preclude payment for the first entitlement period:

• go to the Payment Delivery Summary (RAD) screen and find out the customer's entitlement period end date, then
• go to the NSS Waiting Period Calculation (NDC) screen. Update the Manual Start Date with the date the customer becomes payable. This is usually the entitlement period start date following the entitlement period preclusion. Update the Comments field as to why the Manual Start Date was changed. Explain any update in the Claim Finalisation DOC

Partner details

Partner income and assets will not display in the customer's record.

To view and update partner income and assets, select and select the partner from the menu slider.

To return to the customer's record, use .

• Ordinary Waiting Period (OWP)
• Income Maintenance Period (IMP).The Income Maintenance Period Summary (IMPS) screen is pre-filled with customer claim responses. Where these differ from the Employment Separation Certificate (SU1) or equivalent, staff must code the details from the SU1 or equivalent
• Liquid Assets Waiting Period (LAWP) The NDC screen may default the LAWP start date to the Date Last Worked (DLW) or Date Last Studied (DLS)+1. This date will need to be changed manually by staff. There are different start dates for LAWP for YA job seekers
• Seasonal Worker Preclusion Period (SWPP)
• Newly Arrived Resident's Waiting Period (NARWP)
• Compensation Preclusion Period
• Unemployment due to a voluntary act or misconduct

For assessment of waiting periods, see:

• Waiting period for income support payments
• Unemployment due to a voluntary act or misconduct

Go to the NES screen.

All YA (job seeker) claims must have an entry on the NES screen with:

• Student Status of NST - Not a Student, and
• Start date of the claim date

Do not delete the Student Status entry of NST - Not a Student if the system provisionally codes this data.

Updates to the Education Level Attained field may be required if the YA customer:

• is under 18 years of age and has not completed year 12 or an equivalent Certificate III or higher qualification, or
• is over 18 - 21 years and has completed year 12 or a Certificate III or higher qualification

See Mutual obligation requirements for Youth Allowance job seekers under 22 years of age who have not completed Year 12 or an equivalent level of education (Certificate III or higher) qualification.

If the Service Officer goes to Assess, and then returns to the claim from the Entitlement (ELD) screen, the NES screen coding may be lost. This must be checked and re-coded, if required.

Failure to do this may result in:

• payment incorrectly granted as a student
• an incorrect grant date, or
• rejection of the claim

The NDC screen is prefilled with assessment information relevant to the calculation of the customer's payment start date.

DLW/DCS/DPQ field

Details prefill for the Date Last Worked (DLW), Date Ceased Study (DCS) or Date Paid Prior to Qualification (DPQ). They may need updating.

Where evidence has been supplied, the DLW/DCS/DPQ fields must be coded to reflect that evidence. Specific coding may be required where background provisions are to be applied.

LAWP field

A total amount will auto calculate from the SVS, SIS MIS and SVDI screens therefore no updates are required to this field. The only time a manual calculation is required is if the customer has a LAWP within a Private Company or Private Trust. See Liquid Assets Waiting Period (LAWP).

Start date field

The system automatically calculates a start date for eligible claims. These system calculations are not always correct; therefore, it is important to confirm the start date.

For example, a customer could reclaim a payment after having:

• a backdated cancellation of the payment, and
• a debt raised for the period they were not eligible

To calculate the start date of payment, go to Step 11.

For a new claim where the customer was not previously on a payment, the system will automatically calculate the start date.

If the customer has a partner who is on a payment, see Calculating the start day for a claim made after partner's claim.

Discretion is required when changing the system calculated start date.

The system will apply the backdating rule and calculate the date of commencement as Date Paid To (DPT)+1, even if the date of the claim is within 14 days of DPT.

When the cancellation date is outside 14 days of the claim date, do not apply DPT+1. The correct start date for these claims is the date the customer reclaims payment.

To correct the start date where system has applied an incorrect date

Where the correct date should be after the DPT+1, code the correct start date in the Manual Start Date field on the NSS Waiting Period Calculation (NDC) screen.

Where the start date should be before the DPT+1 of previous payment

Where the customers start date for Youth Allowance (YA) overlaps with a previous payment, a system limitation occurs and:

• the system may raise the previous payment as a debt shell and pay the full entitlement of YA from the date of qualification. The system is not able to automatically offset any arrears against debts raised
• staff are unable to manually adjust any of these arrears or debts

When the start date is to apply before DPT+1, staff must:

• code the date of qualification in the Manual Start Date field on the NDC screen
• take note of any potential debt amounts and dates raised for the previous payment
• take note of any arrears triggered for Youth Allowance (YA)
• issue a pre-call notification (SMS only) between 8:00 am and 8:00 pm in the customer's local time
• make two genuine attempts to contact by phone
• if contact is successful:
• advise the customer:
  - that they will receive Youth Allowance (YA) for a period they have already been paid
  - a debt may be raised for their previous payment, as they have lost qualification
  - of their review of decision rights (if required)
• record a DOC detailing any potential debt or arrears issued and the reason for start date determination
• if contact is unsuccessful, record a DOC detailing:
• dates and times of unsuccessful contact attempts
• any potential debt or arrears issued and reason for start date determination

Early claims

For early claims, the date in the DLW/DCS field will be after the date of receipt/submission of the claim.

In some cases, the start date may not be automatically determined due to the DLW being prior to the DOR.

To code the start date in these circumstances:

• check the automatically calculated start date on the NDC screen
• consider any waiting periods
• if required, code the Manual Start Date on the NDC screen

Determining claim start date for customers who are Independent under PCW

Independence due to PCW applies from the acceptance date of the ESAt, which is located on the Work Capacity (WC) screen. The YA grant date will need to be changed to the acceptance date of the ESAt if:

• the customer is not eligible for Youth Allowance (YA) under the Parental Income Test (PIT), and
• an ESAt has been completed

Has a PCW been granted as a result of an ESAt assessment within 13 weeks of the claim submission date?

• Yes, customer is only payable from the acceptance date of the ESAt:
• manually update the start date on the NDC screen to the date of acceptance of the ESAt
• DOC the record advising customer is only payable from the acceptance date of the ESAt
• No and:
• the date of acceptance of the ESAt was received outside of 13 weeks of claim submission date, the claim will need to be rejected Parental Income too High (PIH) or Parental Income not Provided (PIA):
  - Make a genuine attempt to contact the customer. See Genuine attempts to contact by phone
  - Advise the customer they will need to lodge a new claim
• the claim will need to be processed in full to reject PIH or PIA, go to Step 12

Before granting YA, customers must supply a valid TFN. A TFN exemption may apply in limited circumstances.

Note: apply the REM TFN exemption to help vulnerable youth leaving detention who are unable to provide their TFN details with their claim. The customer then has 28 days to comply with TFN requirements to provide a TFN or complete an Application for TFN after their release from detention. See Requesting a Tax File Number (TFN) for coding instructions.

Has the customer provided a valid TFN?

• Yes:
• on the Tax File Number Authority (TFN) screen, ensure the TFN Authorisation Details are coded with Y in the Authorisation field
• if the customer has a partner, repeat the above step on the partner's TFN screen
• go to Step 13
• No, see Requesting a Tax File Number (TFN)

If medical evidence has been provided verifying the customer has a temporary incapacity, the customer may be eligible for an exemption from their mutual obligations.

To code the medical evidence, see:

• Assessing and coding medical evidence for temporary incapacity exemptions
• Customers claiming JobSeeker Payment (JSP)/Youth Allowance (YA) (Incapacitated)

Update the Employment/Education History (NEEH) screen if the customer has a job or study to return to (not including self-employment) and has a temporary incapacity.

To add new details on the NEEH screen:

• select Add. On the Create Employer/Education Institution Details screen. Update the following fields:
• Event date: calculated start date of claim
• Employer/Education Institution Name
• Employer/Education Verified: select Y or N
• Employer/Education Status: select the appropriate status based on the customers circumstances

In some circumstances, if the job seeker is unable to meet their mutual obligation requirements an exemption can be applied.

If the customer supplies evidence to support a mutual obligation exemption, an assessment will be required. See Mutual obligation requirements exemptions.

Parental income is requested as part of the claim for dependent customers.

Do not disclose personal information regarding parents or siblings to the customer.

Updates to parental links are coded on the PIT Parent Selection (NPPS) screen. For help, see Creating, updating and ending Parental Income test (PIT) links with dependent student, Australian Apprentice and job seeker recipients or claimants.

Parental income information is coded on the Parental Income (NHI) screen. For help, see Applying the Parental Income Test (PIT) for ABSTUDY and Youth Allowance (YA).

It is likely that more parents will indicate a substantial decrease in their income that is likely to last for at least 2 years as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. For a current year income assessment, if a parent advises a substantial decrease in income, accept that the decrease will last for 2 years or more.

See Increase or decrease in parental income for Youth Allowance (YA), ABSTUDY and Assistance for Isolated Children (AIC) Scheme.

Is the customer dependent?

• Yes:
• living at home, see Table 3
• living away from home to work or study, assess entitlement to the away from home rate of YA
• No:
• assess independence for YA if the customer indicated in their claim they want to be assessed as independent
• a decision to grant or reject UTLAH should only be made by trained staff with the delegation to approve independence under UTLAH criteria

Note: if a UTLAH assessment is in progress:

• do not reject the claim Failed to supply documents (FSD)
• place the claim on hold pending the outcome of the UTLAH assessment

Partial Capacity to Work

A YA (job seeker) may be considered independent for the period they are assessed as having a partial capacity to work (PCW) following an Employment Services Assessment (ESAt) or Job Capacity Assessment (JCA) conducted by an Assessment Services assessor. For further independence criteria and start date coding instructions, see Assessing independence for customers with a partial capacity to work.

Updates to the NMIS screen may be required if the customer has previously returned to study or have provided evidence that they are an expectant customer.

If the customer is:

• not returning to study:
• Go to the NMIS screen
• Select Add. On the Create miscellaneous details screen update these fields:
  Event Date: key the applicable date
  Current Circumstances: select Not Returning to Study (NRS)
• Select Save
• an expectant customer, see Exempting a job seeker from their mutual obligation requirements when they are an expectant customer
• Go to the NMIS screen
• Select Add. On the Create Miscellaneous Details screen update these fields:
  Event Date:
  Expected Date of Confinement:
  Pregnancy Verified:
• Select Save

Customers will indicate within their online claim if they wish to start or cease a tax deduction. The tax deduction is usually mapped to the Tax Instruction (PITX) screen as provisional data. If the provisional data has not come across from the claim, Service Officers may need to add a new amount/percentage request or cease an old tax deduction.

For further instructions on how to code, see Managing Australian Taxation Office (ATO) tax deductions.

See Table 3.

Customers may be eligible for YA Provisional when they have an outstanding Disability (DSP) claim. Customers who meet this criteria are exempt from mutual obligation requirements for the period during which the DSP claim is being determined (13 weeks).

If the customer has an outstanding DSP claim, code the DSP exemption:

• Go to the Activity and Exemptions Summary (AEX) screen
• Select Add. On the Create manual activity/exemption screen, update these fields:
• Activity: DSP - Claiming DSP
• Start Date: the date the DSP claim was lodged, noted from the Review of Claim or the DSP Progress of Claim DOC
• End Date: the date 13 weeks from the start date
• Activity Type: DSP - Claiming DSP

See JobSeeker Payment (JSP) and Youth Allowance (YA) (Provisional).

See Table 3.

Is the customer aged 16 years or over?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No, go to Step 6

The ELD screen displays the outcome of the claim and payment dates.

After coding the claim, select Assess.

Resolve any errors that may present on the Errors (SWE) screen. For help, see Using Digital Assistant Roxy in Process Direct.

After fixing any errors, select Assess again to go to the Entitlements (ELD) screen.

The ELD screen displays the outcome of the claim and payment date.

Check rate details on screens such as:

• Payment Summary (PS) - check payments are starting from the right date and are directed to the correct bank account. Make sure 'Number of months in past' is changed to '999' to view all potential arrears
• Rate Component Override (RCO) - warning message will display to check the manual rate, further investigation will be required
• Rate Summary (RATS)
• Rate Component (RAC) - check arrears, overpayments and manual rate adjustments
• Assessment Consequences (ASC) - determine debt investigation actions and stop advices

Check the child details are correct (if required) and the customer is being correctly assessed for the 'with child' rate and/or Principal carer determination.

Make sure arrears are not paid for a period of incarceration. These may require manual adjustment. See Payment of arrears after reassessment and stopping a payment.

If the claim is assessed and the user returns to the claim from the ELD screen, check the Newstart Education Status (NES) screen has retained the Student Status provisional entry of NST - Not a Student. This must be re-coded if required.

If the claim result is Pending Sibling Assessment (PSA) status, staff must:

• check if the customer has any siblings, and
• make sure all siblings are correctly assessed in the family pool (if required). See Determining a dependent child for inclusion in the family pool for the Parental Income Test (PIT)
  Note: if a sibling has made a claim, process both claims

If there are no family pool siblings or the parental income precludes payment for all siblings making a claim:

• go to the Benefit Action (BA) screen
• reject the claim Parental Income too High (PIH)
• do not leave the claim in status PSA

After all assessment checks are completed and the claim outcome is:

• correct, go to Step 5
• rejecting:
• SEA - Customer is receiving Self-Employment Allowance under Self-Employment Assistance, go to Step 3
• FCJ - Failed to connect with Employment Providers, go to Step 4
• AOS - AOS in force for customer (Assurance of Support), see Table 3 > Step 3 in Assuree makes a claim for an Assurance of Support (AoS) recoverable payment
• for all other manual rejections, see Rejecting a claim for JobSeeker Payment (JSP) or Youth Allowance (YA) (job seeker), then go to Step 4

The job seeker must ask their Self-Employment Assistance provider to cancel their Self-Employment Allowance. The Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) will cancel their Self-Employment Allowance and send them an email to confirm it has stopped.

Once the job seeker has evidence from DEWR that they are no longer receiving Self-Employment Allowance:

• go to the Other Government Payments (OGP) screen
• zero the Self-Employment Allowance from the relevant date, code the reason for the action in the Chg Rsn field
• if the start date of the Self-Employment Allowance is before the cancellation date, zero Self-Employment Allowance from the cancellation date, code the reason for the action in the Chg Rsn field

Go to Step 5.

Check to see if the customer has met RapidConnect requirements within 28 days from date of Participation Interview.

Has the customer met their RapidConnect requirements?

• Yes, code a RapidConnect exemption on the Job Seeker RapidConnect (JMRC) screen. See Table 3 in RapidConnect Exemptions
• No, rejection is correct, go to Step 5

• Once the claim is assessing correctly, select Finish
• The Claim Finalisation DOC will appear, see Recording reasons for decisions
• Edit or add any extra details required, for example:
• Discretionary decisions including references to Operational Blueprint
• Waiting periods being served
• Select Finalise to complete the claim
• A confirmation dialog box will appear, select OK
• If a checklist of scans displays, mark as complete using the tick boxes to close scans off the customer's record

Note:

• If the customer's start date of payment is more than 28 days in the future, code a RapidConnect exemption on the Job Seeker RapidConnect (JMRC) screen. See Table 3 in RapidConnect Exemptions
• If there are outstanding reporting statements, use Recording and correcting employment income details to process payments
• The system will reject YA reason Failed to report (FRP) after 22 days from the claim assessment date if the customer fails to action outstanding reports
• Check if the customer has been in receipt of Double Orphan Pension (DOP):
• Select SELF on the Child Selection (CHS) screen
• Select DOP Circs from the Child Task Selector (CHTS) screen which goes to the Child Double Orphan Pension (CHDP) screen
• If customer is attracting DOP, cancel the DOP payment

Go to Step 6.

Due to a system limitation within the claim, the Participation Interview is unable to be run for customers under 16 years of age and error E543NM - 'Participation Workflow has not been completed' will present.

For the claim to be assessed and finalised:

• Complete all claim coding
• Resolve any errors that may present on the Errors (SWE) screen. For help, see Using Digital Assistant Roxy in Process Direct
• Refer the claim via email to Jobseeker, Participation and Parenting Programme team, include:
• Claim ID and CRN
• Expected outcome (grant or reject including rejection reason)
• Expected rate
• Any other information relevant to the decision

Once the claim has been finalised, contact the customer to:

• advise the claim outcome, as per Step 7
• complete the job seeker registration and connect the job seeker with a provider. See Table 1 > Step 4 in Conducting a Job Seeker Snapshot interview

Note: if a customer received a Crisis Payment (CrP) in the period the change is applied, a manual reassessment of Crisis Payment may be required. For more information, see Reviewing and reassessing Crisis Payment (CrP).

Procedure ends here.

Make one genuine attempt to contact the customer once the claim is finalised, regardless of the claim outcome. If the customer is subscribed, issue a pre-call notification (SMS only) between the hours of 8:00 am and 8:00 pm customer's local time to let them know a Service Officer will call them today from a private number, see Centrelink letters online and Electronic Messaging.

Note: if the claim is selected for Quality Management Application (QMA) checking, it is the Quality Management Officer's (QMO) responsibility to make the outbound call to the customer. This must be done once the QMA has been completed.

Annotate the Claim Finalisation DOC with the details advised to the customer:

If the claim was granted, tell the customer:

• their rate of payment, payment date and any waiting periods
• about self service options
• their reporting requirements, including to:
• use their Centrelink online account or the Express Plus Centrelink mobile app to report
• report for the specific dates within the reporting period
• report the gross amount of earnings, and
• complete any immediate or outstanding reports they need to action
• where a job seeker's circumstances meet the requirements to be Centrelink managed, negotiate a Job Plan. See Negotiating Centrelink Managed Job Plans
• any mutual obligation requirements, where applicable
• if they have overdue payments (for example, more than 2 fortnights), they cannot report via Self Service. See Recording and correcting employment income details for more information

If the claim was rejected, tell the customer:

• about possible alternate income support payments, and/or
• their review of decision options

There is no need to make a further outbound call.

Annotate the Claim Finalisation DOC with the following information:

• Contact attempt unsuccessful
• Contact number/s: (what telephone numbers were used to attempt contact)

When an FTB child claims YA, the system will cancel FTB for them from:

• 1 January if they nominated that as a start date for YA, or
• the earliest deemed date of qualification for YA

See Family Tax Benefit (FTB) for children aged 16-19 years for more information.

If YA was rejected because FTB is a more appropriate payment:

• if the parent's FTB cancelled reason Dependent Receiving Precluding Payment (DPP), restore FTB
• for partnered customers, a claim for income support payments may need to be taken and processed