Part-time or full-time study as an approved activity for JobSeeker Payment (JSP) 001-09070020

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Question: Are principal carers on JobSeeker Payment (JSP) subject to the short course approval policy?

Answer: JSP single principal carers are exempt from short course policy if they are undertaking a Pensioner Education Supplement (PES) approved course for at least 30 hours per fortnight.

To have a short course approved, a principal carer must be studying 15 or more hours per week (30 hours per fortnight), including any combination of contact and non-contact hours, regardless of whether the study is classified as full-time or part-time by the institution or organisation providing the course.

All other job seekers on JSP are subject to short course policy, including those with part-time mutual obligation requirements.

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Question: Who can approve a full-time short course?

Answer: With some exceptions, full-time study for JSP job seekers can only be approved by a Workforce Australia/Remote Australia Employment Service (RAES) provider once they commence participation with the provider or they commence a placement with other providers, for example, Inclusive Employment Australia (IEA).

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Question: If a JSP job seeker has a full-time short course approved, do they have any additional mutual obligation requirements?

Answer: Yes. If a full-time short course is approved by their provider, the job seeker is still required to look for and accept work, but not where it conflicts with the time of the course or if it would prevent them from completing the course. However, job seekers are required to accept any suitable work that does not conflict with the course, and they are not permitted to limit their job search only to areas relating to the course.

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Question: When can Services Australia approve a full-time short course/study?

Answer: Services Australia can only approve full-time study for JSP job seekers who:

• are Centrelink managed, and
• are identified as requiring training under the Skills for Education and Employment (SEE) program or the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP), or
• all the following conditions apply:
  • the course is less than 12 months (2 semesters) in duration
  • the course is full-time (or at least 15 hours per week for principal carers or partial capacity to work (PCW) 15-22 hours per week)
  • the job seeker has a confirmed offer of employment in writing from the employer, pending the completion of a specified short course
  • the course has a clear vocational application
  • the job seeker is prepared to meet any costs involved

In addition, job seekers who were studying while receiving Parenting Payment (PP) will be able to continue their studies after they transfer to JSP without the need for further approval. This is regardless of whether the remainder of their studies is less than 12 months or not.

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Question: In the case of short course approvals, who is the decision maker (DM)?

Answer: Given that Services Australia retains the delegation to consider short course approvals for some job seeker groups, it will depend on who is approving or rejecting the short course application. This means that the Decision Maker could be either the provider or a Services Australia Service Officer.

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Question: Can a job seeker request a review of the decision if a provider does not approve a short course?

Answer: If a job seeker is unhappy with a provider decision in regards to non-approval of a short course and following discussion with the provider it is clear they will not change their decision, the customer may contact the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) to lodge a complaint.

As with any adverse decision made by a delegate of the Secretary under Social Security Law, a customer can request a review of a decision relating to the contents of a Job Plan, whether made by the provider or a Service Officer.

A review officer can overturn a decision relating to the content of a Job Plan only where the decision is not consistent with Social Security Law (for example, because the job seeker cannot reasonably be expected to meet the terms of the Job Plan or where a term is precluded by the legislative instrument).

A review officer cannot overturn a Job Plan related decision simply because the review officer or the job seeker disagrees with the decision.

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Question: Can a job seeker undertake part-time study if it is not approved under the short course policy?

Answer: Any type of part-time study which cannot be approved under short course policy can be undertaken if the job seeker continues to meet all of their mutual obligation requirements. The job seeker must demonstrate genuine job search efforts, including looking for work, attending appointments and accepting offers of employment.

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Question: Can a job seeker undertake full-time study if it is not approved under the short course policy?

Answer: No. In general, social security law precludes full-time students from receiving JSP if they are eligible for Austudy or Youth Allowance (YA) as a full-time student. JSP is a payment for people who are unemployed and looking for work. It is not a payment for full-time students. Unless short course policy allows Services Australia to approve full-time study, or exceptional circumstances allows a provider to approve full-time study, the job seeker would not remain qualified for JSP and would need to test their eligibility for a student payment.

However, JSP should not be cancelled or rejected based on the job seeker's full-time study, unless:

• they have been advised (either at grant or at a later time) by their provider that their full-time study will not meet their mutual obligation requirements, and
• the job seeker is not willing to meet other mutual obligation requirements such as job search

Otherwise, it is up to the provider to negotiate appropriate activities for the job seeker, to either include the study in the Job Plan or not, and to instigate compliance action as necessary for failure to meet compulsory requirements.

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Question: Can a Parenting Payment (PP) job seeker studying part-time or full-time transfer to JSP, continue their full-time studies and retain eligibility for JSP?

Answer: PP recipients transferring to JSP

• If a PP job seeker transfers to JSP as a principal carer, they can continue to complete their current course of study without the need for further approval, even if the remainder of the course is longer than 12 months in duration. The job seeker will be taken as fully meeting their mutual obligation requirements as long as they continue to study for at least 15 hours per week, or 30 hours per fortnight (no minimum contact hours), in the same course
• If the job seeker ceases study or wants to change their course, they would need to be re-assessed under the study guidelines for JSP. The job seeker would need to talk to a provider (if in a program) about approval of the new course and single JSP principal carers would lose eligibility for Pensioner Education supplement (PES)
• If a PP recipient who transfers to JSP is continuing the same course of study but at less than 15 hours per week (or 30 hours per fortnight), they will have additional requirements - at minimum, a job search requirement

Note: JSP (single principal carers) may continually remain qualified for PES as an income support payment that attracts PES, as eligibility has been extended to JSP (single principal carer). See Initial contact with students claiming Pensioner Education Supplement (PES) for further information.

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Question: Will PES still be paid to those job seekers who continue to study after transfer from PP to JSP?

PP job seekers (whether studying full-time or part-time) who were in receipt of PES whilst in transition to JSP (as people assessed with a partial capacity to work (PCW) or principal carer) will continue to receive PES if they continue to study in the same course when they transitioned to JSP.

Note: JSP (single principal carers) qualifies as a PES attracting income support payment. This means that those PPS job seekers who transfer to JSP (single principal carer) will continue to be able to qualify for PES at any point in time (where all other qualifications are met) and will no longer be required to be continuing in the same course of study to retain access to PES. Refer to Initial contact with students claiming Pensioner Education Supplement (PES) for further information.

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Question: When a job seeker wishes to undertake a full-time short course of less than 12 months and could potentially qualify for either a student payment or a job seeker payment, which payment should the job seeker be receiving?

If a job seeker, except for a PP job seeker or a principal carer on JSP, contacts the agency and advises they intend to study full-time, in the first instance the job seeker should test their eligibility for a student payment. If the job seeker is eligible for a student payment, then a job seeker payment is not payable, and the job seeker must claim the student payment.

However, JSP job seekers will not be required to test their eligibility for a student payment if their provider has approved the course and all the following are met:

• the course is a short course, that is, less than 12 months in duration, or the job seeker has a remainder of a course of less than 12 months, and
• the job seeker is receiving JSP
• the course is approved
• it is more financially beneficial for the job seeker to remain on JSP

If the job seeker is eligible for a student payment and it is more financially beneficial for them, then they should be advised to claim the student payment.

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Question: How does Services Australia code the short course approval?

In situations where a provider is responsible for approving the short course and adding it to the job seeker's Job Plan, notification that the job seeker is undertaking a full-time short course will be received automatically. This includes commencement, variations, and cessation of a course. The Activity and Exemption Summary (AEX) screen will be updated with SHD approved activity code, start and end dates. These details are viewable on the Short Course Details screen. A link to this screen is accessible via the Participation Summary under the Activity Type/Exemption Information heading.

In situations where Services Australia retains the delegation for approving a short course and a job seeker approaches Services Australia directly to apply for a short course approval, the job seeker will be asked to complete a Request for course approval (SS362) form. Services Australia will consider suitability of the course under current guidelines and must confirm enrolment before adding the details to the Job Plan and coding the course details in the Short Course Details screen, which will then auto-populate the SHD activity code with the start and end dates on the AEX screen.