Advance payments for Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS) loans 065-22051321

Customers must meet the eligibility criteria to apply for a HEAS advance loan payment.

Once eligibility is met, the customer may be entitled to a HEAS advance payment if all the following apply:

• the HEAS loan balance is less than the lowest of:
• maximum loan amount (MLA), or
• customer’s nominated MLA (see the Resources page for an example)
• the customer has not already had 2 HEAS advance payments in the past 26 fortnights
• there is an available HEAS advance amount. The most a customer can advance in any 26-fortnight period is 50% of their annual maximum pension rate

To help customers identify if they have an available HEAS advance amount, go to Step 2.

HEAS advance enquiries may include:

• checking eligibility
• confirming current balance
• confirming the next available date to access a HEAS advance

This information is available using digital channels. Customers are strongly encouraged to use digital options as the preferred method. If a customer has barriers preventing the use of digital options, offer to help with the advance payment claim.

The available digital options include:

• Advance Payment request - via their Centrelink online account
• Express Plus mobile app - see Accessing and using Centrelink self-service

The benefits for the customer when applying online are:

• ability to upload HEAS supporting documents
• consent can be provided online
• customer data pre-populates assisting making the claiming process quick and easy
• more accurate HEAS estimates when using the authenticated calculator for finding the:
• amount of HEAS advance payment available
• effect on fortnightly HEAS loan payments

Is the customer able to use digital channel?

• Yes, go to Step 3
• No, go to Step 4

If a customer has barriers preventing the use of digital options, offer to help with the advance payment claim.

For customers requesting an advance payment using Centrelink online services, ask the customer to:

• open the dropdown Menu in their Centrelink online account and select:
• Payments and claims, under Manage payments
• Home Equity Access Scheme summary
• Request advance payment
• Tell the customer:
• 'If you are receiving HEAS fortnightly loan payments to top-up your maximum pension rate, the loan component will reduce over the next 26-fortnights'
• 'If you have not received HEAS fortnightly loan payments or an advance within the last 13 weeks, you will be asked additional questions to assist with the assessment'
• 'You will need to provide documentation to support your request'
• 'To participate in the Scheme the customer must understand and accept the Terms and Conditions'
• 'If you are partnered, your partner must consent to your advance request'
• Encourage them to use the online HEAS calculator

The Resources page contains examples to assist customers with an Advance Payment through digital services, including Online services and Express Plus mobile apps.

Record the conversation on a DOC.

Procedure ends here.

Service delivery staff can check existing customers advance information in:

• Process Direct - Home Equity Access Scheme Advance (HEASADV) screen
• Customer Record/Customer First - Home Equity Access Scheme Summary (PLSS) screen, and:
• key 'A' in the box to the left-hand side of the Loan Number field
• the HEAS Advance (HEAA) screen now shows

This displays the:

• number of advances taken within the last 12-month period
• maximum amount of Advance Lump Sum a customer is eligible for
• next date the customer is eligible to request an Advance Lump Sum

A HEAS application can be lodged by:

• Customer - lodging their own claim
• Nominee - a correspondence nominee can claim a HEAS advance lump sum on behalf of the customer

Consent is required for all claims when:

• Customer has a partner - the partner must provide consent including when they do not own the property being used as security
• Correspondence Nominee lodges claim and customer is:
• incapacitated - the correspondence nominee must provide a Power of Attorney (or other financial arrangement) and a letter from the treating doctor explaining why the customer is unable to make the request
• not incapacitated - customer and partner (if applicable) must provide consent for the Nominee to make the application

Staff must:

• investigate the customer's current circumstances when assessing a HEAS advance payment request
• complete each activity separately if a customer requests an Advance Lump Sum at the same time as other change of circumstances
• consider the financial impact to the customer when assessing each change of circumstance

For example - when a single customer becomes partnered there is a change to the payable pension rate.

For the correct payment rate of the Advance Lump Sum to occur, complete:

• and update the becoming partnered assessment first
• the Advance Lump Sum request separately

Complex Assessment Officers (CAO) checks

A HEAS advance loan request is based on the customer’s existing Maximum Loan Amount (MLA) and the value of the property used as security. The CAO must check that all circumstances are up to date. This may include checking the security property is adequately insured.

Due to an increase in fraudulent activity, straight through processing for HEAS customers requesting an advance payment has been turned off.

The CAO must report:

• any concerns about a customer’s advance loan request, or
• where fraud and corruption is identified

Before processing an advance payment request the CAO must:

• check for any changes to the payment destination (PAS) screen
• when recent changes apply, confirm the correct payment destination details with the customer
• clearly annotate any contact

See: Report suspected fraud and corruption for more details.

For customers with a fortnightly loan payment to top-up their pension rate, the receipt of a HEAS advance lump sum amount will reduce the fortnightly loan payment component for the next 26-week fortnightly advance period.

Staff must tell customers about the:

• reduction to the fortnightly rate
• effect this can have on any current Centrepay deductions from:
• Age Pension
• Disability Support Pension
• Carer Payment

Staff must:

• check for any recent updates to the payment destination, and
• contact the customer if they have any concerns, to confirm the correctness of the updated information

Within 2 days of grant the Advance Lump Sum is:

• paid to a customer's nominated financial institution
• added to the Total Loan Balance and interest applied (from the date of delivery)

When coding an Advance Lump Sum request:

• date of receipt is the date the CAO processes the activity
• Advance Lump Sum requests cannot be backdated
• the system automatically records the HEAS advance lump sum on the Direct Investments (SVDI) screen as an exempt direct investment when the HEAS loan is secured by the customer’s principal residence

On completion of the advance activity:

• the HEAS loan principal balance amount is updated with the advance payment details from the advance payment delivery date
• the SVDI coding is updated the day after the HEAS payment is finalised. For more details, see Table 5
• a Manual follow up (MFU) is created to send a reminder letter 69 days after delivery of the advance amount for customers to update their income and assets
• if the customer does not update the information, the advance amount is included in the asset test 90 days after delivery

To check if the customer has an existing HEAS loan, in:

• Process Direct:
• select Home Equity Access Scheme Advance (HEASADV) screen
• search for existing loans
• Customer First / Customer Record:
• select Home Equity Access Scheme Summary (PLSS) screen
• key 'A' on the left hand side of the Loan Number field. The HEAS Advance (HEAA) screen displays
• search for existing loans

Does a loan display on the HEASADV or PLSS screen?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No:
• the customer or nominee must lodge a new claim for HEAS to request an advance payment, see Claiming a Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS) loan
• procedure ends here

To check if the existing loan is settled, in Process Direct: select:

• Home Equity Access Scheme Summary (HEASS)
• Existing HEAS loan
• Home Equity Access Scheme Details (HEAS) screen. Review the details to see if the loan has been settled

The loan is considered settled if the:

• Current Balance = $0, and
• Ceased Loan Indicator - Y

For more details, check the Document List (DL) screen for the DOC confirming the loan has been settled.

Has the existing HEAS loan been settled?

• Yes:
• the customer must lodge a new claim for HEAS to request an advance payment, see Claiming a Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS) loan
• procedure ends here
• No:
• the customer's loan has an outstanding balance
• go to Step 3

Is the customer willing and able to apply using the Request advance payment online service?

• Yes, record the contact on a DOC and tell the customer they can:
• proceed with their HEAS advance request online
• track their submitted request via the Home Equity Access Scheme summary page in their Centrelink online account. Procedure ends here. Note: if the customer requires help with their HEAS advance request, go to Step 5
• No, go to Step 4

If the customer cannot use the Request advance payment via digital channels, they can apply using the Home Equity Access Scheme variation form (SA497).

If the customer currently receives loan payments to top-up their pension rate, tell them a HEAS advance loan amount will reduce their fortnightly HEAS loan payments.

To give an estimate the customer can use the online Home Equity Access Scheme calculator.

Staff can help customers get the estimate by accessing the loan calculator through the Home Equity Access Scheme Summary page using Customer Online View.

A Home Equity Access Scheme variation form (SA497) paper form can be:

• downloaded from the Services Australia website, or
• staff can issue the form via Process Direct:
• Request Documents
• PLS - Home Equity Access Scheme
• SA497 - Variation Form

Details for lodging the HEAS advance request are provided within the SA497 form.

If an SA497 has been lodged and not scanned, Staff must make sure:

• all mandatory questions have been answered, and
• the supporting documents are provided before scanning to the customer's record

See Attaching electronic documents to a Centrelink customer's record using Document Tools in Customer First for how to scan the form and documents to Document Tools on the customer's record. Go to Step 6.

For non Complex Assessment Officer (CAO) processing staff only:

If the SA497 Change of Circumstance variation has been lodged at a local service centre, refer the SA497 to the Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS) National team for processing.

Create an activity

• Go to Customer Summary
• Key the Customer Reference Number (CRN) into the CRN field
• Select Go. The Task Selector screen displays
• Select HEAS Task Selector
• Select Home Equity Access Scheme
• Select Start. The HEAS Loans Summary (HEAS) screen displays
• Select Edit
• In the Effect Date field:
• key the Date of Receipt (DOR) of the SA497, or
• if the DOR precedes the last Effect Date, key the system date and Save. The Task Bar displays
• Select Keyword
• Add HEASTFR to the keyword search, and close
• Un-assign the work item, use reason 2nd Contact Required. There is no requirement to monitor the work item, the system reallocates work items automatically

If a customer requires help with the Request advance payment online service, use Customer Online View to provide support by:

• viewing the details the customer is enquiring about
• using the Home Equity Access Scheme summary to help inform the customer about their HEAS loan and available HEAS advance amounts
• accessing the Home Equity Access Scheme calculators to help the customer with identifying their HEAS loan eligibility and approximate HEAS rate

Customer Online View does not allow staff to save information they enter when helping a customer, or to start or submit a HEAS advance payment request for the customer.

Some customers must answer additional questions and provide supporting documentation to establish or re-confirm their eligibility before a HEAS advance request outcome is determined.

For example: the customer will be asked additional questions if it has been more than 13 weeks since they were paid a HEAS:

• fortnightly loan payment, or
• advance lump sum payment

Additional questions may relate to:

• relationship status, to confirm the correct rate of payment (single or partnered
• real estate, to confirm any changes to the HEAS secured property or mortgages/ direct deductions

The Resources page has a table on documents required for HEAS advance payment requests.

For details about voluntary withdrawal of HEAS advance payment requests, go to Step 7.

To start processing an Advance Loan amount request, go to Table 4.

Customers can withdraw their request for an advance payment at any time before the request is processed and finalised.

Verbal requests for withdrawal are not accepted when:

• the customer is a member of a couple and their partner has already provided consent to the HEAS advance request, or
• a correspondence nominee submitted the HEAS advance request where the customer and (if applicable) their partner, have both already provided consent

If all consent has been provided, the withdrawal of the HEAS advance request must be in writing and signed by the customer and (if applicable) their partner.

Staff can request withdrawal action by the Home Equity Access Scheme National team. Use Fast Note, select Auto text, use Complex Assessment > Request for CAO action > CAO Home Equity Access Scheme.

Do not action a verbal withdrawal of a HEAS advance request unless the Home Equity Access Scheme National team is satisfied with the customer's or correspondence nominee's identity.

See Authenticating a Centrelink customer for details on how to establish and confirm the identity of the customer verbally requesting the withdrawal.

Home Equity Access Scheme National team only

• To withdraw a HEAS advance payment request via Process Direct, go to Table 3
• If the HEAS advance payment request has already been processed and resulted in a grant outcome, the request cannot be withdrawn
• The customer has the option of repaying the advance immediately via the normal repayment channels

Early repayment of the advance will not:

• allow the customer to claim an advance at an earlier date if the customer has previously accessed 2 advance payments in the preceding 26-fortnights
• entitle the customer to automatically start receiving fortnightly payments

See Repayment of Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS) loans.

Has the HEAS advance payment request been submitted as part of a new application for HEAS?

• Yes, process the HEAS New Claim request first, see Assessing Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS) applications
• No, go to Step 2

Customers can lodge another Change of Circumstance with the HEAS advance payment request, including requests to:

• stop fortnightly loan payments
• start fortnightly loan payments
• change fortnightly loan payments

In these instances, a separate work item is presented in Process Direct.

Has the customer requested any of the above change in circumstances?

• Yes:
• A CAO must consider the impacts of these changes and the effect on the rate of payment. For example, stop loan payments
• In this case, staff must apply the change before assessing the Advance Loan Amount
• For more details on how to code these changes see, Change of circumstances - Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS)
• No, go to Step 3

Select the work item for the HEAS advance request in Process Direct.

To process the HEAS advance payment request, select Process

From Task Selector select:

• HEAS - Home Equity Access Scheme
• REBS - Real Estate/Business Identity Details
• HEASADV - Home Equity Access Scheme Advance

Alternatively, manually key each screen using the Super Key field.

Select Next to check or update customer's record. The Home Equity Access Scheme Summary (HEASS) screen will show.

If a customer is partnered and they have also requested an advance lump sum, code the activities separately.

If the work items have not automatically bundled:

• allocate the partner's work item via Work Optimiser, and
• assess both HEAS loan applications together

Online service request

Review the details entered by the customer in the Process Direct slider by selecting .

This information also displays in the Process Direct slider.

The customer must answer additional questions if it has been more than 13 weeks since they were paid a HEAS:

• fortnightly loan payment, or
• advance lump sum payment

SA497 - variation form

When the customer lodges a completed SA497 variation form, staff must check that all required:

• information on the form is completed
• supporting documentation is provided

Select the Documents tab to confirm.

The date of decision is the system date the advance assessment activity is finalised.

If the activity is started and not finalised on the same day, the decision date is the date the activity is Completed. For example, if the activity was started on 09/07/2024 and not finalised until 11/07/2024 the decision date is 11/07/2024.

This date is recorded as the actual date the advance is assessed and is used for the immediate payment processing and delivery of the advance lump sum.

Grant date/start date determination

The grant date of the HEAS Advance payment is the latest of the following dates:

• Request Date
• Customer’s current Entitlement Period Start Date (EPSD) (based on the current system date)
• Latest confirmed change to the Maximum Pension Rate (on or before the system date)

Due to a system limitation, do not complete the finalisation on the customer’s Entitlement Period End Date (EPED). The system does not correctly recognise the advance amount being paid to the customer.

The grant date cannot be a future date.

To determine the grant date, the system finds the EPSD of the current entitlement period.

Consideration is given to any of the following changes in the same period:

• changes to Marital status
• changes to Rent Assistance
• increase to Pension Basic rate - CPI dates 20 March or 20 September

When any of these changes have effective dates within the entitlement period, the advance grant date is set to the latest of all dates. This is to make sure the customer is paid the lump sum based on their correct rate of payment.

SA497 - variation forms lodge by a customer are found on Documents.

The customer is required to answer additional questions, including personal information and property details if it has been more than 13 weeks since they were paid a HEAS:

• fortnightly loan payment, or
• advance lump sum payment

The Complex Assessment Officer (CAO) must check that:

• supporting evidence is provided (for example, change in security property ownership) when there has been a change to the:
• customer's personal details
• property details
• financial circumstances
• consent has been provided when the:
• customer is partnered
• request is completed by a correspondence nominee

Has all the required information, documentation, and consent by partners or third parties been provided?

• Yes, go to Step 7
• No:
• in Process Direct - issue a Request for Information via the Request Documents option. See, Resources in Requesting information
• place the work item on hold pending receipt of the requested information

There is a known system issue when rejecting HEAS advance payment requests.

If the requested information has not been returned by the due date and the request is to be Rejected, complete the following approved work around:

• Process Direct - select Status Tab and change the status to Cancelled
• Customer Record - draft and issue a Q999 to notify the customer their application has been cancelled for not providing the required documentation by the due date
• Document the HEAS customer’s record with the:
• Date of Event (DOE) the HEAS advance payment was rejected failed to reply to correspondence (FRC) as the requested information was not returned by the due date
• act reference - Social Security Act (SSAct) 1991, section 1137AA - Advance Payments, Social Security (Administration) Act 1999. Procedure ends here

See Resources page for:

• a guide to identify required documents
• details about assessing consent for HEAS advance payments
• links to Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS) forms

Check the Loan Details (HEAS) screen.

Has the customer received a loan payment or a lump sum within the last 13 weeks?

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

When the customer has not received a loan payment or a lump sum within the last 13 weeks, ask the following questions:

• Relationship status - has there been any changes to their relationship status since last recording their status
• Property details - confirm or provide the property address used as security against the loan and include the following:
• Do they still have ownership interest in the property
• What is the estimated current market value of the property
• Is the property larger than 2 hectares (5 acres)
• Who is the listed as the property title holders
• Percentage they own
• Are there circumstances affecting the value of the property
• Is the property mortgaged or encumbered
• Are they or any co-owners of the property bankrupt or subject to a personal insolvency agreement
• Is the property adequately and appropriately insured
• Do they intend to take additional loans or mortgages on the property in the future

If the customer advises they have had a change in their relationship status, this may affect their rate of payment. Staff must update any changes before assessing the Advance Loan Amount.

After updating the relationship changes, contact the customer and tell them about the changes to their Advance Loan Amount entitlement.

If the customer advised a change to their circumstances, provisional data shows on a new line, with the date of effect as the date of request.

To view or edit the Loan Details (HEAS) screen

Select:

• Expand
• Edit (pencil icon)

Review the customer’s circumstances for the following criteria:

• Loan Security Value - if the customer has advised a significant change to their 'Loan Security Value' since the last formal valuation was done, a new formal valuation may be required
• Maximum Loan Amount (MLA) - if the customer has reached, or the requested HEAS advance loan amount exceeds the existing MLA, an error will present on submission of the claim activity. For more details, see Change of circumstances - Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS)
• Deductions - if the customer has advised the security property has an encumbrance recorded against it, staff must update this, as it changes the loan security value. This includes any:
• loan
• mortgage
• reverse mortgage
• life interest
• line of credit
• any other encumbrance

Has the customer changed their existing Loan Security Value?

• Yes, go to Step 10
• No, go to Step 12

If the customer has changed their existing Real Estate details this may impact on their existing MLA.

Check historical real estate information to determine if a formal valuation is required.

For more details about a formal valuation and how deductions will impact the loan security value, see Security for the Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS), and Table 4 in Assessing Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS) applications.

Formal valuation is required

To request a formal valuation and place the Advance loan request activity on hold, in Process Direct, select the Status icon and update as follows:

• Status - On Hold
• On Hold reason - Referral to valuation
• On Hold Expiry Date - 14 days in the future

Update the Progress of Claim Note with the reason for placing the claim on hold.

When the formal valuation is returned, go to Step 11.

To view or edit the REBS screen

Select:

• Expand
• Edit (pencil icon)

Was a formal valuation required?

• Yes:
• update the required fields
• select Save
• select Next
• No:
• check the existing information for accuracy
• select Cancel
• select Next

In Process Direct select Edit (pencil icon) to view or edit the HEASADV screen.

Check the Advance Loan amount the customer has requested within the Process Direct slider or SA497 variation form.

Before selecting assess, check the following are correct:

• Advance Payment Amount - amount the customer has requested
• Maximum Advance Payment Amount - the customer's amount of entitlement

The system automatically calculates the maximum HEAS advance amount available to the customer. The HEAS advance amount keyed must be equal to, or less than this amount.

If the HEAS advance loan amount is requested via an:

• online account, the amount will show as provisional data
• SA497- HEAS variation paper form, staff must manually code the HEAS advance amount

Staff must contact the customer if they have requested more than the system calculated Maximum Advance amount. Tell the customer the maximum advance amount they can request.

The customer can:

• request another amount. A new amount cannot be accepted verbally, they must give written consent on an amended SA497 or via a statutory declaration
• withdraw the request

If the customer wants to:

• withdraw the request, see Table 2, Step 7
• give written consent for a new amount:
• place the Advance loan request activity on hold
• in Process Direct, select the Status icon and update as follows:
  Status - On Hold.
  On Hold reason - Request for Information.
  On Hold Expiry Date - 14 days in the future

Before finalising the activity, select Assess. The Entitlements (ELD) screen displays the provisional outcome.

If the outcome is not correct, edit the relevant coding changes.

To manually add/edit the provisional HEAS advance payment amount, select Edit.

Before completing the activity, go to Table 4.

Is the HEAS Advance Lump Sum to be granted?

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

Before rejecting the HEAS advance payment request, the Decision Maker must contact the customer to explain the decision and give them an opportunity to provide more details.

Complete the following actions:

• Make genuine attempts to phone the applicant
• Tell the applicant of the rejection outcome and explain their review and appeal rights
• Record the outcome of each contact (including unsuccessful contacts) on the Progress of Claim DOC via the Document List (DL) screen. See Advising verbally of an unfavourable decision, for more details

Was contact with the customer successful?

• Yes, go to Step 3
• No, go to Step 4

The customer can give more details when the HEAS loan advance amount cannot be granted for one of the following reasons:

• Written consent not provided by partner
• Maximum Loan Amount (MLA) reached

Does the customer want to give more details?

• Yes, key the following:
• Status - On Hold
• On Hold reason - Request for Information
• On Hold Expiry Date - 14 days in the future
• Progress of Claim Note - document the reason the claim has been placed on hold.
• No, and the rejection reason is:
• correspondence reason - written consent not provided, or failed to provide correspondence go to Step 5
• not a correspondence reason, go to step 4

Follow this process when the customer is uncontactable or one of the following rejection reasons apply:

• 2AP - 2 advances already taken (received 2 HEAS advance payments in the previous 26-fortnights)
• MBE - Advance Request Voluntary Withdrawal (withdrawn the HEAS advance payment request)
• ZMA - Maximum loan amount precludes (reached their maximum loan amount (MLA)
• AVW - No available HEAS advance amount

In Process Direct:

• select Finalise to complete the HEAS advance payment request
• key all details of the assessment outcome in Note

A dialog box shows and confirms the work item has finalised successfully.

A letter automatically generates and is sent to the customer with the rejection outcome. View the letter in Customer First via Outbound Correspondence.

When correspondence is not received by the due date, the claim rejection reasons applied are:

• written consent not provided, or
• failed to provide correspondence

The following approved work around for a known system issue is required when rejecting:

If the requested information has not been returned by the due date and the request is to be Rejected, complete the following approved work around:

• Process Direct - select Status Tab and change the status to Cancelled
• Customer Record - draft and issue a Q999 to notify the customer their application has been cancelled for not providing the required documentation by the due date
• Document the HEAS customer’s record with the:
• Date of Event (DOE) the HEAS advance payment was rejected failed to reply to correspondence (FRC) as the requested information was not returned by the due date
• act reference - Social Security Act (SSAct) 1991, section 1137AA - Advance Payments, Social Security (Administration) Act 1999

• Procedure ends here.

Is the customer currently receiving a HEAS loan fortnightly payment?

• Yes, go to Step 7. Note: if a customer has lodged a New Claim for a HEAS fortnightly loan payment as well as an Advance Lump Sum, see Assessing Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS) applications
• No, Advance Lump Sum only, go to Step 8

If the customer receives a fortnightly loan payment:

• the LON component is recalculated and the advance amount subtracted from their maximum entitlement
• a new fortnightly loan amount is calculated and applied from the date of grant of the HEAS advance

Where the fortnightly loan payment is not impacted by the advance amount, no change is made to the fortnightly loan amount and the customer continues to receive their regular rate of HEAS loan payment.

Go to Step 9

A customer that was previously cancelled as voluntary withdrawal is still eligible to request a HEAS Advance Loan.

The ceased loan indicator must be updated to N within the request activity, or the advance will not be assessed as the HEAS loan is not current.

To update:

• Select the HEAS screen
• key 'N' in Ceased loan
• remove Reject/Cease Reason

Go to Step 9.

If the customer is:

• requesting an Advance Lump Sum only key the following:
• Top-up Type - Advance (ADV)
• Effect Date - same as the advance request date
• receiving fortnightly loan payments - there is no change to the Top-up Type

To complete the HEAS Advance Loan payment request:

• Select - Finalise. A dialog box shows and confirms the work item has finalised successfully
• A letter automatically generates and is sent to the customer with the grant outcome. View the letter in Customer First via Outbound Correspondence

Overnight processing of grant outcomes results in the following:

• the HEAS advance payment is added to the customer's HEAS loan balance on the Home Equity Access Scheme Details (HEAS) screen
• when the HEAS loan is secured against the customer's principal home, the HEAS advance payment is recorded on the Direct Investments (SVDI) screen as Investment Type HEA. For more details about making updates to the SVDI coding post-grant, see Table 5

If the customer has secured their principal home for their HEAS loan, HEAS advance payments are an assessable asset.

For the purposes of the income and asset tests for income support payments, the HEAS advance payment is:

• exempt from the assets test assessment for the first 90 days
• subject to deeming provisions under the income test, and
• assessed as an asset after 90 days

If the customer (or their partner) receives a rate of pension, their rate may be affected.

Go to the Home Equity Access Scheme Advance (HEASADV) screen in Process Direct.

Has the customer been granted a HEAS advance payment?

• Yes, go to Step 3
• No, procedure ends here

Go to screens Home Equity Access Scheme Details (HEAS) and Real Estate/Business Summary (REBS) to confirm the secured property the customer has their HEAS loan against.

Has the customer secured the HEAS loan against their principal home?

• Yes, go to Step 4
• No, the HEAS advance payment is not an assessable asset. Procedure ends here

The system automatically records the HEAS advance payment on the Direct Investments (SVDI) screen as a financial investment, after the HEAS advance payment is granted. This cannot be manually coded onto SVDI screen by staff.

The coding displays the day after the HEAS advance payment grant is finalised. The advance payment coding on the SVDI screen includes the following details:

• Type: HEA
• Balance: full amount of the advance payment
• Event Date: equal to today's (system) date (date the HEAS advance payment was finalised)
• Assets Test Dedn Amt $ field in Customer First and Loan/Encumbrance Amt $ field in Process Direct: full amount of the HEAS advance payment

To check if the HEAS advance payment has been recorded, go to the Savings Summary (SVS) screen.

Does the HEAS advance payment display as an investment type?

• Yes, go to Step 6
• No, go to Step 5

If a HEAS advance payment is not automatically added to the Direct Investments (SVDI) screen, this may have occurred due to a task locking conflict with another system activity.

Check if this has occurred, go to the Trans/Trigger List (TTL) screen in Customer First, and look for the HEASAV trigger:

• If the trigger displays, this confirms the system attempted to record the HEAS advance payment on the SVDI screen, but the update was prevented
• The system continues to attempt to update the HEAS advance payment information on the SVDI screen for 14 days. After this a Manual Follow Up (MFU) activity automatically creates with keyword HEASAVC

To investigate and fix the conflict, if the MFU:

• with keyword HEASAVC has already been created, the Home Equity Access Scheme National team must manually update the SVDI screen:
• see Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS) reviews for the procedure to process the MFU
• has not been created, and the SVDI screen is locked by a started activity, arrange for the activity to be finalised. This will allow the automatic MFU update to proceed overnight

Has the fix resulted in the HEAS advance payment being updated on SVDI screen?

• Yes, procedure ends here
• No, escalate to the Home Equity Access Scheme National team for more investigation:
• Use Fast Note - select Auto text, use Complex Assessment > Request for CAO action > CAO Home Equity Access Scheme
• Do not close the Fast Note
• The Home Equity Access Scheme National team will determine if a manual update is required, or if an incident needs to be raised via mySupport

Customers are required to notify of updates to the balance of their HEAS advance payment to ensure correct assessments under the income and assets tests.

Customers can update their HEAS advance balance by:

• logging into their myGov Centrelink online account
• accessing the Banking module in the Income and assets summary
• the advance payment displays to the customer as Home Equity Access Scheme advance payment
• contacting Services Australia. If contacted:
• Get the details of the new HEAS advance balance and the date the HEAS advance balance reduced. Note: the balance should not be increased on the SVDI screen. If the customer has notified of an increase, escalate to the Home Equity Access Scheme National team
• Select the HEA advance payment via the SVDI screen
• Key the new HEAS advance balance from the applicable Event Date
• Key the Asset Test Dedn Amt $: in Customer First or the Loan/Encumbrance Amt $: in Process Direct to equal the new HEAS advance balance unless the existing deduction amount is zero. If the existing deduction amount is zero, do not change it
• Record details on a DOC

When HEAS customers contact to update their savings balances, staff must check the HEAS advance payment continues to be correctly recorded.

For example, a HEAS customer may have a $5,000 HEAS advance recorded on the SVDI screen. When the customer contacts, they advise of an increase of $5,000 in their bank account where their pension is paid.

In this example, staff would zero the balance of the HEAS advance payment on the SVDI screen (including updating the loan deduction field where applicable) and update the SVS screen for the customer’s pension account.

See Resources page for further examples

Once the HEAS advance balance has reached zero, the customer is not required to notify again. Go to Step 7.

• If the HEAS advance balance has not reduced to zero from the HEAS advance grant date + 69 days, a letter automatically issues to the customer
• This is to remind customers the asset test exemption period is about to end

• HEAS advance payments under the HEAS are only exempt from the assets test for the first 90 days after being granted
• The HEAS advance payment becomes assessable under the assets test on the 91st day after being granted
• The system automatically removes the asset test exemption on the 91st day after the HEAS advance payment was granted. This occurs by setting the Asset Test Dedn Amt $: in Customer First or the Loan/Encumbrance Amt $: in Process Direct to zero on the Direct Investments (SVDI) screen
• If the HEAS advance balance has reduced to zero, there is no impact to the rate of pension the customer, or their partner gets. There may be an impact to their pension rate if they have an asset-tested rate. HEAS customers can continue to notify of changes to their HEAS advance at any time

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