Returning to the parental home when independent or qualified for the away from home (AFH) rate of Youth Allowance (YA) 102-03010120

• If the customer is dependent, see Table 2, Step 4
• If customer is independent, go to Step 2

Is the customer independent under the category of Unreasonable to Live at Home (UTLAH)/homeless or due to being in state care?

• Yes, go to Step 6
• No, go to Step 3

Does the independent customer have an exemption from the accommodated independent rate?

• Yes, go to Step 5
• No, go to Step 4

If moved home:

• temporarily, see Table 3, Step 1
• permanently, see Table 3, Step 3

The customer is not an accommodated independent person and is therefore entitled to the away from home rate regardless of where they are living.

If the customer has moved home permanently, they may be entitled to Rent Assistance depending on the amount of rent they pay.

• Run the Change in Contact Details workflow to:
• update their home address, and
• accommodation details
• Rent Assistance (RA) can continue, if the customer:
• has moved home temporarily, and
• is maintaining accommodation away from home, and
• continues to have a rent liability
  No change to the Accommodation Details (AC) screen will be required
• If the customer has moved home temporarily and is maintaining accommodation away from home but not paying rent, the customer's AC screen for the Term/Semester address will need to be updated with:
• Type of rent = No rent paid - NRP and
• Sharer Status = Does not live in Shared Accommodation - NAS

See Completing the Accommodation Details (AC) screen and assessing Rent Assistance (RA) to finalise the AC screen update. Note: if this procedure was accessed from that page, it will have opened in a new window. Close this procedure and return there.

Record details of decision/discussion with customer on a DOC.

Procedure ends here.

If moved home:

• temporarily, or has returned home for a short period but has not yet decided if they can return permanently, go to Step 7
• permanently, go to Step 8

The nature of the return to the parental home should be investigated to determine if it is still unreasonable for the customer to live at home.

Short visits (generally less than 28 days) to the parental home would not preclude the customer from independent status. Such visits should be encouraged particularly if the customer is attempting mediation with their family. In this case, no further action is required.

If these visits are ongoing or extend for longer (for example, more than about 28 days), it may be an indication the customer has reconciled with their family or the situation at home has changed and it is no longer unreasonable to live at home.

If the customer advises their family situation has changed or is unsure how long they will remain at the parental home, their UTLAH independence must be reviewed.

If the customer is:

• 18 years of age or older, the decision to cease UTLAH can be made by a Service Officer. It is not necessary to refer the customer to a social worker for this purpose. If a decision is made that the customer is no longer independent, end the independence reason on the customer's record, go to Step 9
• under 16 years of age, they should be referred to the social worker at their local service centre. Check local procedures in Office Locator. See the Resources page for a link to the Office Locator. If local procedures are not available, and contact with the office cannot be established via telephone, complete the Refer to Social Work guided procedure
• aged 16 or 17, book a Social Work Unreasonable to Live at Home (UTLAH) appointment

Tell the customer a social worker will need to discuss their current circumstance to determine if it is still deemed unreasonable to live at home. Procedure ends here.

For Social Work staff, see Reviews of independence for Youth Allowance, to determine if the customer should still be paid as an independent person.

If the person is in state care, one of the qualification requirements for independent status due to state care is that the customer is not living with a parent. A customer who commences living with a parent will not be qualified as independent under state care.

Note: if the customer is reviewed and is no longer independent, parental income details may need to be provided so that the Parental Income Test (PIT) can be applied.

Procedure ends here.

The customer's independent status needs to be reassessed as the customer is now living in the parental home.

It is extremely unlikely that a customer who is living in the parental home would continue to qualify for independent status under the category of Unreasonable to Live at Home (UTLAH).

End the independence reason on the customer's record.

Is the customer under 16?

Note: do not manually cancel YA payments for customer's 16 years or over.

• Yes, YA should cancel due to Does not meet age requirements (AGD). If the payment cancels for any other reason:
• Manually cancel the customer's payment on the Benefit Action (BA) screen using the code - 'OTH'. DOC the record to show that the customer has been cancelled because they do not meet minimum age requirements
• This will create a Manual Follow-up (MFU) to send a 'Rej, Can, Sus or Defer pension, allowance or benefit' letter to the customer. (Note: this letter must be generated manually). Use the following text as the cancellation reason in the Q134 letter 'because you are under the minimum age for a dependent person'. It may be appropriate to tell the customer their parent may be entitled to Family Tax Benefit.
  Procedure ends here
• No, go to Step 9

Does the customer wish to continue receiving YA?

Note: Secondary students aged 16-17 previously in receipt of UTLAH are able to choose to remain on YA at the dependant rate when they return home permanently. It is important to provide access to continued financial support where possible. This ensures both the return home is successful and that young people are supported to remain engaged in education.

• Yes:
• check that the customer is linked to the correct parent(s) via the PIT Parent Selection (NPPS) screen. If the customer is not correctly linked, see Creating, updating and ending Parental Income Test (PIT) links with dependent student, Australian Apprentice and job seeker recipients or claimants and return to this procedure
• if the parental income information is available (such as their actual taxable income for the relevant tax year on the FAO Income for Previous Year (FIPY) screen) or already provided for another sibling or the customer is exempt from the Parental Income Test (PIT), see Completing Parent(s)/Guardian(s) details for the Base Tax Year and Current Tax Year (MOD JY) and code this information on the customer's record and restore the payment
• if the parent(s) income information is not available, issue a Parent(s)/Guardian(s) details for the Base Tax Year and Current Tax Year (MOD JY)
• run the Change in Contact Details workflow to update their home address and accommodation details
• if the customer was receiving Rent Assistance (RA), they will cease to qualify for RA from the earlier of the date they ceased to qualify for the independent rate, or the date they ceased to pay for accommodation
• ensure the customer's AC screen is updated for their parental home address and the sharer status is recorded as Lives with parents – LWP. See Completing the Accommodation Details (AC) screen and assessing Rent Assistance (RA) to finalise the AC screen update
• if the parent(s) income information has not been supplied or is not available, YA will CAN - PIA Parental income & assets not provided. YA can be restored if parental income is supplied within 13 weeks. Procedure ends here
• No:
• check that the customer is linked to the correct parent(s) via the PIT Parent Selection (NPPS) screen. If the customer is not correctly linked, see Creating, updating and ending Parental Income Test (PIT) links with dependent student, Australian Apprentice and job seeker recipients or claimants. Continue with this process
• cancel the customer's payment from the date the customer returned home via the Benefit Action (BA) screen using the 'CLR' code. Record details on a DOC. Procedure ends here

Conduct a review of independence for Youth Allowance (YA).

Does the customer still meet Independence criteria?

• Yes, check the Independent/Homeless/Away From Home Details (NIH) screen to ensure the correct IND code is displaying. If not, update to the correct code. The record will then need to be restored to ensure payments continue to be paid to the customer via the Benefit Action (BA) screen. See Restoration of JobSeeker Payment (JSP), Youth Allowance (job seeker) and Special Benefit (SpB). Run the Change in Contact Details workflow to update any changes, e.g. address and accommodation details. Record details on a DOC. Procedure ends here
• No, go to Step 2

Run the Change in Contact Details workflow to update their home address and accommodation details.

If the customer was receiving Rent Assistance (RA), they will cease to qualify for RA from the earlier of:

• the date they ceased to qualify for the independent rate, or
• the date they ceased to pay for accommodation

Ensure the customer's AC screen is updated for their parental home address and the sharer status is recorded as Lives with parents - LWP. See Completing the Accommodation Details (AC) screen and assessing Rent Assistance (RA) to finalise the AC screen update.

Update the NIH screen by ending the IND or HOM rate from the date immediately before the day they returned to the parental home.

In the same activity go to the Household Income and Assets (NHI) screen to check for a current Parental Income Test (PIT) link to the parent/s.

Is there a current PIT assessment displaying for the customer's parent/s?

• Yes, ensure the details are current for the PIT. For help with assessment and coding of the NHI screen, see Applying the Parental Income Test (PIT) for ABSTUDY and Youth Allowance (YA). Go to Step 3
• No, create a new PIT link to the current parent/s to help with the assessment and coding of the NHI screen. Go to Step 4

Go to the BA screen in the same activity, and restore the customer's payment. See Restoration of Youth Allowance (YA) or Austudy for full-time students and Australian Apprentices.

Record details on a DOC. Procedure ends here.

Is the customer continuing the activity for which they were approved for the away from home rate?

For example, if the customer was paid the away from home rate to study, they are still enrolled and continuing to make satisfactory progress.

• Yes, and customer has moved home:
• temporarily, see Table 3, Step 1
• permanently, see Table 3, Step 4
• No, go to Step 5

As the customer is no longer undertaking the activity for which they were approved for the away from home rate, they are no longer entitled to the away from home rate.

The customer's eligibility for payment must also be reassessed as they may no longer be qualified under the study requirements for YA students or they may not satisfy their mutual obligation requirements as YA job seekers.

Is the customer still entitled to YA?

• Yes, and the customer has moved home:
• temporarily, see Table 3, Step 3
• permanently, see Table 3, Step 4
• No, cancel their payment. Record details on a DOC. Procedure ends here

Assess the young person's ongoing entitlement to the away from home rate while staying in the parental home. For example, if a customer has returned home in a semester break and is enrolled or intends to enrol in the next available semester, and is still maintaining their residence away from the parental home, they will remain entitled to the away from home rate while they visit their parent(s). For more information, see Commencement, cessation and coding of the away from home rate for Youth Allowance (YA).

Will the customer continue to maintain their accommodation away from home while staying at the parental home temporarily?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No:
• independent, go to Step 3
• dependent, go to Step 4

Tell the customer they must notify Services Australia within 14 days of any changes in their circumstances including if:

• they cease the activity under which they were approved for the away from home rate, or
• they cease to maintain their accommodation away from home, or
• they return to their parental home permanently

Update the parental address as a temporary address on the Address History (ADH) screen ensuring both a start and end date are coded.

If the customer is maintaining accommodation away from home and they continue to have a rent liability, then Rent Assistance (RA) can continue. No change to the Accommodation Details (AC) screen will be required.

If the customer is maintaining accommodation away from home but not paying rent, the customer's AC screen for the Term/Semester address will need to be updated with:

• Type of rent = No rent paid - NRP, and
• Sharer Status = Does not live in Shared Accommodation - NAS

See Completing the Accommodation Details (AC) screen and assessing Rent Assistance (RA) to finalise the AC screen update. Note: if this procedure was accessed from that page, it will have opened in a new window. Close this procedure and return there.

Record details of decision/discussion on a DOC.

Note: If a customer received a Crisis Payment 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.

Update the rate of payment on the system, see Commencement, cessation and coding of the away from home rate for Youth Allowance (YA).

The customer:

• was receiving Rent Assistance (RA), they will cease to qualify for RA from the earlier of:
• the date they ceased to qualify for the away from home rate, or
• the date they ceased to pay for accommodation

Run the Change in Contact Details workflow to update the customer's address and accommodation details. Ensure the customer's Term/Semester address is end dated, the AC screen is updated for their home address and the sharer status is recorded as Lives with parents - LWP. See Completing the Accommodation Details (AC) screen and assessing Rent Assistance (RA) to finalise the AC screen update.

The customer:

• is independent and has a sibling in receipt of payment as a dependent child of the parent, the sibling's record will need updating for family pool purposes. See Changes which may affect the Parental Income Test (PIT)
• is a job seeker and their circumstances have changed, reclassify their Job Seeker Snapshot score. See Conducting a Job Seeker Snapshot interview
• was receiving or was eligible to receive the Long Term Income Support (LTIS) payment:
• and continues to meet the LTIS criteria, see Assessing entitlement to Youth Allowance (YA) special rate for Long Term Income Support Student
• remains eligible for the Special rates for LTIS recipients at the accommodated independent rate

Advise customer of their new rate of payment and record details of decision/discussion with customer on a DOC.

Note: If a customer received a Crisis Payment 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.

For dependent customers

When away from home details are coded on the NIH screen and:

• the customer is no longer eligible for the away from home rate
• there was a break in entitlement for YA, or
• an extension for the away from home rate is not applied

end date the current coding by updating the NIH screen as follows:

• End Reason field, enter 'NLE' (No longer eligible)
• End Date field, the earlier of either:
• the day after the date the customer ceases their approved activity and is not given further approval for another activity, or
• the day before the customer returned to the parental home

If the customer was receiving Rent Assistance (RA), they will cease to qualify for RA from the earlier of:

• the date they ceased to qualify for the away from home rate, or
• the date they ceased to pay for accommodation

Run the Change in Contact Details workflow to update the customer's address and accommodation details. Ensure the customer's Term/Semester address is end dated, the AC screen is updated for their home address and the sharer status is recorded as Lives with parents - LWP. See Completing the Accommodation Details (AC) screen and assessing Rent Assistance (RA) to finalise the AC screen update.

For customers who are no longer independent, such as customers who had been granted independence via Unreasonable to Live at Home (UTLAH), see Commencement, cessation and coding of the away from home rate for Youth Allowance (YA).

Future addresses can only be recorded up to 14 days before the change of address. If a customer advises they will return to their parents' home more than 14 days in the future, advise them to update their address within 14 days of the change.

If the customer is a job seeker, reclassify their Job Seeker Snapshot score. See Conducting a Job Seeker Snapshot interview.

If a customer received a Crisis Payment 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).

If the customer is no longer independent and has a sibling receiving payment as a dependent child of the parent, the sibling's record will be updated for family pool purposes. See Changes which may affect the Parental Income Test (PIT).

Tell the customer their new rate of payment and record details of decision/discussion with the customer on a DOC.