Mutual obligation requirements for principal carers 102-17010000

A temporary exemption from mutual obligation requirements may be appropriate, depending on the job seeker's circumstances. Some exemptions apply only to principal carers.

• Single PP customers are subject to compulsory mutual obligation requirements from the date their youngest dependent child turns 6 years of age. Single PP customers cease to qualify for PP once their youngest child turns 14 years of age and they must apply for another suitable payment as a principal carer
• Partnered PP customers will cease to qualify for PP once their youngest child turns 6 years of age and they must apply for another suitable payment as a principal carer

PP job seekers who are not subject to mutual obligation requirements may volunteer to participate with an Employment Services Provider. See Eligibility to access employment assistance services through Workforce Australia for more information on referrals.

Principal carers receiving JobSeeker Payment (JSP), Youth Allowance (YA) job seeker or Special Benefit (SpB) are subject to compulsory mutual obligation requirements regardless of the age of their youngest child. However, principal carers in receipt of SpB who have a dependent child under the age of 6 can be granted an exemption from their mutual obligation requirements. These job seekers should be advised of possible entitlement to PP depending on the age of their youngest child and mutual obligation requirements for PP that commence once their youngest child turns 6.

Job seekers who live in a Department of Employment and Workplace Relations designated remote area are referred to the CDP.

CDP Provider managed job seekers will negotiate their Job Plan with the CDP Provider in their region.

A Job Plan will be negotiated by Services Australia for:

• job seekers with mutual obligation requirements who are fully meeting their requirements and are not required to be connected with a CDP Provider
• job seekers who are Centrelink managed and choose to volunteer with a CDP Provider. These job seekers will remain Centrelink managed

It is compulsory for single PP job seekers to enter into a Job Plan when their youngest child turns 6 years of age. Customers with mutual obligation requirements will be contacted and an interview will be arranged to discuss mutual obligation requirements.

All job seekers with mutual obligation requirements must enter into a Job Plan with either Services Australia or their provider (if they are provider managed).

Job Plans may be negotiated by Service Officers over the phone and submitted for online agreement, or negotiated in person. This will normally apply to Centrelink managed job seekers.

Online agreement of Job Plans is available for job seekers who have an Online Account and they will view and agree to their Job Plan online. Online agreement supports the process of negotiating Job Plans via the phone, rather than in person, and at either new claim or a subsequent Job Plan negotiation.

Principal carers on PPS, JSP or YA (job seeker) have 'part-time' mutual obligation requirements. 'Part-time' refers to the ways in which their requirements vary from other job seekers, and the extra flexibilities they are allowed, in recognition of their family care responsibilities.

This is different from the reduced requirements that apply to job seekers with an assessed partial capacity to work or temporary reduced work capacity. These job seekers have variations in their requirements on the basis of medical evidence of their reduced capacity to work.

'Part-time' requirements for principal carers essentially means:

• Activities, appointments and other requirements should be scheduled to occur during school hours only (generally between 9 am and 3 pm during school terms), unless otherwise requested or agreed to by the principal carer. This includes participation in employment services and activities negotiated by providers
• Principal carers with job search requirements must be actively looking for work of 15 hours per week. A principal carer may accept a job offer of more than 15 hours per week but cannot be compelled to do so. See Suitable/unsuitable work for more details
• There are a range of other 'unsuitable work' factors that apply only to principal carer parents, including access to appropriate childcare, different travel time and travel cost rules, and a financial suitability test to be applied to the job in question
• Principal carers can fully meet their requirements through paid work, approved study, or a combination of these activities for at least 15 hours per week (or 30 hours per fortnight). This means they will be Centrelink managed, and not required to participate in employment services or undertake any job search activities

Although the '15 hour' rule is a common theme for job seekers with part-time mutual obligation requirements, it is not a maximum number of activity hours that applies to these job seekers. There are some circumstances where providers can negotiate higher hours with the agreement of the job seeker. For example, where the principal carer agrees to participation in short, intensive, or non-vocational activities/programmes to meet their requirements. Providers follow guidelines on how to set suitable activities and hours for different types of job seekers. These guidelines are set by the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (and the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet for CDP Providers).

Principal carers will generally meet their mutual obligation requirements in several ways:

• Through looking for suitable part-time paid work of at least 30 hours per fortnight
• Undertaking the activities negotiated with their Employment Services Provider

A principal carer can fully satisfy their mutual obligation requirements by undertaking:

• sufficient paid work or self-employment of at least 30 hours per fortnight with employment income, or net business income, at the national minimum wage or above
• approved study of 15 hours per week or 30 hours per fortnight, inclusive of contact and/or non-contact hours. Note: different requirements apply for approving study. See:
• Part-time or full-time study as an approved activity for JobSeeker Payment (JSP)
• Part-time or full-time study as an approved activity for Parenting Payment (PP)
• Part-time or full-time study as an approved activity for Youth Allowance (YA), or
• Mutual obligation requirements for Special Benefit (SpB)
• a combination of paid work and study or self-employment and study is at least 15 hours per week (30 hours per fortnight)
• Small Business Training (as part of Self-Employment Assistance) of at least 15 hours per week
• Small Business Coaching (as part of Self-Employment Assistance)
• only providers can approve a combination of:
• paid work and study (PSW activity code) for at least 70 hours per fortnight (any Workforce Australia job seeker)
• paid work and study (PPW activity code) for at least 30 hours per fortnight (principal carer (any age) and partial capacity to work (PCW) 15-29 hours)
• approved voluntary work and study (PVS activity code) for at least 30 hours per fortnight for principal carers under 55 years of age
• approved voluntary work, study and paid work (PSV activity code) for at least 30 hours per fortnight for principal carers under 55 years of age
• approved voluntary work and paid work (PVP activity code) for at least 30 hours per fortnight for principal carers under 55 years of age
• Services Australia and providers can approve paid work (PTW activity code) for at least 30 hours per fortnight

If aged 55 to 59 years inclusive, who is a principal carer (job seeker) may choose to undertake voluntary work or a combination of voluntary work and paid work or self-employment of at least 30 hours per fortnight and the employment income, or net business income, must be at the national minimum wage or above.

Job seekers aged 55 to 59 and who are within the first 12 months of receipt of their current income support payment (including suspension periods of up to 3 months) have a minimum requirement of 15 hours per fortnight of paid work or self-employment as part of their combination of approved voluntary work and suitable paid work.

After receiving their current income support payment for a 12 month period or upon turning 60 years of age, these job seekers may fully satisfy their requirements by undertaking 30 hours or more per fortnight of any combination of approved unpaid voluntary work and suitable paid work/self-employment, including solely through approved unpaid voluntary work.

If aged 60+, a principal carer may choose to undertake voluntary work or a combination of voluntary work and paid work or self-employment of at least 30 hours per fortnight and the employment income, or net business income, must be at the national minimum wage or above.

Additionally, a principal carer who is under 55 years of age can have a standalone approved voluntary work activity (PVW) or combination voluntary work activity approved by their provider, under limited circumstances. In this situation, the provider will complete all necessary checks and approvals of the voluntary work placement and the organisation - Services Australia has no role in these approvals. The Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) will either suspend or exit the job seeker from employment services, they will become Centrelink Managed and require a Centrelink Job Plan to be negotiated with the relevant voluntary work activity included.

Ministers of Religion who are either a principal carer parent or a person assessed as having a partial capacity to work, can meet their mutual obligation requirements by undertaking at least 30 hours of paid pastoral work a fortnight for their religious organisation. The amount of remuneration received does not have to be at the national minimum wage.

They will be required to provide evidence on an annual basis, such as a letter from their religious organisation, confirming that they are working at least 30 paid hours per fortnight as a Minister for a religious organisation to continue to be assessed as meeting their mutual obligation requirements.

Income provided by a partner to a member of a couple who is in receipt of a social security payment, does not meet the definition of income under section 8(8) of the Social Security Act (1991). For example, a principal carer being paid by their current partner to provide child care for just their own children would not be regarded as meeting requirements. However, a principal carer who engages in a viable family day care business and cares for other children in addition to their own, may have this activity assessed for meeting their mutual obligation requirements. Similarly, a job seeker who undertakes employment and derives income from a business where their partner is involved in that business, may have this income included and the activity assessed for mutual obligation requirements.

Principal carers who are meeting their mutual obligation requirements by undertaking suitable paid work, including self-employment, studying for at least 30 hours per fortnight or a combination of these activities do not have to be referred to an Employment Services Provider. A Job Seeker Registration Only (JSRO)/No Remote Referral Required (NRRR) registration may be completed for the job seekers. They can however choose to participate on a voluntary basis with an Employment Services Provider. They will be registered as a Fully Eligible Participant (FEP)/Remote Fully Eligible (RFE) and linked to an Employment Services Provider.

If their income from paid work or net business income from self-employment is less than the national minimum wage amount, participation requirements will not be fully satisfied and referral to a provider will be mandatory.

Mature aged principal carers who are meeting their mutual obligation requirements through 30 hours per fortnight of approved voluntary work, or a combination of approved voluntary work and paid work no longer need to remain connected to their appropriate Employment Services Provider. Job seekers connected with an Employment Services Provider, must remain registered as a FEP, however the provider may choose to suspend or exit them for the duration of the approved activity.

If a PP job seeker with compulsory mutual obligation requirements travels outside Australia, they will be automatically granted an exemption from their mutual obligation requirements for the period they are payable outside Australia. The exemption will be automatically recorded when the departure from Australia is recorded.

Principal carer job seekers, who are engaged in self-employment, will be able to satisfy their mutual obligation requirements if they are working in the business for at least 30 hours per fortnight and their net business income is equivalent to at least 30 hours per fortnight at the national minimum wage.

The situation may arise where the job seeker has a viable and ongoing business; however it is operating at a loss or below the national minimum wage due to significant tax deductions. In these circumstances, the income must be assessed as not meeting the job seeker's mutual obligation requirements of 30 hours per fortnight, when calculated against the national minimum wage. The job seeker will not be considered to have satisfied their mutual obligation requirements. Principal carers who cannot fully meet their mutual obligation requirements must be referred to an Employment Services Provider who is responsible for determining appropriate activities to include in a Job Plan. This will normally be job search.

Any gross income and allowable deductions that relate to the business must be taken into account when assessing business income. The processes surrounding the treatment of self-employment have not changed and should not be altered for the purposes of mutual obligation requirements. See:

• Self-employment as an approved activity to satisfy mutual obligation requirements and
• Assessing sole trader income

When job seekers with mutual obligation requirements fit into more than 1 of the following categories:

• job seekers mature age 55 +
• job seekers with a partial capacity to work
• job seekers with a temporary reduced work capacity
• principal carers

The system will determine the participation category which is the most beneficial to the job seeker.

An example of this is a job seeker receiving JSP who is a mature age 55 + job seeker with the full-time care of a child aged 14. The job seeker fits into the mature age 55 + and the principal carer participation categories. The job seeker will be placed into the principal carer participation category.