Court varied assessments (CVA) including lump sum orders (CS) 277-05010000

A CVA is an assessment that has been amended to give effect to certain orders made by the Family Court or Local or Federal Circuit Court (that is, orders made under s118, 123A or 124 of the Child Support (Assessment) Act 1989).

A court can order that an administrative assessment be varied via a court order in the following situations:

• where a change of assessment (COA) application is deemed too complex and an objection disallowed. Note: from 1 July 2015, a person cannot apply directly to a court for a review of these decisions. The person may apply to the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) for a first review of the decision where the matter has been determined by an objection officer as being too complex
• where an objection officer or the ART has refused to make a decision because the matters raised are too complex. From 1 July 2015, a person cannot apply directly to a court for a review of a decision where the matter has been determined by an objection officer as too complex and may apply to the ART for a first review of the decision. A person dissatisfied with an outcome of the ART first review can appeal to court
• where a customer has obtained the leave of the court to have a period more than 18 months in the past considered by COA and the court has chosen to make a departure determination rather than refer the case back to Child Support
• if a customer has another family law or child support matter before the court and the court has determined that it is appropriate to also deal with an application that will vary the assessment
• where a liable parent requests for a minimum rate of child support to be reduced to nil
• where a COA decision has been objected to and appealed to the ART and there has been a subsequent appeal to court

Note: orders made by a court under the Family Law Act 1975, such as maintenance for adult children or overseas maintenance orders, do not create a CVA. See Stage 1 - variations or Stage 1 - registrations or the Child Support Guide.

Service Officer (SO3)

• process a Court Varied Assessment, and
• relevant decision making

Note: this does not prevent an officer at the SO2 level who has the support of their Team Leader from carrying out this type of work. However, the final decision to process a court varied assessment must be made by an officer at the SO3 level or above.