First day of attendance for ABSTUDY secondary boarders 010-02060050

Has an institution called?

• Yes, and they are enquiring about:
• issues with the One Time Access Code (OTAC), go to Step 3
• assistance using the eService, go to Step 4
• not receiving an OTAC, go to Step 5
• providing first day of attendance details verbally, go to Step 6
• amending their Payment on Advice (PoA) response for one or more students, they need to complete the First or last day of attendance for ABSTUDY Away from Home students (SY106) form. Procedure ends here
• ABSTUDY boarding instalment payments, go to Step 7
• a Group Deduction Notice (GDN), see Centrelink Deduction Reports and Organisational Online Mail (OOM) for Deduction and Confirmation Programs
• No, go to Step 2

For assistance with:

• actioning a first day of attendance response and the student's ABSTUDY status is CURrent, for responses via:
• the eService, see Step 1 in Table 2
• SY106, phone, email, fax, ABSTUDY Boarder Action Request or letter, see Step 2 in Table 2
• actioning a first day of attendance and the student's ABSTUDY status is:
• SUS or CAN, see Restoration of ABSTUDY payments
• ASS, see Step 6 in Table 2
• a received ABSTUDY Boarder Action Request Fast Note for assistance with a boarding student enquiry, go to Step 7
• Payment on Advice outbound reminder calls, see Step 1 in Table 4

The TPISO screen can be used to confirm:

• the status of a Payment on Advice request for a particular school/boarding institution, term and year
• a student was included on the Payment on Advice request sent to a particular school/boarding institution
• a school/boarding institution has submitted the Payment on Advice information to Services Australia via the eService

To access the school/boarding institutions Payment on Advice request, complete the following fields on the TPISO screen:

• If in a record, select Clear Customer
• In Environment B, code 'TPISO' in the Nxt field
• Select One Time Access Code from the Application Type drop down box
• Select ABY Payment on Advice from the Business Function field
• The Information Type will pre-populate with KEY load for POA OTAC
• Use the Date from and Date to field to narrow the search and identify a particular term. This field is not mandatory
• Narrow the search by selecting processed, unprocessed or store forward in the Status field. This field is not mandatory
• Select the Extra Search Components drop down box and select the appropriate state/territory the school/boarding institution is located under the State field
• To locate a school or boarding institution:
• Enter the organisation Customer Reference Number (CRN) into the Internal Search CRN field, or
• Enter the school/boarding institution name into the Entity Name/Customer Surname field
• Select Search
• Look under the Description tab to locate the school/boarding institution, ensure viewing results for the correct term

If the Status is:

• Processed, Services Australia has received Payment on Advice information from the school/boarding institution. Advise the institution they have submitted their PoA correctly and it will be processed by a Service Officer. Procedure ends here
• Store Forward, Services Australia is awaiting Payment on Advice information from the school/boarding institution. The organisation has commenced updating records, saved the data but has not submitted the information. Advise the institution they have started their PoA but have not submitted the item. They can use their OTAC to log on to the eService and continue the update. If the school/boarding institution requires a new OTAC, go to Step 5
• Unprocessed, Services Australia is awaiting first day of attendance dates for ABSTUDY Away from Home students from the school/boarding institution. Advise the school/boarding institution to log onto the eService using the OTAC to complete the commencement dates for ABSTUDY students. Go to Step 4

The school/boarding institution will use the OTAC to log into the eService. If the school/boarding institution requires a new OTAC, go to Step 5.

In the eService, the school/boarding institution will be presented with a workflow that requires the following information to be completed:

• contact details
• student commencement status - 'has the student commenced study?'
• student commencement date - if the student:
• has commenced, the date of commencement must be provided. Note: a future date must not be entered. If a school/boarding institution enters a future date an error will occur
• has not commenced, a date must not be entered

The eService also enables the school/boarding institution to:

• add additional students to the Payment on Advice list, and
• provide comments (if required) for any student

When Payment on Advice information is submitted to Services Australia, the school/boarding institution will be presented with the 'Institution Receipt Screen'. This screen allows the school/boarding institution to print their Payment on Advice responses (commencement date and comments) for their records.

Where the school/boarding institution encounters an issue with the eService that cannot be resolved, advise the provider to contact the Centrelink Confirmation eServices (CCeS) helpdesk. Support is available from 8:30 am to 5:00 pm AEST, Monday to Friday excluding public holidays.

Procedure ends here.

If a new OTAC has already been issued today, confirm the reason the previous OTAC has not been received by the school/boarding institution.

• If in a record, select Clear Customer
• In Environment B, code 'TPISO' in the Nxt field
• Select One Time Access Code from the Application Type drop down box
• Select ABY Payment on Advice from the Business Function: field

The Information Type will pre-populate with KEY load for POA OTAC.

• Use the Date from and Date to field to narrow the search and identify a particular term. This field is not mandatory
• Select the Extra Search Components and to locate a school or boarding institution:
• Enter the organisation CRN into the Internal Search CRN field, or
• Enter the school/boarding institution name into the Entity Name/Customer Surname field
• Select the school/boarding institution state or territory under State field
• Select Search

The school/boarding institution should display in the Description tab. Note: ensure viewing results for the correct year and term.

• Select KEY load for POA OTAC:
• Confirm the correct email address with the school/boarding institution
• Select the correct response to Reissue to original email address
• If reissuing a new email address, type the new email address in the revised email address
• Select Reissue ABY POA OTAC request
• Select OK
• A new OTAC will be emailed to the institution
• A DOC will be placed on the organisation's record
• If the school/boarding institution has advised of a new email address, update the Organisation record

Was the OTAC reissue successful?

• Yes, procedure ends here
• No, escalate the issue to Level 2 Helpdesk via Service Support Officer. Procedure ends here

Advise the ABSTUDY Smart Centre Processing site of the return of the Payment on Advice request using the ABSTUDY Boarder Action Request Fast Note on the school/boarding institution's organisation record.

Use Fast Note - select Auto Text, use Students, ABSTUDY & Apprentices > Update > ABSTUDY Boarder Action Request, then Confirm.

Include the following for each student:

• Name
• DOB
• CRN (If known)
• First day of attendance
• Additional comments

Procedure ends here.

Request the school/boarding institution to advise the nature of the query in relation to individual student entitlements.

Investigate the record to assist with the enquiry. If unable to assist or corrective coding required, send the ABSTUDY Boarder Action Request Fast Note on the school/boarding institution's organisation record.

To access the Fast Note - select Auto Text, use Students, ABSTUDY & Apprentices > Update > ABSTUDY Boarder Action Request, then Confirm.

Include the following:

• School/boarding institution's query
• Action taken
• Findings
• Action required
• Additional comments

Check the individual student records to ensure the student's record has been correctly coded for the Away from Home rate. For coding assistance, see Steps 2 to 20 in the Schooling B - Boarder table in Processing an ABSTUDY claim.

If coding is:

• incorrect, re-code the record to ensure correct entitlements
• correct, provide details of the various maximum rates of ABSTUDY entitlements to the school/boarding institution for their information

Procedure ends here.

Has the school/boarding institution responded to the Payment on Advice request by the third Friday of the school term?

• Yes, go to Step 4
• No, to restore students suspended as a result of the automated process, for:
• ABSTUDY, see Restoration of ABSTUDY payments
• EPA, see Restoration of Pensioner Education Supplement (PES) and ABSTUDY PES

Where a school/boarding institution has responded to Services Australia via phone, email, ABSTUDY Boarder Action Request, fax or letter for ABSTUDY students, the Payment on Advice request will need to be deleted for the appropriate term.

To delete a Payment on Advice request:

• Select Clear Customer
• In Environment B, code 'TPISO' in the Nxt: field
• Select One Time Access Code from the Application Type drop down box
• Select ABY Payment on Advice from the Business Function
• The Information Type will pre-populate with KEY load for POA OTAC
• Use the Date from and Date to field to narrow the search and identify a particular term. This field is not mandatory
• Select the Extra Search Components and to locate a school or boarding institution:
• Enter the organisation CRN into the Internal Search CRN field, or
• Enter the school/boarding institution name into the Entity Name/Customer Surname field
• Select the school/boarding institution state or territory under State field
• Select Search
• The boarding institution should display in the Description tab
• Select the appropriate school/boarding institution and relevant term by selecting the KEY load for POA OTAC process. Note: ensure viewing results for the correct year and term
• The OTAC Viewer (KEYLOAD) will then provide an additional option to Delete this OTAC
• Type a deletion reason in the appropriate field (this is a free text field)
• Once this field is completed, select the screen outside of the deletion box to activate the Delete OTAC request button
• The system will automatically record a DOC on the organisation's record to confirm the Payment on Advice request has been deleted
• The school/boarding institution will no longer display on the TPISO screen
• Go to Step 3

Record a DOC on the school/boarding institution organisation record advising of the return of the Payment on Advice request.

Go to Step 4.

When processing Payment on Advice, review the following screens on the student record/s to support record correctness:

• Education Details (EDC)
• Accommodation Details (ACS)
• School Fees and Boarding Details (EYSB)
• Payment Instruction (PIPI)
• Household Income (NHI)
• Tax File Number (TFN)

If the school/boarding institution advises the student has:

• commenced study and:
• supplied a first day of attendance via the eService, a DOC is automatically completed on the organisation and student records. The first ABSTUDY boarding instalment will automatically pay to the school/boarding institution in the fourth week of the school term. Procedure ends here
• supplied a first day of attendance via SY106, phone, email, fax, ABSTUDY Boarder Action Request or letter, record the information in a DOC on the students record. Procedure ends here
• supplied a first day of attendance and comments are provided, review the STArted DOC on the student record, see Step 1 in Table 3
• is an 'added student', go to Step 5
• not commenced study:
• review the STArted DOC on the student record, see Step 7 in Table 3

If the school/boarding institution 'added' students, complete a manual DOC on each of the student's records showing:

• they have been manually 'added' to the Payment on Advice request
• the school/boarding institution they are attending
• their first day of attendance at the school/boarding institution

If the student is current on:

• ABSTUDY PES, escalate record to Senior Support Officer (SSO) through Local Peer Support (LPS). Procedure ends here
• ABSTUDY, to ensure the student's record is correct, check the following screens and update where required:
• Education Details (EDC)
• Accommodation Details (ACS)
• School Fees and Boarding Details (EYSB)
• Payment Instruction (PIPI)

If the student will commence:

• by the third Friday and is ABY/CUR, no further action is required. Procedure ends here
• by the third Friday and is ABY/ASS, go to Step 6
• after the third Friday, see Step 4 in Table 3

Where the student is not current on ABSTUDY, see 'Examples - when an ABSTUDY claim is or is not required' table in Claiming ABSTUDY to determine if a student can be restored or a new claim is required. If the student:

• can be restored, action must be taken to restore the customer
• cannot be restored, contact the applicant to lodge a claim for ABSTUDY to restore payment
• has not lodged a claim, contact the school and advise the student/parent/guardian will need to lodge a claim for ABSTUDY

If action cannot be completed in full for all students listed by the school/boarding institution, annotate the Payment on Advice DOC on the organisation's record with their progress.

Procedure ends here.

A secondary boarding student's ABSTUDY status will be ABY/ASS if the claim was assessed after the Term's SAS extraction date. Once the student's first day of attendance has been provided, update the ABSTUDY start date to pay the correct entitlement.

If the student started:

• on or before the third Friday of the term, update the:
• Student Start Date field on Education Course History (EDCH) screen to the first day of the term entitlement period. Note: Term 1 will need to be coded as the course start date
• Manual Start Date field on Education Payments Start Date (EPDC) screen to the first day of the term entitlement period
• after the third Friday of the term, see Step 4 in Table 3

Confirm all boarding screens have correct current year details:

• School Fees and Boarding Details (EYSB)
• Payment instruction (PIPI)
• Accommodation (ACS)
• Household Income and Assets (NHI)

Has the student discontinued studies?

• Yes:
• code the discontinuation in the same activity, see Cessation of the ABSTUDY Away from Home rate
• DOC the record
• procedure ends here
• No:
• finalise the activity and DOC the record
• procedure ends here

The required action for the processing of the ABSTUDY boarding instalment payment depends on the first day of attendance of an individual student.

If the school/boarding institution has advised that a student:

• is unknown at the school/boarding institution, go to Step 2
• will be boarding at another location for the term, go to Step 3
• will commence studies at the school/boarding institution after the third Friday of term, go to Step 4
• did commence at the school/boarding institution in the term, but has subsequently ceased prior to the issue of the first ABSTUDY boarding instalment payment, see Cessation of the ABSTUDY Away from Home rate
• will not commence at the school/boarding institution, go to Step 7

A school/boarding institution may advise that a student listed as boarding at the institution, is unknown to them. This may occur because the student:

• has changed their mind about boarding at that location and not advised the institution
• is known by another name at the school/boarding institution
• has been coded as residing at an incorrect school/boarding institution

Contact the applicant to clarify the study and personal circumstances of the student. If the applicant advises:

• the student will be boarding at another location (privately or institution), or the incorrect school/boarding institution has been recorded, go to Step 3
• the student is known by another name:
• Amend the Customer Personal Details (CPD) screen to add a Preferred Name (PRF)
• Annotate the STArted DOC on the student record and complete
• Procedure ends here
• the student will not be living away from home in the term or the applicant was not contactable, go to Step 7

If the student will be commencing the term at another boarding location than originally provided or the incorrect school/boarding institution has been recorded:

• the details of the alternate boarding location must be coded on the student's record
• upon confirmation from the applicant of the new board location, re-code the student's board entitlement details to reflect the new boarding circumstances. See Steps 2 to 20 in the 'Schooling B - Boarder' table in Processing an ABSTUDY claim

Has the school/boarding institution confirmed first day of attendance?

• Yes, and the student:
• has commenced at the school/boarding institution after the third Friday of the term, go to Step 4
• did commence at the school/boarding institution in the term, but has now ceased prior to the issue of the first ABSTUDY boarding instalment payment, see Cessation of the ABSTUDY Away from Home rate
• has commenced prior to the third Friday, finalise the activity and DOC the record. Procedure ends here
• has not commenced at the school/boarding institution, go to Step 7
• No,
• finalise the activity and DOC the record
• procedure ends here

A student who commences after the third Friday of a term is only eligible to Away from Home entitlements from the date the student will commence living away from home in that term, unless the student was unable to commence on time due to circumstances beyond their control.

If there were circumstances out of the student's control, the student will be eligible to be paid once:

• impacts are confirmed, and
• the student begins study on campus in a face-to-face environment

Evidence to confirm other impacts can include (but is not limited to) the following:

• Medical Certificate
• Statement from independent third party
• Letter/verbal confirmation from school or board provider
• Lodgement of the First or last day of attendance for ABSTUDY Away from home students (SY106). This form is available on the Services Australia website
• Relevant State/Territory websites confirming emergency or natural disaster

Was the student unable to commence on time due to circumstances beyond their control?

• Yes, and evidence is:
• Provided, the start date will be the first day of the term entitlement period. Go to Step 6
• Not provided, payment cannot be issued until confirmation of the circumstances is provided and the student has commenced face-to-face studies. Advise the customer of the evidence required for payments to be made, go to Step 6
• No, go to Step 5

As the student has returned to study after the third Friday, they are only entitled for ABSTUDY from the day they have returned to face to face study.

Note: an exception applies when the student does not return to study by the third Friday due to undertaking work placement as part of a school-based apprenticeship or traineeship. The student is considered to have returned to study from the first day of the work placement. For these students, annotate the STArted DOC on the students record and complete. Procedure ends here.

Select the option below based off the student's circumstances.

Go to Step 6.

• On the Education Course History (EDCH) screen, code:
• Student Start Date: student's first day of attendance
• On the Education Payments Start Date (EPDC) screen, code:
• Manual Start Date: student's first day of attendance
• On the Independent/Homeless/Away from home (NIH) screen, code:
• Start Date: as the commencement date of eligibility of Away from Home rate
• Confirm all boarding screens have correct current year details:
• School Fees and Boarding Details (EYSB)
• Payment instruction (PIPI)
• Accommodation (ACS)
• Household Income and Assets (NHI)

Has the student discontinued studies?

• Yes:
• Code the discontinuation in the same activity, see Cessation of the ABSTUDY Away from Home rate
• DOC the record
• Procedure ends here
• No:
• Finalise the activity and DOC the record
• Procedure ends here

• On Education Course History (EDCH) screen, code the current year course:
• Student Start Date: student's first day of attendance
• Confirm all boarding screens have correct current year details:
• School Fees and Boarding Details (EYSB)
• Payment instruction (PIPI)
• Accommodation (ACS)
• Household Income and Assets (NHI)
• On Assessment Results (AR) screen, confirm the payment of arrears is correct before proceeding with payment
• Finalise the activity and DOC the activity
• Procedure ends here

• On Education Course History (EDCH) screen, select the current course and update:
• Student End Date: last day of the previous term entitlement period
• Source: appropriate source
• DOR: appropriate date of receipt
• Action: Change
• Press [Enter]
• From the EDCH screen, reselect the current course and change:
• Participation Status Event Date: first day of the new term entitlement period
• Action: Insert
• Press [Enter]
• From the EDCH screen, reselect the newly inserted course and update:
• Student Start Date: student's first day of attendance
• Student End Date: same date as the Inst Course End Date
• Action: Change
• Press [Enter]
• Confirm all boarding screens have correct current year details:
• School Fees and Boarding Details (EYSB)
• Payment instruction (PIPI)
• Accommodation (ACS)
• Household Income and Assets (NHI)
• On Assessment Results (AR) screen, confirm the payment of arrears is correct before proceeding with payment
• Finalise the activity and DOC the activity
• Procedure ends here

If a student has not commenced at the boarding location in a term, the school/boarding institution has no entitlement to an ABSTUDY boarding instalment payment. To ensure no ABSTUDY payments are issued, suspension action must be taken prior to the first instalment strip date for the relevant term.

To suspend ABSTUDY payments, code the following on the Benefit Action (BA) screen:

• SvcRsn: ABY
• Action: SUS
• Reason: ITB (Intention to Board)
• Effect Date: the first date of current term entitlement period
• Finalise action on the Assessment Result (AR) screen
• Record a DOC on the student's record. Include the action taken from advice provided by the school/boarding institution
• If the student will commence late due to circumstances beyond their control, use the ABSTUDY Late Start Exceptional Circs:
• Fast Note - select Auto Text, use Students, ABSTUDY & Apprentices > Update > ABSTUDY Late Start Exceptional Circs, then Confirm
• Add the required information, then select Continue
• Place the Fast Note on Hold until the expected date of commencement
• Procedure ends here

If a suspension activity is unable to be completed, a manual cancellation may be required. Complete the following on the Benefit Action (BA) screen:

• Svc Rsn: ABY
• Action: CAN
• Reason: ITB (Intention to Board)
• Effect Date: the first date of current term entitlement period
• Finalise action on the Assessment Results (AR) screen
• Record a DOC on the student's record. Include the action taken from advice provided by the school/boarding institution
• If the student will commence late due to circumstances beyond their control, use the ABSTUDY Late Start Exceptional Circs:
• Fast Note - select Auto Text, use Students, ABSTUDY & Apprentices > Update > ABSTUDY Late Start Exceptional Circs, then Confirm
• Add the required information, then select Continue
• Place the Fast Note on Hold until the expected date of commencement
• Procedure ends here

To suspend EPA payments, code the following on the Benefit Action (BA) screen:

• SvcRsn: EPA
• Action: SUS
• Reason: DNC (Did not commence studying)
• Effect Date: Date paid to +1
• Finalise action on the Assessment Result (AR) screen
• Record a DOC on the student's record. Include the action taken from advice provided by the school/boarding institution
• If the student will commence late due to circumstances beyond their control, use the ABSTUDY Late Start Exceptional Circs:
• Fast Note - select Auto Text, use Students, ABSTUDY & Apprentices > Update > ABSTUDY Late Start Exceptional Circs, then Confirm
• Add the required information, then select Continue
• Place the Fast Note on Hold until the expected date of commencement
• Procedure ends here

Entitlement to the first boarding instalment payment to a boarding institution does not exist if:

• a student has not commenced at the boarding location in a term, or
• a change in circumstance that impacts entitlement has occurred that is not able to be confirmed with the applicant

To ensure no ABSTUDY payments are issued, suspension action must be taken prior to the first instalment strip date for the relevant term. Select the option below based on the student's circumstances.

Suspend ABSTUDY from the first date of the current term entitlement period:

• On the BA screen for ABSTUDY, in the following fields, key:
• Svc Rsn: ABY
• Action: SUS
• Reason: ITB (Intention to Board)
• Effect Date: the first date of the current term entitlement period
• On the BA screen for ABSTUDY PES, in the following fields, key:
• Svc Rsn: EPA
• Action: SUS
• Reason: DNC (Did not commence studying)
• Effect Date: date paid to +1
• Finalise action on the AR screen
• Record a DOC on the student's record. Include the action taken from advice provided by the school/boarding institution
• Procedure ends here

Cancel ABSTUDY by coding the following screens:

• Education Course Details (EDC) screen:
• for a student not recommencing in terms 2, 3 or 4, amend Student End Date field to the last date of the previous term entitlement period
• for a student not recommencing in term 1, delete the current year EDC page for the non-commenced course
• School Fees and Boarding Details (EYSB) screen:
• Event Date: enter the first date of current term entitlement period
• Boarding School/Hostel Action: NPB
• Leave all other fields blank
• BA screen, input:
• Svc Rsn: ABY or EPA
• Action: CAN
• Reason: NAS
• Effect Date: the first date of current term entitlement period
• Finalise action on the AR screen
• Record a DOC on the student's record. Include the action taken from advice provided by the school/boarding institution
• Procedure ends here

Schools and boarding

Institutions have until the third Friday of the school term to provide Payment on Advice information. If not provided, ABSTUDY boarding instalment entitlements will be suspended pending a first day of attendance for each student.

Staff may be instructed to commence an outbound call strategy to the school/boarding institution prior to the suspension date.

Is there an instruction to commence an outbound call strategy to the school/boarding institution?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No, procedure ends here

To commence outbound calls, access the POA OTAC release dates on the resource tab, to confirm:

• OTAC release date
• Suspension date

The Third Party Information Summary - Organisations (TPISO) screen in Customer First gives access to a list of the school/boarding institutions in each State/Territory that have not completed the Payment on Advice request.

Complete the following fields on the TPISO screen (leave fields not listed as blank):

• If in a record, select Clear Customer
• In Environment B, code 'TPISO' in the Nxt field
• Application Type: One Time Access Code
• Business Function: ABY Payment on Advice
• Information Type will pre-populate with KEY load for POA OTAC
• Open Extra Search Components dropdown
• State: select relevant state/territory from allocation listing
• Status: Store Forward and Unprocessed
• Select Search
• The school/boarding institution will display in the Description tab

Note: ensure the above process is completed for both Store Forward and Unprocessed status.

To view the Organisation and obtain the ORG CRN and contact details, in Customer First:

• Next: Codes, to access the Reference Data Facility (CODES)
• 'S'elect, Education Institution Summary
• Continue
• Enter the following details:
• State: State where the school is located
• Name: School name
• Select Search
• 'S'elect the relevant code and the Education or boarding Institution Details will populate

Make 2 genuine attempts to contact each school:

• If contact is successful, authentication is required before any information is released. See Authenticating a Centrelink customer.
• After authentication is completed, use the following script as a guide:
• Hi my name is _____ and I'm calling from Services Australia in regards to ABSTUDY. This is just a courtesy call to remind you that we have recently issued you a One Time Access Code to log into your eService to confirm your ABSTUDY student's attendance details. This is due to be completed by close of business DD/MM. If this is not completed on time, their payments will be suspended and your ABSTUDY entitlement will be delayed
• DOC the ORG record with the Fast Note - select Auto Text > Students, ABSTUDY & Apprentices > Enquiry > POA outbound
• If the school/boarding institution requires their OTAC to be reissued, see Step 5 in Table 1