Low Income Health Care Card (LIC) renewals 101-06040020

A LIC renewal is a new claim. The customer will need to re-establish entitlement for a further period. This will start on the day after the current LIC card expiry date.

All general provisions (except POI requirement) with lodgement of new claims apply for LIC renewals. The 'renewal' concept simplifies the 'claim' process for existing LIC customers.

Customers can renew a LIC 28 days before the card expiry date and up to 13 weeks after the card expiry date. See Important dates and periods for assessing eligibility for LIC renewals.

Online renewal

An Outstanding task displays on the customer’s homepage when they select Centrelink services from their myGov account. Service Officers can view the renewal using Customer Online View and can see what the customer sees when using their Centrelink online account.

Assisted Customer Claim (ACC)

Service Officers can use ACC to start and submit a claim or resume and submit a renewal task for a customer. See Viewing and processing online and Assisted Customer Claim (ACC).

Paper claim

Customers without an online account will receive a letter by post with the Renewing Your Health Care Card (SS054) form. It will have the details about the online LIC renewal and how they can access this service. Customers who are registered for online services should be advised to complete their renewal online.

Customers not in Australia

The customer must be in Australia at the time the renewal is lodged. If the customer is not in Australia when the renewal is due to be issued, the renewal will defer for 14 days and be issued either as an Outstanding task or via a Renewing your Health Care Card (SS054) form.

Customers have until the expiry date of the card to complete the online renewal or return the Renewing your Health Care Card (SS054) form to avoid the LIC being cancelled. If they do not complete the renewal or return the form by the expiry date, their LIC entitlement will automatically cancel on the expiry date.

Service Officers can accept LIC renewals up to 13 weeks after the card expiry/cancellation date. If a customer contacts within 13 weeks of this cancellation:

• tell the customer to complete their Outstanding task online
• offer assistance through Assisted Customer Claim (ACC), or
• issue a new SS054 if the customer is deemed unable or unsuitable to complete an online claim, or declined the offer to complete an Assisted Customer Claim (ACC)

If granting the LIC renewal, it will issue immediately. The start date of the card is the previous LIC's date of expiry plus one.

If the customer contacts on or after 13 weeks and one day after the LIC expiry date, the customer will have to lodge a new claim.

Note: automatically issued concession cards do not have a renewal process.

The system will assess the renewal on the customer's gross income in the 8 week income assessment period starting 12 weeks before the expiry date of the card.

The income assessment for a LIC renewal is the same as a LIC new claim. The customer's income must not exceed the qualifying limit to renew the card. See Important dates and periods for assessing eligibility for LIC renewals.

Determination of employment income

Service Officers are to accept the gross income earned in the 8 weeks before the claim submission. For customers:

• with a LIC only, use gross income for the 8 weeks between the customer's:
• most recent payslip (or other income evidence). It must end 28 days before the current card expiry, and
• payslip ending 8 weeks earlier
• receiving income support payments (ISP), use:
• income already recorded, or
• record employment income from the renewal

Date of effect for financial investments

The date of effect (DOE) for all financial investment updates is the start date of the renewal assessment period-12 weeks before the expiry date of the card. This may be the same or a different date to the date of event (DOV). The DOV is the date the notifiable event occurred.

For customers receiving an income support payment, the primary benefit rules apply when coding financial investments.

Customers may be presented with pre-filled Single Touch Payroll (STP) data during their online claim. Employer details, including name and ABN, will be presented to the customer if STP data has been provided to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) within the 8 week assessment period.

The system will also request a customer to update income if the assessment period changes due to delay in claim submission.

New income or financial investments

The customer must supply verification of any new income or financial investment they report in the renewal process.

Note: verification of bank account balances is not required for new claims or renewals.

Employment Income

Customers must provide proof of employment income, except when there are employment income details on their record that covers the full 8 week assessment period.

Employment income verification can be either payslips or a letter from the employer. It must state:

• the gross amount paid
• date paid
• start and end dates of the period

Customers cannot use bank statements for employment income verification.

Financial investments

The customer does not need to supply proof of any financial investments declared in the renewal claim that have previously been recorded on the customer's record.

Other existing income items that have no change, for example income streams, do not need re-verification.

If a Service Officer has doubts about the accuracy of any details provided by the customer, or there is a significant change in the value that could affect entitlement, they must determine if more proof/verification is needed.

The customer may need a LIC immediately. Process the LIC renewal claim if a customer is in financial hardship due to:

• a delay in processing their LIC renewal or
• having an urgent medical need, such as a doctor's appointment or a prescription

If granting, offer the customer an interim voucher.