Circumstances when the Parental Income Test (PIT) does not apply 108-02020030

Not all ABSTUDY allowances are affected by the PIT. The following allowances are affected by PIT:

• ABSTUDY Living Allowance
• Rent Assistance
• Remote Area Allowance
• Pharmaceutical Allowance
• means test component of the School Fees Allowance Group 2
• AIC Additional Boarding Allowance (ABA)

The PIT will not apply to a dependent YA or ABSTUDY customer during the period where at least one of their parent(s)/guardian(s):

• receives a certain social security benefit or pension or a payment paid by the Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA), listed in Module L of Section 1067G of the Social Security Act 1991 (for example, Service Pension, Income Support Supplement (ISS), Veteran Payment)
• receives ABSTUDY Living Allowance
• receives Farm Household Allowance (FHA)

The parent(s)/guardians(s) are not taken to be receiving an income support payment, and an exemption from the PIT will not apply if they:

• are serving an Income Maintenance Period that reduces their rate to nil
• are in an employment income nil rate period, or
• have an AGE/CZR PLS status (indicating receipt of Home Equity Access Scheme (HEAS) payments only)

Note: an additional exemption applies to dependent AIC and ABSTUDY customers or claimants if a parent holds a current Health Care Card or has a Health Care Card because they receive the maximum rate of Family Tax Benefit Part A.

Subject to notification provisions affecting ABSTUDY and AIC, the exemption from the PIT applies from the date the parent commences to receive the payment or hold a current HCC until the payment or HCC ceases.

A parent/guardian commencing or ceasing to receive a Commonwealth payment is a notifiable event. Where a parent/guardian contact to advise a change in circumstances that reassess their eligibility to a Commonwealth payment, the date they notify is deemed as the Date of Event. If that change has a negative impact on the YA, ABSTUDY or AIC customer which results in a debt, see Raising Parental income debts for information on how these are managed. If the customer or parent advise there is another sibling also receiving YA or ABSTUDY or attracting AIC ABA, the sibling's record should also be reassessed if necessary.