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Sharer Status field on the Accommodation Details (AC) screen 108-18092640

Sharer status scenarios

Table 1

Item	Description
1	Youth Allowance (YA) dependent customer moves out of parental home Max is 21, gets YA at the dependent rate and works part time at a pizza shop. Max's family live 30 kilometres out of town. A friend invites Max to move into a rented apartment. Max's family are happy with the move as it means fewer trips to town. Max contacts to advise the change of address. Updates to the address and accommodation details are made. Max has been granted YA based on an assessment of being able to live in the parental home. There are no reasons to reassess the dependent rate of payment. The correct sharers’ code for Max is Lives in shared accommodation - SHR. As Max is still getting a dependent, at home, rate of payment, no Rent Assistance (RA) will be paid. Max will turn 22 and transfer to JobSeeker Payment (JSP) in a couple of months. JSP does not have a dependent rate of payment. Max is invited to verify the rent. If that is done, RA will start when Max transfers to JSP.
2	The couch surfer Sam's relative, Vic, has an argument with a flatmate and arrives on the doorstep of Sam's small, rented apartment, suitcase in hand. An enclosed veranda is converted into a temporary bedroom. Vic intends to stay for a few weeks until something more permanent can be found. Sam asks for a contribution to the cost of groceries and utilities but does not make any arrangements for example, the payment of rent, which would give Vic a legal right to use the facilities of the home. Vic is a guest. The Sharer Status field for both Sam and Vic are Not a Sharer - NAS.
3	Customer sharing with a student who has their own bedroom and bathroom but no legal right to other living areas Jo has separated a bedroom and bathroom from the rest of the house. Jo rents that part of the premises to an Austudy customer who returns to the parental home for the weekend. While Jo does not mind if the student puts some items in the fridge, or uses the microwave, they have no legal right to use the kitchen or living areas of the house. They can legally be asked not to enter that area at any time. The correct sharers’ option for the student is Not a Sharer - NAS.
4	Customer living in a self-contained unit on another person's property Gary is single and living in a self-contained unit located in a relative's backyard. Gary's relative owns their home. Gary pays rent of $200 per week to the relative. The unit is self-contained, and Gary has the exclusive right to the bathroom, laundry, and kitchen within the unit (that is, only Gary uses the facilities, they are not shared). The correct sharers’ option for Gary is Not a sharer - NAS.

Examples to determine sharer status

Table 2

Item	Description	Sharer status
1	Customer does not pay rent when 2 or more people share accommodation When the customer is not paying for accommodation: but has a legal right to use major areas of accommodation, the customer is a sharer. For example, both tenants are on the tenancy agreement, but they have a verbal agreement that only one person pays the rent and does not have a legal right to use major areas of accommodation the customer is not a sharer. For example, the customer is staying as a guest rent free and is not on the tenancy agreement	Sharer/Not a sharer
2	Customer sharing with non-customers The sharer provisions are based on what is shared in the household. A customer is a sharer if: they live with a person who is not a customer both the customer and the other person have a legal right to use major areas of the property	Sharer
3	Sharing caravan or mobile home Two or more single people with no dependent children (or similar using the park's communal facilities) living in the same caravan/mobile home.	Sharer
4	Single customer living in a caravan/mobile home or similar in the backyard of a private home The customer has the legal right to use one or more major areas in the main house such as a kitchen, bathroom, or bedroom.	Sharer
5	Board and lodging at relative's place A customer lives at an aunt's house. They pay board and lodgings. The customer is unable to give an amount breakdown for board and lodging. Boarders and lodgers are customers who: get meals on a regular basis as part of their accommodation payment, and have not been able to give a breakup of the board and lodgings The customer is a sharer but is exempt from the sharers’ rate of Rent Assistance (RA). The Type of Rent code - BOA will trigger the correct rate of RA. The net rent rules may still apply when assessing the RA for the household.	Sharer
6	Customer has relative staying rent free A customer has a lease in their name only for the house in which they live. The customer allows their sibling to stay rent free. As the customer's sibling does not have any legal, enforceable right to share a major area of the house, they would be considered a guest. The sharers' rate would not apply.	Not a sharer