New Zealand 10 year residence exemption 106-06010030

Is the JSP or YA (provisional), pending assessment of a Disability Support Pension (DSP) claim?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No, go to Step 3

The New Zealand residence 10 year exemption does not apply to JSP and YA (Provisional) claims pending assessment of a DSP claim (‘Claiming DSP’ exemption reason).

If the customer is qualified for an exemption other than ‘Claiming DSP’, they may be entitled to payment of JSP or YA under the New Zealand residence 10 year exemption.

Investigate if the customer meets criteria for another mutual obligation exemption as an alternative to the ‘Claiming DSP’ exemption reason. See Mutual obligation requirements exemptions. If not, the customer will need to satisfy the relevant mutual obligation requirements for their circumstances.

Does the customer qualify for an exemption from their mutual obligation requirements?

• Yes, record the exemption on the Activity and Exemption Summary (AEX) screen.
• In Process Direct:
  - Go to the Activity and exemption Summary (AEX) screen
  - In the Manual activities and exemptions table, select Add
  - The Create manual activity/exemption screen will display
  - Complete the Activity, Start date and End date, select Save
  - Complete the Receipt Date and Channel fields, select Save
  - Select Assess and address any errors/warnings
  - Select Assess again, then select Finish. Record details of the update on the Finalise screen
  - Select Finalise to complete the transaction
• go to Step 3
• No, the customer will be required to meet the relevant mutual obligation requirements. Call the customer to discuss.
• If the customer:
  - can meet relevant mutual obligation requirements, remove the ‘Claiming DSP’ exemption and continue with the claim, go to Step 3
  - cannot meet relevant mutual obligation requirements and the ‘Claiming DSP’ exemption is recorded:
  - the JSP or YA claim will automatically reject for reason Non-protected SCV holder (NSV)
  - the DSP claim will be allocated via WLM for processing
• Procedure ends here.

Is Australian citizenship recorded on the Legal Residence Details (RSLEG) screen, or an Australian Passport (AP) recorded on the Immigration Enquiry (RSIMME) screen?

• Yes, go to Step 7
• No, go to Step 4

Check the Visa (Sub) Class Code: field on the RSLEG screen, and the Australian Resident: field on the Residence Results Display (RSRD) screen.

Note: the visa Channel: field will be IMM or IMC if the visa details have been verified by the Immigration Datalink or Centrelink International Services (CIS).

The References page contains a link to Chapter 9 of the Guide to Social Security Law for more information, including whether a visa is temporary or permanent.

Does the customer hold a permanent visa?

• Yes, go to Step 7
• No, go to Step 5

Check the New Zealand Residence Status: field on the RSLEG screen to confirm the customer's New Zealand (NZ) residence status.

If:

• the status is Grandfathered (GRF) or Transitional (TRA), go to Step 7
• the status is Not a Protected SCV Holder (NOT), go to Step 8
• there is no status recorded, go to Step 6

Request the Immigration Datalink:

• If the customer’s record has sufficient details for example, name, gender, date of birth, country of birth:
• a link will be established with the customer's immigration record, and
• the RSLEG screen will show visas and NZ residence details
• Go back to the RSLEG screen and check the New Zealand Residence Status field

If the status is:

• GRF or TRA, go to Step 7
• NOT, go to Step 8. Note: if the status is NOT and an MFU has been created to reassess NZ residence status due to periods lived on Norfolk Island:
• place the claim on hold for 14 days awaiting the MFU to be actioned. If after 14 days the MFU has not been actioned, contact CIS via the Residence/Immigration line, or
• contact CIS if urgent
• Still blank, contact CIS to investigate. When CIS determines the issue (and rectifies, if applicable), return to the above Steps to determine the correct process to follow

Customer is an Australian citizen, or a permanent visa holder, or a protected SCV holder:

• Remove the NZ10YR keyword from the referring DOC or new claim activity. If there is an 'NZ SCV exemption referral' ACTDOC on the record, annotate it with relevant information (for example, 'Customer is a protected SCV holder. This residence exemption does not apply, assess the claim under normal qualification rules') and close the DOC. Unassign work item using reason Recategorised
• If GFR/TRA or permanent visa holder, the customer does not need to use this residence exemption as they are an Australian resident and can generally access the full range of payments (relevant waiting periods apply)
• If the claim is a student claim (YALSTU), replace the NZ10YR keyword with 'NZ10YRC'

Procedure ends here.

This exemption started on 26 February 2011 and can only be used once by a customer. To check if the customer has already been granted under this exemption:

• Go to the Payment Summary (PS) screen
• Key 'ALL' in Display for payment: field
• Key '999' in Number of months in past: field.
• The RSLEG screen shows current and historical visas
• The Benefit Status (XBS) screen confirms payment status/history

Has customer been granted JSP, NSA, SA or YA at any time since 26 February 2011?

• Yes, and the customer's residence status hasn't changed since, the claim will automatically reject for reason Non-protected SCV holder (NSV). Procedure ends here
• No, go to Step 9

Check the customer's movements on the Immigration Advised Movements (RSIM) screen, and any existing details on the Country of Residence (CRES) screen.

Update CRES as required with the countries the customer has lived in since birth including the date they started living in Australia. Short trips or holidays to or from Australia are not to be coded on this screen.

The 10 years must be a single period of residence in Australia. Two or more periods of residence in Australia cannot be combined to make up the 10 years. A temporary absence such as a holiday can be included in the 10 years, but any break during which the person ceased to reside in Australia will start the 10 year clock again. See Assessing if a customer is an Australian resident.

Has the customer been living in Australia continuously for at least 10 years immediately before claiming?

• Yes, and they are currently living (residing) in Australia, the customer meets the JSP or YA residence qualification requirements. See Step 1 in Table 2
• No, the customer does not meet JSP or YA residence qualification.
• Claim will automatically reject for reason Non-protected SCV holder (NSV)
• Call the customer to advise them of the outcome of their claim. See Advising verbally of an unfavourable decision
• Send an additional manual Q999 letter to explain the decision. The Resources page contains an example of standard text for use in the Q999 letter
• Procedure ends here

Attempt to call the customer before granting the claim

Clearly tell the customer the limitations of the exemption so they can make their own decision on whether to proceed with the claim or not.

Note: if any reason is known why it would not be beneficial for the customer to claim this exemption now, explain it to the customer. For example:

• A YA jobseeker would have their payment cancelled under this exemption if they turn 22 before the maximum 6 months of payment. Payment would cancel instead of being automatically transferred to JSP
• A JSP customer who is about to travel overseas for a holiday may be better off deferring their claim until their return to Australia to ensure they receive the most of the maximum 6 months of payment

Is the customer available?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No,
• Send a Q164 letter asking them to contact about their claim, and DOC attempts to call. The Resources page contains standard text for the DOC
• Put the claim on hold for 14 days, awaiting contact from customer
• If after 14 days the customer has not contacted, update the Claim Progress DOC and continue to assess the claim to grant. Procedure ends here

Service Officer: 'You have been identified as a New Zealand citizen who holds a Special Category Visa (SCV). This visa is generally issued to New Zealanders who arrive in Australia on a New Zealand passport. You have also been identified as having lived in Australia for at least 10 years at the time of claiming. Before continuing with your claim for <payment type>, we need to provide you with further information.

You can only be granted one of JobSeeker Payment (JSP) or Youth Allowance (YA) under this exemption. For example, if you get YA now you can't get JSP later. This payment can only be paid up to a maximum period of 6 months. After 6 months the payment will cancel.

If you lose entitlement for any reason before the 6 months is up, and your payment cancels, you cannot be re-granted under this exemption.

You can only get this payment while you are the current holder of a non-protected SCV. If you are granted a permanent residence visa or Australian citizenship then this payment will cancel. As a permanent visa holder you may be subject to a Newly Arrived Resident's Waiting Period (NARWP). As an Australian citizen you have an exemption from the NARWP for most payments.

Would you still like to proceed with your claim now? Remember, you can only use this residence exemption once.'

Has the customer chosen to proceed with the claim?

• Yes, record a DOC confirming that a discussion was held with the customer before a decision to grant was made. Note the issues discussed, and customer's understanding and agreement. The Resources page contains standard text for the DOC. Continue to assess the claim. Procedure ends here
  Note: if JSP or YA is granted under this exemption, the system automatically includes a NZ10YR paragraph (GREMNSSNZ1) in the grant letter explaining the specific restrictions that apply.
• No, record a DOC confirming that a discussion was held with the customer before a decision to withdraw claim was made. List the customer's reason for not claiming. If the claim was a student claim (YALSTU), replace the NZ10YR keyword with 'NZ10YRC'. See Withdrawal of claims. Procedure ends here