Restoration of JobSeeker Payment (JSP), Youth Allowance (job seeker) and Special Benefit (SpB) 001-03030030

Investigate the record. There may be more than one reason for a suspension or cancellation.

Suspension or cancellation reason APA

For suspension or cancellation reasons APA (Did not attend compulsory participation appointment or activity), payment can only be restored by appropriately trained staff. See Restoring payment where a payment suspension (participation) has been imposed for Community Development Program (CDP) participants.

All other suspensions

Service Officers must determine if the payment can be restored on initial contact.

• View the suspension or cancellation code on the Service Reason Summary (SRS) screen or the Allowance/Benefit History (ABH) screen
• If payment is CAN-FRP, check if payment was suspended for any reason immediately prior
• To check if payment is restorable, see Cancellation, suspension and rejection reason codes for Newstart System (NSS)
• If payment is suspended due to a participation failure, hand off to the Participation Solutions Team (PST)
• If payment is suspended 'YBS' incorrectly, see Youth Bonus Wage Subsidy (YBWS) 26 Week Suspension Period

Note: rejected claims can never be restored. If the customer contacts about having their rejected claim reassessed, see Table 2 of Request to reassess a rejected claim.

Is this reason restorable?

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

Go to the Allowance/Benefit History (ABH) screen to view:

• payment status
• the suspension or cancellation reason, and
• the date of effect (DOE)

Alternate views are on the Benefit Status (XBS) or the Event Summary (ES) screens.

Check the period between the notification of the suspension or cancellation and the customer contact. If it is:

• more than 13 weeks, go to Step 3
• less than 13 weeks, go to Step 4

Suspension or cancellation for more than 13 weeks since reason or notice was sent generally cannot be restored. The customer must test their eligibility and reclaim payment. Advise the customer of claiming procedures. See Contact in relation to an intended claim (CLK).

There are some exceptions, if customer was cancelled for these reasons:

• CDR (Customer failed to re-engage), and customer disputes this, investigate the cancellation. If the cancellation is incorrect or the Service Officer is unsure, the Service Officer must refer the record to the Participation Solutions Team (PST) for action. The Resources page contains a link to contact details. Procedure ends here
• WUK (whereabouts unknown). The customer would not have received advice of the decision to suspend or cancel, if they were not at their known address and/or advice of the decision was returned to Services Australia. This means that the date of effect of the restoration is the date of the suspension or cancellation

Each customer's circumstances must be looked at individually to determine if they are entitled to receive arrears upon restoration. Service Officers must be satisfied the customer did not receive advice of the decision to suspend or cancel, and they retained qualification and payability during the period.

If the decision is:

• to restore payment with arrears, go to Step 5
• not to restore, advise the customer of claiming procedures. See Contact in relation to an intended claim (CLK). Procedure ends here

Determine if the payment can be restored on initial contact.

Check the customer's Document List (DL) screen for the DOC regarding the cancellation or suspension.

Any customer requesting restoration up to 13 weeks since the date of effect of cancellation should be advised to provide reasons. The Service Officer determines:

• whether the reason/s are acceptable
• if payment can be restored

It is generally not possible to restore the payments unless the cancellation was in error and/or it can be determined that the customer has continued to meet mutual obligation requirements since last paid.

Mutual obligation requirements

Determine if the customer has continued to meet mutual obligation requirements during the cancellation period. The customer should be asked how they have supported themselves since last paid an income support payment, for example, have they worked? Have they used liquid assets? If it cannot be determined that the customer has continued qualification for the period the payment should not be restored.

Check the Participation Compliance summary screen in Process Direct:

• Go to the Participation Compliance Hub (BIPCW) screen
• Select Compliance workflow from the Completed/provider compliance actions

If compliance action or a 'held serious failure/s' is displayed this is a strong indicator that the customer did not retain qualification during the period.

Can it be determined that the customer has continued qualification for the period?

• Yes and the customer is:
• suspended or cancelled WUK (whereabouts unknown), go to Step 5
• suspended ES1 or ES2 (failed to attend first or second cycle ESAt appointment), go to Step 6
• cancelled FTE (Full time employment), go to Step 7
• suspended or cancelled DNL (Did not lodge) or FRP (Failed to report), go to Step 8
• Cancelled CLR (Client request), go to Step 9
• suspended or cancelled for any other reason, go to Step 10
• YBWS suspended incorrectly, see Step 1 in Table 2
• No, the participation payment should not be restored. DOC the record and advise the customer to reclaim payment. Procedure ends here

For processing correspondence that has been returned to Services Australia, see Return to sender (RTS) mail for Centrelink.

Payments can be restored when the customer contacts and confirms correct address details. See Step 2 in Table 2.

For a customer whose payment is suspended with reason ES1 or ES2, Service Officers must follow the Job Capacity Assessment (JCA) and Employment Services Assessment (ESAt) appointments process.

If the customer's payments have been suspended with reason:

• ES1 - payments can be restored immediately (at first contact) if a new ESAt appointment is arranged. If the customer has already arranged a new appointment by contacting their JCA or ESAt Assessor, a Manual Follow-up (MFU) activity with keyword ESATATT is created on the customer record advising to restore the customer's payments
• ES2 - payments can generally only be restored once they have attended the ESAt appointment. This is confirmed by a MFU activity on the customer record with keyword ESATATT. Payment can be restored immediately once this notification is received

Procedure ends here.

If the cancellation reason is FTE (Full time employment), payment can be restored if the job seeker provides information and/or income details demonstrating they are not working full time or the customer has Working Credits to deplete. See Commencing or returning to work for JobSeeker Payment (JSP) and Youth Allowance (job seeker) and/or Working Credit

• If the job seeker disputes working full time or the job did not eventuate, check the Provider Report Summary screen in Process Direct:
• Go to the Provider report summary (BIPRS) screen
• select Provider report details from the Participation compliance provider report table
• select Job referral and placement from the Job referral and placement table
• select the Job referral and placements link and select Search
• The Job referrals and placements section displays job referrals and placements recorded by the Employment Services Provider within the last 2 weeks
• If the information is not available on the Provider Recorded information workflow, contact the job seeker's Employment Services Provider and confirm the employment details. If the Employment Services Provider is not available, the job seeker can provide the employer details. Confirm directly with employer if the job seeker has given permission
• If the full-time ongoing (FTO) coding on EAES has a source of:
• AUT: Correct the employment status on EAPP screen from FTO (full-time ongoing employment) to FTN (full-time non-ongoing employment) or PTC (part-time/casual employment). If error 'E705CQ occurs - use EAN to update AUT data. F2 for help' is presented, further investigation is required
  - See Resources tab in Recording and correcting employment income details
• MAN or IES: Code a new entry of NFT (Not full-time ongoing employment) with DOV as the day after coding FTO. Do not delete the FTO details from the EAES screen. An activity will be sent to the provider advising of a change in employment status for the customer
• Process outstanding reports. Assess all employment income paid during the entitlement period as IOP or LOP. See Recording and correcting employment income details
• If payment is cancelled FTE, restore the payment via the Benefit Action (BA) screen and finalise the activity
• Check the customer's Job Seeker Registration is reactivated
• If appropriate, record the employment as an approved activity on the Activity and Exemption Summary (AEX) screen and enter into a Job Plan. See Paid work as an approved mutual obligation requirement. The customer should then be suspended from participation in employment services and will be Centrelink managed
• Tell the customer to continue reporting and include any employment income paid on their normal reporting day. If income is above the relevant income test, the nil rate period process may apply. See Employment income nil rate period
• DOC the record using Fast Note > Auto Text > Generic > SUS/CAN/RES > RESTORE (Payment type) DOV: detailing who the contact was made with and the employment details confirmed

Procedure ends here.

If the cancellation reason is DNL (Did not lodge) or FRP (Failed to report), the customer is not required to attend the service centre to provide proof of income or submit outstanding earnings reports.

Follow the process in Early or late lodgement of job seeker reports to determine if the payment can be restored.

CAN-FRP or DNL can override a suspension status. Ensure payment was not suspended immediately prior to cancellation, as arrears may not be payable for the suspension period. For example, the customer may have been suspended due to incarceration in a prison or Approved Care Organisation (ACO) facility.

Has the customer:

• contacted within 13 weeks of the date the cancellation decision was notified, and
• provided a valid reason for late lodgement, and
• supplied (or can supply) all employment income details for the relevant entitlement periods (if applicable)?
• Yes, payment can be restored. See Step 2 in Table 2
• No, the customer will need to reclaim JSP. See Claiming JobSeeker Payment (JSP)

If the cancellation reason is CLR (Client request):

• Check the customers continued eligibility for payment, for example:
• If a student, are they still enrolled in the same course or changed courses? See Cancellation, suspension and rejection reason codes for Newstart System (NSS)
• Has the customer become partnered or separated since the cancellation occurred? See Change in relationship status from single to partnered or Change in relationship status from partnered to single
• Check the Document List (DL) screen for DOCs on the record to establish reason/s customer requested payment be cancelled
• Establish if the customer has remained qualified for JSP or YA (job seeker) and continued to meet mutual obligation requirements during the cancellation period

If you make the decision to restore the customers payment, check whether the customer has:

• contacted within 13 weeks of the date they cancelled their payment, and:
• provided a valid reason for voluntarily cancelling their Income Support Payment (ISP), or
• it has been identified payment was cancelled due to an administrative error, and
• supplied all employment income details for the relevant entitlement periods (if applicable)?
• Yes, payment can be restored. See Step 2 in Table 2
• No, the customer will need to reclaim. See Claiming JobSeeker Payment (JSP)

A valid reason may include, but is not limited to:

• I was offered a full time job but when I started they told me it was a trial period and the job was part-time
• I didn't know I could utilise my working credits when I started full-time work and I'd like to use them
• I was going to claim Carer Payment but the person I was going to care for went into residential care unexpectedly

Where a customer contacts and states they did not request cancellation of their payment, and advises there has been fraudulent activity on their record, see Identity Fraud.

Check if there are any outstanding issues preventing restoration of the payment.

Is the customer required to:

• provide any information or documentation
• attend an assessment interview, or
• meet any other requirement before payment can be restored?
• Yes, advise customer to provide information or documentation, see Step 1 in Table 2
• No, and the payment is to be restored, see Step 2 in Table 2
• No, and the payment is not to be restored, see Step 4 in Table 2

Has the customer supplied required information or taken necessary action so payment can be restored?

• Yes:
• ensure any outstanding customer tasks associated with the suspension or cancellation are updated to Completed
• restore the payment. Go to Step 2
• No, because:
• the customer has not supplied or taken necessary action to be restored. Advise the customer that payment cannot be restored until the required action is taken. Procedure ends here
• it is not appropriate to restore the customer's payment due to decision or qualification reasons. Go to Step 4

If the customer is under Income Management (INM on the benefit status line) and they have an arrears or lump sum payment entitlement, Service Officers must not make any changes to the customer's record to allow this payment to be made. Contact the Income Management Team to allow Income Management to be turned on for the arrears payment before it is made. The Resources page has a link to contact details.

Determine the date of effect for restoration. Generally, the date of effect for restoration is Date Paid To (DPT) + 1, however, some cancellation and suspension codes allow a gap in entitlement.

If the customer's Family Tax Benefit (FTB) is cancelled as a result of the income support payment being suspended or cancelled, restore FTB first where Rent Assistance is paid with the FTB.

Go to Step 3.

In Process Direct or Customer First, restore customer's payment and code employment income to ensure customers are paid their correct entitlement.

Restore customer’s payments:

• Go to the Benefit Action (BA) screen, complete:
• Svc Rsn field, select or key the type of benefit
• Action field, select or key RES
• Event Date, key the effect date
• Source and DOR fields
• DOC the restoration. Use Fast Note - select Auto text, use Generic > SUS/CAN/RES > Restore (Payment Type) DOV

Recording employment income

Update employment income, followed by completion of outstanding reporting tasks via the Earnings and Reporting Workflow. See Recording and correcting employment income details.

Incarcerated customers

If the customer was imprisoned (SUS-IMP), payments can be restored from the date of release, providing the customer contacts within 13 weeks of suspension. This also applies to YAL customers incarcerated in an Approved Care Organisation (ACO) facility. If not they will be required to reclaim. When restoring:

• Update the MS screen for any partnered customers. Use the previous code of MAR, REG or DEF from date of release
• Check and update accommodation details. See, Completing the Accommodation Details (AC) screen and assessing Rent Assistance (RA)

Youth Bonus Subsidy

If it is confirmed that the YBS/SUS is incorrect, and advice has been received from their Workforce Australia provider, or the job seeker has advised they have not been employed under YBWS see Youth Wage (YBWS) 26 Week Suspension Period.

Income Managed

If the customer is income managed under the Voluntary Income Management (VIM) measure, and the agreement was in place for more than 13 weeks, the Voluntary Income Management Continuation Assessment screen is presented. This screen records whether the customer wants to continue or stop their VIM agreement. See Effect on Income Management when payment is suspended, on zero rate, cancelled, or an Unemployment Non-Payment Period applied.

• Go to the Entitlement (ELD) screen in Process Direct, or the Assessment Results (AR) screen in Customer First. Check:
• if the customer is entitled to any arrears, and
• that arrears are not paid for a period of incarceration (these may require manual adjustment. See Payment of arrears after reassessment and stopping a payment), and
• arrears appear correctly on the ELD or the AR screen
• Record the details on a DOC. Use Fast Note template 'Restore (Payment Type) DOV'

Other considerations

Customers cannot report using self-service when it is more than 27 days after their oldest outstanding reporting date. See Reporting employment income online for more information.

The payment is restored from the date of effect. A letter is generated, advising the customer of the restoration.

If a Manual Follow-up (MFU) activity is created, see Creating an Online Advice (OLA), including within an existing activity.

The Participation Solutions Team (PST) must investigate any participation or serious failures, before any payments are processed. For information on re-registration with Workforce Australia, see Selection or allocation of a Workforce Australia Employment Service.

Does the Participation Compliance Hub (BIPCW) screen show that the customer has outstanding potential participation or serious failures?

• Yes, see Restoring payment where a payment suspension (participation) has been imposed for Community Development Program (CDP) participants. Procedure ends here
• No, procedure ends here

If the decision is not to restore, DOC the record and advise the customer of claiming procedures. See Contact in relation to an intended claim (CLK).

When the customer has a CAN/DNL or FRP debt, the debt amount can be recalculated when there is eligibility for part or all of the debt period. All employment details must be correctly coded so the debt can be accurately reassessed. Any changes to circumstances, assets or investments must also be updated.

Send a request to reassess the debt amount, using Fast Note - select Auto text, use Debts > Debt Raising > Debt Raising ACTion DOC Request. Include:

• Summary line: Earnings report accepted. Debt amount to be reassessed
• Dates (from xx to xx) for the period the report was accepted
• Details of any updates, for example, Employment Income Summary (EANS) screen updated
• Mutual obligation requirements details, for example, met requirements as set out in Job Plan
• Debt ID number to be reassessed
• Customer has been notified of outcome