Waiving a Moving to an Area of Lower Employment Prospects (MALEP) employment related exclusion period 001-03040050
Expand allDo not undertake any MALEP assessments. The Department of Social Services (DSS) have paused all Moving to an Area of Lower Employment Prospects (MALEP) assessments.
This document outlines when a Moving to An Area of Lower Employment Prospects (MALEP) employment related exclusion period can be waived.
Suspension of MALEP due to Coronavirus (COVID-19)
From 25 March 2020 to 22 March 2021, the MALEP policy is suspended. This means that no MALEP assessment is required.
For customers:
- who contact and have a 26 week penalty, waive the MALEP from the day before the date of contact. This will put them onto a payment on the date of contact
- on payment pending review (PPR) of a previous MALEP assessment, finalise it without applying a penalty
MALEP considerations
MALEP applies to job seekers in receipt or claiming JobSeeker Payment (JSP), Youth Allowance (YA) principal carers receiving JSP and job seekers obligated to comply with the Special Benefit (SpB) Nominated Visa Holders mutual obligation requirements.
A job seeker can incur an employment related exclusion period of 26 weeks if they reduce their chances of getting a job by moving to an area of lower employment prospects.
A MALEP employment related exclusion period can be waived from the date a job seeker moves back to their original place of residence or to another area of the same or higher employment prospects compared with their original place of residence.
Related links
Moving to an Area of Lower Employment Prospects (MALEP) employment related exclusion period