Coding Income Management expenses 103-01040070

When a customer asks for a change to their existing Income Management expenses, make sure their priority needs continue to be met before making a change to an expense.

Record the outcome of a priority needs discussions using the Priority Needs Expenses workflow when:

• the customer asks for a review of priority needs, or
• the customer's priority needs differ from the last recorded priority needs discussion

For more information, see Changes to Income Management priority needs.

Customers income managed under the Child Protection and Vulnerable Welfare Payment Recipient (social worker assessed) measures

When a request for a one-off or regular expense is received from a Child Protection or social worker assesses Vulnerable customer, Service Officers must consider the ranking of priority needs as recommended by the State or Territory Child Protection Authority or the social worker before actioning any changes. Details of ranked priority needs are on the Priority Needs expenses screen, under the 'Priority Needs Expense Category' block.

Follow this process, and seek help from:

• a specialised Service Officer (if available)
• a Service Support Officer, or
• the Technical Support Line (select the IM option) for help. Go to Step 3

Cold transfer the customer to the Income Management line, Indigenous Services queue, or Multilingual Call (as appropriate). The Resources page contains a link to the National Transfers numbers. Procedure ends here.

Many income managed customers are vulnerable and need social work or other specialist help. Check the following:

• Display on Access (DOA) DOC
• evidence of recent social work contact
• evidence of recent injury or medical treatment
• whether the customer is very young or very old
• customers with language difficulties
• enquiries or attempted enquiries from other people interested in the customer's income managed money
• large amounts of unallocated funds
• evidence of a lack of understanding about Income Management
• evidence of a lack of understanding of money management or consumer issues/rights, particularly when the customer is making a large one-off purchase. The Resources page contains contact details for external agencies that may help customers with consumer rights issues

The above will help determine when specialist help, such as an interpreter or social worker, may be needed. Record any specialist involvement on a DOC on the customer's record.

Is there evidence to indicate the customer is vulnerable?

• Yes, refer for specialist assistance. If a referral has been made, do not proceed with customer's request until the referral is completed. Procedure ends here
  Note: if the customer needs payment actioned immediately and there are no specialists available, proceed with the request after exhausting all avenues for referral. All processing must be clearly outlined on a DOC
• No, go to Step 4

Is the Income Management expense requested for a consumer lease?

• Yes, tell the customer of resources available to help them determine if a consumer lease is the best option for them, along with alternatives to a consumer lease. See the Resources page for relevant links about alternatives including:
• Rent vs buy calculator
• layby
• No Interest Loan (NILs)
• applying for an advance payment (if eligible)
• a stepUP Loan (low interest loan)
• If the customer does not want to continue, record details in a DOC. Procedure ends here
• If the customer wants to proceed, go to Step 5
• No, go to Step 5

• For a new regular expense, go to Step 6
• For a one-off expense, go to Step 7
• To vary or cease an existing Income management expense, see Table 2, Step 8
• To transfer a Rent Deduction Scheme or Centrepay deduction into an Income Management expense, see Table 3, Step 6
• To vary or cancel an existing BasicsCard expense (Partial Payment method customers only), see Table 7, Step 1
• Note: there is no option available to suspend IM expenses. If the customer wishes to pause regular expenses for a set period (for example, 1 fortnight), expenses must be stopped and coded from a new start date

When adding a new regular expense, check the fortnightly income managed amount by viewing the regular expense twisty on the Expense Management Summary.

Take note of any regular earnings the customer has which may reduce the regularly available income managed funds.

Exceptions

Weekly Expenses

If the customer has offset payments and/or weekly expenses, then these weekly expenses may exceed the amount coming into the Income Management account on a given week so long as the total for the fortnight does not exceed the fortnightly available amount.

Are there sufficient ongoing funds?

• Yes,
• for payments to a Third Party Organisation (TPO), go to Step 8
• for a BasicsCard regular expense (Partial Payment method customers only), see Table, 7, Step1
• No, tell the customer there are insufficient funds to make the change asked for. If necessary, review the customer's priority needs. Record details on a DOC. Procedure ends here

Further checks are needed before a one-off payment can be made, check for any other activity that may affect Income Management funds.

Is a one-off payment able to be made?

• Yes,
• for payments to a Third Party Organisation (TPO), go to Step 8
• for a one-off transfer to BasicsCard, see Table 7, Step 1
• No, tell the customer that payment cannot be made. If the customer asks, review their Priority Needs Expenses workflow. Procedure ends here

Use:

• the 'Other Searches' option, search for TPO using Office Locator, or
• the Organisation Advanced Search (OASP) screen in Customer First

Note: many TPOs have specific coding or processing instructions. These may be recorded in Office Locator or for some TPOs will show as a message to users when adding, varying or ceasing expenses, depending on the organisation's specific requirements.

Important advice for Un-contracted TPOs: Tell the customer that Services Australia will allocate funds according to their instructions. However, with payments to an un-contracted TPO, there may be risk associated with recovery of the payment if they:

• do not spend all the funds being transferred for them, or
• change their mind about the purchase

Make sure the customer is certain of their request before proceeding.

Does the customer wish to proceed with the expense request?

• Yes, see Table 2
• No, procedure ends here

• Go to the customer's Expense Management Summary menu item
• Under New expenses, select the expense to add from the drop down selection. Note: if the customer receives offset payments, indicate which payment type the expense is to be aligned
• Add regular expense or
• Add one-off expense
• To add a one-off expense to a contracted TPO, go to Step 2
• To add a regular expense to a contracted TPO, or a regular or one-off expense to an un-contracted TPO, go to Step 3

Payments to contracted TPOs are mostly made using Direct Deduction Facility. See the Resources page for a list of Income Management Deduction Service Reasons.

Other payment methods to contracted TPOs may be needed in the following circumstances:

• Customer asks for a payment of $1,000 or more
• Payment asked for is for goods or services that fall outside the TPOs approved contracted Service Reasons, or
• Customer asks for a one off payment (OOP) and has a regular direct credit allocation delivering to the TPO on the same day

Payments of $1,000 or more or a requested OOP is deliverable same day as the regular allocation

Payments using Direct Deduction Facility to contracted TPOs for $1,000 or more or an OOP attempting to deliver on the same day as a regular allocation, may corrupt a TPO's daily report, resulting in TPOs being unable to determine funds available for customers. This means customers may not be able to immediately access their Income Management funds.

Requests for payments using a new uncontracted service reason

When requesting payments to TPOs, select the correct service reason for each payment. See the Resources page for a list of Customer Income Management Deduction Service Reasons.

Take Note of TPO Details as below:

• Business /Trading Name:
• Address:
• Contact Name:
• Contact Number:
• Service Reason:
• Amount:
• Account Reference Number (if any):
• Details of Expense request:

Note: in all instances, where an appropriate expense category does not exist, Service Officers must select 'New expense category required' as the expense category.

Send all requests for a new uncontracted service reason (identified by the 'U' at the start of the expense category) to the National Business Gateway Team (NBG) for processing by completing the Expense Request workflow. If needed, (NBG) will liaise with the TPO to determine the most appropriate method of payment.

A TPO can be found by:

• using their Customer Reference Number (CRN) starting with 555
• entering the name of the service provider
• using the Services Australia Organisation Search Engine button, or
• using the OASP screen, including the ability to search by bank details

Service Officers should search for TPO using Office Locator in the first instance and then search further using the above options.

• TPO Name: field, enter name if CRN is not known and select Find
• TPO CRN: field, enter CRN, if known, and select Find
• School Name: enter the school name if known
• Expense Category: field, select the appropriate option
• State: field, select the appropriate option
• Keyword: field, keywords can be used in this field to search for a TPO such as 'school' or 'Titjikala', the search results will display all TPOs with this word in their name. The best option is to search for TPO using Office Locator and then search for TPO using TPO CRN

Select the correct TPO from the Expense Management TPO list. Note: the TPO may be listed a number of times. Make sure the TPO with the correct service reason is selected. Un-contracted TPOs can be identified with a 'U' in front of the expense code.

• If the expense is for a payment reason not listed, this may need a new Service Reason. If a new service reason (expense category) is needed, go to Step 4
• If the Payment method BPAY or Scheduled Transfer appears against the service reason, the Service Officer can code the payment with no manual processing by NBG. For one-off and regular expenses using an auto payment method, see Table 3, Step 2

Has the correct TPO been identified?

• Yes, go to Step 4
• No, a New TPO required: field will appear with a tick defaulted in the box. This will happen when the un-contracted TPO is being recorded for the first time. Go to Step 5

After selecting the requested TPO on the Expense Management TPO list, is the appropriate service reason available?

• Yes, to proceed with a:
• one off payment using direct credit to a contracted TPO, go to Step 6
• regular Income Management expense using direct credit to a contracted TPO, go to Step 7
• regular or one off Income Management expense to an un-contracted TPO without an auto payment method, or a payment to a contracted TPO that cannot be paid using the direct deduction facility, see Table 3, Step 1
• No, a new expense category will be needed. Select the radio button to go to the Expense Request screen. Enter all details including notes explaining why the new expense category is needed. See Table 3, Step 1

If the organisation search is unsuccessful, the New TPO required box will select automatically.

Select continue to display the Expense Request screen.

Complete all mandatory fields:

• TPO Name: input full name of new TPO
• Is this a Travel and Transport (UM6) expense request? Select Yes or No as appropriate. For travel by airline, rail, bus or ferry/boat include additional information in the expense notes:
• If yes is selected, the system will prompt Service Officers to ask the customer the following additional questions:
• Does the customer consent to additional costs associated with credit card fees?
• Does the customer wish to purchase travel insurance and consent to additional costs associated with this?
• Select Yes or No as appropriate
• Target Amount: only displays when 'regular expense' has been selected. To be used if there is a prescribed amount to be paid, for example, paying off a court fine. The target amount is progressive, that is, reduces as payments are made
• Start date: this will default to the customer's next Entitlement Period End Date (EPED) or EPED +1. This depends on the customer's payment type for regular expenses, or today's date if payment frequency is one-off. This date can be changed if needed. Income Management holiday processing coding is to apply where the default date is incorrect because of holiday processing
• End date: only displays when 'regular expense' has been selected. Leave blank unless the customer nominates a specific end date. Note: if the payment is for a consumer lease, recommend to the customer they include an end date to avoid overpayment
• Next payment date: only displays when 'regular expense' has been selected and is protected
• Payment frequency: select from weekly, fortnightly or four weekly. This will default to 'one-off' for all one-off requests
• Add new notes: record any additional information needed to support the requested payment, including TPO details. Ask the customer for a reference where applicable. This might be an account ID or any reference the TPO might use to match the customer with the payment

Note:

• The Reference ID listed in the expense notes will be included with the payment. Incorrect references could result in the funds being incorrectly applied or not applied at all
• If the customer is asking for a one-off payment for the purchase of a motor vehicle or the purchase of goods from a private seller:
• make sure key points have been discussed with the customer, and
• a summary of each key point discussed is in the Expense Request notes
• TPO details must be included:
• Trading Name
• Address
• Phone Number
• Contact Person
• Any other details/information that may be helpful
• Is request urgent? Check box only where the request has been assessed as urgent. To determine if the request meets urgent guidelines, see Table 3, Step 2

Once the request is finalised, an automatically generated email will notify NBG of the New TPO request. The activity will be visible on the Activity List (AL) screen as an INM/EXQ activity.

Staff with the appropriate ICT resource will create a CRN for the new TPO. NBG will then finalise the expense request.

Documentation may be needed, see Table 3, Step 3.

When a contracted TPO with a direct payment service reason (for example, IMF) has been selected from the Inputs section, complete the Expense Inputs screen:

• TPO Name: this will default with information entered in the Expense Management TPO List
• TPO CRN: this will default with information entered in the Expense Management TPO List
• Account Reference: leave blank unless customer provides details
• Bill Reference: This field is for payments to Telstra only. Record Telstra bill reference number (this is different to the Telstra account number) or leave blank if not known
• Expense Category: this will default with information entered in the Expense Management TPO List (Expense codes for contracted TPOs start with an 'I')
• Amount: enter amount to be paid

Documentation may be needed, see Table 3, Step 3.

To cease a one-off expense (made in error):

• Select the expense from the one-off expense summary and select 'Cease'
• Repeat for each relevant expense allocation
• Select 'Finalise'

If no further updates are needed, go to Step 9.

When a contracted TPO with a direct payment service reason (for example, IMF) has been selected from the TPO Inputs section, complete the Expense Inputs screen:

• TPO Name: this will default with information entered in the Expense Management TPO List
• TPO CRN: this will default with information entered in the Expense Management TPO List
• Account Reference: leave blank unless customer provides details
• Bill Reference: this field is for payments to Telstra only. Record Telstra bill reference number (this is different to the Telstra account number) or leave blank if not known
• Expense Category: this will default with information entered in the Expense Management TPO List (Expense codes for contracted TPOs start with an 'I')
• Amount: enter amount to be paid
• Target amount: enter amount only where the customer needs to pay a fixed total to the TPO
• Start Date: this will default to the customer's next EPED or EPED +1 depending on the customer's payment type. Income Management holiday processing coding is to apply where the default date is incorrect due to holiday processing
• End Date: Leave blank unless the customer nominates a specific end date. Note: if the payment is for a consumer lease, recommend to the customer they include an end date to avoid overpayment
• Frequency: Select 1 Weekly, 2 Weekly or 4 Weekly

Repeat for each individual expense allocation.

See Table 4, Step 4.

Before a regular expense is ceased or varied, make sure the customer's ongoing priority needs will be met. If a priority need is to be ceased or varied, a detailed discussion about how the customer will continue to meet the priority is needed. If a Service Officer is not satisfied a priority need will be met, action can be taken to allocate the customer's income managed funds to certain priority needs. These cases should be referred to a social worker or the Level 2 Income Management (IM) Policy Helpdesk Webform for an independent evaluation of the situation.

Priority needs ranked by Child Protection Authority:

• Customers who are income managed under the Child Protection measure may have their needs prioritised by the Child Protection Authority
• Social workers who assess a customer as a Vulnerable Welfare Payment Recipient may have their needs prioritised by the social worker
• These priorities will show on the Priority Needs screen
• If the customer wishes to cease or decrease a 'ranked priority need', only do this once satisfied the priorities will still be met

From the 'Manage Expenses' screen, select the 'Regular Expenses' twisty.

For a regular Expense Request expense:

• Select expense and option 'View/Vary'
• Next payment date: enter the date the customer wants their next payment to happen (to align with customers payment)
• View/Add Notes: details of the suspension and reason must be recorded in the Expense Notes field

To vary payment for a regular expense:

EPED rules apply when varying expenses for Income Management.

• Select expense and option 'View/Vary'
• Amount $: enter amount to be paid
• Target Amount $: only use if there is a prescribed amount to be paid, for example, paying off a court fine. Vary the target amount if necessary. Note: if varying an existing target amount, the date of the expense must not be changed. The system will automatically apply the change from the next instalment date
• Frequency option: update only if a change is needed
• End date: leave blank unless the customer nominates a specific end date. This field will be hidden if adding or varying a target amount

To cease an expense from a future date for a regular expense, note the delivery date of the last day needed to pay the expenses (by checking the Payment Summary (PS) screen). Key the end date as the last delivery date needed to pay the expense + 1 day.

For regular expenses recorded using an Expense Request, Service Officers must add Notes (select the View/Add Notes hyperlink) to the Expense Request to detail the action taken and reason for the variation.

To cease a regular expense:

When ceasing a regular Expense Request, Service Officers must DOC all action taken

To proceed with ceasing a regular expense:

• Select expense and option 'Cease'

Repeat for each individual expense allocation change then select 'Finalise'.

Note: after ceasing the regular expense, the 14 day balance may indicate that funds are still allocated for a final payment of the regular expense. If this final payment is not needed, it can be cancelled by selecting the expense activity from the AL and updating the Payment confirmation details accordingly.

If no further updates are needed, go to Step 9.

When all updates are completed finalise activity.

Review the Income Management Summary screen to confirm:

• direct credit payments are showing in the 14 day balance details
• Expense Requests are showing as provisional under Regular or One Off Expenses
• the available balance has adjusted correctly, taking into account any regular or one-off payments and/or requests

If there are Work Items that need to be actioned, these will be show on the Income Management Summary screen in the Existing Work Items sections.

If Work Items cannot be actioned within the workflow, investigate and action while the customer is present, once the workflow has been finalised. If the customer is not present, leave the work items for the Service Officer to action at the next customer contact. For more information on work items, see Income Management and BasicsCard Work Items.

• Finalise the activity on the Income Management Summary page by selecting the Finalise button
• Offer an Income Summary or Account Statement when changes are completed

For updates generating an automated DOC detailing the change, annotate the DOC with any additional information as needed.

Procedure ends here.

For payments to TPOs without an auto payment method, complete the Expense Request screen.

Is payment for a BPAY or Scheduled Transfer?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No, complete the following Request Details section:
• Request date: this will default to today's date
• TPO Name: this will default with information entered in the Expense Management TPO List
• TPO CRN: this will default with information entered in the Expense Management TPO List
• Expense Category: this will default with information entered in the Expense Management TPO List (Expense codes for un-contracted service reasons will start with a 'U'). If Expense Category UM6 (Travel and Transport) is selected, the following questions will present. For travel by airline, rail, bus or ferry/boat include additional information in the expense notes:
• Does the customer consent to additional costs associated with credit card fees?
• Does the customer wish to purchase travel insurance and consent to additional costs associated with this?
• Select Yes or No as appropriate
• Amount: enter amount to be paid
• Target Amount: only displays when 'regular expense' has been selected. To be used if there is a prescribed amount to be paid, for example, paying off a court fine. The target amount is progressive, that is, reduces as payments are made
• Start date: this will default to the customer's next EPED or EPED +1 depending on the customer's payment type for regular expenses, or today's date if payment frequency of one-off. Change this date if needed. Income Management holiday processing coding is to apply where the default date is incorrect due to holiday processing
• End date: only displays when 'regular expense has been selected. Leave blank unless the customer nominates a specific end date. Note: if the payment is for a consumer lease, recommend to the customer they include an end date to avoid overpayment
• Next payment date: protected field
• Payment frequency: select from weekly, fortnightly or four weekly. This will default to 'one-off' for all one-off requests
• Add new notes: the Notes field should include the TPO phone number as well as any additional information needed to support the requested payment. Ask the customer for a reference where applicable. This might be an account ID or any reference the TPO might use to match the customer with the payment.
  Note:
• The Reference ID listed in the expense notes will be included with the payment to the TPO. Incorrect references could result in the funds being incorrectly applied or not applied at all
• If the customer is asking for a one-off payment for the purchase of a motor vehicle or the purchase of goods from private sellers make sure key points have been discussed with the customer. Include a summary of each key point discussed in the Expense Request notes
• Is request urgent? Check box only where the request has been assessed as urgent and 'Notes' must be included to support this decision. To determine if the request meets urgent guidelines, go to Step 3

The started activity can be viewed in the One-Off Expenses or the Regular Expenses section of the Expense Management Summary screen. The started activity will have a status of provisional (PVL).

Documentation may be needed, go to Step 4.

Auto payment methods for BPAY and Scheduled Transfer involves adding a regular or one off expense using the Payment Expense Management Details screen. This option is only available when a TPO has an expense category with a payment method of 'BPAY' or 'Scheduled Transfer'.

Important for BPAY: get BPAY Biller Code and Account Reference from the customer, and if possible confirm by referencing an account or letter from the TPO, (the Biller Code and Reference are typically quoted next to the BPAY logo).

Important for Scheduled Transfer: always use the Account Reference. Get this from the customer when they ask for the payment. The TPO will specify the reference they need to identify customers on their bank statement. Messages will be placed on the TPO record to help with these discussions and advise of the TPO account reference requirements.

When an auto payment method TPO has been selected from the TPO Inputs section, complete the Expense Inputs screen.

One-off payments:

• TPO Name: This will default with information applicable to the selected TPO on the Expense Management TPO List
• TPO CRN: This will default with information applicable to the selected TPO on the Expense Management TPO List
• Biller Code: This will default with the selected TPO's Biller code and is protected. If the Biller Code is not correct, an Expense Request must be completed
• Account Reference: This information is mandatory with details provided by the customer
• Expense Category: This will default with information selected from the Expense Management TPO List
• Amount: Enter amount to be paid
• Payments can be selected as urgent if needed. Make an assessment to determine urgency and include 'Notes' to support this decision. Selecting 'Urgent' does not deliver the payment earlier, it will just send the activity to NBG .to determine if an alternative payment option should be considered

Regular payments:

• TPO Name: This will default with information applicable to the selected TPO on the Expense Management TPO List
• TPO CRN: This will default with information applicable to the selected TPO on the Expense Management TPO List
• Biller Code: This will default with the selected TPO's Biller code and is protected. If the Biller Code is not correct, complete an Expense Request
• Account Reference: This information is mandatory with details provided by the customer
• Expense Category: This will default with information selected from the Expense Management TPO List
• Amount: Enter amount to be paid
• Target amount: Enter amount only where the customer needs to pay a fixed total to the TPO
• Start Date: This will default to the customer's next EPED or EPED +1 depending on the customer's payment type. Income Management holiday processing coding is to apply where the default date is incorrect due to holiday processing
• End Date: Leave blank unless the customer nominates a specific end date. Note: if the payment is for a consumer lease, recommend to the customer they include an end date to avoid overpayment
• Frequency: Select 1 Weekly, 2 Weekly or 4 Weekly. Repeat for each individual expense allocation

Is the request urgent?

• Yes, go to Step 3
• No, review the Income Management Summary screen to confirm:
• direct credit payments are showing in the 14 day balance details
• Expense Requests are showing as provisional under Regular or One Off Expenses
• the available balance has adjusted correctly, taking into account any regular or one-off payments and/or requests

If there are Work Items that need to be actioned, these will show on the Income Management Summary screen in the Existing Work Items sections.

If Work Items cannot be actioned within the workflow, investigate and action while the customer is present, once the workflow has been finalised. If the customer is not present leave the work items for the Service Officer to action at the next customer contact. For more information on work items, see Income Management and BasicsCard Work Items.

• Finalise the activity on the Income Management Summary page by selecting the Finalise button
• Offer an Income Summary or Account Statement when changes are completed

For updates generating an automated DOC detailing the change, annotate the DOC with any additional information as needed.

Procedure ends here.

Check the TPO details in Office Locator to see if the TPO has refused to accept urgent one-off payments. If the TPO does not accept these payments, explore other options to help the customer in the short term such as social work referral.

To assess whether customers are in urgent need of a one-off payment, and to limit the chances of customers not turning up to a TPO, check the following details when a customer asks for an urgent one-off payment:

• Check earlier allocations (especially urgent payments already asked for that day by the customer or their partner)
• Has the customer checked whether there are already enough unspent funds available at a store?
• Check ongoing allocations - is the customer in need of an urgent payment because the regular payment is insufficient? Increase the regular Income Management expense if necessary
• Is there a history of the customer seeking urgent requests? Increase the regular Income Management expense if necessary
• Does the customer need access to the goods immediately?
• Is the customer in hardship due to unforeseen circumstances?
• Does the customer have access to discretionary funds?
• Will making the payment using standard processes cause genuine hardship? The urgent request process excludes requests for clothing and household goods and typically transport unless the customer's circumstances are exceptional and unforeseen (for example, the need to travel to visit sick relatives)

In all urgent cases for one-off expense to an unregistered TPO, the 'Urgent' radio button must be ticked on the Expense Request screen. Service Officers must record the reason for urgency in the Expense Notes.

Note: in extremely urgent situations, the Service Officer should call NBG, for example, stranded due to bad weather or visiting another community due to illness/funeral.

Request is not urgent

If the request is not urgent, check and arrange alternative means of help, if available.

Tell the customer one-off payments made using NBG will typically take up to 48 hours.

Documentation may be needed, go to Step 4.

Take care when approving the purchase of goods or services from un-contracted TPOs. In particular, where the purchase is being made from a private individual such as:

• the purchase of second hand goods
• payment of private rent, or
• where a customer is using their income managed funds to pay a credit card bill

Services Australia has a duty to make sure the arrangement is not being put in place to:

• avoid Income Management, or
• give the customer access to prohibited goods or services

Determine if documentation is needed for an un-contracted TPO payment:

• No documentation or verification is needed if making a one-off payment to a reputable TPO (contracted or un-contracted) that does not sell prohibited items. Note: customers who have asked for payment for a travel expense should be transferred to NBG as prompted when Expense Category UM6 (Travel and Transport) is selected within the workflow
• For purchases from private sellers - while it is not possible to describe all situations, the onus is on the customer to satisfy the delegate the arrangement is legitimate. Obtain more details about the private sale from the customer to conduct additional checks before proceeding
• For payments to a customer's credit card or for the payment of private rent documentation is needed before TPO payment is made

Private sale documentation

Where a purchase is being made from a private individual, the Service Officer must record full details of their consideration, goods to be purchased and seller details in the Expense Request notes.

For further information, see Determining a person's priority needs for Income Management.

The Expense Request will be mapped to the National Business Gateway Team (NBG)

Is documentation needed to proceed with the expense payment?

• Yes, go to Step 5
• No, procedure ends here

NBG staff, see Table 4, Step 1.

Documentation has not been provided

If the customer has not supplied the needed documentation, ask them to supply it. The request for a one-off payment cannot be made until documentation is supplied.

If appropriate, discuss an alternative means to meet the request such as transferring funds to a BasicsCard.

Record all details on a DOC, procedure ends here.

Documentation has already been provided

Service Centre, Remote Service Centre, Remote Service Team - once documentation has been received, add the details of the documentation provided in the expense request activity before finalising.

Tell the customer documentation must be faxed to NBG before payment will be made. Include details of the requested documentation in the expense request activity before finalising.

If no further updates are needed, see Table 4, Step 4.

Discuss with the customer whether an existing Centrepay deduction is to be:

• changed to an Income Management expense, or
• maintained, varied or ceased

Note: if the customer is being placed on Auto Income Management, existing Centrepay deductions can be changed to an Income Management expense. However, only Centrepay deductions that meet a priority need should be changed, such as housing, electricity, telephone.

If the Centrepay Deduction is to vary or cease

• View the expense in the Expense Summary Screen, expand the Voluntary Deductions for all Benefits twisty and select the appropriate deduction to get the payment details, including reference number if applicable
• Go to Workspace, search for the Centrepay Guided Procedure to make any changes

If an Income Management expense needs to be added, this can be done within the same activity and will prevent an activity being created on AL and not finalised.

Procedure is as follows:

• While you are varying/ceasing an expense, click on the Home option in Customer First
• Search for Expense Management Summary
• Code Expense
• Continue workflow until complete

Run the Centrepay Guided Procedure to stop the Centrepay deduction. For payments to:

• a contracted TPO, create a regular expense using direct credit
• an un-contracted TPO, select and create an Expense Request. Get any additional information, such as account details, from the ceased Centrepay deduction and included in the Expense Notes. The Expense Notes must state the requested expense is a transfer of a current Centrepay deduction

To change a Rent Deduction Scheme deduction to an Income Management expense, see Updating an existing Rent Deduction Scheme (RDS) deduction for a customer who has commenced Income Management

When all updates have been completed, see Table 4, Step 4.

NBG staff, see Table 4, Step 1.

Staff with the appropriate skill tag will be allocated uncontracted request work items when selecting Ready for Work in Workload Manager.

Enter the customer record and complete the following checks before selecting the activity from AL to make payment.

• On the AL screen, make sure there are no started or submitted activities
• Go to the Document List (DL) screen and read all DOA (Display on Access DOCS)
• Read all relevant DOCs on DL especially Social Work (SW) DOCs (past 3 months), to make sure there are no notes indicating payment should not be made

TPO details provided must include the following to be able to process the request:

• Business/Trading Name:
• Address:
• Contact Name:
• Contact Number:
• Service Reason:
• Amount:
• Account Reference Number (if any)
• Details of expense request:

• Where the request is to pay a Private Seller and the value of the purchase is greater than $1,000, APS 5/6 approval is needed. The Service Officer making the payment is responsible for getting approval and recording details of the APS 5/6 approval in the Expense Notes
• Where both the purchaser and seller are income managed, regardless of the amount, the NBG APS 5/6 must forward the request to the Level 2 Income Management (IM) Policy Helpdesk Webform for assessment

Can the one-off or regular payment to the un-contracted TPO be completed?

• Yes, go to Step 5
• No, go to Step 3

• Yes:
• Contact the relevant Service Officer in the Face to Face Incarcerated Customer Servicing team by email to tell them what information or action is needed for the expense request to be processed
• The Service Officer in the Face to Face Incarcerated Customer Servicing team will provide a contact within the prison, for example, Welfare/Transition Officer, to help NBG get the information needed to process the expense request
• Procedure ends here
• No, go to Step 4

Select from the reasons below when funds are not able to be paid to a TPO.

If sufficient information has not been provided to process the expense request or to create a new contact or TPO record:

• Attempt an outbound call to the customer see Calling a customer or returning a customer’s call
• To send a pre-call SMS see Centrelink letters and Electronic Messaging
• Three genuine attempts to contact the customer must be made over a 24 hour period
• Each call should be at different times of the day when the customer is likely to be available
• Document each outbound contact

Was the outbound call successful?

• Yes:
• Ask the customer for the information required to finalise the expense request. Go to step 5
• No:
• Create a DOA DOC on the customer's record stating the payment cannot be made, detailing additional information needed for the expense to be processed
• Document the outbound contact as per the outbound call procedures listed above
• Complete a Q888 Request to contact – Additional Expense Information required letter using pre-approved text. See Resources for a link to the letter. Seek APS5 or above quality checks before issuing
• Assign the work item as hold to user and place the request on hold for 14 days so funds do not reflect on the customer’s IM available balance
• If the additional information has not been provided at day 14, cancel the expense and annotate the DOA DOC to advise the expense has been cancelled

Procedure ends here.

Services Australia needs to explore other alternatives for the customer.

Investigate alternative options, such as nearby merchants who will accept an Income Management payment and who provide equivalent goods or services.

If alternatives are found, update the Notes in the Expense Request and cancel the request. If appropriate, make alternate payment as agreed with the customer.

Procedure ends here.

If there are no other alternatives, and the customer needs funds for food, fuel or urgent travel expenses, escalate to a Services Australia Account Manager.

• The Account Manager will engage with the TPO and attempt to negotiate a suitable arrangement for the allocation of Income Management funds to meet the customer's needs
• If, after this engagement, it is still not possible to meet essential needs such as food, fuel or urgent travel expenses, consider making a restricted direct payment to the customer to meet their need

If an expense request is urgent and the customer will be placed in hardship because NBG cannot process the expense (because of insufficient information or the TPO's refusal to accept payment), follow business as usual processes for urgent payment requests, with the outcome situation dependent.

Procedure ends here.

Select the Income Management Summary from Workspace in Customer First.

The following criteria must be met in order to process the payment:

• Check the Fortnight (14 day) balance details section to make sure there are no negative amounts. If there is a negative amount, investigate the reasons why and refer to Service Support Officer for help, if needed
• Under Account Statement, make sure the payment referred to by the Expense Request has not already been made for this scheduled payment

Check IM initiative and make sure the customer is on Manual IM (under Qualification Details). See Service Support Officer if Aut).

• Go to Expense Management Summary from Workspace in Customer First
• Make sure the Fortnightly Calculation Rate is greater than the total of the Regular Expenses. If customer is over allocated, follow up is needed. Refer to Service Support Officer or Team Leader if help is needed
• Make sure all expenses are coded for correct date - EPED+1 - correct if necessary
• Check for Duplicate expenses (Voluntary Deductions Versus Regular expenses)
• If a new expense has been created or an existing expense ceased, check priority needs reflect current circumstances
• Check TPO details to make sure TPO has previously been paid. If no details exist, refer to new TPO team for follow up

Does a TPO record exist?

• Yes, see Table 5, Step 1
• No, refer to new TPO team to create new TPO record

Check Office Locator and the TPO record, to make sure TPO CRN and name are correct and available to be paid.

Also confirm:

• IM Status (that is, has TPO registered for IM or have BPAY or Scheduled Transfer details recorded)
• Account Number Format - (if needed)
• Notification Method (for example, Letter, Fax, Email)
• Any other requirements

• Select the activity on the AL screen
• Record all details on Record of Payment slip or spreadsheet
• Within the Expense Request screen in Customer First, select 'Yes' for the radio button marked 'Is payment required'
• Read the expense notes to make sure there are no special circumstances to be taken into account (for example, change to payment method or account number)
• Does the request meet criteria? See Determining a Person's Priority Needs For Income Management
• Record any new notes relevant to payment, if needed
• Select continue
• From the Record Credit Card Payment screen, make sure funds for this payment are available

If Pay Anyone or BPAY payment is needed, go to ANZ internet banking, go to Step 3.

If Credit Card payment is needed, go to Step 4.

Note this process is for NBG Administered Credit Card holders only

If needed, contact the TPO to make sure they will accept payment and all payment details are correct.

• Open ANZ website anz.com.au
• Select Log On under Internet Banking
• Log on using your Administered Credit Card details and password (this information must be kept secure)
• Under Pay and Transfer, select either BPAY or Pay Anyone, as needed
• Complete Pay Anyone or BPAY details as required
• Select 'Submit', confirming details are correct
• Finalise transaction
• Save ANZ receipt, as needed
• Enter relevant ANZ Payment Receipt Number into 'Payment receipt number' field in order to finalise expense

Upload ANZ receipt to customer record

Select New Document Tools in Customer First, select Document Tools from the drop down in the My Tools section as below:

• Select Upload Document
• Enter today's date
• Enter Form Type / Classification of UNS011
• Select the 'no' radio button for 'hand off for further action'
• Upload saved ANZ receipt

Go to Step 5.

Contact the TPO to make sure they will accept payment on this occasion.

In some instances, the TPO will call back when they are ready to process the Credit Card payment.

• Confirm all details of this payment with the TPO, including amount the customer asked for and the amount spent
• Provide credit card number for the TPO to process payment
• Service Officer is to ask for a receipt be sent to them for this transaction
• Return to Customer First and finalise expense request
• Complete all details on the payment slip or spreadsheet
• Monitor ANZ statement to make sure the correct amount has been processed in preparation for reconciliation

When all updates are completed, finalise activity.

Review the Income Management Summary and Expense Management screens to confirm:

• Direct credit payments are showing in the 14 day balance details
• The available balance has adjusted correctly, taking into account any regular or one-off payments and/or requests
• Account Statement should display debit of payment amount from customers IM Account correctly
• Expense Requests are showing as provisional under Regular or One Off Expenses

Finalise the activity on the Income Management Summary page by selecting the Finalise button.

Annotate the auto DOC with any additional information as needed. Document any additional information for expenses using the Expense Request screen in the Expense Notes of the applicable Expense Request.

Does the TPO need notification of payment in writing?

• Yes, go to Step 6
• No, see Table 6, Step 1

Where a TPO has said they need notification of payment, create a Q727 Online Advice (OLA) and send to the business.

Note: no notification guarantees payment to the business.

• Select letter code Q727 and Service Reason BIM
• Enter Third Party Organisation and Payment Details (including payment method)
• Complete all sections of the letter
• Print the letters locally
• Email a PDF copy to the Service Officers inbox

Depending on the TPOs preferred method of notification, the Service Officer may need to fax, PGP email or post payment details.

See Table 6, Step 1.

The Credit Card reconciliation process is found in the Customer First Workspace under Income Management > Manage Expenses > Credit card reconciliation.

Log on to the ANZ website and select the appropriate period to display the transactions for the previous business day.

There are two ways of reconciling - match found (all details match) and No match found (TPO charged incorrect amount or incorrect details are recorded).

• Match found, go to Step 2
• No match found, go to Step 3

As the details on the Customer First screen match the ANZ statement, this payment can be reconciled. To do this, select yes for Match found against the Customer First payment.

Once Yes has been selected, a Refund to the customer of $0.00 will appear along with Reconciled in the Status field. Select Finalise to complete the reconciliation process for this payment.

Note: the above process can be applied to multiple transactions, providing the details match, before finalising one action. Transactions do not have to be reconciled individually.

Reconciliation is needed because of the discrepancy between the ANZ statement and the amount processed on Customer First.

As the details do not match, select No from Match found from Customer First to go to the statement transaction details.

• Select the appropriate 'no match' reason from the list of options in the drop down field
• Select Add new notes to document action
• Enter the amount that appears on the ANZ statement in the Statement field, and ANZ Payment Receipt Number in Receipt number field, if needed
• Select Continue to return to the credit card reconciliation screen to finalise the action
• Return to the Credit Card Reconciliation screen where the updated information confirms the refund and the Status has been updated to Reconciled
• Select Finalise to complete the process

Note: remaining transactions (if any/if needed) can also be reconciled and finalised in one action. Transactions do not have to be reconciled individually.

Procedure ends here.

Income managed funds are allocated to a BasicsCard using:

• the Residual Payment method (default), or
• the Partial Payment method, or
• one-off transfers (where Income Management funds are available)

Note: regular payments to BasicsCard are only available to customers on the Partial Payment method.

• To change a current regular BasicsCard expense, go to Step 2
• To add a regular BasicsCard expense (Partial Payment method customers only), go to Step 3
• To make a one-off payment to the BasicsCard, go to Step 4

Regular expenses are only available to customers on the Partial Payment method.

Access the Expense Management Summary screen and select the expense to be varied or ceased.

Select the relevant option:

• Vary - this allows a change to the payment amount and frequency. An End Date can be added if there is not one
• Cease - this will cease the expense. When selected, the expense will appear in the list of Regular Expenses showing zero amounts
• If no other changes are needed, finalise the activity after reviewing expenses in the Income Management Summary link and viewing the Payment Summary (PS) screen to make sure all expenses are correct

Workflow not available

If the workflow is not available, BasicsCard expenses can be coded manually on the Manage Expenses for BasicsCard (BCME) screen.

To cease or vary a BasicsCard expense, go to the BCME screen:

• Code 'C' to vary the expense. Code the new amount or frequency
• Code 'D' to cancel the expense. An end date for the expense is coded automatically
• Go to the Assessments Results (AR) screen to finalise the activity
• Record details of the change in a DOC

Note: the BCME screen is not a replacement for the Expense Management Summary screen and must only be used when the workflow is not available.

Offer an Income Summary or Account Statement when changes are completed.

After ceasing the regular BasicsCard expense, the 14 day balance may indicate that funds are still allocated for a final payment of the regular BasicsCard expense. If these funds are needed immediately, Service Officers may have to change the customer's payment method from Partial to Residual to release the funds to the customer's available balance.

For more information, see BasicsCard changing daily spend, maximum card balance limits and allocation method.

Are other changes needed?

• Yes:
• To add a BasicsCard regular expense, go to Step 3
• To make a one-off payment to the BasicsCard, go to Step 4
• No, procedure ends here

Regular BasicsCard transfers are only available to customers on the BasicsCard Partial Payment method.

Access the Expense Management Summary screen.

• Go to New Expenses and select add BasicsCard regular expense
• On the Payment Expense Management Details screen:
• Start date: this will default to the customer's next EPED or EPED+1 depending on the payment type. Change this date, if needed. Income Management holiday processing coding is to apply where the default date is incorrect due to holiday processing. Only change if a future start date is needed
• End Date: Leave blank if the customer did not ask for an end date
• Frequency: Select Daily, 1 Weekly, 2 Weekly or 4 Weekly as agreed with the customer
• If no other changes are needed, go to Step 5.
• If the customer also asks for a one-off payment to the BasicsCard, go to Step 4

Workflow not available

If the workflow is not available, BasicsCard expenses can be coded manually on the Manage Expenses for BasicsCard (BCME) screen. To add a regular BasicsCard expenses, go to the BCME screen:

• Code BCX for the expense category
• Code the frequency (Freq) for regular expense - DLY, 1WE, 2WE or 4WE
• Code the start date for the new regular BasicsCard expense
  Note: generally the start date will be EPED for payments with a one day delivery (for example, JSP), or EPED +1 for payments with a two day delivery, for example PEN, FTB
• Go to the Assessment Result (AR) screen to finalise the activity
• Record details of the new BasicsCard expense on a DOC

Encourage customers to transfer funds to their BasicsCard using self service, unless:

• they are not eligible to use self service, or
• it is not appropriate because of their circumstances

Self service options are:

• the Express Plus Centrelink mobile app
• Centrelink Online Account through MyGov, or
• Centrelink phone self service on 136 240

For more information, see Income Management and BasicsCard self service options.

If the customer is on the Residual Payment method, remind them how funds are automatically transferred to their BasicsCard once all other regular Income Management expenses have been calculated from their payment each fortnight. This means:

• funds are available on their BasicsCard once their income support payment pay strip has finalised
• customers won't have to contact regularly to have funds transferred

If the customer is unable to transfer funds using a self service channel, transfer funds as requested:

• Access the Expense Management Summary screen
• Go to New expenses and select 'Add BasicsCard immediate expense'
• Enter the amount to be transferred
• Select Continue
• Go to Step 5

Workflow not available

If the workflow is not available, BasicsCard expenses can be coded manually on the Manage Expenses for BasicsCard (BCME) screen. To make a one-off payment to the BasicsCard, go to the BCME screen:

• Code BCX as the expense category
• Code IMM as the frequency (Freq) for the payment
• Leave start date/end date blank
• Go to the AR screen to finalise the activity
• Record details of the transfer on a DOC

Note: the BCME screen is not a replacement for the Expense Management Summary screen and must only be used when the workflow is not available.

When all updates have been completed, finalise the activity.

Review the Income Management Summary screen to confirm:

• regular BasicsCard expenses are showing in the 14 day balance details, if applicable
• BasicsCard transfers are showing as provisional under Regular or One Off Expenses, as applicable
• the Income Management available balance has adjusted correctly, taking into account the new expenses

If there are Work Items that need to be actioned, these will show on the Income Management Summary screen in the Existing Work Items sections.

If Work Items cannot be actioned within the workflow, investigate and action while the customer is present, once the workflow has been finalised. For more information, see Income Management and BasicsCard Work Items.

Finalise the activity on the Income Management Summary page by selecting the Finalise button.

For one-off transfers to the BasicsCard, tell the customer of their new BasicsCard balance.