Assessing permanent blindness 008-03040030

To be eligible for a DSP (Blind) or Age Pension (Blind), the customer must be permanently blind.

A customer is assessed as permanently blind when they meet one of the below requirements:

• Visual acuity on the Snellen Scale after correction by suitable lenses of less than 6/60 in both eyes
• Constriction to within 10 degrees of fixation in the better eye irrespective of corrected visual acuity, or
• A combination of visual defects resulting in the same degree of visual impairment as that occurring in the above points

The Request for Ophthalmologist/Optometrist Report (SA013) requests this information.

The Resources page contains information on the Snellen Scale .

A DSP or Age Pension customer can be assessed against the eligibility criteria for permanent blindness at any time.

A Request for Ophthalmologist/Optometrist Report (SA013) is the best way to provide proof of permanent blindness. However, any report or evidence which provides the same information is acceptable.

The customer must have been assessed by an ophthalmologist. An optometrist can complete the report but it must clearly state:

• it is supported by a report from the customer’s ophthalmologist
• the details of the customer’s ophthalmologist

Note: staff must consult a Local Peer Support if they cannot:

• interpret the SA013/medical evidence, and
• determine if the customer is permanently blind or not

DSP (Blind) is non-taxable for customers under Age Pension age.

An assessment of CITW is not required if the customer is getting DSP (Blind).

Note: the assessment of where a customer’s CITW occurred for residence purposes may still be required. See Assessing Continuing Inability to Work (CITW).

DSP (Blind) and Age (Blind) display on the benefit status line as DSB and AGB.

Customers getting DSP (Blind) or Age Pension (Blind) may be eligible for a Medicare levy exemption or reduction.

A Medicare levy exemption or reduction letter is automatically sent to identified customers at the end of each financial year.

DSP (Blind) or Age Pension (Blind) customers can choose to receive their letters from Services Australia in one of the following alternative formats:

• read over the telephone
• converted to a larger font
• converted to Rich Text or Plain Text Format and sent on a computer disk
• converted to Braille

The service is restricted to letters only, not forms or flyers.

The basic rate of DSP (Blind) and Age Pension (Blind) is not subject to income or assets tests. Both payments are subject to compensation provisions and direct deduction foreign pensions.

If the customer has a partner, who is not blind, who claims or gets Centrelink payments, income and assets for both the customer and partner must be advised. Only the DSP (Blind) or Age Pension (Blind) customer is exempt from income and assets tests. The partner's payment will be assessed and reviewed using their combined income and assets.

If claiming Rent Assistance (RA) or Family Tax Benefit (FTB), DSP (Blind) or Age Pension (Blind) customers must advise income and assets. If not claiming FTB, RA is assessed under the income and assets tests for blind customers.

RA that is paid with FTB are assessed under the income test for family assistance payments.

For more information see Income and assets tests for blind customers.

Members of a couple

DSP (Blind) and Age Pension (Blind) customers are not automatically profiled as 2 weekly reporters when they have variable employment income. However, their partner may be profiled. DSP (Blind) and Age Pension (Blind) partners can choose to be manually placed onto 2 weekly reporting. Reporting Statements can be sent in alternative letter format. This allows the customer or their partner to report their income.

Single customers

Single DSP (Blind) and Age Pension (Blind) customers, who have variable employment income but do not get RA, will not be profiled on 2 weekly reporting. These customers should not be manually placed on reporting. Where a single AGB or DSB customer, who does not get RA, has been placed on reporting in error their reporting requirement should be removed. See Reporting screens.

If the customer provides income details for RA, or for their partner, and the employed person is:

• under Age Pension age, they can accrue and deplete working credits
• over Age Pension age and getting a pension (excluding PPS), they may be entitled to the Work Bonus. Note: the Work Bonus is not used in the customer's transitional rules calculation, however the Work Bonus will still be used in the comparison calculations and partners may still benefit by the reduction in total income

Compensation and direct deduction foreign pensions affect blind pensions in the same way as they do non-blind payments. If a customer is entitled to compensation or a foreign pension, medical reviews are set at the time of grant.

If a customer is getting DSP or Age Pension and they are assessed as permanently blind, they can be transferred to DSP (Blind) or Age Pension (Blind).

Customers who want to be assessed for either DSP (Blind) or Age (Blind) must:

• lodge a claim (DSP or Age Pension)
• submit a SA013 form/other acceptable evidence which provides the information contained within the SA013