Exemptions from seeking child support for Family Tax Benefit (FTB) customers 277-51070090

Family Tax Benefit (FTB) instalment, lump sum or past period claim customer requests an exemption from seeking child support.

An application for an exemption is the customer's choice. Tell the customer of the implications of their choice. Child Support will not backdate a child support application if the exemption is not granted.

Does the customer:

• hold a full maintenance exemption for a child immediately before the child leaving care or immediately before the level of care for the child reducing below 35% care and
• within 13 weeks, the child has returned to the customer’s care or their level of care increases to 35% or more?
• Yes, see Table 3
• No, go to Step 2

All exemptions based on the fear of family and domestic violence must be referred to a social worker. Assessment for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander customers should be undertaken jointly with an Indigenous Service Officer (ISO). The ISO provides assistance getting the information to help determine the case.

Social workers must discuss applications for exemptions due to cultural considerations with ISOs.

If there are family and domestic violence circumstances, go to Step 8.

This procedure does not apply if the:

• customer knows the other parent's identity and is unable to provide evidence of parentage. For example, the other parent is known but is not named on the birth certificate. See Referrals to legal advice for action to obtain child support
• customer has obtained legal advice that paternity could not be proven through a court or the parent cannot be found. See Referrals to legal advice for action to obtain child support
• customer's ex-partner is in prison, as no exemption applies for this reason. A child support assessment will still be required in these cases. See Helping customers apply for child support through Centrelink
• customer's current partner is in prison and they are only apart due to the imprisonment. In this case they are still considered to be a couple and child support action is not appropriate
• payer is living in a country that does not have a reciprocal child support agreement with Australia

For the above 5 points, procedure ends here.

For all other cases if:

• the customer is requesting an exemption due to parentage (other parent) unknown, go to Step 3
• the customer is requesting an exemption for another reason, go to Step 7
• a review is required for a customer with an existing exemption, see Table 2, Step 9
• there is a shared care arrangement and the other parent contacts, see the Resources page, Example 3. For more details, see Maintenance Action Test (MAT) for customers with shared care
• a customer has been granted an exemption and wants to end their child support case. See Effect on Family Tax Benefit (FTB) where the customer elects to suspend or end a child support assessment
• the customer is seeking an exemption for a child of a surrogacy arrangement or confirming whether they need to take action to seek child support for a child conceived via an artificial conception procedure. See Family Tax Benefit (FTB) and child support for children born as a result of a surrogacy arrangement or via artificial conception procedure (including children of same-sex couples)
• the customer is contacting about a reduction in their FTB, investigations show that a child that is failing the Maintenance Action Test (MAT) is 18 years of age and over and one of the following applies:
• the child held a MAT exemption immediately before their 18th birthday, or
• the child is a non-biological child of the customer
• see Maintenance Action Test (MAT) for Family Tax Benefit (FTB) customers

Procedure ends here.

In most instances, parentage unknown cases are assessed at first point of contact by the Service Officer.

In limited circumstance, parentage unknown cases will need to be assessed by a social worker. If there are unusual or complex circumstances for example, family or domestic violence, or the customer requests a social worker appointment, go to Step 5.

The child's birth certificate needs to be provided (if not already provided) for all parentage unknown cases.

Does the customer state there is no other parent listed on the birth certificate or if already provided, does the birth certificate list the customer as the only parent?

• Yes, go to Step 4
• No, go to Step 5

View the Document List (DL) screen for relevant information and determine the current and previous Maintenance Action Test (MAT) code.

• Go to Mtce Ent'ment Grp Summary (MNGS) screen
• 'S'elect child on MNGS screen and go to the Maint Child Details Summary (MNCD) screen. To view more details, 'S'elect Maintenance Action field to go to the Maintenance Action Result (MNMR) screen

Is this the first child (or first children in the case of a multiple birth) for which the customer has requested an exemption due to parentage unknown (PNK) and does the customer verbally confirm they do not know who the other parent is?

• Yes, go to Step 9
• No, go to Step 5

If not already provided ask the customer to provide the child's birth certificate to support the exemption application.

If the child's birth certificate shows the name of another person but the customer advises that person is not a parent of the child, the Secretary or Delegate needs to be satisfied that the other parent is not a parent of the child. Evidence that the person is not a parent of the child can be provided through a court ruling, a DNA test, or a separate statutory declaration from each party. The customer can apply for an exemption from seeking child support, however a Parentage Unknown exemption cannot be granted until the Secretary (Centrelink) or Registrar (Child Support) is satisfied that the person named on the birth certificate is not a parent of the child.

Note: do not issue a 'Child Support Statutory Declaration - you are a parent of the child/ren named' (CS4649) as this form is only used by the other parent if they agree that they are the parent.

The birth certificate must be provided within 60 days of the exemption being requested. After this timeframe, the exemption will lapse, and the customer will be considered not to have taken reasonable action to obtain child support. Family Tax Benefit (FTB) Part A for the affected child will reduce to the base rate.

Update the Maintenance Action Test (MAT) code for the child/ren to 'MXR' (maintenance exemption requested) from the date the exemption was requested ('MXR' can only be coded once per child). This will allow more than the base rate of Family Tax Benefit (FTB) Part A to be paid for up to 60 days. Finalise the activity on the Assessment Results (AR) screen.

The maintenance action code will automatically update to NMA (no maintenance action) after the 60 days if the birth certificate have not been provided unless the child is within a 13 week (91 day) timeframe Deciding Maintenance Action (DMA) period.

Has the birth certificate been lodged and are they available to be viewed, see Viewing Centrelink customer’s digital images?

• Yes, go to Step 6
• No, tell the customer a referral will be made to a social worker once the birth certificate has been received. Procedure ends here

Note: a birth certificate must have been lodged and available to view before a referral to a social worker.

• Run the Social Worker Referral Guided Procedure choosing the referral reason of 'Child Support Scheme Exemption' and Referral Details of 'PNK - Parentage Unknown'
• Include in referral notes why a social worker is required (e.g. second/subsequent request, FDV, customer requested SWO)
• Check the customer's phone number is correct and record any relevant issues/information in the Guided Procedure
• Procedure ends here
• Social worker and FCC Smart Centre, go to Step 10

To determine whether an assessment by a social worker is required, see Maintenance Action Test (MAT) codes table.

Does the exemption require an assessment by a social worker?

• Yes, go to Step 8
• No, go to Step 9

Is the customer the payer in the child support case for the child/ren?

• Yes, tell the customer that a payer in a child support case is regarded as taking reasonable maintenance action and as such an exemption that requires a social worker assessment cannot be granted
• No, tell the customer that they need a referral to a social worker to discuss their circumstances. The social worker will make a decision about the exemption

If the customer does not have a current child support case showing on MNMR for the relevant child/ren (that is, the MAT code is not CAM (Child Support Assessment made), CCC (Child Support has commenced payments) or PPW (Payer Pass Workaround)) update the MAT code for the child/ren to 'MXR' (maintenance exemption requested) from the date the exemption was requested (MXR can only be coded once per child). Tell the customer that more than the base rate of FTB Part A will continue to be paid for up to 60 days. Finalise the activity on the Assessment Results (AR) screen.

Note: MXR is coded even if the customer is passing the MAT due to being in a DMA period. This is because the DMA period may end before the exemption being assessed.

If the customer does have a current child support case showing on MNMR (MAT code of CAM, CCC or PPW) for the relevant child/ren, the MAT does not need to be updated. Continue with the process.

Warm transfer the customer to the Smart Centre social worker. For contact details, see Social workers - referrals. The assessment may not necessarily be conducted during this phone call. The social worker will either undertake the assessment or tell the customer of further action required.

If a Smart Centre social worker is not available, run the Social Worker Referral Procedure and select the most appropriate referral reason. Check the customer's phone number is correct and record any relevant issues/information in the Guided Procedure.

Check if a social worker at the service centre is available to connect the customer immediately. If not, arrange a social work phone appointment using the Centrelink Appointment System (‘SWO callback’) following the instructions in Office Locator. The social worker will either undertake the assessment or advise the further steps the customer needs to take. If the social worker is not available and there are no available phone appointments:

• run the Social Worker Referral Guided Procedure
• select the most appropriate referral reason
• check the customer's phone number is correct
• record any relevant issues/information in the Guided Procedure

Procedure ends here.

Social worker contact and FCC, go to Step 10.

The Service Officer is to decide whether to grant or reject the exemption. In some cases, it is appropriate to pend the decision if evidence is to be provided. See Maintenance Action Test (MAT) codes.

Exemption is pending evidence (for example, birth certificate)

If a decision on the exemption will not be made straight away, use the Maintenance Action workflow to update the MAT code for the child/ren to 'MXR' (maintenance exemption requested) from the date the exemption was requested (MXR can only be coded once per child). This will allow more than the base rate of FTB Part A to be paid for up to 60 days. Finalise the activity on the Assessment Results (AR) screen.

Exemption to be granted

If the exemption is to be granted, the Service Officer must decide on the applicable start date for the exemption. When considering whether to backdate, issues that need to be taken into account are:

• Is the customer advising that they are only applying now because they did not know they could apply for an exemption?
• Look at DOCs and letters to see what the customer has previously been advised. Is it reasonable to accept that the customer was not aware they could apply for an exemption?
• Did the customer previously have an exemption request rejected? If so, why?
• Did the customer previously hold an exemption that dropped off?
• If the customer has been receiving the base rate, did they question the rate decrease when they went to NMA no maintenance action?
• What prevented the customer from requesting an exemption earlier?

Backdating an exemption may result in arrears if the customer was failing the MAT during the backdated period. In cases where arrears are generated and the customer has an existing debt, there must be sufficient grounds for a temporary exclusion from debt offsetting to be approved. When exceptional or unforeseen circumstances apply which may cause the customer to suffer severe financial hardship, customers can request to be temporarily excluded from debt recovery before money being taken from their FTB arrears, lump sum or top-up payments.
See Debt offsetting during family assistance reassessment, reconciliation and claim processing.

Discharging arrears from a previous Child Support collect period must also be discussed. Customers that are granted an exemption (full or partial) are able to discharge any arrears owing on the child support case without having the discharged amount taken into account for Maintenance Income Test purposes.

If a decision on the exemption will not be made straight away, use the Maintenance Action workflow to update the MAT code for the child/ren to 'MXR' (maintenance exemption requested) from the date the exemption was requested (MXR can only be coded once per child). This will allow more than the base rate of FTB Part A to be paid for 60 days. Finalise the activity on the Assessment Results (AR) screen.

An exemption may be backdated to 1 July of the previous financial year or the child's date of birth, whichever is the later. To backdate further, special circumstances for backdating a maintenance action exemption must first be established.

• For parentage unknown cases assessed by a Service Officer (including where evidence is yet to be provided), see Table 2, Step 5
• For all other cases, see Table 2, Step 1

Was the social worker able to contact the customer?

• Yes, see Table 2, Step 1
• No, and the customer does not have a current child support case showing for the relevant child/ren on MNMR, the customer will fail the MAT if the social worker is not able to make contact (by phone or in person):
• social worker action: use Fast Note - select Auto text, use Social Worker > Update > Maintenance Exemption to request an update to the MAT code for the child/ren to 'MXD' (MAT exemption denied) from the date the social worker has recorded the failed attempt at contact. Send a free text (Q888) letter to the customer to confirm the decision and the need to take action to obtain child support. The Resources page has approved text. Procedure ends here
• on receipt of the Fast Note advising that the social worker was unable to contact the customer, update the child's MAT on MNMA to 'MXD' from the date of the failed attempt at contact. Procedure ends here
• No, and the customer has a current child support case showing for the relevant child/ren on MNMR, no MAT updates are required. Procedure ends here

Maintenance income may still affect the customer's FTB Part A rate.

Full exemptions

If a full exemption is granted, all maintenance income received in the current financial year, including child support entitlements that existed before the exemption was granted, are included in the annualised child support amount.

When discussing the request for an exemption, the customer must be given information about the impact child support payments could have on their FTB if they are received later. That is, if the customer receives a payment from Child Support after an exemption has been granted, the amount will be treated as maintenance income, which may result in an overpayment and a reduction in future payments.

If a full exemption is granted, tell the customer that they must also contact Child Support to end the case.

Partial exemptions

Partial exemptions are assessed by social workers and can only be granted for:

• private collect customers who are not receiving their full child support assessment (either ongoing or for a past period due to a retrospective increase in their child support assessment), or
• customers who have not started a child support case and are able to collect voluntary child support

Discharging arrears

Discharging arrears from a previous Child Support collect period and ending the Child Support case should also be discussed. Customers who are granted a full exemption (or a partial exemption where Child Support collected previously and child support arrears have accrued) can elect for the Child Support Registrar not to collect any outstanding/unpaid child support arrears, (that is, to discharge the arrears). The exemption allows the customer to discharge the arrears without having them included in the Maintenance Income Test (MIT) calculation for FTB purposes.

Go to Step 2.

If the decision has been made to grant an exemption (partial or full), make sure that there is a discussion with the customer around whether there are any unpaid child support arrears owed by the payer. Add the details of the discussion in the DOC.

• Yes:
• for social worker assessed exemptions, go to Step 3
• for all other exemptions, (including if the decision is 'pending' evidence being provided), go to Step 5
• No, go to Step 10

Backdating exemptions

Grounds for backdating an exemption are established through an assessment of whether the circumstances existed before the date of claim for the entire backdated period. Special circumstances do not need to be established to backdate an exemption to 1 July of the previous financial year. In order to backdate any further however, special circumstances for backdating a maintenance action exemption must first be established.

Backdating an exemption for a customer who was not previously meeting the MAT may result in an arrears payment. In cases where arrears generate and the customer has an existing debt, there must be sufficient grounds for a temporary exclusion from debt offsetting to be approved. When exceptional or unforeseen circumstances apply which may cause the customer to suffer severe financial hardship, customers can request to be temporarily excluded from debt recovery before money being taken from their FTB arrears, lump sum or top-up payments.
See Debt offsetting during family assistance reassessment, reconciliation and claim processing.

When granting an exemption from the MAT for a customer with a child support case in place, contact them to confirm whether they want to end their case (and discharge any arrears).

If the customer wants to end their child support case, refer them to Child Support immediately. Child Support must speak with the customer before they can approve the case end.

Check the Maintenance Entitlement Group Summary (MNGS) screen to determine if child support case has been registered or ended.

• Go to Mtce Ent'ment Grp Summary (MNGS) screen
• 'S'elect the child on MNGS and go to the Maint Child Details Summary (MNCD) screen. To view more details, 'S'elect the Maintenance Action field to go to the Maintenance Action Result (MNMR) screen

Exception

In some cases, 2 carers may be entitled to child support for the same child, for example a grandparent and a parent. In these cases, a joint election to end the case is required, that is, both carers must elect to end the case.

If family violence is involved, and ending the case is not an option, it may be appropriate to discuss a partial exemption for the parent carer.

Non-parent carers do not need to meet the MAT, and therefore, do not need to apply for an exemption (such as violence).

The Level 2 Policy Helpdesk can help if policy advice is needed. See Resources for a link.

Request to end child support case

Note: important considerations below has information about shared care, role reversals, assessment end date, child support case not ended, and backdating exemptions, in context with the ending of a child support case.

When a customer advises they wish to end their child support case, refer the customer to Child Support immediately to request the case be ended. See Parent Support Team.

If unable to transfer the customer:

• Send an email immediately to Child Support using the 'Maintenance Exemption Notification to Child Support' template on the Resources page. Tell the customer:
• If they are not contacted by Child Support, they should phone Child Support to request the case be ended, (as Child Support cannot backdate the case end)
• Child Support is still required to confirm, directly with the customer, their intention to end the case

Child Support will attempt to:

• contact them in the next 2 days on 3 separate occasions, to confirm their intention to:
• end their case
• discharge arrears (if requested)

If these contact attempts are unsuccessful:

• Child Support will send the customer a letter asking that they contact Services Australia to confirm if they want to end their child support case

The customer may also complete the 'Ending a child support assessment (CS1671)' form, but Child Support must still speak with the customer before they can approve the case end. See Resources for a link to the form.

Important considerations

Shared care

If the care of the children is shared between the parties to a child support case, the payee can elect to end the child support assessments for:

• any child for whom they are assessed to receive child support from the other parent
• the child/ren for whom they have more than 65% care (even if the child support entitlement is $0
• all the children of the case (even if one or more of the children are solely in the other parent's care):
• as long as the annual rate of child support for both parties is $0, and
• the parent has an exemption because of family and domestic violence
• if there is no exemption, a joint election to end is required

Note: they must be advised they may become the payer for the children in the other parent's care.

If ending the case might create more family and domestic violence issues, and the case is private collect, a partial exemption may be considered.

See Effect on Family Tax Benefit (FTB) where the customer elects to suspend or end a child support assessment.

Role reversal and exemptions

If an FTB customer is (or would be) the payer, they are considered to have taken reasonable maintenance action, by having the children in their care taken into account in the child support case.

If a domestic violence exemption has been granted for the payee, and the alleged perpetrator’s:

• care of the FTB child/ren increases, or
• the perpetrator's Adjustable Taxable Income (ATI) decreases, or
• the payee's ATI increases

The perpetrator may become a potential payee and apply for child support, (and they are entitled to do so).

The Level 2 Policy Helpdesk can assist if policy advice is needed. The Resources page has a link.

Assessment end date

Effective from 21 September 2015, customers can only elect to end the assessment from a specified date, which is after the date the election is made (that is, a future date). Referring the customer immediately to Child Support makes sure the case is ended from the earliest possible date.

If the customer has had no contact with Child Support, because (for example):

• Centrelink have been unable to transfer the customer to Child Support
• Child Support have been unable to make contact with the customer, or
• The customer does not initiate contact with Child Support

The customer has not confirmed their 'end case' request. The case will therefore remain active until the customer makes contact with Child Support to end their child support assessment.

Child support case not ended

If the child support case is not ended and is:

• Private collect - the customer's child support assessment will continue to be used in the MIT and impact the rate of FTB. It may be more appropriate to grant a partial exemption if the customer does not want to end the child support case, but is not able to collect the full assessed amount
• Child Support collect - Child Support will continue to attempt to collect child support for the customer (including any arrears that have accrued). Any amount collected will be assessed under the MIT and may impact their rate of FTB. This could cause ongoing issues for customers granted certain exemptions, for example family and domestic violence exemptions

Backdating of exemption

Backdating an exemption for a customer who was not previously meeting the MAT may result in an arrears payment. In cases where arrears are generated and the customer has an existing debt, there must be sufficient grounds for a temporary exclusion from debt offsetting to be approved. When exceptional or unforeseen circumstances apply which may cause the customer to suffer severe financial hardship, customers can request to be temporarily excluded from debt recovery before money being taken from their FTB arrears, lump sum or top-up payments.
See Debt offsetting during family assistance reassessment, reconciliation and claim processing.

Does the exemption need to be backdated due to family and domestic violence?

• Yes, go to Step 4
• No, go to Step 5

No Maintenance Action (NMA) customer

Backdating an exemption for a customer who was not previously meeting the MAT may result in an arrears payment.

In cases where arrears are generated and the customer has an existing debt, there must be sufficient grounds for a temporary exclusion from debt offsetting to be approved. When exceptional or unforeseen circumstances apply which may cause the customer to suffer severe financial hardship, customers can request to be temporarily excluded from debt recovery before money being taken from their FTB arrears, lump sum or top-up payments.
See Debt offsetting during family assistance reassessment, reconciliation and claim processing.

Child Support collect customer ends their case and has arrears of child support owing:

• the customer can elect to discharge the arrears, that is, the customer is advising Child Support that they will collect the arrears themselves. Ordinarily, this amount would be assessable under the Maintenance Income Test (MIT) for FTB purposes. However if the customer has an exemption in place, the 'discharged' arrears will not be assessed under the MIT
• customers can no longer ask Child Support to backdate the case end to align with the exemption start date, instead they can elect to discharge any outstanding arrears. Due to the exemption, discharged arrears will not be assessed under the MIT. This effectively means that there is no need to backdate exemptions in these cases

Note: if the customer is granted a full exemption and has arrears accrued for a previous Child Support collect period and the customer elects not to 'discharge' the arrears, it may indicate that an exemption is not appropriate. If the customer elects to collect the arrears they will be assessable under the MIT.

Private collect customer:

• When a customer has a private collect child support case and there are family and domestic violence circumstances present, it may be appropriate to backdate an exemption. The backdating of the exemption is to offset the effect of child support that the customer was deemed to have received but may not have received due to the circumstances. This allows Centrelink to reassess their FTB entitlement based on the actual amount of child support they received during this period
• If the customer is granted a full exemption from a date in the past, additional coding is required by Centrelink to remove the uncollected child support from the MIT. See Recording private maintenance income on Centrelink systems for details on applying the MIT correctly in these cases. If the customer is eligible for arrears, they will be paid after the end of the relevant financial year/s, when reconciliation occurs
• Customers must be advised that if they do not hear from Child Support within 2 days of having their exemption granted, they must contact Child Support directly. The customer must advise they have been granted an exemption and ask for the case to be ended

If the start date of the exemption is to be:

• on or after 1 July of the previous financial year, go to Step 6
• before 1 July of the previous financial year, see Backdating a Maintenance Action Test (MAT) exemption to take action to receive child support prior to 1 July of the previous financial year. Procedure ends here

If the child is not already in the appropriate group see How to group a child on a customer's FTB record.

If the customer has been granted a:

• partial exemption, go to Step 7
• full exemption (granted or pending) due to parentage unknown assessed by a service officer go to Step 8
• full exemption, all other cases go to Step 9

Partial exemption has been granted for a private collect customer or a customer who does not have a child support case and who is collecting voluntary child support.

Select the role that applies

• Record in the DOC the amount of child support the customer will be privately collecting so that the actual amount can be recorded. This includes all maintenance types such as non-cash maintenance. The amount of privately collected maintenance must be recorded to make sure the customer benefits from the partial exemption
• Tell the customer that Child Support will continue to advise both parties of their full child support liability as Child Support are not advised of partial exemptions. The customer must also be advised to contact Child Support if they want to discharge arrears owed for a previous Child Support collect period
• Remind the customer to contact if the amount privately collected changes
• Send the customer a Q888. The Resources page has approved text

Urgent exemption coding

Social workers may request immediate coding where all of the following apply:

• customer is experiencing vulnerability
• customer has complex needs
• failure by Services Australia to respond quickly and effectively will present a significant risk to the customer or the agency

To request immediate coding:

• In Customer First select Fast Note - select Auto text, use Social Worker > Update > Maintenance Exemption to request coding of the exemption and privately collected maintenance
• Select Yes to complete the DOC in Document Completion. This makes sure the Fast Note is not allocated to a Service Officer
• Social workers must refer directly to a Service Support Officer (SSO) for all urgent coding. See Tier 0 technical support – self sufficiency

Is it appropriate to code a request for a future review for a VIO exemption?

• Yes, go to Step 11
• No, procedure ends here

Non-urgent exemption coding

Create a Fast Note - select Auto text, use Social Worker > Update > Maintenance Exemption to request coding of the exemption and privately collected maintenance. Using this Fast Note will make sure that the request is allocated to the correct area.

Is it appropriate to code a request for a future review for a VIO exemption?

• Yes, go to Step 11
• No, procedure ends here

Update the Maintenance Action Test (MAT) code from the date the exemption is granted. Code the maintenance income amount.

For details on applying the MIT correctly in these cases, see Table 1, Step 4 of Recording private maintenance income on Centrelink systems

Applicable partial maintenance exemption codes:

• PMC (receiving partial maintenance, exemption due to cultural reasons)
• PMI (receiving partial maintenance, exemption due to imposition)
• PMV (receiving partial maintenance, exemption due to violence)

Is it appropriate to code a request for a future review for a VIO exemption?

• Yes, go to Step 11
• No, procedure ends here

Grant and code the exemption:

• Update the parentage unknown (PNK) Maintenance Action Test (MAT) code on the MNMA screen for the relevant child/ren from the applicable start date. See Table 1, Item 2 Manual and automatic MAT code updates table in Maintenance Action Test (MAT) codes. Note: 1 July of the previous financial year is the earliest that can be coded
• Record the decision. Create a Fast Note - select Auto text, use Families > Updates > Maintenance exemption SO assessed
• Procedure ends here

• Create a Fast Note - select Auto text, use Families > Updates > Maintenance exemption SO assessed to record the details including that the decision is 'pending' provision of the birth certificate
• Tell the customer to provide the required evidence and encourage the customer to use Upload documents service
• In Customer First, create a manual review on the Review Registration (RVR) screen and complete the fields as follows:
• Service Reason: FTB
• Review Reason: OTH (Other)
• Due Date: 40 days from grant of Parentage Unknown exemption
• Source: INT
• Date of Receipt: today's date
• Notes: 'MAT exemption for Parentage Unknown is pending evidence. Check evidence has been received and action as per OB 277-51070090.'
• Keywords: MATPNK
• Workgroup: leave blank
• Position: leave blank
• Transfer to Region: leave blank
• The review will mature on the Due Date coded in the RVR activity. Workload Management will allocate the review for manual action
• Although the customer has up to 60 days to provide evidence, it is expected the documents would generally be lodged within the first 40 days, therefore the review for 40 days is to check the record and action accordingly. The review must be coded
• When the review matures, if evidence was not provided, close the review without more action. If evidence is not provided within 60 days the maintenance action code will automatically update to NMA (no maintenance action) and the rate of FTB part A for the child will reduce to the base rate (unless at the end of the 60 days the child is within a 13 week (91 day) timeframe Deciding Maintenance Action (DMA) period, in which case the remainder of the DMA period will continue to apply)
• For the first contact, procedure ends here

Finalise the exemption assessment. If the birth certificate shows:

• the customer is the only parent named:
• update the parentage unknown (PNK) Maintenance Action Test (MAT) code on the Maintenance Action Input (MNMA) screen for the relevant child/ren from the applicable start date. See Table 1, Item 2 Manual and automatic MAT code updates in Maintenance Action Test (MAT) codes.
  Note: 1 July of the previous financial year is the earliest that can be coded
• annotate the DOC to record the exemption has been granted. Procedure ends here
• another parent is named, go to Step 10

Select the role that applies

Service Officer action:

• Customers eligible for a non-social worker assessed exemption may not have a Child Support assessment in place. If this is the case, contact with Child Support is not required. See Maintenance Actions test (MAT) codes
• Update the Maintenance Action Test (MAT) code on the MNMA screen for the relevant child/ren from the applicable start date. See Table 1, Item 2 Manual and automatic MAT code updates table in Maintenance Action Test (MAT) codes
  Note: 1 July of the previous financial year is the earliest that can be coded
• Record the decision in a DOC including the date from which the exemption is to apply, the type of exemption and the child/ren to whom the exemption applies
• Procedure ends here

Social worker action:

• Tell the customer of the decision
• Record the decision in a DOC, including the date from which the exemption is to apply, the type of exemption, and the child/ren to whom the exemption applies. If the customer has arrears owing on the child support case which are to be discharged, include this in the DOC
• Send the exemption notification to Child Support for all full exemption cases granted from a date on or after 1 July of the previous financial year. The Resources page has the template
• Send Q052 to the customer advising the exemption has been granted. In Customer First, go to the LD screen to create the Q052 letter
• Child Support cannot backdate a case end to align with the exemption start date effective from 21 September 2015. If the customer is granted a full exemption from a date in the past, additional coding is required by Centrelink to remove the uncollected child support from the Maintenance Income Test. This coding must be requested with the exemption coding

For urgent exemption coding

Social workers may request immediate coding where all of the following apply:

• the customer is experiencing vulnerability
• the customer has complex needs
• failure by Services Australia to respond quickly and effectively will present a significant risk to the customer or the agency

To request immediate coding:

• In Customer First select Fast Note - select Auto text, use Social Worker > Update > Maintenance Exemption to request coding of the exemption and privately collected maintenance
• Select Yes to complete the DOC in Document Completion. This makes sure the Fast Note is not allocated to a Service Officer
• Social workers must refer directly to a Service Support Officer (SSO) for all urgent coding. See Tier 0 technical support – self sufficiency

Is it appropriate to code a request for a future review for a VIO exemption?

• Yes, go to Step 11
• No, procedure ends here

For non-urgent exemption coding

Use Fast Note - select Auto text, use Social Worker > Update > Maintenance Exemption to request coding of the exemption and privately collected maintenance. Using this Fast Note will make sure that the request is allocated to the correct area

Is it appropriate to code a request for a future review for a VIO exemption?

• Yes, go to Step 11
• No, procedure ends here

• Update the Maintenance Action Test (MAT) code from the date specified by the social worker
• For details on applying the MIT correctly in these cases, see Recording private maintenance income on Centrelink systems
• Is it appropriate to code a request for a future review for a VIO exemption?
• Yes, go to Step 11
• No, procedure ends here

Note: if a maintenance exemption has been assessed and granted from an earlier DOV than MXR (maintenance exemption requested) was coded from on the MNMA screen, the MXR coding must be deleted.

Social workers and Service Officers assessing exemption action:

• Tell the customer of the decision and of their obligation to take action to obtain child support within 14 days of the interview
• For parentage unknown exemptions where the decision was 'pending' receipt of the child's birth certificate:
• if the customer is present (phone or face to face) tell the customer the exemption request has been denied and they have 14 days to take maintenance action. Procedure ends here
• if the customer is not present, see FCC Smart Centre action below

Social workers action:

• Use Fast Note - select Auto text, use Social Worker > Update > Maintenance Exemption to request the coding of the denied exemption
• Procedure ends here

FCC Smart Centre action:

• Update the MAT code to 'MXD' (maintenance exemption denied) from the date the customer is advised that the exemption has been denied
• Send a free text (Q888) letter to the customer to confirm/advise the decision and the need to take action to obtain child support. The customer must always be notified in writing of the decision to deny the exemption. The Q888 must be sent on the same day that MXD is coded. This will make sure that the customer is aware of the need to take action to obtain child support if they have not already done so and provides notification that their rate of FTB Part A will reduce after 14 days if action to obtain child support is not taken for the relevant child/ren. The Resources page has examples of approved text for Q888 letters
• After 14 days the system will automatically update the MAT code to 'NMA' (no maintenance action), unless the child is still in a 13 week DMA period or the customer already has an active case. The customer will also receive a letter about the change in FTB rate if they revert to NMA
• If the customer needs to apply for a child support assessment, see Helping customers apply for child support
• For pending parentage unknown (PNK) exemptions, where the decision was 'pending' receipt of the child's birth certificate, and the birth certificate lists another parent, annotate the original Fast Note DOC to record that the exemption has been denied and the reason
• For all other cases, record details on a DOC and finalise the activity on the Assessment Results (AR) screen
• Procedure ends here

Review of exemption

The social worker will decide whether a review of an exemption will be required to check that an exemption is still appropriate for the customer.

IVF exemption: From 1 July 2009, same-sex couples are recognised as parents. An existing IVF exemption must be reviewed, as it may no longer be applicable. See Family Tax Benefit (FTB) and child support for children born as a result of a surrogacy arrangement or via artificial conception procedure (including children of same-sex couples).

A social worker has discretion in determining when to schedule a future review of a fear of violence exemption (VIO). If a social worker deems a future review of an exemption is appropriate, they record the review recommendation in a DOC and a Service Officer manually records the review using the Review Registration (RVR) screen.

From March 2017, VIO exemptions do not trigger an automatic annual review, as this is not a mandatory policy requirement. This is because Social Workers have the discretion to determine the length of the review period dependent upon the circumstances of a particular case.

In Customer First, create a manual review on the Review Registration (RVR) screen and complete the fields as follows:

• Service Reason: CSS
• Review Reason: REV (Manual review)
• Due date: date determined by assessing social worker
• Source: INT
• Date of Receipt: today's date
• Notes: 'Review required of VIO exemption. See DOC dated xx/xx/xx.'
• Keywords: SWO and VIO
• Workgroup: leave blank
• Position: leave blank
• Transfer to Region: leave blank

The review will mature on the Due Date coded in the RVR activity. Workload Management will allocate the review for manual action.

A Service Officer may also identify when speaking to a customer that a review of a child support exemption is required. In these cases, the Service Officer would refer the customer to a social worker via the Social Worker Referral Guided Procedure.

VIO review - social worker action:

Exemption to continue

Contact customer to assess if an exemption is still warranted and if so determine if a further review is required. If the Social Worker determines that the violence exemption will continue:

• without the need to schedule a future manual review date, no more action is needed, or
• subject to a further review, the social worker refers the case to a Service Officer who records another manual review using the Review Registration (RVR) screen with the appropriate date as recommended by the social worker

Exemption no longer applies

If the social worker determines the violence exemption should no longer apply, they will:

• Tell the customer they are required to contact Child Support to apply for a child support assessment within 14 days. The customer will need to be advised they must provide Child Support with proof of parentage:
• Create a Fast Note, select Auto text, use Social Worker > Update > Maintenance Exemption to request coding of 'MXD'
• Send a free text (Q888) letter to the customer to confirm the decision and the need to take action to obtain child support. The Resources page has approved text. The customer must always be notified in writing of the decision to deny/remove the exemption
• The Q888 must be sent on the same day that 'MXD' is coded. This will make sure that the customer is aware of the need to take action to obtain child support and also provides notification that their rate of FTB Part A will reduce after 14 days if action to obtain child support is not taken for the relevant child/ren
• Complete a report in SWIS

VIO review - FCC Smart Centre action

FCC processing will code MXD from the relevant date. After 14 days the system will automatically update the 'MAT' code to 'NMA' (no maintenance action), unless the child is still in a 13 week 'DMA' period. The customer will receive a letter about the change in FTB rate.

Customer has MXR coded and advises they will not be pursuing an exemption

If the customer advises that they will no longer be pursuing an exemption, tell them they will need to apply for child support in order to continue meeting the MAT. Tell the customer that if they require an exemption they will need to reapply. DOC the customer’s record with the customer’s request to end the exemption. If the customer advises that they:

• have or will be applying for a child support assessment, see the Reasonable maintenance action obligation and effect for FTB payments table
• have not applied for child support and does not advise they intend to, code MXD from the date of conversation. After 14 days the system will automatically update the 'MAT' code to 'NMA', unless the child is still in a 13 week 'DMA' period. The customer will receive a letter about the change in FTB rate. Send a free text (Q888) letter to the customer to confirm the decision and the need to take action to obtain child support. The Resources page has approved text

Customer requests to end an exemption

If the customer advises that they no longer require a child support exemption due to fear of violence and VIO is coded, only refer the customer to a social worker if the customer is experiencing complex circumstances or vulnerabilities, in line with the social work priority customer groups. See Social Work Services.

If the customer is concerned about how the other parent might respond to a child support application, also consult with a social worker.

If no social work contact is required, the customer will need to apply for a child support assessment. Tell the customer that if they require another exemption they will need to reapply. DOC the customer’s record with the customer’s request to end an exemption.

• Send a free text (Q888) letter to the customer to confirm the decision and the need to take action to obtain child support. The Resources page has approved text. The customer must always be notified in writing of the decision to remove the exemption
• Code MXD from the same date the Q888 is sent. After 14 days the system will automatically update the 'MAT' code to 'NMA' (no maintenance action), unless the child is still in a 13 week 'DMA' period. The customer will receive a letter about the change in FTB rate
• If the customer advises they have:
• applied for Child Support, code APP. See Step 7 in the Establishing a child support assessment is required table
• not applied for Child Support, see Step 3 in the Establishing a child support assessment is required table

This process applies only if all of the below criteria are met:

• The customer previously had a full maintenance exemption for the applicable child/ren of either:
• PNK
• PCP
• XCC
• IMP
• VIO, and
• The child left the customer’s care, or the level of care for the child reduced below 35%, and
• Within 13 weeks, the child returned to the customer’s care, or the level of care has increased to 35% or more, and
• There was not a significant change in circumstances

The Resources page has examples of significant changes in circumstances.

Does the customer meet all of the above criteria?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No, customer must reapply for an exemption from seeking child support. Follow the process in Family Tax Benefit customer requesting an exemption from child support table

Procedure ends here.

Service Officer action only:

• On the MNMA screen, update the MAT code for the relevant child/ren from the date the child returned to care or the date the level of care increased to 35% or more (the start of the DMA period)
• The manual MAT code used must be the same as the previously applied MAT code

Note: if an exemption is backdated, arrears may result if the customer was failing the MAT during the backdated period.

• Record the decision in a DOC including the:
• date from which the exemption applies
• type of exemption and
• the child/ren to whom the exemption applies