ABSTUDY Living Allowance 010-02070080

If a student or Australian Apprentice's circumstances have changed, they can apply for Living Allowance.

Check the code in the Participation Status: field on the Customer Study Details (EDC) screen in Process Direct or Education Course (EDC) screen in Customer First for their current course.

• see Increasing study load for ABSTUDY students for any of the following codes:
• PTS (Part Time Student)
• C25 (25% concessional student)
• C66 (66% concessional student)
• procedure ends here
• LAW (Lawful Custody Allowance), go to Step 2
• FTI/API (Full time student or apprentice - Incidentals Only), go to Step 3
• FTS/APT (Full time student or apprentice who has not been receiving Living Allowance due to Means Tests), go to Step 9
• If the student was previously on ABSTUDY Pensioner Education Supplement (EPA), go to Step 3

An ABSTUDY customer who has 'LAW' coded in the Participation Status: field on the EDC screen has been in receipt of the Lawful Custody Award as they were in lawful custody for a period of more than 2 weeks and studying a suitable approved course.

If they are now applying for Living Allowance, they have been released.

See New claim for Crisis Payment prior to the release of a customer in prison or psychiatric confinement.

Are the customer continuing studies in their course?

• Yes, and student will be:
• continuing full time, go to Step 3
• continuing part time, see Payment of ABSTUDY when a student is deferring or discontinuing study before the end of the course
• No, student will be discontinuing studies, see Payment of ABSTUDY when a student is deferring or discontinuing study before the end of the course

Note: if the customer is dependent and living at home, prior to granting Living Allowance, ensure it is more beneficial to receive Living Allowance, and not Family Tax Benefit (that is paid to the parent/guardian). See Eligibility for Family Tax Benefit (FTB) individuals.

Has the customer previously lodged an ABSTUDY claim for Living Allowance, for example, SY019 - Claim for ABSTUDY, for the current course or apprenticeship and provided all information necessary to grant Living Allowance, for example, personal income and assets, parental or partner income, etc.?

• Yes, see Step 1 in Table 2
• No, go to Step 4

If the customer has already 'claimed' and qualifies for ABSTUDY, they do not need to lodge a new claim. Under ABSTUDY policy, they are regarded as changing awards rather than re-claiming.

Based on the customer's circumstances, they may need to provide the following additional information:

• ABSTUDY Additional Information (SY023) form. Customers can also provide answers to the SY023 questions verbally. For details of the information required, see Completing an ABSTUDY form
• For students or apprentices under 22, if it is not clear they meet the requirements for independent status without undertaking a full assessment, they must also complete a MOD JY
  See Completing Parent(s)/Guardian(s) details for the Base Tax Year and Current Tax Year (MOD JY)
• If the student or apprentice is partnered and meets requirements for a de facto relationship for ABSTUDY purposes, they must also complete a Partner Details (MOD P) form
  See Assessing the Partner details (MOD P)

The customer can lodge a completed Claim for ABSTUDY (SY019) to claim Living Allowance instead of the forms listed above.

Is the customer providing the required information verbally?

• Yes, for staff:
• trained in processing, go to Step 7
• not trained in processing, go to Step 5
• No, go to Step 6

The details will need to be forwarded to the ABSTUDY Smart Centre Processing team for action:

• For Apprentices:
• Use Fast Note - Auto Text > Student, ABSTUDY & Apprentices > Update > ABSTUDY Apprentice action required
• Select Confirm
• Go to Step 7
• For Students:
• Use Fast Note - Auto Text > Student, ABSTUDY & Apprentices > Claims - ABSTUDY > ABSTUDY transfer to LA Required
• Select Confirm
• Go to Step 7

If the customer is present, tell them eligibility for Living Allowance cannot be assessed until they return the required forms.

• Send a Request for Information (RFI) letter
• Record details on a Note/DOC, include details of forms issued
• Go to Step 7

A customer must meet full Identity Confirmation requirements before granting Living Allowance. Additional procedures exclusive to ABSTUDY apply in some circumstances. See Identity Confirmation.

Has the customer already met the Identity Confirmation requirements for Living Allowance to be granted?

• Yes, for staff:
• trained in processing, see Step 1 in Table 2
• not trained in processing, procedure ends here
• No, go to Step 8

The customer must provide the relevant identity documents. See Requesting information.

Once the documents have been provided, see Identity Confirmation for the procedure.

For staff:

• trained in processing, see Step 1 in Table 2
• not trained in processing, procedure ends here

A customer may now be eligible for Living Allowance as their circumstance may have changed in regard to either:

• Personal Income or Assets, for information on what the customer may have to supply as proof of a reduction in income, see Coding income and assets
• Partner Income or Assets, for information on what the partner may have to supply as proof of the reduction in income see Partner Income Test for ABSTUDY customers 22 years and over or Partner Income Test for ABSTUDY customers under 22 years old, Austudy and Youth Allowance students and Australian Apprentices
• Parental Income Test, for information on what the parent/s may have to supply as proof of the reduction in income, see Increase or decrease in parental income for Youth Allowance (YA), ABSTUDY and Assistance for Isolated Children (AIC) Scheme
• Independence, for information on what the customer may have to supply as proof of independence, see Assessing independence for ABSTUDY customers

Procedure ends here

Has the additional information including Confirmation of Identity if needed, been returned so a full assessment can be undertaken for Living Allowance?

• Yes, go to Step 2
• No:
• Tell the student or apprentice they will continue to be paid the current rate until they provide the additional information
• Eligibility to Living Allowance cannot be assessed until the required documentation is supplied. Note: there is no closing date for additional information to be provided for ABSTUDY
• Record details on a DOC
• Procedure ends here

Was the customer in receipt of an income support payment before requesting Living Allowance?

• Yes, tell the ABSTUDY customer they are eligible to receive Living Allowance from the date the income support payment ceased. Go to Step 4
• No, go to Step 3

The date the customer is eligible for Living Allowance is based on a number of factors. These are listed below:

• 'FTI/API' coded on EDC screen and student, or apprentice is requesting Living Allowance
• There is no closing date for additional information to be provided for Living Allowance to be granted. Therefore, the customer may be eligible for Living Allowance prior to the date of receipt of the additional information. If an earlier date is determined, then that date must be used when changing 'FTI' to 'FTS or 'API' to 'APT' on the EDC screen. Go to Step 4
• 'LAW' coded on EDC screen and student requesting Living Allowance
• the customer becomes entitled to Living Allowance from the date they were released from lawful custody. Go to Step 4

Where a customer has FTS/APT coded on the EDC screen, and they are receiving zero rate living allowance, consider the following factors:

• Parental income
• Personal or partner income test

Procedure ends here

To pay the Living Allowance component update the EDC screen.

When transferring from EPA to ABSTUDY Living Allowance, complete these updates in a new claim activity. See Processing an ABSTUDY claim.

The student or apprentice's Living Allowance will be paid from the applicable date.

• Select the course displaying as 'FTI/API' or 'LAW' from the EDCH screen
• Update the Participation Status Event Date: field to the date the customer is eligible for Living Allowance
• Code 'I' in the Action: field to insert the latest information
• The EDCH screen will now display two entries for the same course
• Select the original 'FTI/APT' or 'LAW' entry from the EDCH screen
• 'C'orrect the Student End Date to the day before the date the student became eligible for Living Allowance
• Select the new 'FTI/APT' entry on EDCH
• Change the Participation Status: field to 'FTS/APT' (Full-time student or apprentice so Living Allowance can be paid)
• 'C'orrect the Student Start Date to the date the student or apprentice is eligible for Living Allowance (same date as the Participation Status Event Date)
• Finalise the activity
• Record details on a DOC

Tell the customer they must notify Services Australia of any changes to their circumstances, including study, within 14 days.