Assessing and coding student and Australian Apprentice claims for Austudy 010-04020000

Claims for Austudy can be lodged by customers or their correspondence nominees using:

• Centrelink online accounts
• an Assisted Customer Claim (ACC)
• a Claim for Austudy (SY002) paper claim

For further information, including which nominee types have access to online services, see Initial contact with students or Australian Apprentices claiming Youth Allowance (YA).

The Re-claim or Transfer of an Austudy or Youth Allowance (SY089) paper claim lodged with a Date of Receipt on or after 1 April 2023 cannot be accepted.

Straight through processing is where a claim for a social security payment or service is assessed using criteria to identify if it is suitable for an automated grant outcome.

The system may process Austudy student claims automatically if they meet these criteria:

• Identity is confirmed
• Residency requirements met
• Tax file number recorded
• Employment status requirements met
• No change in known relationship details
• No change in known children details
• The customer does not identify as having a disability, a medical condition which impacts their ability to study or is in a bereavement period
• Accommodation requirements are met
• Study details can be confirmed

If a claim meets the criteria for automated assessment, DOCs or Display Notes on the customer's record will show that ROXY has created these.

Customer contact

If a customer asks for an explanation or applies for a formal review of the decision, the Service Officer must enter their own logon as the Decision Maker and the customer's local service centre when running the script.

If the claim was incorrectly granted, give feedback via ROXY.

Customers who lodge a claim for Austudy may not be eligible for payment because they do not meet the basic qualification, payability or obligation requirements for payment.

Sometimes customers may lodge an inappropriate or incorrect claim.

In all these circumstances, claims must be rejected. Different procedures apply if the customer withdraws their claim.

Customers claiming Austudy who receive a lump sum from employment, such as leave or redundancy payments, may have an Income Maintenance Period (IMP) imposed before they can receive Austudy payments.

Austudy is also subject to a Seasonal Work Preclusion Period (SWPP). If a customer is serving a SWPP and transfers to Austudy, they will be precluded from Austudy until their SWPP has ended.

Austudy customers may be entitled to a range of other additional products and services including Pension Supplement for eligible customers over Age Pension age, or Rent Assistance (RA).

If a customer receives a favourable decision after requesting a review, a new claim is not needed. The previous claim must be reassessed.

When a Claim for Austudy (SY002) paper claim is scanned onto a customer's record, the system creates a SOA Shell for allocation and processing in Process Direct.

A claim can be created using the SOA Shell application within Process Direct, if:

• a customer is subject to a re-grant or reassessment, and
• an online claim or Assisted Customer Claim (ACC) is not available to re-index

For example, to implement an Authorised Review Officer (ARO) decision where no new claim has been lodged.

Do not use a SOA Shell in place of re-indexing a determined Austudy online claim or ACC.

Austudy is not a qualifying payment for EdEP. However, staff must check a customer's eligibility for EdEP when they are transferring to Austudy, or Youth Allowance (YA) (student) from another payment. This check is part of the Austudy new claim assessment process.

Austudy students and Australian Apprentices are automatically issued a HCC after their claim is granted.

If the student or Australian Apprentice transfers from a payment that includes a Pension Concession Card (PCC), the PCC entitlement ceases on the payment transfer date.

Only limited Apprenticeship trained staff have access to the Apprenticeships Data Management System (ADMS) site required to process Apprentice claims for Austudy. See the Resources page in Apprenticeships Data Management System (ADMS).