Income Management Deductions
Service Delivery and Compliance Guidelines

Contents

(i)Definition of terms

(iii)Introduction

Service delivery

1.1Engagement process

1.2Assessment process

1.3Eligibility criteria

1.4Approval criteria

1.5Additional requirements of contract

1.6Application decisions

1.7Income Management Deductions Service Reasons

1.8Outcome of Business Application

1.9Contracts and contract management

1.9aForm of contract

1.9bTermination of an IM Deduction Contract

1.9cTermination process

1.10Reviews and complaints

1.10aComplaints

1.10bRequests for review of Department of Human Services decisions

1.11Overpayment of Income Management Deductions

Audit and compliance reviews

2.1Overarching policy

2.2Audit and compliance reviews

2.3Audit and compliance review process

2.4Outcome of review activities

2.5Process for ‘compliant’ outcomes

2.6Process for ‘non-compliant’ outcomes

2.7Compliance Plan

Glossary

(i)Income Management Priority Goods and Services and associated Income Management Service Reasons

(ii)Income Management Deductions excluded goods and services

(i)Definition of terms

Account Manager means the Human Services officer primarily responsible for managing the IM Deduction Program.

Applicant means the legal entity that has applied to become a Party to a Schedule 4 IM Deduction Contract or a Schedule 5 IM Deduction Contract.

ApprovalCriteria means the criteria set out in section 1.4 of this document.

ApprovalLetter means a letter from Human Services to the Applicant notifying them that Human Services accepts their Business Application.

ApprovedLay-By means an arrangement for the purchase of goods from the Participant based on terms that the total price is paid over time in regular payments with the goods received by the Customer upon completion of the payment. For a lay-by arrangement to be an Approved Lay-By, the Participant must provide the customer with:

  • a document setting out the Participant’s terms and conditions of the lay-by service, and
  • a detailed lay-by docket for the particular purchase of goods, setting out:
  • the deposit amount
  • the duration of lay-by period
  • the frequency and minimum amount of payments required, and
  • the Participant’s cancellation policy for the lay-by (including refunds of deposits or any payments made).

BusinessApplication means a request by the Applicant for Human Services to provide particular services to the Applicant, made in accordance with the form and procedure for completing that Business Application, published by Human Services at humanservices.gov.au from time to time.

Centrelink is a master program of the Department of Human Services.

Community Store means, in the context of Income Management, a store in a local community (often a remote community) that sells a range of food items to community residents.

Compliance Plan means a plan developed by the Participant that specifies the processes and procedures the Participant will adopt to ensure its compliance with the Contract.

Customer means a Declared Customer or, for the purposes of Schedule 5, a Customer Nominee.

CustomerNominee means (for Schedule 5 purposes) a person for whom the Declared Customer has given the Participant written authorisation allowing that person to access their Store Account.

DeclaredCustomer means a mutual customer of the Participant and Human Services who receives a payment and is subject to the Income Management regime under the Social Security (Administration) Act 1999 (Cth).

Declared CustomerAccount means an account held by the Participant for the benefit of a Declared Customer for the purpose of providing services and associated goods to meet the Priority Needs of the Declared Customer or any Customer Dependents.

DeclaredCustomer Store Accountmeans an account held by the Participant for the benefit of a Declared Customer for the purpose of providing goods to meet the Priority Needs of the Declared Customer or any Customer Dependents.

DeductionAuthority means the Income Management Deduction Report or other documentation completed by a Human Services officer that records Human Services’ decision in accordance with the Act to:

  • commence an Income Management Deduction
  • change the amount or frequency of any Income Management Deduction, or cancel or suspend an Income Management Deduction.

Department of Human Services Business Terms and Conditions means the document setting out some of the terms and conditions of the IM Deduction Contract between Human Services and the Participant.

EligibilityCriteria means the criteria set out in section 1.3 of this document.

ExcludedGoods has the same meaning as in section 123TI of the Social Security (Administration) Act 1999 (Cth). A list of excluded goods and services is at Glossary (ii).

Excluded Services has the same meaning as in section 123TI of the Social Security (Administration) Act 1999 (Cth). A list of excluded goods and services is at Glossary (ii).

DSSmeans the Department of Social Services

Gambling means a service provided to a person in the capacity of a customer of a gambling service (within the meaning of the Interactive Gambling Act 2001).

Human Services means the Australian Government Department of Human Services.

Income Management refers to the legislation, policies and procedures administered by Human Services to assist its customers manage their money. It enables part of a customer’s Human Services and/or Veterans’ Affairs payments to be set aside to pay for priority goods and services provided by Third Party Organisations (TPO).

Income Management Deduction means an amount of money deducted by Human Services from the Income Management account of a Declared Customer and payable to the Participant in accordance with Schedule 4 or 5 to be credited to the Declared Customer Account (in the case of Schedule 4) or Declared Customer Store Account (in the case of Schedule 5) for that Declared Customer, for the provision of goods and services by the Participant (other than Excluded Goods or Excluded Services) to meet the Priority Needs of the Declared Customer or any Customer Dependents.

IM Deduction Contract means the relationship between the Parties as constituted by the following documents, as varied from time to time in accordance with the Terms and Conditions and the relevant Schedules:

  • the Department of Human Services Business Terms and Conditions (T&Cs)
  • Schedule 4 or Schedule 5 (as applicable) and any other Schedules referred to in the Approval Letter
  • any agreed Special Conditions
  • any further terms set out in the Approval Letter, and
  • any representations, warranties and other information contained in a Business Application.

IM Deduction Program means the Income Management Programs referred to in Schedule 4 and Schedule 5 of the Department of Human Services Business Terms and Conditions.

Licence means a licence issued to a community store by the Department of Social Services (DSS) in accordance with Part 7 of the Northern Territory National Emergency Response Act 2007 (NTNER Act 2007).

NTNER Act 2007 means the Northern Territory National Emergency Response Act 2007.

Participant means the Applicant described in the Business Application that has been accepted by Human Services through the issue of an Approval Letter.

Prescribed Goods and Services means the priority goods and services for the purposes of Income Management (refer to Glossary (i)).

Prescribed Area means an area prescribed under the NTNER Act 2007 for the purpose of Income Management.

RegulatoryBody means the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), a State Department or agency responsible for fair trading, or other Government agencies.

RemedyNotice means a Notice provided to the participant detailing the nature of a breach of the Contract and requiring the Participant to remedy the breach within 30 days of receipt of the Notice.

Schedule means a Schedule to the Department of Human Services Business Terms and Conditions and published as such on the Human Services website at humanservices.gov.au

SchoolMeals means a program operating in schools designed to provide a meal service for children attending school.

Service Reasons means the category of goods and/or services that are identified in the Approval Letter for the particular Schedule.

Store Account means an account held by the Participant for the benefit of an income managed customer for the purpose of providing goods and services.

TPO means a Third Party Organisation.

TPO Bank Account means the account with an Authorised Deposit-Taking Institution (as per the Banking Act 1959) specified in the Business Application for Schedule 4 or 5 for the purpose of receiving Income Management Deductions.

TobaccoProduct has the same meaning as in the Tobacco Advertising Prohibition Act 1992 and means:

  • tobacco (in any form), or
  • any product (for example a cigar or cigarette)

that contains tobacco as its main or a substantial ingredient, is designed or intended for human consumption or use, and that is not included in the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods maintained under the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989. A tobacco product also is a cigarette paper, cigarette roller or pipe.

(iii)Introduction

The Department of Human Services (Human Services) manages a variety of Income Management programs. Income Management helps Human Services’ customers manage their money. It enables part of a customer’s Centrelink and/or Veterans’ Affairs payments to be set aside to pay for priority goods and services provided by Third Party Organisations (TPOs).

TPOs can apply to participate in one or more Income Management programs which are referred to in the Schedules to the Department of Human Services Business Terms and Conditions. This document contains the service delivery and compliance policy for Income Management Programs referred to in Schedule 4 and Schedule 5 of the Department of Human Services Business Terms and Conditions.

Schedule 4 to the Department of Human Services Business Terms and Conditions contains the conditions for the participation of TPOs who provide services such as rent, electricity, water and medical services in order to meet the priority needs of income managed customers. Schedule 5 contains the conditions for the participation of TPOs in order to set up store accounts for income managed customers to assist them to meet their Priority Needs. These programs are collectively referred to in this document as the IM Deduction Program.

This document provides guidance on the process Human Services will ordinarily follow when:

  • assessing whether a TPO is eligible to participate in the IM Deduction Program, and
  • assessing whether a TPO will be approved to participate in the IM Deduction Program.
  • managing IM Deduction Contracts
  • conducting audits and compliance reviews of Participants, and
  • terminating IM Deduction Contracts.

If a TPO is eligible for and approved to participate in the IM Deduction Program, Human Services may enter into a Schedule 4 contract or Schedule 5 contract (as applicable) with the TPO. The Schedule 4 contract and Schedule 5 contract are referred to in this document as IM Deduction contracts.

This document does not form part of any IM Deduction Contract and does not create any enforceable legal rights, expectations or entitlements. To the extent of any inconsistency between a provision of this document and a provision of an IM Deduction Contract, the provision of the IM Deduction Contract prevails.

More information about the legislative and contractual policy for the IM Deduction Program can be found in the policy framework documents for Schedule 4 and Schedule 5 which are located on the Department of Social Services (DSS) website at dss.gov.au

Service delivery

1.1Engagement process

A TPO wishing to be approved to participate in the IM Deduction Program for either or both Schedule 4 or Schedule 5 may apply to Human Services. The TPO applying for participation is referred to as the Applicant by Human Services.

In order to apply, the Applicant must access Human Services website at humanservices.gov.au to download the Business Application and copies of the Department of Human Services Business Terms and Conditions and Schedule 4 or Schedule 5 (as applicable).

1.2Assessment process

The Applicant must lodge the Business Application with Human Services for assessment. This can be done either by mail or fax. The Business Application includes the relevant contact details.

Human Services will assess the Business Application to determine whether the Applicant is eligible to participate in the IM Deduction Program and, if eligible, whether the Applicant should be approved to participate in the IM Deduction Program.

Human Services may request further information from the Applicant or from other sources before completing the assessment. If adverse information is received from other sources, the Applicant will be provided with details of the information and given the opportunity to comment on it.

1.3Eligibility criteria

In assessing whether an Applicant is eligible to participate in the IM Deduction Program Human Services will consider whether:

  • the Applicant is a legal entity such as a company, partnership, sole trader, etc, and that it has the legal capacity to enter into a contract with Human Services
  • the Applicant has an Australian Business Number (ABN) or Australian Company Number (ACN)
  • the Applicant has provided details of a postal and physical address and the contact details of a person with authority to make decisions on behalf of the Applicant. Human Services may require further information if it is not satisfied that the person who has signed the Business Application has authority to do so on behalf of the Applicant
  • the goods and/or services being supplied by the Applicant and for which Income Management Deductions are to be applied fall within the Service Reasons or other categories of goods and/or services which meet the Priority Needs of Customers. Further detail about the Service Reasons are set out in section 1.7
  • the Applicant sells Excluded Goods and/or Excluded Services. If Excluded Goods or Services are sold by the Applicant, Human Services will assess whether the Applicant is able and willing to prevent the sale of those goods or services, and
  • a properly signed Business Application has been submitted and that all relevant sections have been completed.

1.4Approval criteria

If the Applicant meets the Eligibility Criteria set out in section 1.3, Human Services will then assess whether it meets the following Approval Criteria.

When considering approval, Human Services primary consideration is whether, in Human Services opinion, allowing the Applicant to participate in the IM Deduction Program will further the objectives of Income Management. Section 3 of the Schedule 4 and Schedule 5 policy framework documents describe the objectives of Income Management.

Human Services will take all relevant information into account when it conducts this assessment. The matters that Human Services may take into account include whether:

  • the Applicant is willing and able to comply with the Department of Human Services Business Terms and Conditions and Schedule 4 and/or Schedule 5 (as applicable) and any special conditions that may be included in the Approval Letter
  • the Applicant has previously been a party to a contractual arrangement with Human Services or Centrelink, and if so, whether there was any previous non-compliance by the Applicant
  • in Human Services opinion, allowing the Applicant to participate in the IM Deduction Program would adversely affect Human Services reputation in any way
  • any adverse information about the Applicant, its officers or agents, or a related entity of the Applicant, has been received from:
  • the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC)
  • the Australian Securities and Investment Commission (ASIC)
  • other regulatory bodies, including state and territory fair trading associations
  • other relevant Commonwealth, state and territory or local government agencies, and
  • consumer groups
  • the Applicant complies with all legal requirements applicable to its business (for example, the anti-hawking provisions of the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth))
  • the Applicant has appropriate external dispute resolution mechanisms available to resolve any disputes between the organisation and its customers
  • for Schedule 5 Applicants situated in prescribed areas under the Northern Territory National Emergency Response Act 2007, the Applicant is:
  • required to hold a Store Licence, and
  • complying with the terms and conditions of the Licence.

1.5Additional requirements of contract

In order for an Income Management Deductions contract to be executed, the Applicant must also be able to meet all of the requirements set out in Schedule 4 or Schedule 5 (as applicable).

In relation to a Schedule 4 Applicant, this includes the ability for the Applicant to:

  • provide a written statement to a customer showing details of the amounts paid to Human Services by the Participant within 14 days of the customer’s request
  • allow another person to access the customer’s account if provided with a written statement by the customer authorising access by the other person, and
  • refund an Income Management Deduction amount for an item returned to the Participant by the customer to Human Services. The Participant must not refund the amount to another person’s account, or to the customer in cash or in Excluded Goods or Excluded Services.

In relation to a Schedule 5 Applicant, this includes the ability for the Applicant to:

  • establish a bank account (the TPO Bank Account) for the specific and dedicated purpose of receiving Income Management Deductions
  • issue a Customer or their nominee a Point of Sale register docket or receipt showing the total value of purchases debited against the customer’s store account each time the Customer/nominee uses the customer’s store account
  • keep copies of all receipts or register dockets for at least two years
  • if requested provide a written statement to a customer showing details of the customer’s store account for the period requested by the customer
  • be able to provide Human Services with statements on request of the TPO Bank Account showing all debits and credits and the current balance and a statement of each income managed customer’s store account
  • not apply any Income Management Deduction to a lay-by arrangement unless that arrangement is an ‘Approved lay-by’, and
  • refund an Income Management Deduction amount for an item returned to the Participant by the customer to the customer’s store account. The Participant must not refund the amount to another person’s store account, or to the customer in cash or in Excluded Goods or Excluded Services.

1.6Application decisions

All decisions in relation to assessments of Schedule 4 and 5 applications will be made by a Human Services Account Manager. If required, a senior officer will be consulted as part of the assessment.

If Human Services considers that a Participant may not satisfy the Eligibility or Approval Criteria, it may seek advice from, or refer the matter to, DSS.

An unsuccessful Applicant may request that Human Services conduct a review of this decision (see 1.10b below).