Commonwealth Numbered Acts

SOCIAL SECURITY LEGISLATION AMENDMENT ACT (No. 3) 1991 No. 175, 1991 - SECT 93

93. Before Subdivision A of Division 9 of Part 2.15 of the Principal Act the
following Subdivision is inserted in Division 9:

"Subdivision AA - Death of partner Qualification for payments under this
Subdivision

"768A.(1) If:

   (a)  a person is receiving a special benefit; and

   (b)  the person is a long-term social security recipient; and

   (c)  the person is a member of a couple; and

   (d)  the person's partner dies; and

   (e)  immediately before the partner died, the partner:

   (i)  was receiving a social security pension; or

   (ii) was receiving a service pension; or

   (iii) was a long-term social security recipient; and

   (f)  on the person's payday immediately before the first available
        bereavement adjustment payday, the amount that would be payable to the
        person if the person were not qualified for payments under this
        Subdivision is less than the sum of:

   (i)  the amount that would otherwise be payable to the person under section
        768D (person's continued rate) on that payday; and

   (ii) the amount (if any) that would otherwise be payable to the person,
        under section 768B (continued payment of partner's pension or benefit)
        on the partner's payday immediately before the first available
        bereavement adjustment payday; the person is qualified for payments
        under this Subdivision to cover the bereavement period.
Note 1: section 768B provides for the payment to the person, up to the first
available bereavement adjustment payday, of amounts equal to the instalments
that would have been paid to the person's partner during that period if the
partner had not died.
Note 2: section 768C provides for a lump sum that represents the instalments
that would have been paid to the person's partner, between the first available
bereavement adjustment payday and the end of the bereavement period, if the
partner had not died.

"(2) A person who is qualified for payments under this Subdivision may choose
not to receive payments under this Subdivision.

"(3) An election under subsection (2):

   (a)  must be made by written notice to the Secretary; and

   (b)  may be made after the person has been paid an amount or amounts under
        this Subdivision; and

   (c)  cannot be withdrawn after the Department has taken all the action
        required to give effect to that election.

"(4) If a person is qualified for payments under this Subdivision in relation
to the partner's death, the rate at which job search allowance is payable to
the person during the bereavement period is, unless the person has made an
election under subsection (2), governed by section 768D.

"(5) For the purposes of this section, a person is a long-term social security
recipient if:

   (a)  the person is either receiving a social security benefit or is a
        benefit increase partner; and

   (b)  in respect of the previous 12 months, the person:

   (i)  was receiving a social security pension; or

   (ii) was receiving a social security benefit; or

   (iii) was receiving a service pension; or

   (iv) was a benefit increase partner.

"(6) A person is taken to satisfy the requirements of paragraph (5)(b) if:

   (a)  the person's receipt of social security pension, social security
        benefit or service pension, or the person's status as a benefit
        increase partner, or a combination of these, was continuous for the
        period of 12 months; or

   (b)  the person was receiving one or other of the payments referred to in
        paragraph (5) (b) or had the status of a benefit increase partner, or
        a combination of these for 46 weeks of the previous 52.". Continued
        payment of partner's pension or benefit

"768B. If a person is qualified for payments under this Subdivision in
relation to the death of the person's partner, there is payable to the person,
on each of the partner's paydays in the bereavement rate continuation period,
an amount equal to the amount that would have been payable to the partner on
that payday if the partner had not died.
Note: if the partner was a benefit increase partner, the person will not
receive payments under this section, but will continue to receive payments for
the partner under section 768D. Lump sum payable in some circumstances

"768C. If:

   (a)  a person is qualified for payments under this Subdivision in relation
        to the death of the person's partner; and

   (b)  the first available bereavement adjustment payday occurs before the
        end of the bereavement period; there is payable to the person as a
        lump sum an amount worked out using the lump sum calculator at the end
        of this section.
LUMP SUM CALCULATOR This is how to work out the amount of the lump sum:
Method statement Step 1. Add up:

   (a)  the amount that, if the person's partner had not
died, would have been payable to the person on the person's
payday immediately before the first available bereavement
adjustment payday; and

   (b)  the amount (if any) that, if the partner had not
died, would have been payable to the partner on the partner's
payday immediately before the first available bereavement
adjustment payday; the result is called the combined rate. Step 2. Work out
the amount that, but for section 768D, would
have been payable to the person on the person's payday
immediately before the first available bereavement adjustment
payday: the result is called the person's individual rate. Step 3. Take the
person's individual rate away from the
combined rate: the result is called the partner's instalment
component. Step 4. Work out the number of the partner's paydays in the
bereavement lump sum period. Step 5. Multiply the partner's instalment
component by the number
obtained in Step 4: the result is the amount of the lump sum
payable to the person under this section. Adjustment of a person's special
benefit rate

"768D. If:

   (a)  a person is qualified for payments under this Subdivision; and

   (b)  the person does not elect under subsection 768A(2) not to receive
        payments under this Subdivision; the rate of the person's special
        benefit during the bereavement period is worked out as follows:

   (c)  during the bereavement rate continuation period, the rate of special
        benefit payable to the person is the rate at which the allowance would
        have been payable to the person if the person's partner had not died;

   (d)  during the bereavement lump sum period (if any), the rate at which
        special benefit is payable to the person is the rate at which the
        allowance would be payable to the person apart from this Subdivision.
        Effect of death of person entitled to payments under this Subdivision

"768E. If:

   (a)  a person is qualified for payments under this Subdivision in relation
        to the death of the person's partner; and

   (b)  the person dies within the bereavement period; and

   (c)  the Secretary does not become aware of the death of the person's
        partner before the person dies; there is payable, to such person as
        the Secretary thinks appropriate, as a lump sum, an amount worked out
        using the lump sum calculator at the end of this section.
LUMP SUM CALCULATOR This is how to work out the amount of the lump sum:
Method statement Step 1. Add up:

   (a)  the amount that, if neither the person nor the person's
partner had died, would have been payable to the person on
the person's payday immediately after the day on which the
person dies; and

   (b)  the amount (if any) that, if neither the person nor the
person's partner had died, would have been payable to the
person's partner on the partner's payday immediately after
the day on which the person died; the result is called the combined rate. Step
2. Work out the amount that, but for section 768D, would have been payable to
the person on the person's payday immediately after the day on which the
person died if the person had not died: the result is called the person's
individual rate. Step 3. Take the person's individual rate away from the
combined pensioner couple rate: the result is called the partner's instalment
component. Step 4. Work out the number of paydays of the partner in the period
that commences on the day after the person dies and ends on the day on which
the bereavement period ends. Step 5. Multiply the partner's instalment
component by the number obtained in Step 4: the result is the amount of the
lump sum payable under this section. Matters affecting payments under this
Subdivision

"768F.(1) If:

   (a)  a person is qualified for payments under this Subdivision in relation
        to the death of the person's partner; and

   (b)  after the person's partner died, an amount to which the partner would
        have been entitled if the partner had not died has been paid under
        this Act or under Part III of the Veterans'  Entitlements Act ; and

   (c)  the Secretary is not satisfied that the person has not had the benefit
        of that amount; the following provisions have effect:

   (d)  the amount referred to in paragraph (b) is not recoverable from the
        person or from the personal representative of the person's partner,
        except to the extent (if any) that the amount exceeds the amount
        payable to the person under this Subdivision;

   (e)  the amount payable to the person under this Subdivision is to be
        reduced by the amount referred to in paragraph (b).

"(2) If:

   (a)  a person is qualified for payments under this Subdivision in relation
        to the death of the person's partner; and

   (b)  the amount to which the person's partner would have been entitled if
        the person's partner had not died has been paid under this Act or
        under Part III of the Veterans' Entitlements  Act , within the
        bereavement period, into an account with a bank, credit union or
        building society (in this subsection called the `financial
        institution'); and

   (c)  the financial institution pays to the person, out of the account, an
        amount not exceeding the total of the amounts paid as mentioned in
        paragraph (b); the financial institution is, in spite of anything in
        any other law, not liable to any action, claim or demand by the
        Commonwealth, the personal representative of the person's partner or
        anyone else in respect of the payment of that money to the person.".