Commonwealth Numbered Acts

VETERANS' AFFAIRS LEGISLATION AMENDMENT ACT 1987 No. 78 of 1987 - SECT 47

47. Section 205 of the Principal Act is amended:
(a) by omitting from subsection (1) all words after "so paid" to the end of
the subsection and substituting "shall, subject to subsection (4) and unless
the Commission takes action under paragraph 206 (1) (a) or (b) in respect of
that amount, be recovered:

   (c)  by proceedings in a court of competent jurisdiction from the person to
        whom, or on whose account, the amount was paid, or from the estate of
        that person, as a debt due to the Commonwealth;

   (d)  by deductions under subsection (2); or

   (e)  partly by proceedings referred to in paragraph (c) and partly by
        deductions under subsection (2)."; and

   (b)  by omitting subsections (2) and (3) and substituting the following
        subsections:

"(2) Where an amount (in this subsection referred to as the 'overpayment') has
been paid as described in paragraph (1) (a) or (b) to a person, amounts not
exceeding in the aggregate the amount of the overpayment may, whether or not
proceedings have been instituted in a court to recover the overpayment, be
recovered by deduction:

   (a)  from a pension, allowance or pecuniary benefit payable to that person
        under this Act;

   (b)  from any amount payable under section 123 on the death of that person;
        or

   (c)  with the consent of another person, from any pension, alowance or
        pecuniary benefit payable to that other person under this Act; but the
        sum of the amounts so recovered by deduction when aggregated with any
        amount recovered by proceedings in a court shall not exceed the
        overpayment.

"(3) Where deductions have commenced to be made under subsection (2) to
recover an amount (in this subsection referred to as the 'overpayment') but
the whole of the overpayment has not been recovered at the end of the period
applicable under subsection 206 (2) or (3), as the case requires, to the
institution of proceedings to recover the overpayment, deductions may continue
to be made under subsection (2) of this section until the balance of the
overpayment has been recovered, notwithstanding that the period during which
proceedings may be instituted to recover the balance of the overpayment has
expired.

"(4) Where:

   (a)  a pension or allowance (in this sub-section referred to as the 'new
        pension or allowance') becomes payable, or becomes payable at an
        increased rate, to a person under this Act as from a date (in this
        subsection referred to as the 'operative date'), being the date on
        which the decision to grant the new pension or allowance, or to
        increase the rate of the new pension or allowance, is made (in this
        subsection referred to as the 'date of the decision'), or a date
        before or after the date of the decision;

   (b)  the person has been paid before, or is paid on or after, the date of
        the decision:

        (i)    a pension or allowance under this Act or under the provisions
               of any other Act administered by the Minister; or

        (ii)   a pension, benefit or allowance under the Social Security Act
               1947; (in this subsection referred to as the 'existing pension,
               benefit or allowance') in respect of a period commencing on or
               after the operative date; and

   (c)  an amount, or amounts, of the existing pension, benefit or allowance
        has or have been paid, in respect of a period commencing on or after
        the operative date, that would not have been paid if the new pension
        or allowance had then been payable, or payable at the higher rate, as
        the case may be; an amount equal to the amount, or sum of the amounts,
        of the existing pension, benefit or allowance paid to the person that
        would not have been paid to the person shall, unless the Commission
        takes action under paragraph 206 (1) (a) or (b) in respect of that
        amount, be deducted, either in a lump sum or by instalments, as the
        Commission determines, from amounts of the new pension or allowance
        payable to the person.".