6.2.5.05 DSP - Reviews (Service Updates)

Summary

This topic provides general information on service update reviews of DSP recipients.

Overview

The objective of DSP service update reviews is to ensure payment correctness by assessing whether recipients continue to qualify for the payment and whether DSP continues to be payable.

Service update reviews

Service update reviews of DSP recipients are directed at those recipients whose circumstances are more likely to have changed. These reviews are managed by DHS.

DSP recipients are selected for service update reviews based on a number of characteristics, known as service profiles (6.5), which link them to the type of review that is most appropriate for their circumstances. These include medical circumstances, income and assets, earnings and other personal circumstances relevant to the DSP qualification and payability criteria.

DSP recipients selected for review are notified by DHS accordingly and are also provided with information about review requirements and processes.

Types of service updates

The main types of DSP service updates are:

• medical qualification updates, and
• income and assets updates.

Medical service updates involve assessing whether DSP recipients continue to meet the impairment and CITW criteria that apply at review (6.2.5.03). Generally, these updates are aimed at those DSP recipients whose impairment or work capacity may have improved.

Income and assets service updates examine all the circumstances that are relevant to the payability and rates of a recipient's DSP, supplements, allowances and other payments for which they may be eligible. These circumstances include a recipient's relationship status, personal and partner's income and assets and accommodation details.

Failure to comply

If a DSP recipient fails to comply with a notice from Centrelink requesting them to do the following, the pension is not payable:

• contact a specified officer of the department, OR
• attend an interview at a specified location, OR
• complete a questionnaire, OR
• attend a medical, psychiatric or psychological examination, OR
• provide a report from a previous examination by a medical practitioner.

In such circumstances, pending consideration of and compliance with alternative arrangements by the recipient, their DSP may be suspended or cancelled. Before exercising these powers, the delegate should take particular care to consider all the recipient's circumstances. Particular caution should be exercised before suspending or cancelling vulnerable recipients, including those who are homeless or suffering from mental health issues (see below).

Failure to comply - recipients with psychiatric or intellectual impairment

Caution must be exercised when reviewing DSP recipients with psychiatric, psychological, neurological impairment such as acquired bran injury, or intellectual impairment. If the sole or dominant reason for a recipient's failure to comply with the review requirements is related to these categories of impairments, payment can only be suspended as a measure of last resort, after alternative arrangements and processes for vulnerable individuals have been exhausted.

Date of effect of a cancellation decision on impairment or CITW grounds

If a person's DSP is cancelled because the person no longer meets the impairment and/or CITW qualification criteria, the date of effect of the cancellation decision is 42 days from the date of notification of cancellation.

Employment assistance

People whose DSP continues or is cancelled at review may still benefit from appropriate assistance and/or other interventions aimed at improving their employment prospects. The recommendations from assessors will inform this process.