Section 59M — Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986: General effect of Part

(1) If: (a) a person is or may be entitled to, or receives, compensation; and (b) the person has not reached pension age or qualifying age; any of the following pensions, supplements and payments payable to the person or the person’s partner might be affected under this Part: (c) invalidity service pension; (d) partner service pension; (f) income support supplement; (g) veteran payment; (i) education entry payment. Note 1: For pension age see sections 5QA and 5QB. Note 1A: For qualifying age see section 5Q. Note 2: These pensions, supplements, allowances and payments may be compensation affected pensions (see section 5NB). (2) If the person is or may be entitled to compensation and does not take reasonable action to claim or obtain the compensation, the pension, supplement or payment may not be payable to the person. (3) If the compensation is in the form of a lump sum, the pension, supplement or payment may cease to be payable for a period (based on the amount of the lump sum) and some or all of that part may be repayable. Note 1: Under section 59N, certain lump sum payments may be treated as though they were received as periodic payments. Note 2: Under section 59O, a person may be treated as having received compensation that the person would have received but for the effect of a State or Territory law. (4) If the compensation is in the form of periodic payments, the pension, supplement or payment may be reduced for the periodic payments period. Note 1: Under section 59N, certain lump sum payments may be treated as though they were received as periodic payments. Note 2: Under section 59O, a person may be treated as having received compensation that the person would have received but for the effect of a State or Territory law. (5) An invalidity service pension or a partner service pension will only be affected under this Part if: (a) the compensation is received on or after 1 January 1995; and (b) the claim for the pension was made on or after 1 May 1987. (6A) Income support supplement will only be affected under this Part if the compensation is received on or after 1 January 1995. (7) This Part operates in certain specified circumstances to affect a person’s compensation affected pension because of compensation received by the person or the person’s partner. This Part is not intended to contain any implication that, in addition to those specified circumstances, there needs to be some connection between the circumstances that give rise to the person’s eligibility for the pension and the circumstances that give rise to the person’s or the partner’s compensation.