Social Security Act 1991
Sections and provisions with full text and the judgments that cite each one.
Section 1 — Correspondence of pensions, benefits and allowances
(1) Subject to paragraph (2)(k), for the purposes of this Schedule, a pension, benefit or allowance under this Act and a pension, benefit or allowance under the 1947 Act that have the same name…
Section 2 — Correspondence of provisions
(1) If one provision of the 1947 Act and one provision of this Act have the same legal effect, the 2 provisions correspond to each other. (2) If: (a) one provision of the 1947 Act has a particular…
Section 2A — References in other Acts and instruments to provisions of the 1947 Act
A reference in: (a) a provision of a law of the Commonwealth or a Territory enacted before 1 July 1991 (whether or not the provision has come into operation); or (b) an instrument or document; to a…
Section 3 — Application of the Criminal Code
Chapter 2 of the Criminal Code applies to all offences against this Act.
Section 3A — Power of Secretary to make determinations etc.
If: (a) a provision of this Act refers to a determination made, approval given or other act done by the Secretary; and (b) there is no other provision of this Act expressly conferring power on the…
Section 3AA — Norfolk Island
This Act extends to Norfolk Island.
Section 3AB — References to Employment Secretary
A reference in a provision of this Act or the Administration Act to the Employment Secretary does not, by implication, affect the meaning of a reference to the Secretary in any other provision of…
Section 3B — Definitions—simplified outline
Sections 4 to 23 contain definitions of terms that are used in the social security law. Subsection 23(1) contains an entry for each expression that is defined for the purposes of this Act. That…
Section 4 — Family relationships definitions—couples
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: approved respite care has the meaning given by subsection (9). armed services widow means a woman who was the partner of: (a) a person who was…
Section 5 — Family relationships definitions—children
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: adopted child means a young person adopted under the law of any place, whether in Australia or not, relating to the adoption of children.…
Section 5A — Single person sharing accommodation
(1) For the purposes of this Act, a person is to be treated as a single person sharing accommodation if the person: (a) is not a member of a couple; and (b) has no dependent children; and (c) has, in…
Section 5B — Registered and active foster carers
(1) A person is a registered and active foster carer if the Secretary is satisfied that: (a) the person meets the requirements (if any) of the law of the State or Territory in which the person…
Section 5C — Home educators
A person is a home educator of a child if the Secretary is satisfied that: (a) the child is receiving, in the person’s home, education that wholly or substantially replaces the education that the…
Section 5D — Distance educators
A person is a distance educator of a child if the Secretary is satisfied that: (a) the child is enrolled to receive education by undertaking a distance education curriculum; and (b) the child is…
Section 5E — Relatives (other than parents)
(1) A person is a relative (other than a parent) of a child if: (a) the person is not the child’s parent or step-parent; and (b) any of the following apply to the person: (i) the person is related to…
Section 5F — Secondary pupil child
A person is a secondary pupil child of another person at a time in a financial year if: (a) at the time, the person: (i) has turned 16 but has not turned 19; and (ii) has not completed the final year…
Section 5G — Main supporter of secondary pupil child
(1) If someone is a secondary pupil child of a person, the person is the main supporter of the secondary pupil child, subject to subsection (2). (2) Subsections 5(18) to (22) (inclusive) and…
Section 6 — Double orphan pension definitions
In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: approved care organisation means an organisation approved by the Secretary under subsection 35(1). double orphan means a young person who is a…
Section 6A — Concession card definitions
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: automatic issue card means: (a) a pensioner concession card; or (b) an automatic issue health care card. automatic issue health care card means…
Section 7 — Australian residence definitions
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: Australian resident has the meaning given by subsection (2). former refugee means a person who was a refugee but does not include a person who…
Section 8 — Income test definitions
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: approved exchange trading system has the meaning given by subsection (10). approved scholarship means a scholarship in relation to which a…
Section 9 — Financial assets and income streams definitions
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: approved deposit fund has the same meaning as in the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997. asset-tested income stream (lifetime) has the meaning…
Section 9A — Meaning of asset-test exempt income stream—lifetime income streams
General requirements (1) An income stream provided to a person is an asset-test exempt income stream for the purposes of this Act if: (aa) subject to subsection (1AA), the income stream’s…
Section 9BA — Meaning of asset-test exempt income stream—market-linked income streams
General requirements (1) An income stream provided to a person is also an asset-test exempt income stream for the purposes of this Act if: (a) all of the following criteria are satisfied: (i) the…
Section 9B — Meaning of asset-test exempt income stream—life expectancy income streams
(1) An income stream provided to a person is also an asset-test exempt income stream for the purposes of this Act if: (a) the following criteria are satisfied: (i) the income stream’s commencement…
Section 9BB — Meaning of asset-test exempt income stream—military invalidity pension income stream
An income stream provided to a person is an asset-test exempt income stream for the purposes of this Act if the income stream is a military invalidity pension income stream.
Section 9C — Family law affected income streams
If: (a) an income stream is acquired or purchased (the original family law affected income stream) by a person (the member); and (b) the member’s partner or former partner (the non-member) becomes…
Section 9D — Asset-tested status of secondary FLA income streams
If there is a primary FLA income stream (1) If a primary FLA income stream is, or would be if the income stream were assessed for the purposes of this Act: (a) an asset-tested income stream (long…
Section 9E — Asset-tested income stream (lifetime)
(1) Subject to subsection (2), an income stream is an asset-tested income stream (lifetime) if: (a) the contract, or governing rules, for the provision of the income stream ensure that, once payments…
Section 10 — Maintenance income definitions
In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears, the expressions disability expenses maintenance, maintenance and maintenance income have the same respective meanings as in the Family Assistance…
Section 10A — Definitions for carer allowance and seniors health card provisions
(1) Some of the definitions in this section are the same as definitions in the Fringe Benefits Tax Assessment Act 1986. Most of the other definitions in this section are based on definitions in that…
Section 11 — Assets test definitions
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: accommodation bond has the same meaning as in the Aged Care Act 2024. accommodation bond balance has the same meaning as in the Aged Care Act…
Section 11A — Principal home definition for the purpose of the assets test
Principal home (1) A reference in this Act to the principal home of a person includes a reference to: (a) if the principal home is a dwelling-house—the land adjacent to the dwelling-house to the…
Section 12 — Retirement villages definitions
(1) In this Act: member of an ordinary couple with different principal homes has the meaning given by subsection (2). retirement village has the meaning given by subsections (3) and (4). retirement…
Section 12A — Granny flat definitions
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: granny flat interest has the meaning given by subsection (2). granny flat resident has the meaning given by subsection (3). (2) A person has a…
Section 12B — Sale leaseback definitions
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: deferred payment amount has the meaning given by subsections (6), (7) and (8). initial payment amount has the meaning given by subsection (4).…
Section 12C — Special residence and residents definitions
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: special residence has the meaning given by subsection (2). special resident has the meaning given by subsection (3). (2) A residence is a…
Section 13 — Rent definitions
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: amount of rent paid or payable has the meaning given by subsections (6) and (7). board, when used in the expression board and lodging, means…
Section 14 — Remote area definitions
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: physically present in a remote area has the meaning given by subsection (2). remote area means: (a) those parts of Australia referred to in…
Section 14A — Social security benefit liquid assets test definitions
(1) For the purposes of Parts 2.11, 2.11A, 2.12 and 2.23A and Division 3A of Part 3 of the Administration Act: liquid assets, in relation to a person, means the person’s cash and readily realisable…
Section 16 — Industrial action definitions
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: industrial action means any of the following that is not authorised by the employer of the person concerned: (a) the performance of work in a…
Section 16A — Seasonal work definitions
Definitions (1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: relevant AWOTE, in relation to a calendar year, means the amount that, under the heading “Trend Estimates” in the document entitled…
Section 16B — Partial capacity to work
(1) A person has a partial capacity to work if: (a) the person has a physical, intellectual or psychiatric impairment; and (b) the Secretary is satisfied that: (i) the impairment of itself prevents…
Section 17 — Compensation recovery definitions
(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: compensation has the meaning given by subsection (2). Note: See also section 1163B. compensation affected payment means: (aa) an age pension;…
Section 18 — Parenting payment definitions
In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: benefit PP (partnered) means parenting payment whose rate is worked out under the Benefit PP (Partnered) Rate Calculator in section 1068B.…
Section 19 — Mobility allowance definitions
In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears: gainful employment means: (a) paid employment (including sheltered employment); and (b) self-employment that is intended to result in financial…
Section 19A — Fares allowance definitions
(1) This section has effect for the purposes of Part 2.26. (2) Unless the contrary intention appears: approved course has the meaning given by subsection 1061ZAAA(1). approved tertiary course means a…
Section 19AA — Student start-up loan definitions
For the purposes of Chapter 2AA: accumulated SSL debt has the meaning given by section 1061ZVEC. approved form has the meaning given by section 388-50 in Schedule 1 to the Taxation Administration Act…
Section 19DA — Experiencing a personal financial crisis definition
(1) A person is experiencing a personal financial crisis if and only if: (a) the person is in severe financial hardship; and (b) subsection (2), (3) or (4) applies to the person. Note 1: This…
Section 19AB — Student Financial Supplement Scheme definitions
(1) This section has effect for the purposes of Chapter 2B. (2) Unless the contrary intention appears: accumulated FS debt has the meaning given by section 1061ZZEQ. adjusted accumulated FS debt has…