Social Security Act 1991
Sections and provisions with full text and the judgments that cite each one.
Section 1230A — Debt from failure before 1 July 1991 to comply with garnishee notice under the 1947 Act
(1) If: (a) a person (in this section called the garnishee debtor) was given a notice under section 162 of the 1947 Act in respect of a debt due by another person (in this section called the original…
Section 1230B — Overseas application of provisions
Sections 1184F, 1184I, 1223, 1224AA, 1224AB, 1224D, 1227, 1227B, 1228 and 1228B extend to: (a) acts, omissions, matters and things outside Australia, whether in a foreign country or not; and (b) all…
Section 1230C — Methods of recovery of debt
(1) Subject to subsection (2), a debt due to the Commonwealth under this Act or Part 3AA or 3B of the Administration Act is recoverable by the Commonwealth by means of one or more of the following…
Section 1230D — Non-recovery of certain amounts
If a record of an amount less than the amount referred to in section 1237AAA is entered into the records of the Human Services Department, the Secretary must waive the Commonwealth’s right to raise a…
Section 1231 — Deductions from debtor’s pension, benefit or allowance
(1) Subject to subsection (2), each of the following: (a) a debt under this Act as in force immediately before 20 March 2000; (aaa) a debt under the social security law; (b) an overpayment arising…
Section 1231AA — Application of sections dealing with deductions
Sections 1231 and 1234A provide for debt recovery by deductions in the following situations: (a) section 1231—debt recovery from person who incurred the debt; (b) section 1234A—debt recovery by…
Section 1232 — Legal proceedings
If a debt is recoverable by the Commonwealth by means of legal proceedings under: (a) Part 5.2 of this Act; or (b) the 1947 Act; or (c) the Social Security (Fares Allowance) Rules 1998; the debt is…
Section 1233 — Garnishee notice
(1) If a debt is recoverable from a person (in this section called the debtor) by the Commonwealth under section 1230C of this Act, under the 1947 Act or under the Social Security (Fares Allowance)…
Section 1234 — Arrangement for payment of debt
(1) The Secretary may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, enter into an arrangement with a person under which the person is to pay a debt, owed by the person to the Commonwealth, or the outstanding…
Section 1234A — Deductions by consent from social security payment of person who is not a debtor
(1) If: (a) a person (in this section called the debtor) incurs a debt under this Act, Part 3AA or 3B of the Administration Act, the Student Assistance Act 1973 as in force before 1 July 1998, the…
Section 1234AA — Recovery of amounts from financial institutions
(1) If: (a) a social security payment or social security payments are made to a financial institution for the credit of an account kept with the institution; and (b) the Secretary is satisfied that…
Section 1234B — No time limit on debt recovery action
For the purposes of this Chapter, legal proceedings, or any action under a provision of this Chapter, for the recovery of a debt or overpayment may be commenced or taken at any time.
Section 1235 — Meaning of debt
In this Part, debt means: (a) a debt recoverable by the Commonwealth under Part 5.2; or (b) a debt under the 1947 Act; or (c) a debt due to the Commonwealth under a scheduled international social…
Section 1236 — Secretary may write off debt
(1) Subject to subsection (1A), the Secretary may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, decide to write off a debt, for a stated period or otherwise. (1A) The Secretary may decide to write off a debt under…
Section 1236A — Application
(1) Sections 1237, 1237A, 1237AA, 1237AAA, 1237AAB, 1237AAC, 1237AAD and 1237AAE apply to: (a) debts arising on or after 1 January 1996; and (b) the amounts of debts arising before 1 January 1996…
Section 1237 — Power to waive Commonwealth’s right to recover debt
Secretary’s limited power to waive (1) On behalf of the Commonwealth, the Secretary may waive the Commonwealth’s right to recover the whole or a part of a debt from a debtor only in the circumstances…
Section 1237A — Waiver of debt arising from error
Administrative error (1) Subject to subsection (1A), the Secretary must waive the right to recover the proportion of a debt that is attributable solely to an administrative error made by the…
Section 1237AA — Waiver of debt relating to an offence
(1) If: (a) a debtor has been convicted of an offence that gave rise to a proportion of a debt; and (b) the court indicated in sentencing the debtor that it imposed a longer custodial sentence on the…
Section 1237AAA — Waiver of small debt
The Secretary must waive the right to recover a debt if the debt is, or is likely to be, less than $250. Note 1: This amount is indexed on each 1 July (see sections 1191 to 1194). Note 2: Section…
Section 1237AAB — Waiver in relation to settlements
Settlement of civil action (1) If the Commonwealth has agreed to settle a civil action against a debtor for recovery of a debt for less than the full amount of the debt, the Secretary must waive the…
Section 1237AB — Secretary may waive debts of a particular class
(1) The Secretary may, on behalf of the Commonwealth, decide to waive the Commonwealth’s right to recover debts arising under or as a result of this Act or Part 3AA or 3B of the Administration Act…
Section 1237AAC — Waiver where debtor or debtor’s partner would have been entitled to an allowance
Waiver if there was an unclaimed entitlement to family payment or family allowance (1) If: (a) a debt arises from overpayments made to the debtor; and (b) the debtor or the debtor’s partner does not…
Section 1237AAD — Waiver in special circumstances
The Secretary may waive the right to recover all or part of a debt if the Secretary is satisfied that: (a) one of the following subparagraphs applies: (i) the debt did not result wholly or partly…
Section 1237AAE — Extra rules for waiver of assurance of support debts
(1) This section affects waiver under some other provisions of this Part of an assurance of support debt in connection with an assurance of support given by one or more persons (the assurers), by…
Section 1240 — Secretary may make departure prohibition orders
(1) The Secretary may make an order (a departure prohibition order) prohibiting a person from departing from Australia for a foreign country if: (a) the person has one or more debts to the…
Section 1241 — Departure from Australia of debtors prohibited
A person must not depart from Australia for a foreign country if: (a) a departure prohibition order in respect of the person is in force, and the person knows that the order is in force, or is…
Section 1242 — Notification requirements for departure prohibition orders
(1) This section applies if the Secretary makes a departure prohibition order in respect of a person. Notifying person of order (2) The Secretary must notify the person that the order has been made.…
Section 1243 — Operation of departure prohibition order
(1) A departure prohibition order comes into force when it is made, and continues in force until it is revoked, or until it is set aside by a court. Note: Division 5 deals with appeals to the Federal…
Section 1244 — Revocation and variation of departure prohibition orders
(1) The Secretary must revoke a departure prohibition order in respect of a person if: (a) the person no longer has any debts to the Commonwealth under the social security law; or (b) there are…
Section 1245 — Notification requirements for revocations and variations
(1) If the Secretary revokes or varies a departure prohibition order in respect of a person, the Secretary must give notice of the revocation or variation to: (a) the person; and (b) each person to…
Section 1246 — Application for departure authorisation certificate
(1) A person in respect of whom a departure prohibition order is in force may apply for a certificate (a departure authorisation certificate) authorising the person to depart from Australia for a…
Section 1247 — When Secretary must issue departure authorisation certificate
(1) This section applies if a person makes an application under section 1246 for a departure authorisation certificate. (2) The Secretary must issue the departure authorisation certificate if the…
Section 1248 — Security for person’s return to Australia
(1) A person may give such security as the Secretary considers appropriate by bond, deposit or any other means, for the person’s return to Australia by such day as is agreed by the person and the…
Section 1249 — What departure authorisation certificate must authorise
(1) A departure authorisation certificate in respect of a person must authorise the departure of the person on or before the seventh day after a day specified in the certificate. (2) The day…
Section 1250 — Notification requirements for departure authorisation certificates
(1) If the Secretary issues a departure authorisation certificate in respect of a person, the Secretary must, as soon as practicable, give a copy of the certificate to: (a) the person; and (b) each…
Section 1251 — Notification requirements for substituted days
(1) If, under section 1248, the Secretary substitutes a later day for a person’s return to Australia, the Secretary must give notice of that decision to: (a) the person; and (b) each person to whom a…
Section 1252 — Appeals to courts against making of departure prohibition orders
(1) A person aggrieved by the making of a departure prohibition order may appeal to the Federal Court of Australia or the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (Division 2) against the making…
Section 1253 — Jurisdiction of courts
The jurisdiction of a court under section 1252 must be exercised by a single Judge.
Section 1254 — Orders of court on appeal
A court hearing an appeal under section 1252 against the making of a departure prohibition order may, in its discretion: (a) make an order setting aside the order; or (b) dismiss the appeal.
Section 1255 — Review of decisions
(1) Applications may be made to the ART for review of a decision of the Secretary under section 1244, 1247 or 1248. (2) Despite any provision of Parts 4 and 4A of the Administration Act, those Parts…
Section 1256 — Powers of officers of Customs and members of the Australian Federal Police
(1) This section applies if an officer (within the meaning of the Customs Act 1901), or a member of the Australian Federal Police, believes on reasonable grounds that: (a) a person is about to depart…
Section 1257 — Privilege against self-incrimination
(1) An individual is not excused from answering a question, or producing a document, under paragraph 1256(2)(b) on the ground that the answer to the question or the production of the document might…
Section 1258 — Production of authority to depart
(1) If: (a) a departure prohibition order in respect of a person is in force; and (b) the person is about to depart from Australia for a foreign country; and (c) the person’s departure is authorised…
Section 1259 — Interpretation—departure from Australia for foreign country
A reference in this Part to the departure of a person from Australia for a foreign country is a reference to the departure of the person from Australia for a foreign country, whether or not the…
Section 1260 — Meaning of Australia
(1) For the purposes of this Part, Australia, when used in a geographical sense, includes the external Territories. (2) For the purposes of this section: (a) the definition of external Territory in…
Section 1261 — Simplified outline of this Chapter
The Minister may determine temporary modifications of the social security law in response to circumstances relating to the coronavirus known as COVID-19.
Section 1262 — Minister may determine modifications of social security law
(1) For any provision of the social security law covered by subsection (2), the Minister may, by legislative instrument, determine: (a) that the provision is varied as specified in the determination;…
Section 1263 — Period that determination is in force and variation and revocation
(1) Subject to subsection (5), a determination under subsection 1262(1) is in force for the period specified in the determination. That period must not end after: (a) 31 March 2021, unless paragraph…