DVA and Centrelink Arrangements (DFISA ceased 2022)

DFISA was removed 1 January 2022.  This is for historical reference only.

Who paid DFISA?

DVA paid DFISA in all circumstances, irrespective of whether Centrelink or DVA assessed the primary payment and calculated the rate of DFISA.

Who calculated DFISA?

A person's rate of DFISA was calculated by the agency that assessed their income support payment.

Income support assessment unchanged by DFISA

The rate of DFISA was determined by the person's income support payment assessment. Regardless of which agency calculated DFISA, the person's income support payment did not change. Both agencies applied the same rules for calculating the DFISA rate. Therefore, the calculated rate of DFISA was the same, whether DVA or Centrelink administered the income support payment.

Who should clients contact?

DFISA recipients could contact either DVA or Centrelink with queries about DFISA.

Establishing proof of identity for DFISA payments

Proof of identity for DFISA was established when the person claimed the primary income support payment and did not need to be re-established when DFISA became payable. Proof of identity was the responsibility of the agency administering the primary payment. This included situations when Centrelink granted a payment at nil rate.

No POI was required where a person was already receiving DFISA and their age pension was being transferred from Centrelink to DVA. This is because the person's identity was proven at the time of the initial claim for adjusted disability pension from DVA. The only exception to this was where a full POI has not been previously carried out, or where the person has not contacted DVA for a number of years and the delegate was not reasonably satisfied as to their identity.

DVA's role

DVA staff could answer queries about the calculation of the rate of DFISA and payment of DFISA, where DVA calculated the rate of DFISA. Where Centrelink calculated the daily rate of DFISA, DVA staff could answer questions about payment delivery and the calculation of the fortnightly instalment; that is, the daily rate transmitted by Centrelink, summed for each of the days in the pay period.

Centrelink's role

Centrelink staff could answer queries about the calculation of the daily rate of DFISA where Centrelink calculated the rate, but could not answer questions about the delivery of the DFISA payment or the calculation of the fortnightly instalment.

DFISA paydays

People receiving income support from Centrelink may have received their income support payment on any of the 10 working days in a fortnight. This option is not available at DVA. As DFISA was a DVA payment, DFISA was only paid on DVA pension paydays. This means that a person may have received their income support payment in one week, and receive DFISA in respect of the impact of adjusted DP in the following week.