10.4 Reconsiderations 'of own motion'

DRCA original determinations made on or after 21 April 2025 must be appealed directly to the Veterans’ Review Board (VRB) within 12 months. Subsequent determinations by the VRB can be appealed to the Administrative Review Tribunal. Claimants cannot request a reconsideration by the Commission for determinations made on or after 21 April 2025, however the Commission continues to have the discretion to initiate a reconsideration of own motion.

Determinations made before 21 April 2025 cannot be reviewed by the VRB, so claimants should request a reconsideration by the Commission within 30 days of decision. Claimants can confirm the review pathway relevant to their claim by checking the determination letter. More information is available at dva.gov.au/single-review-pathway or vrb.gov.au

Reconsiderations are not always carried out at the request of a party to a determination; the employee, claimant or the Commonwealth. In some cases, it may be considered necessary for an MRCC Delegate to carry out a review of his or her 'own motion'. A Delegate who made a determination is a 'determining authority' for the purposes of Subsection 60(1) of the Act in relation to that determination. Basically, if a Delegate considers that his/her original decision was incorrect or in some way flawed, it is open to the Delegate either to:

• reconsider the determination himself or herself, or
• arrange for the determination to be reconsidered by another Delegate who was not involved in making the original decision; in other words, by a Reconsideration Delegate (RD) at delegation level 6 or above.

Although all Delegates have the right to carry out a review of their own decisions, the MRCC has a strict policy that such action should only be taken where the result of any such reconsideration will be, or would be, favourable to the employee or claimant. If a Delegate considers, either in light of new evidence or because of a different interpretation of the original evidence, that a decision was wrong and that a reconsideration should be carried out, he or she must discuss the matter with a RD at level 6 or above or with the local MRCC Manager. In cases where it is proposed to revoke or to cease liability in a given case, the MRCC has strict procedures which must be followed. Please refer to section 53.3 of the Liability Handbook.