Legislative Authority
Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986
Section 9 (liability provisions)
Section 13 (eligibility of veterans and mariners)
Section 18 (duties of Commission in relation to pensions)
Section 19 (determination of claims and applications)
Section 22(4) (criteria)
Section 29 (Guide to the Assessment of Rates of Veterans' Pensions - GARP)
Section 30A to 30P and 74 (limitations due to the payment of other compensation)
Section 70 (eligibility of Defence & Peacekeeping Forces)
Section 120 (standard of proof)
Section 120A and 120B (Statements of Principles)
Stated Current Purpose/Intent
To compensate a veteran, member of the Forces, member of a Peacekeeping Force or Australian mariner, who is extremely disabled and in receipt of the 100 per cent general rate Disability Compensation Payment but whose accepted disabilities have further degenerated after age 65.
Current Eligibility Criteria
A person is eligible if:
- the degree of incapacity from war-caused or defence-caused disabilities is determined to be 100 per cent; or
- he or she has suffered from or is suffering from pulmonary tuberculosis, and is receiving or entitled to receive a Disability Compensation Payment at the 100 per cent general rate;
and
- he or she has attained the age of 65 years; and
- he or she has an impairment rating of at least 70 points and a lifestyle rating of at least 6 points under the GARP; and
- he or she is not receiving an intermediate or a special rate Disability Compensation Payment.
The adjustment was initially a 50 per cent increment to the 100 per cent general rate Disability Compensation Payment. Over time, new measures have changed this ratio.
On the death of a person entitled to EDA an eligible dependant of the person has an automatic entitlement to a war widow(er)'s pension or orphan's pension, as appropriate.
Date of Introduction
December 1988
Original Purpose/Intent
The original intention has not changed. The EDA was intended to provide a more substantial level of compensation to veterans who were retired and whose degree of incapacity was greater than that required to qualify for the 100 per cent general rate, but who could not satisfy the eligibility criteria for the intermediate or special rate.
| Significant Changes in Criteria or Purpose since Introduction | |
|---|---|
| 1994 | From 1 July 1994, the SWPA Act and Regulations were repealed and Australian mariners became eligible under the VEA on the same basis as veterans. |
| 1995 | From January, automatic grant to the estate of funeral benefit of $550 was extended to EDA recipients. |
| 1999 | From 1 January 1998, disability pensioners became eligible for payment of lump sum advance of pension (See the section on Lump Sum Advance of Pension). |
| 2004 | From March 2004, the above general rate component of disability pension was indexed with reference to both CPI and MTAWE in the same manner as the service pension. |
| 2008 | From 20 March 2008, changes to the rate and indexation of disability pensions occurred. This measure included three distinct components:
From 1 July 2008 the estate of a deceased single veteran previously in receipt of a Special Rate (T&PI) or Extreme Disablement Adjustment (EDA) disability pension who died in indigent circumstances became eligible for a disability pension bereavement payment. |
| 2010 | Introduction of British Nuclear Test Defence Service. |
| 2012 | Clean energy advance payable for the period 1 July 2012 to 19 March 2013 for eligible recipients. |
| 2013 | Clean energy supplement commenced 20 March 2013 for eligible recipients. |
| 2014 | Clean energy supplement replaced by energy supplement from 20 September 2014. |
| 2022 | The name of Disability Pension changed to Disability Compensation Payment to better reflect the nature of the payment, in response to a Tune Review 2019 recommendation. |