VEA [2]
Intermediate Rate Disability Compensation Payment is paid to compensate a veteran [3], member of the Forces [3], member of a Peacekeeping Force [3], or Australian mariner [3], who, because of incapacity [3] resulting from eligible service [3], is unable to resume or continue in paid work for:
The purpose of the Intermediate Rate is to provide a rate of pension to bridge the gap between the General Rate and the Special Rate (T&PI) for ex-servicemen capable of part-time or intermittent work only.
More [4]
VEA [5]
A person is eligible for the Intermediate Rate if:
A person will not be eligible for the Intermediate Rate if he or she is prevented from working by any factor other than their accepted conditions.
VEA [8]
The following additional eligibility criteria apply for the Intermediate Rate if the veteran has reached 65 years of age:
It must also be the case, as per 23(3A)(d) of the VEA, that the veteran be prevented from continuing the remunerative work in which they were last engaged before making a claim for the pension.
The phrase “the remunerative work” potentially refers to a number of things: a type of work, a particular job, a particular set of hours in a particular job, and so on. The following cases are arranged, from greater to lesser discontinuity, to illustrate this ambiguity.
A. Person goes from working for 60 hrs per week as a self-employed plumber to 15 hrs a week as a call centre worker for a charity.
B. Person is reassigned by their employer to 10 hrs per week in the office after being employed as a fulltime delivery driver for the business.
C. Person is working full time as an accountant and has his hours reduced to 15 hours per week by his employer.
D. Person goes from working 15 hrs per week as a security guard to 10 hrs per week in the same position.
While there is no controversy in claiming that cases A and B involve a change in the remunerative work of the person, this is less clear in cases C and D.
The relevant case law allows for scenarios such as C or D to satisfy the requirements of section 23(3A)(d). As such, a delegate should be flexible and judge each case on its own merits. Clearly the issue is one of fact and degree. It should be noted that the change in case D represents a significant decrease in hours for the person (a drop of 1/3). Such an example should be contrasted with one in which the person drops from 15 to 14 hours, which is unlikely to be sufficient to satisfy the requirements of the legislation. In such borderline cases, delegates should fully document their reasons for making a decision one way or another. If there are any concerns, delegates should seek policy advice via the Compensation Advice Line.
Paid Work and Voluntary Work
Section 4.1.6 Special Rate (T&PI or TTI) Eligibility [10]
For the purposes of Part VI of the VEA [21], a reference to a veteran is taken to be a reference to:
For the purposes of Part VII of the VEA [21], according to subsection 5C(1), veteran means a person (including a deceased person):
A member of the forces is a person who served in the defence force for a continuous period that commenced after 7 December 1972 and has the type of service required in sections 69, 69A and 69B of the VEA.
“Member of a Peacekeeping Force means a person who is serving, or has served, with a Peacekeeping Force outside Australia as an Australian member, or as a member of the Australian contingent, of that Peacekeeping Force."
A person who was during World War 2:
Refer to section 5C [22] of VEA for a full definition.
According to subsection 5D(2), incapacity from a war or defence-caused disease or injury is a reference to the effects of that injury or disease, and not a reference to the injury or disease itself.
Eligible war service is:
Section 7 of the VEA provides a full definition of eligible war service.
Links
[1] https://clik.dva.gov.au/user/login?destination=node/15958%23comment-form
[2] https://clik.dva.gov.au/book/export/html/15958#tgt-cspol_part4_ftn29
[3] https://clik.dva.gov.au/%23
[4] https://clik.dva.gov.au/book/export/html/15958#tgt-cspol_part4_ftn30
[5] https://clik.dva.gov.au/book/export/html/15958#tgt-cspol_part4_ftn31
[6] https://clik.dva.gov.au/book/export/html/15958#tgt-cspol_part4_ftn32
[7] https://clik.dva.gov.au/book/export/html/15958#tgt-cspol_part4_ftn33
[8] https://clik.dva.gov.au/book/export/html/15958#tgt-cspol_part4_ftn34
[9] https://clik.dva.gov.au/book/export/html/15958#tgt-cspol_part4_ftn35
[10] https://clik.dva.gov.au/compensation-and-support-policy-library/part-4-disability-compensation-eligibility/41-disability-compensation-payment-eligibility/416-special-rate-tpi-or-tti-eligibility
[11] https://clik.dva.gov.au/service-eligibility-assistant-updates/all-determinations-order-date-signed-oldest-most-recent/determinations-under-vea
[12] https://clik.dva.gov.au/book/export/html/15958#ref-cspol_part4_ftn29
[13] https://clik.dva.gov.au/compensation-and-support-policy-library/part-4-disability-compensation-eligibility/41-disability-compensation-payment-eligibility/413-general-rate-eligibility
[14] https://clik.dva.gov.au/book/export/html/15958#ref-cspol_part4_ftn30
[15] https://clik.dva.gov.au/book/export/html/15958#ref-cspol_part4_ftn31
[16] https://clik.dva.gov.au/compensation-and-support-policy-library/part-9-principles-determining-pension-rate/98-guide-assessment-rates-veterans-pensions-garp
[17] https://clik.dva.gov.au/reports-studies-research-papers-library
[18] https://clik.dva.gov.au/book/export/html/15958#ref-cspol_part4_ftn32
[19] https://clik.dva.gov.au/book/export/html/15958#ref-cspol_part4_ftn33
[20] https://clik.dva.gov.au/book/export/html/15958#ref-cspol_part4_ftn34
[21] http://clik.dva.gov.au/legislation-library
[22] http://www.comlaw.gov.au/Series/C2004A03268