A person applying for a crisis payment [2] due to extreme circumstances must fulfil the following eligibility criteria:
Extreme circumstances fall into two categories:
Legal reasons may be considered to be an extreme circumstance where the person has been removed from their home and is unable to remain in or return to the home. This includes where a person is subject to an apprehended violence order (AVO) or restraining order preventing the person from remaining in or returning to the home.
Where an order is issued for only a short period (e.g. two days), the person may still be eligible for crisis payment. The issuing of an order even for a short period is an indicator that extreme circumstances are present. While the order may no longer prevent the person from remaining in or returning to their home, the person may still decide not to return. Crisis payment eligibility in this case reflects the need for the parties to live separately to avoid further violence.
Whenever the person is subject to an order, eligibility for crisis payment requires that the person lived in the home immediately prior to being removed and subjected to the order, and that they have established or intend to establish a new home.
Other extreme circumstances are situations where people are forced to leave their home as a result of the person's home being considered uninhabitable for five or more days after the extreme circumstance has occurred. Examples of other extreme circumstances include, but are not restricted to:
Extreme circumstance... |
And... |
A crisis payment is not payable because... |
|
If a person is subjected to domestic or family violence |
the person intends to leave home and permanently/establish a new home |
the person has not left their home. |
|
If a person leaves their home |
there is no evidence of domestic or family violence, and the person intends to establish/has established a new home |
there is no extreme circumstance precipitating the person's departure from the home. |
|
If a person is forced to leave their home |
a disaster relief payment or State Government assistance has been paid to the person |
other assistance has been paid to the person. |
|
If a person is forced to leave their home. |
four crisis payments for extreme circumstances or domestic or family violence have been paid to the person within the twelve months prior to the date of this claim |
the maximum of four payments for extreme circumstances or domestic or family violence in a twelve month period has been reached. |
|
If a person is forced to leave their home |
the person has been evicted |
the person is not the victim of an extreme circumstance outside of their control. |
|
A crisis payment is a one-off non-taxable payment to extend immediate financial assistance to people in severe financial hardship who:
In general terms, this is where someone is suffering from serious money difficulties, such as insufficient income to manage their basic living expenses. More detailed descriptions of various financial hardship situations are covered under the following topics:
Income support pension is:
Domestic or family violence is described by a variety of terms, including but not restricted to:
Links
[1] https://clik.dva.gov.au/user/login?destination=node/16890%23comment-form
[2] https://clik.dva.gov.au/%23
[3] http://clik.dva.gov.au/legislation-library