Social Services Legislation Amendment (Welfare Reform) Act 2018 (26 of 2018)

Schedule 5   Cessation of sickness allowance

Part 1   Amendments commencing 20 March 2020

Social Security Act 1991

21   Transitional provisions - sickness allowance

(1) If:

(a) before 20 March 2020, a person made a claim for sickness allowance; and

(b) immediately before that day, the person was not qualified for the allowance, or the allowance was not payable to the person, because of one or more of the following waiting periods (a sickness allowance waiting period ):

(i) a liquid assets test waiting period under section 676 of the Social Security Act 1991;

(ii) an ordinary waiting period under sections 693 and 694 of that Act;

(iii) a newly arrived resident's waiting period under sections 696B and 696C of that Act;

then:

(c) the person is taken to have made a claim for jobseeker payment on 20 March 2020; and

(d) any waiting period that the person is subject to under Part 2.12 of that Act that corresponds to a sickness allowance waiting period is taken to have started on the day the sickness allowance waiting period started.

(2) If:

(a) before 20 March 2020, a person's claim for sickness allowance was granted by a determination made by the Secretary in accordance with subsection 37(3) of the Social Security (Administration) Act 1999; and

(b) immediately before that day, the person was subject to a seasonal work preclusion period;

then:

(c) the determination has effect as if it were a determination granting jobseeker payment to the person; and

(d) for the purposes of sections 16A and 633 of the Social Security Act 1991, the person is taken to have lodged a claim for jobseeker payment on the day the person lodged the claim for sickness allowance.