Last updated July 2023

Some social security payments are activity tested to ensure that the people in receipt of payments are actively looking for employment and are doing everything they can to be ready for work. The following payments are activity tested:

  • Jobseeker Payment (formerly Newstart Allowance)
  • Youth Allowance (other than apprentices and full-time students in approved courses)
  • Special Benefit (where they are not qualified for any of the other payments)
  • Parenting Payment (where their youngest child turns six years of age or if required under ParentsNext).

Requirements

To qualify for Jobseeker Payment, Youth Allowance, Special Benefit or Parenting Payment, the person must satisfy employment pathway plan requirements and be willing to actively seek, accept and undertake paid work in Australia, except for particular paid work that is unsuitable for the person. This is essential unless the person has an exemption from the requirement.

Actively seeking work means engaging with an employment service provider on a regular basis, undertaking job searches and applying for jobs, attending job interviews and accepting suitable job offers. Social security payment recipients will also need to attend training courses that will improve their job prospects. ‘Work’ usually means full-time paid work, however, a job seeker should be willing to take part-time and casual work.

A person can be assessed as being unable to work full time, and their plan can be adjusted to reflect this. The level of a person’s employment capacity will be determined by an Employment Services Assessment or by a Job Capacity Assessment. Once assessed, the person will be expected to look for work within their assessed capacity.

A person will be assessed as having a partial capacity to work where they have a physical, intellectual or psychiatric impairment that prevents them from performing 30 hours of work per week, independently on a program of support, within the next two years.

If a person disagrees with their assessed work capacity, they can request a fresh assessment and provide medical evidence in support of a different assessment.

A person will satisfy an activity test if they are actively seeking work and are willing to undertake suitable paid work.

Exemptions

The Social Security Act 1991 (Cth) (Social Security Act) provides for exemptions from the activity test to be granted to a person on a number of reasons. These include, but are not limited to, circumstances where the person:

  • has a temporary incapacity to work for at least eight hours per week because of a medical condition (a supporting medical certificate is required) or a significant personal crisis such as:
  • has a temporary incapacity to study full time because of:
  • is over 55 years of age and engaged in approved voluntary work for an approved organisation for at least 30 hours in the period (s 40R Social Security Administration Act).

For temporary medical incapacity exemptions, the maximum exemption period is 13 weeks for each medical certificate (s 542C Social Security Act).

Employment Pathway Plan

Employment pathway plans must contain one or more requirements that a person must comply with to qualify for their activity-tested payment. Requirements are approved by an employment service and cannot be approved if they are not suitable for the person. Plans must therefore be tailored to the person.

In assessing whether requirements are suitable for the person, the Secretary of the Department of Social Services (Secretary) must take into account employment pathway matters, which include:

  • the person’s education, experience, skills and age
  • the impact of any physical or mental health condition on their work capacity
  • the state of the labour market
  • accessibility factors affecting the person such as access to transport
  • family and caring responsibilities
  • costs such as travel costs associated with meeting the requirements
  • the person’s capacity to comply with the requirements
  • their general needs
  • any other matters that either the Secretary or the person consider relevant.

Activities must be quantifiable and specific so that it is clear when an activity has been completed. Examples include completing a specified number of job searches per week, participating in an education/development program or performing volunteer work.

A person can request that their employment pathway plan be varied.