Commonwealth Consolidated Acts

SOCIAL SECURITY ACT 1991 - SECT 629

             (1)  A newstart allowance is not payable to a person, for the period of 8 weeks starting in accordance with section 630, if the person:

                     (a)  commits a newstart participation failure (the repeated failure ), having committed newstart participation failures (the earlier failures ) on 2 or more other occasions during the period of 12 months preceding that failure; or

                     (b)  is unemployed due, either directly or indirectly, to a voluntary act of the person; or

                     (c)  is unemployed due to the person's misconduct as a worker; or

                     (d)  has refused or failed, without reasonable excuse, to accept a suitable offer of employment; or

                     (e)  fails, without reasonable excuse:

                              (i)  to commence, complete or participate in an approved program of work for income support payment that the person is required to undertake; or

                             (ii)  to comply with the conditions of such a program.

          (1A)  The Secretary must, by legislative instrument, determine matters that the Secretary must take into account in deciding whether, for the purposes of paragraph (1)(d), a person had a reasonable excuse for refusing or failing to accept a suitable offer of employment.

          (1B)  To avoid doubt, a determination under subsection (1A) does not limit the matters that the Secretary may take into account in deciding whether, for the purposes of paragraph (1)(d), a person had a reasonable excuse for refusing or failing to accept a suitable offer of employment referred to in that paragraph.

             (2)  For the purposes of paragraph (1)(a), disregard any earlier failure that is a failure to which subsection 626(1) does not apply because of subsection 626(2).

             (3)  Subsection (1) does not apply in relation to the repeated failure if the Secretary is for any other reason satisfied that subsection (1) should not apply to the failure.

             (4)  Paragraph (1)(b) does not apply if the Secretary is satisfied that the person's voluntary act was reasonable.

             (5)  Paragraph (1)(e) applies only if:

                     (a)  the person is under 60; and

                     (b)  a determination under paragraph 28(4)(b) is in force in relation to the person.