Carers and Dependants
See also information on Registration; and People Under 18 Years of Age.
There will be instances where people need to have a dependant child or another person they care for linked to their card. In these circumstances, the card holders will need to be able to view and change certain information about the person linked to their card.
The legislation will allow authorised people to view and change information on behalf of another person, and in certain circumstances, will also allow people to undertake access card transactions on behalf of another person.
Definitions of dependants
A card holder can have a dependant or another person linked to their card under the following circumstances:
- parental relationship (parent and child);
- person appointed guardian/carer under Australian law (eg. Power of Attorney);
- a decision by an Australian court or where the Secretary of the Department of Human Services is satisfied that under State, Territory or Commonwealth law a person has the right to view or amend another’s information (eg. Family Court custody order, Guardianship Order); and
- by written consent of both parties in an approved form.
(See information on People Under 18 Years of Age.)
Purpose of the legislation
The legislation recognises the various relationships which may require an authorised person to view and amend those details that are on the access card Register. In cases where an adult is caring for an elderly person and has the appropriate legal documentation, the legislation allows the authorised person to change the address and other relevant details of the elderly person, which may have changed.
The legislation also allows parents to view and update details of their children when necessary. The system also allows for authorised people to complete a registration or access card application on behalf of another person, who may suffer physical or mental incapacity and may not be able to complete registration on their own behalf. (See information on Registration.)
NOTE: The participating agencies already have detailed policies that deal with linking information for carers and their dependants on Medicare, Department of Veterans’ Affairs and Centrelink cards. The access card legislation will not interfere with, or change, these existing agency arrangements.
Notes
- Further information on Carers and Dependants can be found in Part 4 Division 2, Part 4 Division 3 and Part 6 Division 3 of the Human Services (Enhanced Service Delivery) Bill 2007
- Carers and Dependants Fact Sheet
(147k) - To view PDF documents you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader.