Centrelink pursuing debts that are more than 40 years old despite agreeing to waive old arrears
Summary
Australia's Centrelink is trying to collect nearly $5 billion in unpaid debts, some over 40 years old, even though the government agreed to limit debt recovery to six years. Experts and advocates say many of these debts may be incorrect and that older debts should be canceled due to outdated calculations and financial hardships faced by people.Key Facts
- Centrelink pursues $4.93 billion in unpaid debts from 1.34 million cases.
- Some debts are more than 40 years old; about 600 debts are over 30 years old.
- The government agreed in principle to limit debt collection to debts less than six years old but has not set a date to apply this rule.
- Experts say many debt calculations are unreliable and done by outdated computer systems.
- Around 44,000 Australians have overpaid Centrelink debts, sometimes by more than $20,000.
- Interest is charged on some debts if repayments are not kept up.
- Services Australia found 147,773 debts may have been calculated wrongly using income apportionment, affecting potentially millions more.
- The government has paid $92,000 in resolution payments to people affected by incorrect debt calculations.
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