More support for Totally and Permanently Incapacitated veterans

As part of the 2020-21 Budget, the Government has responded to the Independent Review into the Totally and Permanently Incapacitated (TPI) Payment by Mr David Tune AO PSM.

The Government has accepted Mr Tune’s findings and is investing $25.9 million in a range of measures to increase support for severely impaired veterans, and to simplify payment arrangements, including streamlining the indexation process of disability compensation, renaming the disability pension to the Disability Compensation Payment, and exempting the adjusted disability pension from the social security income test. This means that eligible veterans and their partners can receive a higher rate of social security income support payments such as age pension and disability support pension. The existing Defence Force Income Support Allowance (DFISA) will be removed as it will no longer be necessary.

No veteran will be worse off as a result of the removal of DFISA. A veteran’s social security payment (e.g. age pension) will be equal to the sum of their current reduced social security payment and their current DFISA payment.

For some veterans who are eligible for rent assistance, the new payment rate will be higher than the sum of their current payments.

These measures will take effect from September 2022, pending the passage of legislation.

For more information visit the Independent Review into the TPI Payment page on the DVA website.