Details of the Regulations are as follows:

 

Part 1 - Preliminary

 

Section 1 - Name

This section provides that the title of the instrument is the Defence Home Ownership Assistance Scheme Regulations 2018.

 

Section 2 - Commencement

This section provides for the Regulations to commence on 1 October 2018.

 

Section 3 - Authority

The Regulations are made under the Defence Home Ownership Assistance Scheme Act 2008.

 

Section 4 - Schedules

This section provides that each instrument as set out in the Schedule is amended or repealed as specified.

 

Section 5 - Definitions

 

This section sets out key definitions used in these Regulations, including the introduction of the term transfer year which replaces the concept of a combined member in the old Regulations.

 

 

Part 2 - Effective service

 

Division 1 - Preliminary

This division sets out the relationship between division 2 and divisions 3 to 8 of this part in order to calculate a person's benefit under the DHOAS Act.

 

Section 6 - Effective service

This section recognises types of service in the Defence Force as 'effective service' for the purpose of the definition in section 3 of the DHOAS Act. It also identifies the divisions in the Regulations that specify how effective service is calculated. This concept is prescribed by regulation for three reasons:

• To align with any changes in the way that service is performed in the ADF;
• To ensure that members who transfer to the ADF from a foreign service, or between the Permanent and Reserves, can have service performed before their transfer recognised; and
• To ensure that the Scheme is a meaningful incentive to retention.

 

Division 2 - Requirements for effective service

This division sets out the requirements for both Permanent Forces and Reserves in terms of defining effective service.

 

Section 7 - Requirements for effective service

This section provides that effective service for either a member of the Permanent Forces or Reserves is service for which remuneration is received and that the service is not ineffective service. A member receives remuneration when they are required to and attend for duty in accordance with Defence Force Remuneration Tribunal Determination 2 of 2017, Salaries, as amended from time to time.

 

This section also provides a period of approved absence without pay of no more than 21 continuous days for a member of the Reserves on continuous full-time service is not 'ineffective service'.

 

Division 3 - Period of effective service: members of the Permanent Forces

This division applies to members of the Permanent Forces.

 

Section 8 - When this Division applies

 

This section identifies members to whom division 3 applies. It applies to persons who were members of the permanent forces on the day of calculation of effective service or a member who was a member of the permanent forces immediately before they ceased being a member of the ADF. This section does not apply to a member of the Reserves.

 

Section 9 - Period of effective service for members of the Permanent Forces

This section provides the basis on which a year of effective service for a member in the permanent forces is calculated.  For a year in the Permanent Force a member has 1 year of effective service for each service year the person performs continuous full-time service.

 

If, in the course of their career, a member has performed service in the Reserves, a method is provided to calculate the person's effective service, recognising effective service performed as a member of the Reserves (calculated under section 11) and in a transit year (calculated under section 14). The calculations may differ for the member's qualifying period, accrued subsidy period and loan limit.

 

Division 4 Period of effective service: members of the Reserves

This division applies to members of the Reserves and provides the means of calculating their effective service under the Scheme.

 

Section 10 - When this Division applies

This section identifies members to whom division 4 applies. It applies to persons who were members of the Reserves on the day of calculation of effective service or a member who was a member of the Reserves immediately before they ceased being a permanent member of the ADF. This section does not apply to permanent members.

 

Section 11 - Period of effective service for members of the Reserves

This section provides the basis on which a year of effective service for member of the Reserves is calculated. For 20 or more days at the daily rate in the Reserves, a member of the Reserves has 1 year of effective service. If, in the course of their career, a member has performed service as a member of the Permanent Forces, a method is provided to calculate the person's effective service, recognising effectives service performed as a member of the Permanent Forces.

 

This section also provides that a member of the Reserves who serves on a continuous full time basis either within one service year or across 2 service years, then for the purposes of calculating the person's qualification, if the period or periods are greater than 6 months but less than 1 year, then the person has 2 years of effective service.

 

Additionally, a method for calculating loan limit is provided if the person is eligible as a re-joining incapacitated member or re-joining member.

 

Section 12 - Days of Reserve Service

This section provides a definition of a reserve day for the purpose of calculating the number of days a person performs effective service during a service year as a member of the Reserves. For a day of continuous full time service or on a day the member is paid the full daily rate of remuneration under Defence Force Remuneration Tribunal Determination No.2 of 2017, Salaries, as in force from time to time, the member has performed one day of effective service. If a member were to be paid less than the full rate of the daily rate of remuneration, the number of days of effective service performed is the total of the proportions of the daily rate the member has been paid, as reflected as a whole number.

 

Section 13 - Determining when a person stops being treated as a member of the Reserves

For the purpose of subparagraph 5(1)(b)(ii) of the DHOAS Act. This section states that to have effective service in a service year a member of the Reserves must completed 20 days of reserve service in that year. A member of the Reserves who does not complete their 20 days of reserve service may not be treated as member of the Reserves for that service year.

 

Division 5 Period of effective service for transfer years

This division applies to a member of the Defence force who transfers from either the Reserves to the Permanent Forces or from the Permanent Forces to the Reserves within a specific transfer year and how this combined service is calculated. Section 14 applies to a person who transfers from the Permanent Forces to the Reserves. Section 15 applies to a person who transfers from the Reserves to the Permanent Forces within a transfer year.

 

A transfer year replaces the concept of a combined member by dealing with that single transfer year as a separate calculation which then gets used in the calculation of effect service for the purpose of sections 9 and 11.

 

Section 14 - Transfer from the Permanents Forces to the Reserves

This section sets out the method for calculating "effective service" for a service member who transfers from the Permanent Forces to the Reserves during a transfer year. It also provides that regardless of type of service (for example service in the permanent forces or Reserves) if the person has performed 20 days of service then the person has 1 year of effective service for a transfer year.

 

Section 15 - Transfer from the Reserves to the Permanent Forces

This section sets out the method for calculating "effective service" for a service member who transfers from the Reserves to the Permanent Forces during a transfer year.

 

Division 6 - Foreign service members: qualifying service period

This division establishes the how a member's former service as a member of the armed forces of another country is to be calculated in for the purpose of the qualifying service period.

 

Section 16 - Increasing period of effective service for foreign service members - qualifying service period

This section permits a person who has served in a foreign service to have their former service considered toward their qualifying period for the Scheme. The regulation recognises the person's foreign service as effective service based on the number of years seniority determined by the Chief of the Defence Force at the time of appointment of enlistment into the ADF. For foreign service to be recognised for these purposes, there cannot be a gap between ceasing the foreign service and commencing with the ADF of more than 5 years. A decision of the CDF about the member's seniority is not reviewable under section 22 for the purposes of section 71 of the DHOAS Act as it is not a decision made under these regulations.

 

Division 7 - Recognising service as effective service in exceptional circumstances

This division establishes the parameters around recognising service as effective service in exceptional circumstances.

 

Section 17 - Recognising service as effective service in exceptional circumstances

This section provides discretion for the Secretary to deem service to be effective where the member is unable to actually serve for exceptional reasons. For example, a defect in a member's appointment, enlistment or transfer may make it unclear whether the member has provided effective service for that period.  In the case of a member of the Reserves who was offered service and was unable to render that service due to an illness or injury, the member may apply under this provision if their medical condition was long or serious enough to prevent them completing the required 20 days of effective service in a given year.

 

There would be no exceptional circumstance if a member of the Reserves is simply not offered service, or where the member is not offered service because they have applied to serve in a rank or employment category for which they are not qualified or competent to serve.

 

Division 8 - Ineffective service

This division provides the circumstances in which service is ineffective service for calculating either the qualifying service period or for calculating the accrued subsidy period and loan limit of an eligible member.

 

Section 18 - Ineffective service

This section provides the circumstances in which service is ineffective service for calculating either the qualifying service period or for calculating the accrued subsidy period and loan limit of an eligible member.

 

 

 

 

Part 3 - Eligibility of old scheme members

Part 3 of the regulations prescribes the eligibility requirements for an old scheme member in accordance with section 13 of the DHOAS Act.

 

Section 19 - Eligibility - incapacitated persons

This section provides access to a home loan interest subsidy for those former ADF members who were incapacitated members under the Defence Force (Home Loans Assistance) Act 1990 (DFHLA) and were unable to apply for a benefit before its finishing day due to their compensable condition.

 

Section 20 - Eligibility - operational service members

This section provides for an operational service member who had unlimited access to benefits under the DFHLA to have a limited benefit under the DHOAS Act after the DFHLA finishing day of 30 June 2010. The reason eligibility is extended to these members is that their previous period in which to apply for their eligibility under DFHLA was limited by their finishing day and hence they had not made an application for an entitlement certificate. This measure ensures that a person unable to apply under DFHLA by the finishing day had an additional opportunity to apply for a benefit. The entitlement of a member in this class under the new scheme is capped at the loan limit provided under the DFHLA, $80,000.

 

Part 4 - Miscellaneous

This part provides a maximum interest rate for the purposes of the DHOAS Act, the scope of reviewable decisions regarding effective service and the purposes for which personal information may be used and disclosed.

 

Section 21 - Median interest rate

This section provides that the median interest rate for the purposes of the DHOAS Act subsection 53(2), shall not exceed 0.7458333333% per month, however a lower interest rate may apply if the Minister makes a determination under paragraph 53(1)(a) or (b) of the DHOAS Act.

 

Section 22 - Reviewable decisions

For the purpose of item 13 of section 71 of the DHOAS Act, this section provides that a decision regarding effective service under section 17 and a decision about a person's compensable condition under section 19(3)(b) are reviewable decisions.

 

Section 23 - Purposes for which personal information may be used and disclosed                                         Â                                                                                                                                                        For the purpose of section 79(2) of the DHOAS Act, this section sets out the purposes for which personal information about persons in specified in section 79(1) of the DHOAS Act may be disclosed or used by persons specified in section 79(3) of the DHOAS Act. It ensures that use, and disclosure of, personal information for the purposes of administering the Scheme will be authorised by Australian law, for the purposes of the Privacy Act 1988.

 

Part 5 - Transitional, savings and application provisions

This part describes savings provisions necessary in the new instrument to preserve existing provisions of the old Regulations in relation to deemed effective service and the eligibility of some deceased members.

 

Section 24 - Savings provision - deemed effective service decisions

This section provides a savings provision to treat service by a person deemed effective by the Secretary under the current regulation 20 of the Defence Home Ownership Assistance Scheme Regulations 2008 to be specified as effective service under section 17 of this instrument. A decision made under regulation 20 would be reviewable as a result of subsection 7(2) of the Acts Interpretation Act 1901.

 

Section 25 - Savings provision - eligibility of old scheme members (deceased members)

This section provides a savings provision to allow for regulation 27 of the Defence Home Ownership Assistance Scheme Regulations 2008 to continue to apply on or after this section commences in relation to a person taken to be eligible as an old scheme member under that regulation.

 

 

 

 

 

Schedule 1- Repeals

 

Section 1 - The whole of the Regulations

This provision repeals the Defence Home Ownership Assistance Scheme Regulations 2008.