Disputing decisions made by Service NSW
Decisions on applications for a grant, rebate or voucher are made in accordance with the applicable guidelines and/or terms and conditions and in accordance with the principles of procedural fairness.
If you believe Service NSW has made an error in their decision, incorrectly applied guidelines or terms and conditions, did not afford you procedural fairness or otherwise reached the wrong outcome, you can dispute the decision by completing a request for an internal review.
A dispute is different to a complaint, because a dispute can only be raised against a decision made by Service NSW under a specific statute or law.
When a dispute is raised, an internal review will be undertaken by Service NSW.
What is an Internal Review?
An Internal Review is a review of a decision made on your application for a grant, rebate, or voucher, by a team in Service NSW separate to and independent from the team who made the original decision.
An Internal Review is a merit review, which means the Service NSW staff member who considers your dispute will re-examine the facts, any applicable guidelines and/or terms and conditions, and any evidence before them to determine if the original decision was correct and preferable.
When can I request an internal review?
Requests for an internal review should be made within 28 calendar days from when you receive the decision made by Service NSW.
Disputes raised outside of this timeframe, might not be accepted by Service NSW. However, if you have exceptional circumstances as to why you couldn’t raise a dispute within 28 days, you can still request an internal review and should explain the reasons for the delay in your request. If Service NSW accepts your reason for delay, an internal review will be undertaken.
If Service NSW determines your request for an internal review is outside of 28 days and does not accept your reasons for delay, Service NSW will advise you of this and an internal review will not be undertaken.
What if I need help to lodge a dispute?
If you'd like to lodge a dispute online, but need the information in another language, you can use our automatic language translator: Help in your language.
If you'd like assistance over the phone, you can call 13 77 88 and our staff will help you lodge a dispute. If you’d like an interpreter to assist with this conversation as well, just let us know and we’ll arrange an interpreter from Multicultural NSW to support you.
You can also visit any Service NSW Service Centre and our friendly staff will help you through the dispute lodgement process. Find a Service NSW location.
How we will respond
After you have submitted a request for an Internal Review, we will contact you to confirm that we have received your request and ask if you have further information or evidence to be considered.
Internal Review process
When Service NSW undertakes an internal review, we will:
- review the information and evidence in your initial application
- consider any new and additional information or evidence you provide to us
- contact you if we need any further clarification or additional information
- provide you with a reasonable opportunity to provide any additional information
- review any applicable guidelines or terms and conditions, and
- determine if the original decision was correct and preferable.
We will provide you with a dispute outcome in writing within 28 days from the date we confirm receipt of your request for an internal review or from when we receive the last additional piece of evidence from you.
The outcome will either maintain or overturn the original decision made by Service NSW and will provide reasons for our decision.
If we are unable to provide you with an outcome within 28 days, we will notify you of this and keep you informed about the progress of your dispute.
Who will conduct the Internal Review?
Internal Reviews are conducted by the Disputes Team.
This team is separate from and independent of the team that made the original decision on your application.
Principles of Procedural Fairness
Service NSW is committed to ensuring our decisions are made in a fair and transparent manner on all applications. When we make original decisions or undertake internal reviews, we adhere to the Principles of Procedural Fairness.
Service NSW will always ensure that:
- Customers are given the opportunity to respond to a decision and request an internal review of that decision.
- Customers are given the opportunity to provide any further information or documents to be considered as part of an internal review.
- The decision following the internal review is evidence-based and free of bias.
- The reasons for the decision – including the evidence on which the decision is based – are provided to the customer in simple and clear communication.
- Communication with customers is clear and in a form that the customer can best understand.
If you are not satisfied with the outcome
The outcome of your dispute is final and there is no further internal avenue for review of the decision by Service NSW.
Options for external review of a decision made by Service NSW will vary depending on the decision made and under which legislation it was made.
If you are not satisfied with the outcome of an internal review, you may wish to seek legal advice about your options for a further review.
LawAccess NSW is a free government service that helps people in NSW with legal problems by providing information, referrals to other services, and, in some cases, legal advice. You can contact them through a web chat or by calling 1300 888 529 on weekdays between 9 am and 5 pm.
If you are not satisfied with how your dispute was managed
If you are not satisfied with how your dispute was managed by Service NSW you can lodge a complaint.
Privacy and personal information
The way we collect, store, and use any of your personal information is regulated by law and detailed in our Privacy statement.
Key terms
There are some key terms that relate to requesting an Internal Review of your application:
- Dispute: An issue or disagreement raised by a customer about an administrative decision made by Service NSW, when the customer requests the decision be reviewed.
- Internal Review: A merit review of a decision made by Service NSW to determine the correct and preferable decision.