If you don’t agree with the internal review decision, you can ask the Administrative Appeals Tribunal to review it.
We call this an external review. You can’t ask for an external review until after we make the internal review decision.
The Administrative Appeals Tribunal reviews decisions made by Australian Government ministers, departments and agencies. This includes our decisions, as well as decisions from other parts of government like Centrelink.
We’ll call the Administrative Appeals Tribunal ‘the Tribunal’ in this guideline. It is also called the AAT.
The Tribunal is separate from us. It has different processes on how it makes decisions, and it has different staff and its own laws. The reviews it does are independent of our decisions.
For more information about asking for an external review of an NDIS decision, check out the Tribunal website .
Who can ask for an external review?
You can ask for an external review if you’re affected by the internal review decision.
If you were able to ask for an internal review, you should be able to ask for an external review. But the Tribunal will decide if you can ask for an external review.
You can also ask a friend, family member, advocate, or lawyer to help you ask for an external review.
How long do you have to ask for an external review?
After we make the internal review decision, you then have 28 days to ask for an external review. This is 28 days from the day after you receive our internal review decision in writing.
In some situations, you can get more than 28 days to ask for an external review. The Tribunal may give you more time if it thinks it’s reasonable, based on your circumstances.
If you need more time, you’ll need to fill out an application for extension form on the Tribunal’s website, or write to the Tribunal.
Learn more about how the Tribunal can help you .
How do you ask for an external review?
You can apply for a Tribunal review online , or you can fill out an application form . Lodge the form directly with the Tribunal in person, email, by fax, or by post.
You can also give the Tribunal new information , if you think it will help them with the external review.
If you need help asking for an external review, you can contact the Tribunal .
What if you don’t want an external review anymore?
You can write to the Tribunal at any time to withdraw your application.
You can also ask the Tribunal to send you a withdrawal form to sign and return if you prefer.