Domestic Violence — Housing and Social Security Legal Help
Who are we?
Domestic violence can have a big impact on your housing situation and can cause problems with Centrelink and Public Housing.
Canberra Community Law is a specialist legal service that can provide free advice and assistance with Public Housing and Centrelink. We also have a dedicated service for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients.
Parachute is a service of Canberra Community Law.
Public Housing
Experiencing domestic violence can have a big impact on your housing situation. Getting into public housing can be difficult.
If you are already a public housing tenant, you may need to move properties or you may have a debt if your partner has damaged the property.
Some examples of common housing issues for people experiencing domestic violence include:
- Problems getting into public housing
- Problems getting a transfer
- Housing repair debts
Social Security (Centrelink)
Domestic violence can cause problems with Centrelink. These problems can occur for many reasons, including:
- the way that Centrelink calculates your income and assets
- whether Centrelink think you are a member of a couple
- any rules that affect whether you can apply for a payment
Some examples of common Centrelink and social security issues for people escaping domestic violence include:
- Claims refused because of a partner’s income
- Debt recovery because Centrelink thinks you have been overpaid
- Problems with Parenting Payment and Family Tax Benefit
- Not being able to claim Centrelink because of a compensation preclusion period
How can we help?
Parachute can provide women experiencing family violence with free legal advice on housing and Centrelink matters.
In some cases, we may also be able to:
- Talk to Housing ACT or Centrelink on your behalf
- Help you to make an application for public housing or Centrelink
- Help you to appeal decisions
- Represent you in the Tribunal
Getting in touch with us:
Parachute
Phone: (02) 6218 7900
Download brochure
Domestic Violence — Housing and Social Security Legal Help Brochure (PDF, 2.4MB)
Dhurrawang Aboriginal Human Rights Program Legal advice and assistance for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the ACT on housing, Centrelink and race discrimination issues on (02) 6218 7900.
Canberra Community Law acknowledges the Ngunnawal people as the traditional custodians of the land on which we work in the ACT and surrounding region and recognise any other people or families with connection to the lands of the ACT and region. We pay our respects to First Nations elders past, present and future for they hold the stories, traditions and the cultures of their people.
We are grateful that we share this land and express our sorrow for the costs of this sharing to Australia’s First Peoples. We will continue to acknowledge the legacy of our history and strive in our goals to empower our community through social justice. We hope that our efforts will contribute to a realisation of equity, justice and partnership with the Traditional Custodians of this land.