Calls for compassion and review as stamp duty concession reassessment likened to Robodebt

Australia Broadcast Center

18-05-2025

Canberrans say they are receiving aggressive and impersonal demands for money from the ACT Revenue Office in a system one MLA likened to the Robodebt scheme.
There are calls to reform the office's review and repayment system from within the Legislative Assembly amidst growing criticism of the language and impersonal approach taken.
It comes after several Canberrans came forward in response to ABC's reporting last week and said they were on the receiving end of aggressive demands for repayments.
After she separated from her ex-husband several years ago, Steph was determined for a fresh start.
The ACT stamp duty concession scheme offered a vital doorway to buy a home.
"Honestly, it was so important," Steph said.
Like many who were initially granted the money, Steph did a self-assessment online and had legal assistance to try to ensure she was eligible.
"I had been legally separated from my ex-husband the year before," Steph said.
"My ex had moved out, we were completely financially separated, and I thought, 'Cool, I'm not in a domestic partnership.' So I applied for the concession."
She purchased her house and thought everything was in order, but in the middle of last year, Steph was informed she was being reassessed.
The information the revenue office wanted made Steph "pretty uncomfortable," she said — being deeply personal and sensitive — particularly when a written notice arrived after an initial phone call.
"[The] following correspondence from them was really quite hardline, bordering on aggressive," she said.
This part of the process — the language, tone and warnings contained in the notices — has been repeatedly highlighted by those who have contacted the ABC.
Within days of responding to the review notification, Steph received an email from the Revenue Office stating she had three weeks to pay $35,000 — $23,000 in stamp duty plus more than $6,000 in accrued interest over that time and an almost $6,000 penalty.
The office said that because Steph's divorce had not been finalised, her ex's income should have been included in the income test, even though they were legally separated.
Like the other notices of reassessment that the ABC has seen, the options provided to people for payment plans or for financial counselling help was contained in a single line:
"The debt recovery team can be contacted by emailing [e-mail] or by calling 02 6207 0028 and selecting option 6, then option 1."
Steph said it was impossible to pay up front.
"I had to apply for a mortgage top-up, and that [took] more than three weeks coming through," she said.
Steph decided to appeal the decision with the help of lawyers, at further personal expense.
That left her open to financial risk, but Steph was adamant something must be done because she believed the decision by the Revenue Office was fundamentally flawed.
"They are wrong, and I need to fight this," she said.
After her legal battle, the ACT Treasury granted her a special "act of grace" payment. She was reimbursed the money the Revenue Office claimed she owed, but not thousands in interest and legal fees. She considers herself one of the lucky few in a system she says preys on the vulnerable.
"The legislation still stands as it is and this could still happen to other people," she said.
In response to questions by the ABC, an ACT Revenue Office spokesperson said:
ACTRO's correspondence attempts to inform people of their obligations, reasons, options and possible consequences. Correspondence is regularly reviewed as part of standard operations.
ACT Greens leader Shane Rattenbury said it was "really distressing" to hear stories like Steph's from many Canberrans just trying to do the right thing.
"The irony in this whole thing is that this scheme is targeting people who are already struggling to get a home to live in. This scheme is designed to lift them up and help them get across that barrier."
He said receiving "legalistic" and "unclear, overly officious, seemingly intimidating" correspondence from a government body lacked compassion.
Mr Rattenbury said this scheme was "clearly on a different scale" to Robodebt, "but the principles are the same".
"It's about treating people with decency and giving them a reasonable chance to address either an error or to make their case as to why, in fact, the Revenue Office might have made a mistake, he said.
Mr Rattenbury would like to see a "human touch" in the debt collection process such as, for example, a case officer to talk to.
Mr Rattenbury welcomed a formal inquiry into the scheme which was unanimously supported by the ACT Legislative Assembly last week.
"It's going to be very important to create the space for people to come forward and tell their stories," he said.
"That is how we are going to draw out the best information here."
Care Financial Counselling and Consumer Law CEO Carmel Franklin has helped thousands of Canberrans deal with paying off debt.
She said most people in debt genuinely wanted to pay it off.
"The people who come to us can't pay debts rather than won't pay debts," she said.
"It's not that they're wilfully deciding not to pay. It's that they are in a position because of life circumstances, often beyond their control, that they're unable to make the payments at that point.
"They come to us quite distressed, quite embarrassed, feeling shameful that they have these debts."
Ms Franklin said the initial approach by organisations seeking repayment was critical.
"If people feel that somebody wants to help them and work through what the issues are, they will engage. If they feel like they're being treated poorly or they're scared, they are more likely to put their head in the sand and do nothing about it, which is actually worse for both the person trying to collect the money and the person who owes the money."
She said many organisations were learning to tailor debt-collecting approaches to suit the people involved and she said the Revenue Office could use something similar to ensure people were treated fairly and humanely.
It's a sentiment shared by Steph.