Guide to an application by an individual for exemption or waiver of fee
Introduction
The Federal Court of Australia Regulations 2004 and the Federal Magistrates Regulations 2000 provide that fees must be paid to the Court in certain situations, such as when filing an application, having a case set down for hearing, and searching a Court file. The Regulations also provide that these fees may be exempted or waived in certain circumstances.
When are you exempt from paying fees
If you are an individual, you will not have to pay a fee if you
have been granted Legal Aid;
hold a health care card;
hold a pensioner concession card;
hold a Commonwealth Seniors health card;
hold another card issued by the Department of Family and Community Services or the Department of Veterans’ Affairs;
are an inmate of a prison or are otherwise lawfully detained;
are a child under the age of 18 years;
are in receipt of Youth Allowance or Austudy; or
are receiving benefit under ABSTUDY.
When will fees be waived
A Registrar may waive the payment of a fee if, having regard to your income, day-to-day living expenses, liabilities and assets, he or she is satisfied that payment of the fee would cause you financial hardship.
How to apply to have a fee exempted or waived
1. Get an application for waiver or exemption form and fill it out. You can get a copy of this form from the Registry or download a copy from the Court’s website.
2. Collect the relevant papers in support of your application (more information about this is set out below).
3. Deliver the application and papers in support to the Federal Court. You can do this by bringing the documents to the Registry, or by posting or faxing them, or by sending them by the internet.
4. A Registrar will consider your application together with the accompanying information that you have provided and will decide whether your fees should be exempted or waived. The Registrar may ask you to provide copies of further documents in support of your application.
5. If your application for waiver on the basis of financial hardship is refused, you will be given written reasons for that decision. If you disagree with the decision, you may apply to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal for a review of the decision. The application to the Tribunal must be made within 28 days of the date of the decision.
6. Please read this guide and the form carefully. As the applicant, you are responsible for making sure all your paperwork is in order. The Court’s Registry staff can check your forms and other court papers for completeness (for example, they check for signatures, and that attachments are present and signed by an authorised person within your State or Territory) and give you information about the Court’s procedures. They cannot give you legal advice and they are not responsible for the accuracy of your documents.
How to fill in your application for exemption or waiver
File number
If your application relates to a new proceeding, leave this space blank. Otherwise write the file number for your case.
File name
If your application relates to a new proceeding, leave this space blank. Otherwise write the file name for your case.
A. Personal Details
Question 1
Write your full name in the space provided.
Question 2
Write your residential address in the space provided. See the note at the foot of the page if you have concerns about disclosing your residential address.
Write your postal address in the space provided.
Question 3
Write your occupation in the space provided.
Question 4
If applicable, write the name of your employer in the space provided.
Question 5
If applicable, write the address of your workplace in the space provided.
Question 6
Write a telephone and facsimile numbers, and email address where the Court may contact you in the space provided.
B. Type of fee to be waived or exempted
Indicate the type (by ticking the appropriate box) and write the amount of fee for which you seek a waiver or exemption. You can get a list of current fees payable from the Registry or from the Court’s website.
C. Grounds for Exemption/Waiver
Tick the box next to the sentence that describes the ground upon which you are basing your application for a fee exemption.
If a legal aid organisation has given you a grant of legal aid (see item C(a)) on the application form), then you must provide a letter from the organisation indicating the extent to which aid has been granted. A registry client service officer can show you the list of legal aid schemes covered by this exemption.
If you are relying on a benefit or other card (see item C(c)), you must produce the card to the registry. Please check that any card you provide as proof, such as a health care card, is current. If you are attending the registry in person, a photocopy will be made of the card, which will then be returned to you. If you are sending your papers to the registry by facsimile transmission or by email then you will need to send a copy or image of the card. Please ensure you supply a copy of both sides of the card.
C(h) – Application for fee waiver
You only need to complete this section if you have not ticked a box at C(a)-(g).
If you are seeking a waiver on the ground that payment of the fee would cause you financial hardship, you must complete a Statement of Financial Position, and provide as much relevant information about your financial situation as possible. You can get a blank Statement of Financial Position from the Registry or download a copy from the Court’s website.
If you are attending the Registry in person, a photocopy will be made of the documents in support of your application for a fee waiver, which will then be returned to you. If you are sending your papers to the Registry by facsimile transmission or by email then you will need to send a copy or image of each document.
Registry staff are available to assist you in completing a Statement of Financial Position.
Statement of Truth
The application form must be signed and dated.
By signing the form you state that, to the best of your knowledge and belief, the information you have provided is true, and then sign and date the application for fee exemption or waiver. Any person who knowingly makes an untrue representation or statement to obtain a benefit or advantage from the Commonwealth is guilty of an offence and, if found guilty, can be fined or imprisoned.
In the Statement of Financial Position you must complete an affidavit. If you do not speak English and the document has been read to you by an interpreter, you will need to include with your form an affidavit made by the interpreter who read the affidavit to you.
