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Parliamentary injury compensation claims

For: Claimants Advocates

The Parliamentary Injury Compensation Scheme (PICS) provides injury compensation coverage for Australian Government parliamentarians and the Prime Minister’s spouse.

About the scheme

The PICS provides coverage for:

an injury or illness, or an aggravation of an injury or illness, suffered by a parliamentarian arising out of, or contributed to, by their activities as a parliamentarian
an injury or illness, or an aggravation of an injury or illness, suffered by the Prime Minister’s spouse, arising out of, or contributed to, by their official activities.

The Minister for Finance established the PICS by issuing the Parliamentary Injury Compensation Scheme Instrument 2016 (PICS Instrument).

Eligibility

You must be a parliamentarian or the Prime Minister’s spouse and your claim must be for an injury or illness suffered while undertaking covered activities on or after 1 January 2016.

What is included and excluded

Covered activities

Parliamentarians

For parliamentarians, covered activities are any activities engaged in by you as a parliamentarian, Parliamentary office holder or Minister, at a time when you are entitled to a Parliamentary allowance.

Prime Minister’s spouse

For the Prime Minister’s spouse, covered activities are your official activities as the Prime Minister’s spouse.

Exclusions from compensation

The PICS excludes any injury, illness or aggravation claim sustained as a result of:

a loss of, or failure to gain, selection as a candidate for election to Parliament
the loss of, or failure to gain, a position as a Minister (including a Parliamentary Secretary) or a Parliamentary office holder
the loss of, or failure to gain, a position in a political party
the result of an election
a decision relating to a benefit (including a decision made under the PICS Instrument)
an injury that is intentionally self-inflicted
an injury that is caused by serious and wilful conduct, which includes a person who is under the influence of alcohol or a drug, other than a prescribed drug correctly taken.

For more information, see sections 8(1), 23(2) and 14 of the PICS Instrument.

If you sustain an injury or illness

Step 1: Seek medical treatment

Seek medical treatment for your injury or illness if you need to do so.

Ask the treating practitioner to complete a medical certificate. You will need this if you decide to make a claim.

Step 2: Notify Comcare

If you sustain an injury or illness, make sure you send a notification of the incident to Comcare as soon as practical. Notify Comcare even if you are unsure or do not plan on submitting a claim for compensation.

Email pics@comcare.gov.au and include:

how the injury or illness occurred
what you were doing when the injury or illness occurred, including your location
the date and time the injury occurred or the illness began
your preferred contact details.

Making a claim

To claim compensation from Comcare, submit a Parliamentary Injury Compensation Scheme Claim form (PDF, 232.2 KB).

For the purposes of the claim, you need to confirm that you were conducting covered activities at the time of your injury or illness. You can do this in the form.

You need to provide a medical certificate provided by a legally qualified medical practitioner which includes:

a diagnosis of the condition for which you are claiming workers' compensation
the cause of the condition
the date of injury or illness
details of your fitness for work
recommended treatment
other details as required.

You can choose to provide a statement in support of your claim. Review the Submission of an Employee Statement in Support of a Workers' Compensation Claim guide (PDF, 109.3 KB) and complete the template if you are providing a statement.

Submit the claim, covered by the PICS, to Comcare:

email pics@comcare.gov.au
mail to Comcare, GPO Box 9905, Canberra ACT 2601.

We will work with you to ensure we have all of the information we need to make a timely determination about your claim and provide you with the support and treatment you need to return to health and work sooner.

What happens after you make a claim

Determining your claim

After we receive your claim, we acknowledge with an email.

When your claim has been determined, we provide you with our decision in writing. We explain the reasons for our determination and give you information on what to do if you are not satisfied with the decision.

Support and financial assistance

If your claim for compensation is accepted, you may be eligible for support and financial assistance.

Support and financial assistance may include:

You can speak with your claims manager about the benefits and assistance and the application process.

More information

If you have a question about the scheme or making a claim:

email pics@comcare.gov.au
call us on 1300 366 979.

The information above is provided as a guide only and is not legal advice. The final decision on any claim you submit is made by Comcare in accordance with the PICS taking into account your individual circumstances.

Page last reviewed: 27 July 2023