Track Medicare recovery on a WorkSafe settlement
MaintainedLast reviewed
Key facts
- Human involvement
- YellowClose supervision
- How AI is used
- From the settlement or judgment, record whether the amount is over $5,000, the 28-day notice date, and whether a current notice or a 10 per cent advance is on the file. The tool does not send the notice or accept a charge.
- What the lawyer must review
- On a settlement, include legal costs in the $5,000, as the Commonwealth page does. On a judgment, leave costs out.
- Check the WorkSafe position: the agent notifies Medicare, or pays a 10 per cent advance if there is no current notice.
- Check past-benefit items for treatment unrelated to the injury. Do not release funds until the charge is dealt with.
- Keep Medicare and clinical records in a firm-controlled tool. Apply ASCR r 9 and APP 11.
Rules that apply
The document starts from the task name. Change it if this piece of work is different.
The work product
Forum. WorkSafe Victoria settlement, and the Commonwealth Medicare compensation recovery notice
Produce. A tracker of the threshold, the 28-day date and the notice or advance status.
Have ready. Settlement terms or judgment, including whether costs are in the amount; Any notice of past benefits or notice of charge; The agent’s advice on who will notify Medicare.
Example of the limit. Illustrative example: A WorkSafe impairment lump sum is $8,000 and there is no current notice. The tracker shows the 10 per cent advance on the WorkSafe page and the 28-day Commonwealth date. The lawyer checks the items and does not release the balance early.
Stop and hand it back when
- The amount cannot be tied to a settlement or judgment.
- The tracker says a charge has been accepted when the items have not been checked.
Sources for this task were checked on 2026-10-23.
Who does what
| Role | What they do |
|---|---|
| Assistance | Do not begin AI assistance until the responsible lawyer has defined and confirmed its permitted scope. |
| Lawyer | Set the scope, supervise the work closely, verify every part relied on, resolve omissions and exceptions, and approve the exact output. |
Checklist
- Use more than $5,000. For a settlement, Services Australia includes legal costs. For a judgment, the same page says the amount does not include costs.
- Diary 28 days from the judgment or settlement for the notice. The form named on the Services Australia page is the notice of judgment or settlement.
- On a WorkSafe settlement, follow the WorkSafe page: the agent notifies Medicare, deducts a current notice of past benefits or notice of charge, or pays a 10 per cent advance if there is no current notice.
- A notice of past benefits is valid for 6 months on the WorkSafe page. Check the date before it is treated as current.
Forms and precedents for this task
| Form or precedent | Kind | AI use | Summary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Deed of release for a personal injury damages claim | Deed | AI use Yellow | Deed of release for a personal injury damages claim in Victoria, Queensland or New South Wales, conditional on sanction or approval where the claimant cannot give a binding release. |
| Settlement advice letter before a personal injury release is signed | Letter | AI use Yellow | Letter to the injured person before a personal injury settlement is signed, with blanks for the lawyer's view on liability, the ranges, the recommendation, and the costs figures required before settlement. |
| Settlement distribution statement for a personal injury claim | Checklist | AI use Yellow | Statement the client receives showing the gross personal injury settlement, the costs, the disbursements and the statutory amounts the lawyer has sourced, and the resulting net sum. |
| Special damages and out-of-pocket expenses schedule | Court document | AI use Yellow | A schedule of treatment, travel and other expenses already incurred, with columns for invoices, Medicare benefits and interest on past amounts. |
| Client checklist after a personal injury settlement | Checklist | AI use Yellow | What a client does after a personal injury settlement is signed: Medicare, Centrelink, the NDIS, tax, and money held for a child. |
| Services Australia information request: which official form to use | Checklist | AI use Yellow | A file checklist for asking Services Australia for Medicare claims history, a notice of past benefits, or Centrelink information. |
| Matter closure checklist | Checklist | AI use Yellow | Closing a plaintiff injury file: the settlement costs disclosure was given before execution, the bill, scheme steps, tool copies, trust money, and a risk assessment before any destruction. |
| Payment directions for damages of a child or protected person | Court document | AI use Red | Payment directions for damages of a child or a person under disability or legal incapacity in Victoria, Queensland and New South Wales. |
| Letter to the payer sending a personal injury deed and payment terms | Letter | AI use Yellow | Letter to the payer's solicitors sending a personal injury deed and stating when the compensation may be paid, including the Medicare hold on any payment to the injured person. |
Signed-in accounts can read the full text of each one. All precedents.
Sources
- Services Australia: Medicare compensation recovery notification requirements · 2026-10-23
- WorkSafe Victoria: Medicare compensation recovery · 2026-10-23
This version is the WorkSafe settlement path that was opened. A Transport Accident Commission Medicare page was not opened, so TAC settlements stay on the Commonwealth notice rules only.
WorkSafe also says impairment benefits can be caught. Confirm that on the file before treating a statutory lump sum as outside the notice.
Keep health, wage and scheme records in a firm-controlled tool. Apply ASCR r 9 and APP 11, and consider whether any breach is notifiable under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).