Overpayments

Overview

In accordance with the legislative and other requirements relating to the prevention and recovery of overpayments, principals and managers are required to ensure that the employees for whom they are responsible are paid correctly.

If an employee’s pay is not correct, an overpayment or an underpayment will result. An overpayment is defined by the Financial Management Act 1994 (the Act) '…as any money paid to him or her by the State to which he or she was not entitled…'.

Unpaid leave and leave on half pay entered after an employee’s fortnightly pay has been finalised on eduPay results in an overuse of entitlement and is therefore not considered to be an overpayment of salary. As such, it is not subject to the provisions of the Act. Unpaid leave includes leave without pay, stopwork action, unpaid parental absence and personal leave (injury, illness or carer’s) where all credits have been exhausted.

The amount to which the person is not entitled is automatically recovered in the pay period when the unpaid leave is recorded on eduPay provided there is sufficient net pay to recover. Where the full amount cannot be recovered in that pay, the amount remaining is treated as an overpayment, and the normal provisions under the Act apply.

Under the Act, overpaid monies must be repaid unless express approval not to repay is sought and received from the delegate in the Department (generally the Chief Finance Officer).

The Overpayments Management and Recovery Guide which is available in the Policy and Guidelines tab provides procedural and other information concerning overpayment management and recovery, including the following:

• overpayment prevention and detection
• overpayment recovery processes, including repayment provisions and appeals (relief from debt)

Although much of the information in the Overpayments Management and Recovery Guide relates to the processes that apply to school based employees, the information relating to repayment provisions and appealing an overpayment is also applicable to other employees. Corporate People Services is responsible for overpayment management and recovery processes for VPS employees.

Also available on the Resources tab is procedural documentation, forms and pro forma letters which will assist in the management and recovery of overpayments.

Related policies

• Direct Crediting of Salary

Relevant legislation

• Delegations
• Industrial Agreements
• Industrial Awards
• Legislation — Employment Topics
• Ministerial Orders — Employment

Contact information

• Contact HR