Overpayments

Writing off an overpayment

Section 55 of the Act provides that 'an amount in respect of a loss or deficiency in a public account or account of an authority, or an amount of revenue or a debt may be written off in accordance with the regulations by the Chief Finance and Accounting Officer, the delegated officer or the relevant Minister’.

Principals or managers have no legal authority to write-off an overpayment debt.

In certain circumstances, an overpayment as 'debt' owed to the Department can be submitted to Schools People Services for write-off. The principal will need to set out the circumstances of the overpayment, the steps undertaken to recover the overpayment and why it has been unsuccessful. A sample letter, which can be modified as required, is available on the Resources tab.

In considering a submission for write-off it will need to be established that the employee did not give false or misleading information that may have caused the overpayment.

Where a former employee who had an overpayment written-off is rehired, the liability is automatically reactivated on the payroll. A certification message will be received indicating that the overpayment has been reinstated and normal recovery processes should be implemented.