Veterans' Entitlements, Treatment and Support (Simplification and Harmonisation) Act 2025 (17 of 2025)

Schedule 2   Single ongoing Act enhancements

Part 1   Amendments relating to allowances etc.

Division 4   Victoria Cross allowance and decoration allowance

Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004

33   At the end of Part 7 of Chapter 4

Add:

Division 6 - Victoria Cross allowance

230A Eligibility for Victoria Cross allowance

(1) The Commonwealth is liable to pay an allowance, called Victoria Cross allowance, to a person in respect of an allowance period if:

(a) before the start of the period, the person has been awarded the Victoria Cross or the Victoria Cross for Australia; and

(b) at the start of the period:

(i) the person is living; and

(ii) the award has not been rescinded.

(2) In this section:

allowance period means the following:

(a) the period of 12 months starting on 20 September 2026;

(b) each subsequent period of 12 months starting on 20 September.

230B Amount of Victoria Cross allowance

The amount of the allowance under section 230A is $5,373.

Note: The amount of $5,373 is indexed under section 404A.

Division 7 - Decoration allowance

230C Decoration allowance

(1) The Minister may, by legislative instrument, make provision for and in relation to the payment of decoration allowance to a person who has been awarded an eligible decoration.

(2) Without limiting subsection (1), an instrument under that subsection may provide for the following:

(a) the circumstances in which the Commonwealth is liable to pay decoration allowance;

(b) the decorations that are eligible decorations;

(c) the amount, or a method for working out the amount, of decoration allowance;

(d) indexation of the amount of decoration allowance;

(e) the persons to whom decoration allowance is payable.