Search results

A community guide to the National Inquiry into Discrimination against People in Same-Sex Relationships: Financial and Work-Related Entitlements and Benefits

Protecting the best interests of a child is one of the most important principles of international law and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in particular. This chapter focuses on whether federal law currently protects the best interests of a child being raised by lesbian or gay parents.

Many same-sex couples who appeared at the Inquiry’s community forums talked about the problems they face in getting visas. They highlighted the limited options available to a same-sex couple wanting to migrate to Australia as a couple. They talked about the additional expense and disruption to their lives in proving their entitlement to a visa. And they talked about the indignity of being…

Superannuation is one of the main ways of saving for retirement. It is designed to provide financial security for individuals and their families in retirement; or when a person dies unexpectedly.

The Inquiry received submissions from 680 different individuals and organisations. Some provided submissions in response to both the first and second round discussion papers.

Same-Sex: Same Entitlements Report back to Contents Chapter 11 Health Care Costs Download Chapter 11: [ PDF] [ Word ] 11.1 What is this chapter about? 11.2 Does Medicare and PBS legislation recognise same-sex families? 11.3 Can a same-sex family access Medicare Safety Net benefits? 11.4 Can same-sex families access the PBS Safety Net? 11.5 Do same-sex families face problems in accessing…

This chapter explains how the provisions of international human rights treaties protect same-sex couples and their children, in the context of accessing financial and work-related entitlements. In particular, this chapter focuses on the right to non-discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. It also describes how the breach of that right can interfere with a range of other basic human…

The following chapter summarises the findings and recommendations made in each of Chapters 4 – 16 in this report. This chapter should be read in conjunction with Appendix 1 which sets out the list of legislation to be amended in order to eliminate discrimination against same-sex couples and their children.

The issue of divorce never arises for same-sex couples, since they cannot legally marry. However, a same-sex couple, like an opposite-sex de facto couple, may need the assistance of a court to resolve property and child-related issues if their relationship breaks down.

Social security is an income support system that acts as a safety-net for people who, for some reason, are unable to financially support themselves. Entitlements to social security are largely governed by the Social Security Act 1991 (Cth) (Social Security Act) and the A New Tax System (Family Assistance) Act 1999 (Cth) (Family Assistance Act). The payments are usually administered by Centrelink.