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Annual Report
Purpose: To enable MSD to confirm periods of residence in New Zealand or overseas to determine which other countries, with superannuation reciprocity agreements with New Zealand, an individual may be eligible to claim superannuation payments from.
Customs disclosure to MSD: Customs provides MSD access to its CusMod system for verification of departure and arrival dates.
Compliance: Inactive.
| Information matching provision | Customs and Excise Act 2018, s.309 |
| Year authorised | 2002 |
| Year commenced | 2002 |
| Programme type | Confirming eligibility |
| Unique identifiers | Australian and NZ Social Welfare numbers |
| On-line transfers | Yes |
System description
This system enables MSD to confirm periods of residence when applicants are uncertain of these details at the time of application. New Zealand applications involving possible Australian entitlements are handled by MSD International Services. Enquiries on behalf of Australian applicants who may also be eligible for some New Zealand benefits are also received by MSD International Services from Centrelink (part of the Australaian Government Department of Human Services).
Specially trained staff at MSD International Services have access via a secure web connection to the ‘CusMod’ Customs database of passenger movements to confirm departure and arrival dates. Individual access to the Customs database is recorded and statistics are kept in a privacy register to monitor compliance with procedures controlling access to the database.
Every two weeks an audit of this register is conducted to confirm that all access is logged and a sample is checked for appropriateness.
Results are processed through the Centrelink/MSD Change in Circumstances Programme to generate notices of adverse action (s.181 notices) and any other necessary follow-up.
Previously authorised by the Customs and Excise Act 1996, s280B.
Not active during 2020/21 or 2021/22 as the specific terminals required were not able to be accessed.
The utility of this provision was assessed in the report “Australia and the Netherlands Matches (July 2013)” and again in Ministry of Social Development international social welfare reciprocity agreements (July 2019).
