FCVic has made a submission to the Department of Home Affairs’ consultation on reforming Australia’s settlement grants programs. Drawing on the experience of financial counsellors who regularly support people from migrant and humanitarian backgrounds, the submission welcomes the Government’s focus on economic participation, economic security, and access to services, and argues that financial wellbeing and stability should be recognised as foundations of successful settlement.

The submission calls for financial capability and financial literacy education to be delivered by appropriately qualified workers, consistent with current Department of Social Services grant requirements, and for clear referral pathways to financial counsellors for people experiencing hardship or complex financial issues. It also stresses that settlement services should provide independent information that helps people compare options and make their own decisions, rather than directing them towards particular products or providers. Finally, it urges the Government to ensure its own systems, including debt administration, are accessible, trauma-informed, and responsive to vulnerability and family violence, and attaches an FCVic briefing paper on Home Affairs debts, family violence, and migration outcomes.

FCVic has made a submission to the Tax Ombudsman’s review of the Australian Taxation Office’s (ATO) administration of Director Penalty Notices (DPNs). The submission recognises that DPNs are an important compliance tool, but notes that their consequences can be severe and, in some cases, irreversible. Drawing on the experiences of generalist and specialist small business financial counsellors, it argues that the ATO must distinguish deliberate non-compliance from circumstances involving financial distress, vulnerability, coercion, or a lack of information when a business is first set up. FCVic thanks the FCVic Small Business Network, especially the specialist small business financial counsellors at Each, for the insights and expertise that informed this submission. We also acknowledge and support the feedback provided to this review by our colleagues at Financial Counselling Australia.

The submission makes 27 recommendations covering communication, early intervention, vulnerability, and ATO capability. These include linking Director IDs to individual myGov or ATO accounts, clearer and trauma-informed DPN communications, an early-intervention framework that responds to signs of financial distress, and a specialist pathway for coerced and disputed directorships, with recovery action paused while concerns are assessed. FCVic also calls on the Australian Government to implement key recommendations from the Parliamentary Joint Committee’s financial abuse inquiry, and for the ATO to formally recognise financial counsellors as trusted intermediaries.

FCVic has made a submission to the Victorian Law Reform Commission’s (VLRC) review of legal privilege and integrated legal assistance services. Drawing on the experiences of financial counsellors working within community legal centres and integrated settings across Victoria, the submission argues that integration doesn’t exist as a simple binary between “loosely” and “closely” integrated services, but operates along a continuum shaped by client cohort, organisational structure and area of practice. It cautions that an overly prescriptive legislative framework risks creating uncertainty and could discourage effective collaboration.

The submission draws a functional comparison between the information-gathering role financial counsellors play in integrated legal settings and that of paralegals and legal support staff, arguing this warrants similar privilege protections. It also highlights the benefits of integrated practice in reducing re-traumatisation for clients, particularly those experiencing family violence, by allowing them to tell their story once. FCVic’s six recommendations call for a reform approach that recognises the diversity of integrated practice models, supports collaboration between lawyers and financial counsellors, provides safeguards for sensitive practice areas, and preserves compliance with mandatory reporting obligations.

FCVic, together with our state and territory financial counselling peak partners, made a joint submission to the National Insurance Brokers Association’s (NIBA) consultation on the draft 2027 Insurance Brokers Code of Practice. Drawing on financial counsellors’ direct experience assisting clients affected by poor broker practices, insurance disputes, claims failures, underinsurance and vulnerability, the submission finds that while the draft Code is clearer and more accessible, it falls short of requiring compliance with the professional behaviour it describes.

The submission highlights recommendations that remain unaddressed, including clear broker due diligence obligations, written Statements of Advice, standardised disclosure templates for remuneration and conflicts of interest, and defined timeframes for claims handling. It argues that genuine self-regulatory credibility depends on enforceable, measurable standards rather than clarity alone, and offers to participate in further consultation workshops.

Co-signed by:

• Financial Counselling Queensland (FCQ)
• South Australian Financial Counsellors Association incorporating Northern Territory (SAFCA)
• Financial Counsellors Australian Capital Territory (FC-ACT)
• Financial Counselling Western Australia (FCWA)