Australian Government Cashless Debit Card Program

The Cashless Debit Card (CDC) program has ended in all locations across Australia, and all CDC participants have now exited the program or transferred to enhanced Income Management. Data summaries for the CDC program by month include the below tables:\r\n\r\nTable 1. Number of CDC participants by original CDC location, Income Support Payment and if a participant had identified as an Indigenous Australian.\r\n\r\nTable 2. Community panel (or body) decisions to change the restricted portion of welfare payment.\r\n\r\nTable 3. When someone was not subject to cashless welfare arrangements: Well-being exemptions.\r\n\r\nTable 4. When someone was not subject to cashless welfare arrangements: Exits.\r\n\r\n\r\nInformation about the CDC:\r\n\r\nOn 6 March 2023, CDC participants located in the Northern Territory, Cape York and Doomadgee region, as well as volunteers from the Ceduna, East Kimberley, Goldfields, Bundaberg and Hervey Bay regions, moved to enhanced Income Management. More information about enhanced Income Management is located on the Department of Social Services (the department) web site: https://www.dss.gov.au/families-and-children/programmes-services/welfare-conditionality/enhanced-income-management-overview \r\n\r\nThe CDC program was repealed on 30 March 2023, by the Social Security (Administration) Amendment (Repeal of Cashless Debit Card and Other Measures) Act 2022, which is located here: https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2022A00039.\r\n\r\n\r\nLocations and commencement dates:\r\n\r\nLocation: Ceduna region, South Australia \r\n\r\nCommencement date: 15 March 2016\r\n\r\nIncluded: Ceduna, Koonibba, Scotdesco, Yalata and Oak Valley \r\n\r\nCohort: All people on a working age income support payment\r\n\r\nLocation: East Kimberley region, Western Australia\r\n\r\nCommencement date: 26 April 2016\r\n\r\nIncluded: Kununurra and Wyndham \r\n\r\nCohort: All people on a working age income support payment\r\n\r\nLocation: Goldfields region, Western Australia \r\n\r\nCommencement date: 26 March 2018\r\n\r\nIncluded: Kalgoorlie, Boulder, Coolgardie, Laverton, Leinster, Leonora, Menzies and Kookynie.\r\n\r\nCohort: All people on a working age income support payment\r\n\r\nLocation: Bundaberg and Hervey Bay region, Queensland\r\n\r\nCommencement date: 21 September 2018\r\n\r\nIncluded: Bundaberg, Hervey Bay, Aldershot, Bargara, Elliott Heads, Woodgate, Booyal, Burrum Heads, Torbanlea, Toogoom, Howard, Childers, Burnett Heads and River Heads.\r\n\r\nCohort: All people aged 35 years and under who received Newstart Allowance, Youth Allowance (Job seeker), Parenting Payment (Single) or Parenting Payment (Partnered).\r\n\r\n\r\nData Confidentialisation Policy: Table cells are suppressed where the count refers to less than five, but more than zero, people.\r\n\r\nThe method is:\r\n\r\n•\tCells with counts between one (1) and four (4) are presented as