We welcome your feedback on our people, programs and services, as it helps us continue to improve. If we have made a mistake or fallen short of your expectations, we want to understand what happened and work with you to address it.
To learn how we manage complaints and work towards a resolution, please read our Complaints factsheet.
If you or someone you know is in crisis or danger, please contact an emergency support service.
If you wish to make a complaint about the department, our people or about one of the programs or services we deliver, please select the appropriate area to contact from the table below.
If the area you need is not listed in the table, please refer to the department’s Contact us page.
If the business area is still not listed, please send your email to complaints@dewr.gov.au and we will forward your enquiry to the appropriate area of the department.
Please include your name, contact details and a brief description of the complaint so we can best assist you.
| Departmental Complaints contacts | Departmental Contact Details |
|---|---|
| Employment and Workforce | Making a complaint about Employment Services and Parent Pathways |
| Jobs and Skills Australia | Complaints@DEWR.gov.au |
| Skills and Training | Complaints@DEWR.gov.au |
| Workplace Relations | FEG@dewr.gov.au |
| Vet FEE-HELP or Vet Student Loans | Vetstudentloans@dewr.gov.au |
Discretionary compensation
The Commonwealth has several discretionary mechanisms to address financial impacts of decisions of the Commonwealth that have unintended fair, unreasonable or inappropriate impact. These are:
- Compensation for Detriment caused by Defective Administration (CDDA Scheme)
- act of grace payments
- waiver of debt.
You can read more about the different types of discretionary compensation on the Department of Finance website.
To make an application for act of grace payments or waiver of debt, you will need to contact the Department of Finance.
To make an application to the department for compensation under the CDDA Scheme, please download and complete this Application for compensation form and email it to CDDAClaimMailbox@dewr.gov.au. Please be aware that the actions of contracted providers delivering services on behalf of the department are not within the scope of the CDDA Scheme.
Please be aware that there is no situation which creates an automatic entitlement to a payment under these mechanisms.