Information for employees
If you have outstanding employee entitlements as a result of your employer's liquidation or bankruptcy, you may be eligible to receive assistance under the General Employee Entitlements and Redundancy Scheme (GEERS).
Are you eligible for GEERS assistance?
Find out if you may be eligible for GEERS assistance and what you may be eligible for.
Lodging a GEERS claim
If you think you may be eligible for GEERS assistance, read about what you need to do before lodging a GEERS claim, then access the GEERS Claim Form (PDF 1.3MB) .
What we need from you
To assist the Department to process your GEERS claim as quickly and accurately as possible, it is important that you:
- complete all mandatory fields of your GEERS Claim Form
- notify the Department as soon as possible of any changes to your contact details, especially your address and phone numbers
- supply the Department with any further information requested (for example, a statutory declaration) within the set timeframe, or contact the Department to organise alternative arrangements.
GEERS claim process
Step-by-step guide on how a GEERS claim is processed — from lodging a claim right through to the outcome of your claim.
Our role
The role of the Department is different to the role of the insolvency practitioner who is managing the affairs of your former employer.
The Department administers GEERS on behalf of the Australian Government. The Department's role is to assess GEERS claims based on the information provided by you and the insolvency practitioner in accordance with the GEERS Operational Arrangements.
The insolvency practitioner provides the Department with information from your employer's books and records so that your claim can be assessed. If you are eligible for GEERS assistance, the Department will usually make a GEERS advance to the insolvency practitioner, who is responsible for making payments to eligible employees.
GEERS Operational Arrangements
The Department uses the Operational Arrangements (OAs) to determine your eligibility for GEERS assistance. The OAs set out how GEERS is administered.
GEERS review process
See our GEERS review process information for a fact sheet, frequently asked questions about the review process and a checklist for requesting a review.
GEERS appeals process
See our information about the GEERS appeals process, frequently asked questions and detailed information about the Commonwealth Ombudsman.
Frequently asked questions
Read our frequently asked questions for employees.
Useful links
See our useful links page for a list of telephone numbers and web addresses for relevant Government and private sector organisations.
Glossary of key terms
Check the glossary for the meaning of key words and acronyms used to describe the GEERS claim process.
For more information on GEERS, contact the GEERS Hotline on 1300 135 040, or email GEERS@deewr.gov.au.