The New South Wales government will be forced to correct and resend 44,000 letters to returning travellers demanding payment for hotel quarantine, due to a basic error explaining its legislative power to recover debts.
The state government has issued more than 134,800 invoices charging inbound travellers thousands of dollars for hotel quarantine since the pandemic began.
Where the invoices are not paid, Revenue NSW issues debt recovery orders demanding payment, and warning recipients it has the power to take money from wages or a bank, seize property, or issue a charge on land.
But the debt recovery order letters contain a small, but potentially, consequential error.
In referencing its power to recover debts, the state government names a nonexistent piece of legislation, saying its powers are contained in the State Debt Recovery Act 2013. The correct law is the State Debt Recovery Act 2018.
When the Guardian approached Revenue NSW, it said it was “now aware of the incorrect reference”.
It said more than 44,300 debt recovery orders had been issued with the incorrect reference.
“For the avoidance of doubt, Revenue NSW will issue amended Debt Recovery Orders to all affected individuals, however this will not alter the requirement that each invoice be paid,” a spokesperson said.
One recipient, who asked not to be identified, told the Guardian they had legal advice suggesting that basing a debt recovery order on a nonexistent law makes it unenforceable.
“I have brought this to the attention of NSW Revenue on five separate occasions [emails can be provided] and they have simply ignored it and continued to send debt recovery orders,” he said.
But Revenue NSW denied that the mistake had any impact on the enforceability of the orders.
“This error has no impact on the enforceability of these orders if they were challenged in court.”
“Sections 38 and 40 of the State Debt Recovery Act 2018 outline what must be in a debt recovery order, which does not include the authority under which the debt recovery order is issued.”
NSW began charging returned travellers for hotel quarantine in mid-2020, saying it had spent $65m to that point on housing returning travellers.
“Australian residents have been given plenty of time to return home – and we feel it is only fair that they cover some of the costs of their hotel accommodation,” then premier Gladys Berejiklian said.
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On Monday, it ended hotel quarantine for fully vaccinated Australian citizens returning home.
Unvaccinated Australians will continue to need to quarantine and comply with a cap on arrivals.
The state is also trialling a home quarantine program to allow returning travellers to avoid hotels and the associated costs.
The pilot may become permanent. It relies on an app that uses geolocation and facial recognition technology to ensure that individuals are at the right address.
The use of such technology has prompted significant privacy and civil liberties concerns.
