Services Australia referred seven staff to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions (CDPP) for suspected internal fraud in the 2024-25 financial year, its latest annual report shows.

The figure marks a significant drop from the 18 internal referrals made the previous year. The agency also referred 106 external individuals to the CDPP in 2024-25.

Overall, the agency's investigative workload decreased, with 500 total internal fraud and corruption investigations undertaken, down from 741 in the year prior.

An example of internal fraud could include a Centrelink employee abusing their position to direct welfare payments into their own bank account, faking expense reports, or wrongly claiming overtime.

A 42-year-old Services Australia employee pleaded guilty to defrauding the Commo

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