My DSP Application Timeline & Experience (Autism, ADHD, Chronic Pain)
Timeline
01 March 2026 Submitted application
31 March 2026 Job Capacity Assessment (JCA)
17 April 2026 Sonic appointment
9 May 2026 Application approved
Evidence Submitted
- Autism & ADHD assessment report from psychologist
- Functional Capacity Assessment report from OT
- Verification of medical conditions form (SU684) from GP
- Report notes from X-RAY, MRI and C-T scans, as well as notes from steroid injection and physio appointments
- Referral to surgeon (for chronic pain)
Experience
1 March - submitted my application online.
18 March - received an email that I had a telephone interview booked (JCA).
31 March - The JCA was an easy call, she just went through what I had uploaded and confirmed the dates and the names of my conditions. She asked a few questions and they were all straight forward and easy to answer (how do you do socially? have you ever worked before and what was your experience when working? do you do your own shopping? how do you manage your pain? what were the outcomes of the steroid injections and surgical referral?). It lasted 26 minutes and a lot of that time was her reading through things.
16 April - received a call to book in my sonic. They had an appointment available the next day so I took it.
17 April - Sonic was a video call. It lasted 3 minutes. She confirmed the names of my conditions and asked me a couple of questions. She was only looking for very brief confirmation answers, not for further detail or explanation. She asked if my pain prevents me from sitting for long periods, if my memory is affected, if my social life is impacted and if I have any friends or close relationships, and how my sleep is. Super fast and very straight forward. Way easier than I thought.
9 May - received an email that said "your time with Workforce Australia has come to an end". I assumed this meant my application was approved, so I logged in to Centrelink and my next payments were at the DSP rate.
10 May - received a text saying my claim has been assessed.
11 May - three outcome letters in myGov inbox. The DSP outcome, the cancellation of my jobseeker payment, and the result of my JCA.
Edit to add: I also included my diagnosis of anxiety, agoraphobia and depression in my application. These were confirmed on my SU684 form from the GP as "other medical conditions".