QCAT Default Decision: How to Use Form 6 When the Respondent Doesn't Respond

You served your QCAT minor debt application on the respondent 28 days ago. No Form 7 response. No phone call. No payment. Now what?

This is exactly the situation the default decision process is designed for. If the respondent doesn't respond within the statutory deadline, you can ask the tribunal to decide in your favour without a hearing.

The 28-Day Response Period

After you serve a Form 3 (minor debt) application on the respondent, they have exactly 28 calendar days to file a Form 7 response. The clock starts the day after service is completed.

Day 29 is the earliest you can apply for a default decision. There's no grace period and no extension unless the tribunal specifically orders one.

What You Need to Apply

To request a default decision, lodge Form 6 (Request for decision by default — minor civil dispute — minor debt) with the QCAT registry. You'll need:

1. Proof of service: either a Form 9 already filed with the registry or the affidavit-of-service section completed within Form 6
2. An Affidavit of Debt within Form 6 itself, where you swear under oath that the debt (or a specified portion of it) remains unpaid
3. Supporting documents that were attached to your original application

Form 6 must be signed and sworn before an authorised witness (Justice of the Peace, Commissioner for Declarations, or solicitor).

What Happens After You File Form 6

A QCAT Registrar or Adjudicator reviews your default application. They check:

• Was the application properly served? (A Form 9 or the affidavit-of-service section in Form 6)
• Did the 28-day response period actually expire?
• Is the claim for a liquidated sum that falls within QCAT's $25,000 jurisdiction?

If everything checks out, the tribunal issues a default decision ordering the respondent to pay:

• The principal debt
• Interest (at the contractual rate or the QCAT Practice Direction rate)
• Recoverable costs (filing fee, ASIC search fees, bailiff fees)

No hearing is required. The decision is made on the papers.

Can the Respondent Overturn a Default Decision?

Yes. The respondent can apply to set aside the default decision using Form 55. To succeed, they must convince the tribunal of three things:

1. They had a reasonable excuse for not responding within 28 days (illness, genuine lack of notice, emergency)
2. They have an arguable defence to the claim
3. Setting aside the order won't cause irremediable prejudice to you

If the tribunal grants Form 55, the default is set aside and the application proceeds to mediation or a hearing.

Default Decision Is Not the End

A default decision is a tribunal order, but QCAT doesn't enforce its own orders. If the respondent still doesn't pay after the default decision, you'll need to register the order in the Magistrates Court and use enforcement tools — garnishee orders, warrants of seizure, or wage redirection orders.

Common Mistakes

Filing Form 6 too early. If you apply before the full 28 days have passed, the application will be rejected.

No proof of service. Form 6 requires an affidavit of service. You can rely on a Form 9 already filed or complete the affidavit-of-service section in Form 6.

The affidavit isn't properly sworn. Form 6 includes an oath that the debt remains unpaid. It must be signed in front of an authorised witness — signing at home and bringing it to the registry doesn't count.

The QCAT claim guide includes a procedural deadline calendar that tracks the 28-day response window, the earliest Form 6 filing date and every subsequent enforcement deadline.

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