QCAT Form 7 Response to Minor Debt — How to Fill It In

Someone has filed a QCAT minor debt application against you, and now you have exactly 28 calendar days, counted from the day after service, to respond. Miss that deadline and the applicant can apply for a default decision — an order against you without a hearing, without your side of the story being heard.

The 28-Day Clock

The countdown starts the day after you were personally served with the sealed application. If service happened on a Monday, day one is Tuesday. Day 28 is your hard deadline to file Form 7 at the same registry where the original application was lodged.

There is no filing fee for a Form 7 response. That is one of the few procedural breaks respondents get in QCAT minor debt disputes.

What Goes in Form 7

Form 7 (Version 3) — officially titled "Response to minor civil dispute – minor debt" — asks you to explain your position on the claimed debt. You need to address each element of the applicant's claim:

Admit or deny. For each amount or factual allegation the applicant lists, state whether you agree, disagree, or partially agree. If you accept that you owe $3,000 of a claimed $5,000, say so and explain why the remaining $2,000 is disputed.

State your grounds. If you deny the debt, explain why. Common grounds include: the work was defective and you're entitled to an offset, the agreed price was different from what's claimed, the debt has already been paid (attach proof), or the claim is outside the six-year limitation period under the Limitation of Actions Act 1974 (Qld).

Attach your evidence. Contracts, invoices, bank transfer receipts, text messages, emails — anything supporting your position. Organise documents chronologically with clear labels.

The Counterclaim Trap

Here is where QCAT minor debt procedure surprises most respondents: you cannot file a counterclaim inside a Form 7 response.

If you believe the applicant actually owes you money — for example, they claim you owe $4,000 for materials but you paid a $2,000 deposit for work they never completed — you cannot embed that counter-claim in your response. QCAT Rules prohibit it in minor debt proceedings.

Instead, you must lodge a completely separate application. If your counter-claim is a liquidated debt, file your own Form 3. If it involves defective work or a consumer dispute, file Form 1. Then request that the tribunal hear both matters together at the same hearing. This avoids contradictory outcomes and saves everyone a second trip.

We cover the counterclaim workaround in detail in our post on QCAT counter applications.

Filing and Service

File your completed Form 7 at the same registry where the applicant lodged the original application — either through QCase online or at the physical registry (QCAT Principal Registry in Brisbane or the local Magistrates Court acting as a regional QCAT registry).

After filing, you must serve a sealed copy of your response on the applicant. Keep proof of service.

What Happens After You File

Once your Form 7 is on record, QCAT typically refers the contested matter to mediation or lists it for a directions hearing. Both parties meet with a trained mediator to attempt a settlement before the matter proceeds to a final hearing.

If you do nothing — no Form 7, no contact, nothing — the applicant files Form 6 for a default decision and can obtain an order against you without a hearing. That order is enforceable through the Magistrates Court.

Our QCAT filing guide walks through the entire process from both sides — including response templates, evidence checklists, and deadline tracking tools.

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