VCAT Order Ignored? How to Enforce It in Victoria: Recording It at the Magistrates’ Court, the Five Options and What Each Costs

A VCAT order that says someone must pay you is binding, but VCAT will not collect the money for you. If the other party ignores it, the order has to be recorded at the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria (for amounts up to $100,000), and then you choose from the court’s enforcement tools: an oral examination, a warrant to seize property, a garnishee of wages or of money owed to them, or an instalment order. Each step has a form and a filing fee, and those fees can be added to what they owe you. Before spending anything, send one last written demand that quotes the order and names the step coming next. Claim Done’s Final Demand generates that letter from your VCAT order for a flat A$49.

For the forms, fees and each step, see our guide to making an VCAT application.

This is the Victorian detail. For how enforcement works in the other states, see our overview of enforcing a tribunal order in Australia.

Work out what kind of order you actually have

VCAT’s own page on enforcing a VCAT order splits final orders into two kinds. A monetary order says a party must pay money. A non-monetary order says a party must do something or stop doing something: fix the work, hand back the goods, stop the activity.

That distinction decides which court you end up in. Section 121 of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal Act 1998 says a monetary order within the Magistrates’ Court’s jurisdictional limit is enforced in the Magistrates’ Court, and anything larger in the County Court or the Supreme Court. Once it gets there, the order “is taken to be an order of the court” doing the enforcing. Section 122 sends every non-monetary order to the Supreme Court. VCAT puts the Magistrates’ Court line at $100,000.

Unpaid invoices, contractor deposits and consumer refunds usually sit well under that figure, so the rest of this guide follows the Magistrates’ Court path, with a section at the end for orders that are not about money.

Before you enforce: two windows, and one letter

Two things can still disturb an order after it is made. A losing party who wants to appeal must start within 28 days of the date of the order and needs the permission of the court that would hear it, according to VCAT’s page on appealing a decision. And a party who was not at the hearing can ask VCAT to review the order within 14 days of finding out about it, as VCAT explains on its decisions and orders page. Neither is automatic. VCAT says plainly there is no guarantee a review will be granted.

VCAT’s first suggestion when an order is ignored is simple: contact the other party and make sure they received and understood it. Do that in writing. A proper final demand attaches the order, quotes the VCAT reference number and the date it was made, states the exact amount, sets a short deadline, and names the specific enforcement step you will take if the deadline passes. It also leaves a clean record that you asked before you started spending money, which matters if the debtor later says they never knew.

Name one step, and only a step you are entitled to take. “I will apply to the Magistrates’ Court for a summons for oral examination” is credible.

Step one: get the order recorded at the Magistrates’ Court

Recording goes through VCAT, not the court counter. VCAT asks you to email it with the VCAT reference number, the date the order was made, and a solicitor’s code if a solicitor acts for you; it then confirms when the request has gone to the court. The Magistrates’ Court’s page on recording a VCAT monetary order says the court records the order and sends a copy to your home or email address. From that point, all of the court’s enforcement options for unpaid money are open. Neither page lists a fee for the recording itself.

The court’s enforcement of civil debt page says it “does not automatically enforce civil judgments.” You apply for each step, pay each filing fee and serve each document. The same page carries the useful counterweight: all court fees paid for enforcement action may be added to the debt and are recoverable from the debtor.

The five enforcement options

Each step below carries a Magistrates’ Court fee, and the Sheriff charges a separate fee for a warrant. Fees change each 1 July; check the current fee on the tribunal’s or court’s website before you file. The court publishes its fees in its Court Fees and Costs Ready Reckoner.

Summons for oral examination. A registrar questions the debtor, under oath, about their finances. You file Form 67A with the Magistrates’ Court, and the hearing is listed at the court closest to the debtor’s address. You serve the summons with the examination form (Form 67B for a person, 67C for a company) at least seven days before the hearing, give the debtor conduct money, and file an affidavit of service on Form 6A. The court sends you the debtor’s answers afterwards. See the court’s page on the summons for oral examination.

Warrant to seize property. Form 68A. The Sheriff can attend the debtor’s home or business in Victoria, demand payment, and take goods, which are sold at public auction with the proceeds going to the debt. Items needed for basic living, such as fridges, televisions and washing machines, are off limits. The warrant is valid for 12 months (warrant to seize property).

Attachment of earnings. Money comes straight out of the debtor’s pay. You file Forms 72A and 72B (the affidavit must be sworn), serve them at least 14 days before a hearing, attend, then apply for the order itself on Form 72F and serve it on the debtor and their employer. The court says the employer should begin paying you seven days after being served. A debtor whose only income is Centrelink cannot be put on one (attachment of earnings order).

Attachment of debt. A garnishee order against anyone who owes the debtor money. You file Form 71A or 71B with a sworn affidavit, then serve the garnishee within seven days of the order (attachment of debt).

Instalment order. Form 61A, and either side can apply. The catch: once an instalment order is made, no further enforcement can be taken unless the debtor’s circumstances change or they gave the court inaccurate information. Either party can object to the registrar’s decision within 14 days on Form 61D (instalment order).

One rule cuts across the list. The court’s pages say you cannot apply for a warrant or an attachment of earnings while another enforceable action is already in place.

A sensible order of attack

Take a $6,000 order against an individual who has a job. The oral examination comes first, because it answers the questions every other option depends on: who employs them, where they bank, what they own. If they are on wages, attachment of earnings follows. The court fees for both steps can be added to the $6,000.

The warrant route only pays if there is something the Sheriff can take beyond the protected essentials. A tradie’s ute or a business’s equipment is a different proposition from a rented flat with a couch in it. Guess wrong and the fee is gone with nothing to show for it.

If the debtor answers the final demand by offering to pay over time, get the arrangement signed with a clear default clause before you agree to anything. A Payment Plan Agreement puts the amounts, dates and consequence of a missed payment on paper, and is also a flat A$49.

Timing and interest: the clocks that are actually published

Neither VCAT nor the court publishes a total time from order to money. What is published are the individual clocks: 28 days for an appeal to be started, 14 days for an absent party to seek a review, at least seven days’ service before an oral examination, at least 14 days’ service before an attachment of earnings hearing, seven days after service before an employer should start paying, 12 months of life in a warrant, and 14 days to object to an instalment order.

On interest, the court’s enforcement page lists the penalty interest rate on outstanding civil judgments as 10.00%, effective since 1 February 2017. Before you add interest to a demand, ask the registry whether and from what date it runs on your recorded order. A demand with a wrong interest figure hands the debtor an argument.

Orders that are not about money

A non-monetary order, such as a builder ordered to rectify defects, is enforced in the Supreme Court under section 122. That is a heavier process than anything above. VCAT offers another route first: an “Application to reopen an order for enforcement reasons” under section 120A. The tribunal can vary the order, or revoke it and make any other order it could have made in the original proceeding, if it is satisfied there are problems with enforcing or complying with it. VCAT says it does not reconsider the merits of the case. Where a money order was open to the tribunal in the first place, that route can turn a stalled work order into a sum you can record at the Magistrates’ Court.

Where Claim Done fits

Claim Done handles the paperwork that sits around the court steps. The Final Demand is built from your VCAT order and the facts you enter: the VCAT reference number, the date of the order, the amount, a deadline, and the specific enforcement step you will take next. It costs a flat A$49 and the intake takes a few minutes. You review and approve the letter before it is sent, and it goes by email. Compare that with paying a lawyer’s hourly rate to write a letter that says the same thing.

Be clear about what it is not. Claim Done is not a law firm and does not lodge anything with VCAT or the Magistrates’ Court. Recording the order through VCAT and filing Forms 67A, 68A, 71A, 72A or 61A are yours to do, and the fees above are paid to the court and the Sheriff. If the debtor comes back with an offer, the Payment Plan Agreement locks it in. If you have not got the order yet and are still at the start, our guide on how to lodge a VCAT application covers that stage.

Your next step: start your Final Demand on Claim Done. Tell us about the VCAT order, answer the questions, and review the letter. Once you approve it, it is sent by email, and the deadline in it starts running. See pricing for every service.

Frequently asked questions

Does VCAT enforce its own orders?

No. VCAT makes the order, but if the other party does not comply you have to enforce it yourself. For a monetary order of $100,000 or less, VCAT forwards the order to the Magistrates' Court of Victoria at your request, and the court's enforcement options then become available. The court does not enforce automatically either; you apply for each step.

How much does it cost to enforce a VCAT order in Victoria?

Recording the order is requested through VCAT, and neither VCAT's nor the court's page lists a fee for it. Each enforcement step carries a court fee, and a warrant to seize property also carries a Sheriff's fee. Fees change each 1 July; check the current fee on the tribunal's or court's website before you file. The court says enforcement fees may be added to the debt and recovered from the debtor.

What if my VCAT order is for more than $100,000?

Section 121 of the VCAT Act says a monetary order above the Magistrates' Court's jurisdictional limit is enforced in the County Court or the Supreme Court. VCAT puts that limit at $100,000. The Magistrates' Court forms and fees in this guide do not apply to those courts.

Can I enforce a VCAT order if the other party is only on Centrelink?

The Magistrates' Court says a debtor whose only income is Centrelink cannot be put on an attachment of earnings order or forced onto an instalment order. The other options, such as an oral examination to find out what they own or a warrant to seize property, are not excluded by that rule, but protected household items cannot be taken.

What if the VCAT order tells them to do work rather than pay money?

A non-monetary order is enforced in the Supreme Court under section 122 of the VCAT Act. Before going there, you can ask VCAT to reopen the order for enforcement reasons under section 120A, using its Application to reopen an order for enforcement reasons form. VCAT can vary the order, or revoke it and make another order it could have made in the original case, but it does not reconsider the merits.