QCAT Form 55: how to set aside or amend a default decision made against you

QCAT Form 55 is the Application to set aside or amend a default decision. If QCAT made a decision against you because you did not respond to a claim in time, Form 55 is how you ask for it to be cancelled or changed. Only a respondent can use it. You must explain why no response was filed and what your response to the claim would be, attach your documents, and serve the application within 7 days of lodging.

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

This is general information, not legal advice. Act quickly: applying does not stop the other side enforcing the decision.

What a default decision is, and why you got one

In a QCAT minor debt claim the respondent has 28 days from being served to file a response on Form 7. If none is filed, the applicant can ask for a decision by default, and QCAT decides the claim from the applicant’s paperwork with no mediation and no hearing. Under the QCAT Act it is taken to be a final decision of the tribunal, and QCAT says it “will be enforceable against you in the courts.”

What Form 55 can do

Section 51 of the QCAT Act says the tribunal, “on application by the respondent, may set aside or amend a decision by default on terms, including terms about costs and the giving of security, the tribunal considers appropriate.” So there are two requests, and you tick one in Part C:

• Set aside: the form explains this as “as if the decision had not been made.” QCAT says that if the default decision is set aside, “the original application will be scheduled for mediation or a hearing.” You then defend the claim in the ordinary way.
• Amend: the decision stays but is changed, for example because part of the amount had already been paid. You set out the orders you want in Part D.

It is a discretion. The tribunal may refuse, and it may attach conditions, such as paying costs or giving security.

Applying does not stop enforcement

Section 51A of the QCAT Act says an application to set aside or amend “does not affect the operation of the decision or prevent the taking of action to implement the decision.” The tribunal can make an order staying the default decision until your application is decided, on the application of a party or on its own initiative. If enforcement has started or is likely, ask the tribunal for a stay and say why; the registry can tell you which form to use.

Neither Form 55, section 51 of the Act nor the QCAT Rules states a deadline for applying. Do not read that as time to spare: the decision can be enforced in the meantime, and the tribunal decides whether to grant the application.

What you have to explain

QCAT says: “You will need to explain in your application why a response was not filed in time and your response to the original application.” Part E of the form asks three questions:

1. “Explain the facts you are relying on and your reasons for making this application.”
2. “If you did not file a response to the original application within the prescribed time, explain the reasons why.”
3. “Explain what your proposed response would be to the original application if the application to set aside the default decision is granted. You MUST attach copies of all documents that you say are relevant to this application.”

In practice that means two things done properly. First, a straight account of why nothing was filed: for example you were never given the application, it went to an old address, or you were in hospital. Give dates and attach proof where you have it. Second, a real answer to the claim: what you admit, what you dispute and why, with the documents. The form asks for both, so answer both.

How to fill in Form 55, part by part

1. Part A, application and matter details. The applicant and respondent as named on the original application, the QCAT case number from the decision, and the registry or Magistrates Court where the original application was made. You are still “the respondent” on this form, even though you are the one applying.
2. Part B, respondent’s details. Your name and full contact details.
3. Part C, what you seek. Tick amend or set aside, and write the date of the default decision.
4. Part D, amended orders. Only if you ticked amend: the orders you want instead.
5. Part E, your reasons. The three questions above. Attach extra pages if you need the room, and attach every document you rely on.
6. Checklist and signature. Every respondent named must sign. Knowingly giving the registry false or misleading information is an offence under section 216 of the QCAT Act.

The current form is Form 55 (version 2). Download it from QCAT’s forms page.

Copies, lodging and the 7 days to serve

The instructions say to make two photocopies of the application and all attachments and lodge them with the original, plus an extra copy for each additional respondent. Lodge at the QCAT registry (Floor 11, 259 Queen Street, Brisbane Qld 4000, or GPO Box 1639, Brisbane Qld 4001) or at your local Magistrates Court. If you file in person or by post, include a stamped self-addressed A4 envelope.

Then serve it: “You must give (serve) a copy of the application to the other party no later than seven (7) days after you lodge the application.” You can serve personally, by post, or through a Magistrates Court bailiff, commercial agent or process server. The checklist on the form reminds you that a stamped copy must be given to each party “before the Tribunal can make a decision.” Once served, complete Form 9, the affidavit of service.

What happens next

QCAT says “the tribunal will review the request and all parties will be advised of the outcome.” If the decision is set aside, the original claim is listed for mediation or a hearing and you will need your response and evidence ready. The Act does not allow an appeal to the appeal tribunal against a decision to set aside a default decision.

Form 55 is for default decisions only. If you lost at a hearing you did not attend, the application is a reopening on Form 43, which must be lodged within 28 days of being given notice of the decision. If you attended and lost, it is an application for leave to appeal on Form 39, also within 28 days.

Where Claim Done fits

Part E is the whole application, and QCAT registry staff cannot tell you how to word it. Claim Done’s Tribunal Appeal or Set-Aside ($97) sets out your grounds in the order QCAT’s form asks for: the facts, why no response was filed, and your answer to the original claim, with a short guide to lodging. You review it before anything is final, and you lodge and serve it yourself.

Start your set-aside application

Frequently asked questions

What is QCAT Form 55?

Form 55 is the Application to set aside or amend a default decision. A respondent uses it to ask QCAT to cancel or change a decision that was made because no response was filed in time.

Who can apply to set aside a QCAT default decision?

Only a respondent. The form states that an application to set aside or amend a default decision can only be made by a respondent.

Is there a time limit to lodge Form 55?

Neither Form 55, section 51 of the QCAT Act nor the QCAT Rules states a deadline. Apply as soon as you learn of the decision: it can be enforced while your application is waiting.

Does lodging Form 55 stop the decision being enforced?

No. Section 51A of the QCAT Act says the application does not affect the operation of the decision. The tribunal can order a stay until the application is decided, so ask for one if enforcement is likely.

What do I have to prove to set aside a default decision?

The form asks for the facts you rely on, why no response was filed within the time allowed, and what your response to the original application would be, with copies of all relevant documents.

What happens if the default decision is set aside?

QCAT says the original application will be scheduled for mediation or a hearing, and you defend the claim in the ordinary way.

How long do I have to serve Form 55?

No later than 7 days after you lodge it. Serve the other party personally, by post or through a bailiff or process server, then complete a Form 9 affidavit of service.

General information about QCAT’s forms and rules, checked against QCAT’s website, Form 55 and the QCAT Act in November 2026. It is not legal advice.