31Maximum amount of grant

31 Maximum amount of grant

(1) The amount of a grant to a sole applicant or to joint applicants shall not exceed: (a) one‑third of the accumulated acceptable savings of the applicant or applicants; or (b) an amount of: (i) where the relevant savings period in relation to the applicant or applicants is not less than 1 year but is less than 2 years—$667; (ii) where the relevant savings period in relation to the applicant or applicants is not less than 2 years but is less than 3 years—$1,333; or (iii) where the relevant savings period in relation to the applicant or applicants is not less than 3 years—$2,000; whichever is the less. (2) For the purposes of subsection (1), the amount of the accumulated acceptable savings of a sole applicant or of joint applicants is the amount ascertained by deducting from the sum of: (a) the acceptable savings of the applicant or applicants on the first relevant savings date; and (b) the sum of any adjusted increases in the acceptable savings of the applicant or applicants as ascertained as at the relevant savings dates occurring after the first relevant savings date; the sum of the amounts of any adjusted decreases in acceptable savings of the applicant or applicants as ascertained as at the relevant savings dates occurring after the first relevant savings date. (3) In this section, first relevant savings date, in relation to a sole applicant or joint applicants, means: (a) in the case of an applicant or applicants whose relevant savings period is not less than 1 year but is less than 2 years—the first day of the period of 1 year ending immediately before the prescribed date; (b) in the case of an applicant or applicants whose relevant savings period is not less than 2 years but is less than 3 years—the first day of the period of 2 years ending immediately before the prescribed date; and (c) in the case of an applicant or applicants whose relevant savings period is not less than 3 years—the first day of the period of 3 years ending immediately before the prescribed date. (4) For the purposes of the application of this section in relation to a sole applicant or joint applicants, the following dates are the relevant savings dates occurring after the first relevant savings date: (a) in the case of an applicant or applicants whose relevant savings period is not less than 3 years: (i) the prescribed date; (ii) the first day of the period of 6 months ending immediately before the prescribed date; (iii) the first day of the period of 12 months ending immediately before the prescribed date; (iv) the first day of the period of 18 months ending immediately before the prescribed date; (v) the first day of the period of 24 months ending immediately before the prescribed date; and (vi) the first day of the period of 30 months ending immediately before the prescribed date; (b) in the case of an applicant or applicants whose relevant savings period is not less than 2 years but is less than 3 years: (i) the prescribed date; (ii) the first day of the period of 6 months ending immediately before the prescribed date; (iii) the first day of the period of 12 months ending immediately before the prescribed date; and (iv) the first day of the period of 18 months ending immediately before the prescribed date; (c) in the case of an applicant or applicants whose relevant savings period is less than 2 years: (i) the prescribed date; and (ii) the first day of the period of 6 months ending immediately before the prescribed date. (5) Where a relevant savings date in a particular month is not capable of being ascertained in accordance with subsection (4) by reason that there is not a date in that month that corresponds with the prescribed date, the relevant savings date in that month shall be taken to be the last day of that month. (6) For the purposes of this section: (a) an increase in acceptable savings of a sole applicant or joint applicants shall be taken to occur on a relevant savings date if the acceptable savings of the applicant or applicants on that relevant savings date exceed the acceptable savings of the applicant or applicants on the immediately preceding relevant savings date; and (b) the amount of the increase in acceptable savings is the amount of that excess. (7) For the purposes of this section: (a) a decrease in acceptable savings of a sole applicant or joint applicants shall be taken to occur on a relevant savings date if the acceptable savings of the applicant or applicants on that relevant savings date are less than the acceptable savings of the applicant or applicants on the immediately preceding relevant savings date; and (b) the amount of the decrease is the amount by which the acceptable savings on the first‑mentioned relevant savings date are less than the acceptable savings on that immediately preceding relevant savings date. (8) A reference in this section to an adjusted increase in acceptable savings of a sole applicant or of joint applicants as ascertained as at a relevant savings date shall be read as a reference to an increase in acceptable savings of the applicant or applicants on that relevant savings date reduced, if excess savings of the applicant or applicants occurred on that relevant savings date, by the amount of those excess savings. (9) A reference in this section to an adjusted decrease in acceptable savings of a sole applicant or of joint applicants as ascertained as at a relevant savings date shall be read as a reference to a decrease in acceptable savings of the applicant or applicants on that relevant savings date reduced, if there are unused excess savings of the applicant or applicants on that relevant savings date, by so much of those unused excess savings as does not exceed the decrease in acceptable savings. (10) For the purposes of this section: (a) a sole applicant or joint applicants shall be taken to have excess savings on a relevant savings date if the increase in acceptable savings of the applicant or applicants on that relevant savings date exceeds $1,200; and (b) the amount of the excess savings is the amount by which that increase exceeds $1,200. (11) A reference in this section to unused excess savings of a sole applicant or of joint applicants on a relevant savings date shall be read as a reference to excess savings of the applicant or applicants on any preceding relevant savings dates that are not required by subsection (9) to be taken into account in ascertaining adjusted decreases in acceptable savings of the applicant or applicants as at any of those preceding relevant savings dates. (12) Where an application for a grant has been made by an applicant or applicants, or any documents furnished by an applicant or applicants have been prepared, on the basis that the prescribed date in relation to the applicant or applicants is a date (in this subsection referred to as the assumed date) that is earlier or later, but not more than 14 days earlier or later, than the date that is the prescribed date in relation to the applicant or applicants, the Secretary may, in his discretion, direct that this section shall apply in relation to the applicant or applicants as if the references in subsections (3), (4) and (5) to the prescribed date were references to the assumed date. (13) Where, by reason of acceptable savings being held by joint applicants on a particular date, the amount of a grant to the applicants would be less than it would be if acceptable savings were not held by the applicants on that date, the Secretary may, in his discretion, treat the applicants as not having held those acceptable savings on that date. (14) Notwithstanding anything in the preceding provisions of this section, where the value of a dwelling‑house to which an application relates exceeds the amount that, on the date that is the valuation date in relation to the dwelling‑house, was the relevant value but does not exceed the amount that, on that date, was the maximum qualifying value for the purposes of subsection 19(5), the amount of the grant is the amount ascertained in accordance with the formula: