Petition to the Australian Government and the Department of Veterans’ Affairs

We, serving and ex-service members of the Australian Defence Force, formally demand immediate action from the Australian Government and the Department of Veterans’ Affairs regarding the treatment of Defence personnel under the Defence Home Ownership Assistance Scheme (DHOAS).

The DHOAS scheme exists because military service comes at a cost — to our bodies, our families, and our futures. It is not a handout. It is earned.

It is therefore unacceptable that banks such as Australia Military Bank, Defence Bank, and National Australia Bank appear to be structuring loans or interest arrangements in ways that allow them to profit from the very benefit that was created to support Defence members.

No soldier, sailor, or airman should be charged higher interest, hidden margins, or financial penalties because they accessed a service entitlement. If financial institutions are inflating rates or offsetting government subsidies to preserve their own margins, that is exploitation — plain and simple.

We demand:

A formal investigation into interest rate practices applied to DHOAS loan holders.
Full transparency on how DHOAS loans are priced compared to equivalent civilian loans.
Legislative reform to prevent any bank from offsetting, inflating, or absorbing DHOAS subsidies into higher interest structures.
Binding protections to ensure serving and ex-service members are never financially disadvantaged for using an earned entitlement.

Australia asks its Defence personnel to accept unlimited liability in service to the nation. The least the nation can do is ensure they are not financially exploited at home.

If the DHOAS scheme is to mean anything, it must deliver genuine benefit — not provide an opportunity for banks to increase profit margins off those who have already sacrificed enough.

We expect accountability. We expect fairness. And we expect action