An APS employee in the Department may be appointed as an * authorised officer.

An authorised officer may enter premises with consent of the occupier and exercise * search powers there for the purposes of the Secretary:

  (a)   making a decision on an application made under this Act or the Aged Care (Transitional Provisions) Act 1997 ; or

  (b)   determining whether the conditions to which a grant under Chapter   5 of this Act is subject have been complied with.

An authorised officer may enter premises under a warrant or with consent of the occupier and exercise monitoring powers there under Part   2 of the * Regulatory Powers Act, for the purposes of determining:

  (a)   whether section   25 - 3 (which deals with the appraisal of the level of care needed by care recipients) or sections   27 - 3 and 27 - 5 (which deal with the reappraisal of the level of care needed by care recipients) of this Act have been complied with; or

  (b)   whether information given in compliance, or purported compliance, with a provision of Chapter   3 of this Act or a provision of Chapter   3 of the Aged Care (Transitional Provisions) Act 1997 (which both deal with * subsidies) is correct.

An authorised officer may, under Part   3 of the Regulatory Powers Act, gather material that relates to the contravention of a * civil penalty provision in this Act (other than a civil penalty provision in Division   54).

Parts   2 and 3 of the Regulatory Powers Act are applied by this Part with suitable modifications.

The Secretary may require a person in certain circumstances to attend before an authorised officer to answer questions or provider information or documents.