The term is commonly used in Australia, where it has been applied in various contexts, most recognizably in relation to special consideration policies for students and drought relief payments for farmers known as Exceptional Circumstances Relief Payments or ECRP.
[1] The Exceptional Circumstances Relief Payments or ECRP program was established in 1992 and has continued in various forms since.
[2] In February 2009, the Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry announced that the payments would continue for an additional 12 months in 52 areas throughout Australia.
Qualification is based on terms (geographical location) set by the Exceptional Circumstances Relief Payments program.
[4] The term has been used in a range of other governmental contexts in Australia including, but not limited to: The term has also been used to refer to other extraordinary circumstances which might result in a person acting in a manner not ordinarily accepted as common practice, such as the circumstances described by Dr. Muhammad Hedayetullah in relation to the Islamic prayer, salat.