AM I ELIGIBLE FOR A VET STUDENT LOAN

A VET Student Loan is a loan from the Australian Government that helps eligible students pay their tuition fees. Your loan is repaid through the Australian tax system when you reach the minimum income threshold for repayment. The minimum income threshold for repayment is set by the Australian Government each year and is published on Study Assist. Repayments continue until you have repaid your entire debt.

It is important to note that your loan will remain a personal debt until it is repaid, and it may reduce your take-home (after tax) wage and your borrowing capacity. You may wish to seek independent financial advice before applying.

The amount you can borrow for your tuition fees is determined by the Australian Government.

A VET Student Loan is only for tuition fees and doesn’t cover additional costs such as textbooks, materials, or accommodation.

The Australian Government has approved Precept Education Pty Ltd to deliver a number of courses eligible for a VET Student Loan. Search our website to find out if a VET Student Loan is available for your course.

Courses that are approved for a VET Student Loan, and the cap on the loan amounts that students can borrow per course, are set by the Australian Government. A full list of approved courses is provided in the VET Student Loans (Courses and Loan Caps) Determination 2016.

In order to apply for a VET Student Loan you must provide current and updated evidence against each of the following criteria (prior to enrolment). Otherwise, you will be liable to pay the full cost of your course.

Please note: Centrelink benefits do not affect your eligibility or the loan amount you can access.

1. RESIDENCY

  • Australian citizen, or
  • eligible permanent humanitarian visa holder who usually resides in Australia, or
  • New Zealand citizen on Special Category Visa (SCV subclass 444) who meets the long term residency requirements.

Please note: New Zealand citizens on a Special Category Visa must provide an International Movement Record evidencing that:

  • you first began living in Australia at least 10 years before applying for a VET Student Loan, and at that time, were a child under 18 years of age and did not have a spouse or de-facto partner, and
  • you have been in Australia for at least eight of the 10 years immediately prior to applying and at least 18 months of the last two years.

2. ACADEMIC SUITABILITY:

  • Australian Year 12 Certificate of Education; or
  • International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IB) diploma; or
  • Successful completion of an Australian Qualifications Framework certificate IV or higher qualification (where the language of instruction is English), or at a level in a framework that preceded the AQF that is equivalent to level 4 or above in the AQF or;

If you cannot provide the above documents, you will be required to display competence at Exit Level 3 in the Australian Core Skills Framework in both reading and numeracy. We will assess your competence using the Australian Government approved assessment tool — Core Skills Profile for Adults

If you cannot provide a copy of your qualification certificate for an AQF level 4 or above qualification, we can accept a copy of your Authenticated Vocational Education and Training (VET) Transcript from the Student Identifiers (USI) Register.  This is also known as a ‘USI transcript’, and has only been in place since 2015, so earlier qualifications will not be listed on the Register.

WHAT IS THE PROCESS?

  • Prior to enrolment into a course, you will be sent an email with Core Skills Profile for Adults logon details.
  • The test may be completed remotely or on campus. The test will be supervised by one of our staff. You will need to be on webcam and share your screen if you are completing the test remotely.
  • Once you have completed the assessments, we will notify you of your results.

Please note: We reserve the right to refuse entry into a course if we believe on reasonable grounds that you are not academically suited to undertake the course.

3. TAX FILE NUMBER (TFN):

  • Proof that your name, address and date of birth suppled at time of enrolment match the details linked to your TFN, held by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). You can do this by supplying a screen shot of your personal details from the ATO section of your my.Gov account. This must show your name, address and date of birth.
  • If you have applied for a Tax File Number at the time of enrolment, please supply a copy of your TFN application summary along with the payment receipt issued by the Australian Post at the time of application. It is important that the TFN application summary matches the barcode on the payment receipt. Once you receive a TFN, you must let us know and update your eCAF with your TFN as soon as possible.

Please note: Please ensure that you update your personal information with the ATO to match the address you provide to us at the time of enrolment, prior to submitting your documentation. We will not be able to finalise your enrolment if the details provided do not match.

4. UNIQUE STUDENT IDENTIFIER (USI):

  • Have your USI ready when you enrol.
  • Your Name, Address and date of birth must match your details held at the Australia Tax Office (ATO) and the details you provided at enrolment.

Please note: if you don’t have a USI or your name, address and date of birth held on the USI Registry do not match your details held by the Australia Tax Office (ATO) we will be unable to enrol you.

If you don’t already have a USI or need to update your details go to the USI website.

5. PARENTAL CONSENT FOR UNDER 18S:

There are no age restrictions to apply for a VET Student Loan, however if you are under 18 years of age you must provide one of the following required documents:

  • Signed Parental Consent form, available on the Australian Government’s Department of Education and Training website
  • Centrelink Income Statement if you are receiving Youth Allowance on the basis that you are independent.

Please note: Your parent or guardian will not be responsible for making loan repayments and it will not affect their credit rating.

ADDITIONAL ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

1. You do not exceed the FEE-HELP limit:

  • You can borrow up to the FEE-HELP limit to pay your course fees (for 2019, the FEE-HELP limit is $$104,440 for most students).
  • Any amount you borrow under VET Student Loans, VET FEE-HELP, or FEE-HELP will be added together until you reach the FEE-HELP limit.
  • The FEE-HELP limit is a lifetime limit and is not reset or ‘topped up’ by any repayments you make.

2. You are studying the approved course primarily at a campus in Australia.

3. You have read the VET Student Loans Information Booklet.

4. You have submitted the electronic Commonwealth Assistance Form (eCAF) five (5) business days prior to your first census day and no less than two business days after enrolling.

Please note: If you intend to study more than one course, you will need to complete one eCAF for each course you wish to access a loan for.  If you do not complete and submit your eCAF by the deadline, you may need to make an alternative payment arrangement for your tuition fees.

5. You have submitted the VET Student Loans engagement and progression form.

From 1 July 2017, a student engagement and progression requirement applies to all students wishing to continue to access a VET Student Loan. Depending on the duration of your course, you may be requested to complete this survey more than once (February, June and October each year).

If you do not complete the survey within the required time you will not be eligible to continue to access a VET Student Loan.

For more information download the VET Student Loans – Student engagement and progression FAQs.

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