VET Student Loans:
STUDY NOW, PAY LATER.
What is a VET Student Loan?
The VET Student Loan scheme commenced on the 1st of Jan 2017, replacing the VET FEE-HELP loan scheme which ceased on the 31st December 2016 for new students.
VET Student Loans are a government loan scheme for Vocational Education and Training which assists eligible students undertaking certain courses to pay for all or part of their tuition fees. The loan allows students to study now and pay later by deferring loan repayments until your annual income is above the minimum repayment threshold (for the 2016–17 income year this threshold is $54,869 or above). Your employer may be required to withhold repayments from your take home take-home (after-tax) pay until your debt is repayed. The debt remains a personal debt obligation until it is repaid to the Commonwealth and may affect the borrowing capacity of the student until the debt is repaid.
VET Student Loans are only available for specific courses as listed in the VET Student Loans (Courses and Loan Caps) Determination 2016, to set loan cap amounts. Please see below for information on the qualifications that we offer that we are approved to offer a VET Student Loan for.
Providers such as ourselves, have been granted provisional approval for offering the new VET Student Loans during the transition period allowing us to offer VET Student Loans for the first half of 2017, whilst going through the formal application process to be able to continue to offer the loans from the 1st of July 2017.
VET Student Loan Cap Amounts for Approved Courses
| Course | Loan Cap |
| Diploma of Screen and Media (Specialist Makeup) | $10,000 |
| Diploma of Screen and Media (Specialist Makeup) - Part Time | $10,000 |
| Diploma of Beauty Therapy | $10,000 |
| Diploma of Interior Design and Decoration | $10,000 |
| Advanced Diploma of Interior Design | $10,000 |
| Diploma of Applied Fashion Design and Merchandising | $15,000 |
| Advanced Diploma of Applied Fashion Design and Merchandising | $15,000 |
| Diploma of Photography and Photo Imaging | $10,000 |
| Diploma of Visual Arts | $10,000 |
In many cases there may be a difference between the loan cap and the course tuition fees. Students are required to pay the difference between the loan cap and the tuition fees directly to the provider.
Eligibility for a VET Student Loan
To obtain a VET Student Loan you must be enrolled in an eligible unit of study on or at least 2 days before the census date (having submitted your Request for VET FEE-HELP Assistance Form) and:
- Meet the specific course entry requirements
- Provide evidence of successful compeltion of your Senior Secondary Certificate OR a Certificate IV level qualification (completed in English) AND completing an assessment in reading and numeracy to a level 3 or above,
- Meet the tax file number requirements,
- Have not exceeded the FEE-HELP limit,
- Are either an Australian Citizen, Permanent Humanitarian Visa Holder (who will be a resident in Australia for the duraction of your study) OR you are a New Zealand Citizen meeting the specific criteria listed below.
New Zealand Citizen Eligibility Requirements:
New Zealand citizens are eligible for VET Student Loans in limited circumstances, where they have been long-term residents of Australia since childhood meeting the following requirements:
- a New Zealand citizen that first entered Australia as a dependent minor aged under 18 years of age, at least 10 years before applying for VET FEE-HELP,
- Have lived (and been physically present) in Australia for at least 8 of the previous 10 years at the time of application,
- Have been physically present in Australia for at least 18 months out of the last 2 years at the time of application,
- Meet the tax file number requirements, and
- Have not exceeded the FEE-HELP limit;
Important Points to Note:
- You may choose to pay some or all of the tuition fees directly to the institute and/or request a VET Student Loan for all or part of the tuition fees (up to the maximum course loan cap amount).
- Census dates apply to each of the VET Units of Study within the course, this is the date that you will incur debt for any unpaid tuition fees and is the last date to withdraw from a unit without incurring a debt or academic penalty.
- Students may borrow up to the FEE-HELP limit, for 2017 the FEE-HELP limit is $100,879 for most students.
- A 20% loan fee applies to all VET Student Loans except in special circumstances such as the coure being subsidised. This loan fee is included in your debt, although this fee does not affect your FEE-HELP loan limit.
- You can make voluntary repayments to reduce your HELP debt at any time and for any amount. Making voluntary payments will reduce your debt immediately and can attract a bonus.
- No interest is charged to your FEE-HELP debt, however, your debt is indexed annually by movements in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to maintain it's current value.
- You will require a Tax File Number (TFN) to apply for a VET Student Loan - if you do not have a Tax File Number you can request one from the Australian Taxation Office.
- Having a FEE-HELP debt may reduce your take-home after-tax wage/salary until the debt is repaid as employers may be required to withhold amounts from your pay to put towards your compulsory repayments.
- Having a FEE-HELP debt may affect your borrowing capacity until the debt is repaid to the Commonwealth.
- Students accessing a VET Student Loan will be required to log in to a government website throughout your studies to notify the governement of your continued participation in your study in order to continue recieving the VET Student Loan throughout the course.
- You may wish to seek independent financial advice before applying for a VET Student Loan and/or look into alternative course financing options.
Policies Relating to VET Student Loans
- Student Entry Requirements - Fair and Equal Treatment Policy and Procedure
- Re-Crediting a FEE-HELP Balance
- Statement of VET Tutition Assurance
- Academic & Non-Academic Grievance Policy and Procedures
- Collection and Verification of Student Information Policy and Procedure
- Personal Information Policy
- Ceasing to Provide a Course (Tuition Assurance) Policy and Procedure
- Fees Other Than Tuition Fees
- Withdrawal From Study Policy and Procedure
Schedule of VET Tuition Fees for Approved Courses
Below you will find the Tuition Fee Schedules for our VET Student Loan approved courses, detailing the dates and prices of study modules within each of the courses.
Diploma of Screen and Media:
- February Intake 2017
- March Intake 2017
- March Intake 2017 (Part Time)
- April Intake 2017
- June Intake 2017
Check out our student's work in the Artista Magazine!
