Commonwealth assistance - HELP loans and VET Student Loans

To find out about HECS-HELP and if you’re eligible to apply, go to the Government’s Study Assist website.

New government eligibility rules: From 2022, students in a CSP or with a HECS-HELP or FEE-HELP loan must maintain a satisfactory completion rate to keep their Commonwealth funding. Read more on the low completion rate and government funding webpage.

If you've been offered a Commonwealth supported place, you'll be automatically prompted to complete an application for HECS-HELP when you enrol in your RMIT program.

To find out about FEE-HELP and if you’re eligible to apply, go to the Government’s Study Assist website.

Once you’ve confirmed your eligibility, it’s easy to apply. When you enrol in Enrolment Online, you’ll be asked to indicate which optional loan/s, including FEE-HELP, you want to apply for. You’ll then get an email from the Government with further instructions on how to apply.

To be eligible for a VET Student loan, you must meet ALL eligibility criteria, below:

1. Be studying in an approved course 
2. Meet citizenship requirements.
   
   You must be:
   • an Australian citizen, or,
   • be a qualifying New Zealand citizen, or
   • hold a Permanent Humanitarian visa holder, and have verified your residency status
      
3. Have been assessed as academically suited to undertake your program
4. Verify identity and date of birth   
5. Meet the tax file number requirements
   You must have a tax file number (TFN) or be able to show that you have made an application for a FN.  
6. Have a valid Unique Student Identifier (USI) 
7. Have submitted a VET Student Loan eCAF on or before your first census date for your program/s  
8. Have an available HELP balance of more than $0
9. Have not exceeded the course cap 

Throughout your course, you will need to submit Progression Forms to confirm your on-going engagement with your studies.  This will allow you to continue accessing the loan throughout your course.

RMIT must collect and verify information and documents to support the eligibility requirements from students applying for a VET Student Loan:

Evidence you can use:

Citizenship or residency

VSL program is only available to Australian citizens, qualifying New Zealand citizens or permanent humanitarian visa holders who are residing in Australia.  To meet the citizenship and residency requirements you need to provide evidence that you meet one of the following categories:   

• An Australian Citizen
• A qualifying New Zealand citizen, or hold a special visa category such as the New Zealand Special Category Visa, and meet the long-term residency requirements 
• Permanent Humanitarian Visa holder.   

You will need to verify citizenship, identity and date of birth. Information about the documents you need to provide can be found on the RMIT verify your citizenship page Verify your citizenship

Academic suitability

The following documents are accepted as evidence of academic suitability: 

• Australian Year 12 completion certificate, (VCE or interstate equivalent), issued by the Education and Assessment Authority of a State or Territory, or
• International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IB) diploma 
• Completion of a qualification that is AQF level Certificate IV or above (where the course was delivered in English), or
• Competency at Exit Level 3 or above in an approved Language, Literacy and Numeracy (LLN) assessment for both Reading and Numeracy.  

Completing the Language, Literacy and Numeracy (LLN) assessment.

RMIT uses the BKSB tool to assess your LLN. This is completed prior to enrolment. Students will be provided access to the Assessment tool and testing must be conducted with honesty and integrity; RMIT staff must be confident that a student displays the required competence and students must complete the test in accordance with the RMIT Student Charter. The results of your test will be available immediately after completion. 

The LLN results are recorded in RMIT’s Student Management System, and RMIT will only provide these results to authorized officers of the State and Federal Governments if requested.

Parent/guardian consent form (under 18)

If you are under 18 years of age, a parent / guardian must complete a consent form, or if you have received Youth Allowance on the basis that you are independent, you may be required to provide evidence of this. 

Tax file number (TFN)

You will need to have a TFN or show us that you have applied for one in advance of submitting your VSL application.  All applicants must have provided a TFN before census date. 

Unique Student Identifier (USI)

You must provide a valid, Unique Student Identifier (USI)  

Not all programs are approved for VET Student Loans.   You can browse the list of RMIT programs that are eligible for a VET Student Loan from the lists below. 

Note that in some eligible programs, the VET Student Loan does not cover the full amount of the tuition fee - these programs are listed under the heading Eligible programs - loan amount does not cover subsidised tuition fees. 

The Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology advises that:

• VET Student Loans will not be approved for students who do not meet all eligibility requirements; and
  
• a VET Student Loan gives rise to a HELP debt that continues to be a debt due to the Commonwealth until it is repaid.

Managing your loan

A VSL results in a debt that continues to be a debt due to the government until it is repaid in full.   

You will not be required to begin to repay your loan until you reach the compulsory threshold.  This figure is adjusted annually.  More information can be found at Australian Government Study Assist

There is a loan cap for each VSL program.  The loan cap is the maximum amount you can borrow for your program. 

If your loan cap is lower than your total tuition fees, you must pay the ‘gap’ to RMIT by the due date, or your enrolment may be cancelled in line with RMITs Discontinuation of Student program procedure.

Programs with tuition fees higher than the loan cap are listed under Eligible programs - loan amount does not cover subsidised tuition fees.

If you have accessed a VET Student Loan for the same program at another provider, you will have already used part of your applicable program cap with that provider.

You are responsible for monitoring your program loan cap and your available HELP balance.  

You can check your VSL debt and any existing HELP debt at  myHELPbalance.

Your program loan limit will be stated on your RMIT issued VET Student Loan Fee notice and VET Student loan statement of Covered Fees, after you enrol.

Your loan debt incurred at RMIT will be provided via a Commonwealth Assistance Notice after each census date.

Progress in your course

To continue accessing a VET Student Loan, you must demonstrate that you are a genuine student continuing with your studies. 

To do this, at least twice a year, you must complete a Progression Form in the electronic Commonwealth Assistance Form (eCAF) system when you receive the invitation email (via ecafsystem@education.gov.au). This process ensures protection for students accessing the VET Student Loans program.

Refer to the VSL Progression Form Fact Sheet for more information.

If you do not submit your progression forms, your enrolment may be cancelled in line with RMITs Discontinuation of Student program procedure.

The above list of RMIT programs and VSL caps is correct as of November 2022. The maximum loan amount for a program is indexed on 1 January each year. This web page will be updated with the indexed amounts as soon as they are published by the Australian Government.

The student tuition fees as published are subject to change based on individual circumstances at enrolment. Fees are adjusted on an annual basis and these fees apply to 2023 only.

The above list of RMIT programs and VSL caps is correct as of November 2022. The maximum loan amount for a program is indexed on 1 January each year. This web page will be updated with the indexed amounts as soon as they are published by the Australian Government.

The student tuition fees as published are subject to change based on individual circumstances at enrolment. Fees are adjusted on an annual basis and these fees apply to 2023 only.  

If your program is eligible for the VET Student Loans (VSL) scheme and it has:

• a loan limit that covers the total amount of the subsidised tuition fees for your program, then VSL will cover the full amount of subsidised tuition fees for that program (based on a standard full-time enrolment).
• a loan limit that doesn’t cover the total amount of the subsidised tuition fees for your program, then once you reach the VSL loan limit, you’ll need to pay the remaining tuition fees to RMIT - this is most likely to occur in the final term of your program.

It’s important to note that The Department of Education and Training will only allocate RMIT a capped amount of funding for VSL loans and that this may not cover all eligible student loans. You should therefore apply as soon as possible.

What happens if I come to RMIT after my original provider closed?

If you come to RMIT to complete a program that you commenced at a provider that has now closed, you may be eligible for course credits for parts of the original course successfully completed as evidenced by a Statement of Attainment issued in accordance with the Australian Qualification Framework. You will not be charged tuition fees for the replacement component of the replacement course.

Tuition Protection and Provider Default

What do I do if I believe I have incurred a debt unfairly?

If you believe you changed your enrolment, were assessed unfairly or for any reason that you believe lead to you incurring a debt that you think is unreasonable you can lodge a complaint with RMIT to have the matter reviewed. 

Student complaints - RMIT University

Why does RMIT use the BSKB tool to test language, literacy and numeracy?

The BKSB tool has been approved by the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations as an appropriate way to assess your language, literacy and numeracy skills against the Australian Core Skills Framework (ACSF).  Students who demonstrate an Exit level 3 or higher in both Reading and Numeracy will be eligible for VSL.  RMIT will provide the LLN results to authorised officers of the State and Federal Governments if requested.  

DEWR LLN Information

To find out about SA-HELP and if you’re eligible to apply, go to the Government’s Study Assist website.

Once you’ve confirmed your eligibility, it’s easy to apply. When you enrol in Enrolment Online, you’ll be asked to indicate which optional loan/s, including SA-HELP, you want to apply for. You’ll then get an email from the Government with further instructions on how to apply.