Fees for government subsidised places

Skills First is a Victorian Government program that provides access to government-subsidised training for programs in growth industries.

If you meet the eligibility criteria for a government-subsidised place, the Victorian Government will subsidise a portion of your tuition fees for your program.

Through the Skills First funding, eligible vocational education students can apply for a government subsidised place. Before you enrol, if you are offered a government subsidised place, you must prove your eligibility.

Free TAFE

The Victorian Government is waiving tuition fees for eligible students commencing priority government subsidised non-apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs.

The number of Free TAFE places available is subject to change and the Victorian Government may cap the number of Free TAFE places available for a program at their discretion.

If you receive a Free TAFE place, the tuition fees for your whole program will be paid for by the Victorian Government through the ‘Free TAFE for Priority Courses’ scheme.

Additional expenses

If you receive a Free TAFE place, you will need to cover the student services and amenities fee and any materials fees that may apply yourself.

Learn more

You can find RMIT's full list of eligible Free TAFE programs at Free TAFE for priority courses. Visit this page to learn more about these schemes and eligibility. 

Use the fee finder to get an estimate of fees for your vocational education program.

Or, browse the complete schedule of vocational education program tuition fees: 

• 2025 vocational education program tuition fees (PDF 134kb)

The schedule includes:

• fees for government subsidised places
• the reduced fees if you are in a government-subsidised place and eligible for a concession
• fees for local full-fee places (for non-government subsidised students)

Free TAFE: programs eligible for the Victorian Government's ‘Free TAFE for Priority Courses’ scheme have this denoted against their program code in the fee schedule. Eligible students in an eligible program will have their tuition fees waived for their whole program.

Fee concession

You may be entitled to a concession on your tuition and student services and amenities fees if you are in a Victorian Government subsidised place and you meet the eligibility criteria and apply for a concession.

You cannot apply for a fee concession if you:

• are enrolled in a diploma-level program or above (including diploma, advanced diploma, vocational graduate certificate or vocational graduate diploma)
• are enrolled in an Australian full-fee place or international full-fee place.

Fee exemption

You might be entitled to a fee exemption if you are enrolled in a RMIT vocational education program and in a government subsidised place and meet one or more of the eligibility criteria and apply for the exemption.

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students commencing study in a government subsidised place will not be charged tuition or SSAF fees at all program levels (including diploma, advanced diploma, vocational graduate certificate and vocational graduate diploma programs). You do not require additional documentation to support your application and you are not required to complete an application each academic year.

You cannot apply for a fee exemption if you:

• are enrolled in a domestic full-fee place or international full-fee place.

The student tuition fees as published are subject to change given individual circumstances at enrolment.

These are tuition fees only, apply only to local students and do not include the student services and amenities fee (SSAF) or any materials fees that may apply.

RMIT University reserves the right to annually adjust program tuition fees. Changes to program tuition fees will be applied at the beginning of each calendar year.

Your tuition fees are calculated based on the number of nominal hours you are enrolled in.

To calculate your tuition fees, multiply the rate per nominal hour for your program by the number of nominal hours you are enrolled in.

The term “nominal hours” refers to the average learning and teaching effort required to fulfill the requirements of a course or program. These hours provide a basis for government funding and student contributions for the selected course or program. The nominal hours for a program may vary depending on the electives chosen.

The fee invoiced may vary between semesters as the enrolment requirements in vocational education programs may vary between semesters.

• Vocational education courses and their nominal hours (PDF 1.2MB 44p)

Example 1: tuition fee for one course

A student commences an advanced diploma, for which they’ve been offered a government-subsidised place. They would like to calculate the cost of one of their courses.

Example 2: tuition fees for multiple courses in one year

A student commences C4414 Certificate IV in Design, for which they’ve been offered a government-subsidised place. They enrol in seven courses.

Example 3: concession tuition fees for multiple courses in one year

A student commences C4389 Certificate IV in Custom-made Footwear, for which they’ve been offered a government-subsidised place. This student is also entitled to a fee concession. They enrol in three courses.

If you are enrolled in a diploma level or above program, you may be eligible to apply for a capped loan under the Australian Government's VET Student Loans scheme.