Information on this page is for commencing international students who wish to apply for a refund.
Who can apply using this form?
- holds a student visa or has been issued a Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) to apply for a student visa. This includes cross-campus, exchange and study abroad students.
or - holds a bridging visa* or temporary visa* and does not intend to apply for a student visa,
AND (see below note*)
- is yet to enrol
or - enrols and cancels their enrolment in the first semester of their program.
If you are not listed above and you are one of the following, please submit your refund form via How to apply for a refund as a domestic or continuing international student.
- an international student (including a holder of a student visa, bridging visa or temporary visa) who has successfully studied in the first semester of their current program and their results have been officially released, or
- an international student who has been granted a Leave of Absence.
- an international student who is enrolled and is applying for a refund of an overpayment.
Important information
- Where a refund application contains untrue or inaccurate information the applicant may be asked to re-apply for the refund or the refund application may be denied
- If the applicant is unable to provide any required documented evidence the applicant may only be eligible for a partial refund or the application may be denied.
- If fraudulent documentation is found to be submitted as part of an application for refund or appeal against a refund decision, the student may be denied a refund.
- A student who has enrolled and intends to withdraw from all study, must cancel enrolment before the census date to be eligible for a refund.
- Students who enrol in a flexible term and cancel the enrolment after the flexible term census date will be charged 50% of the initial tuition fee deposit that was paid to accept the offer.
- A student who defers their offer will have their previous acceptance deposit used to accept the new offer and the refund will be assessed against that transferred amount even if the new offer shows a $0 deposit.
- Application for refunds submitted after 12 months of program commencement will not be eligible for a refund. This includes students who accepted their offer and are yet to enrol in an RMIT program.
- Correct and complete applications for a refund will be processed within 20 business days. The exception is a provider default (where RMIT is unable to provide the program) in which case the refund must be processed within 14 days.
- The application for refund submission date will be recorded as the date of enrolment cancellation or the date of an application for release and used for refund calculations.
- Students who accept a package of programs including an offer for an English for Academic Purposes may not be eligible for a refund of English fees. RMIT UP English language pathways will make the decision on a student’s eligibility for a refund of English tuition fees. See RMIT UP Refund Procedure for more detail.
- The same refund rules apply for deposits paid by students who are eligible for the international tuition fee bursary or Foundation Studies tuition fee bursary.
- Where a student is administratively withdrawn from the university due to non-commencement on the agreed commencement date, the commencing international student refund rules apply.
Frequently asked questions
- If you have not yet enrolled but are considering studying at a later time, find out how to defer your offer.
- If you have deferred your offer, please make sure you have completed the deferral process by accepting your new offer before applying for a refund.
- If you have enrolled in any classes (subjects), please ensure you cancel your entire program enrolment before the census date prior to submitting a refund application to avoid financial penalties.
- Due to enrolment system restrictions, please do not attempt to drop individual classes (subjects) as this may negative impact the refund amount you can receive. Find out how to cancel your program enrolment.
Please note that you cannot defer your offer and apply for a refund at the same time.
- You may be eligible for a refund if special circumstances cause you to miss the cancellation deadline.
- If you reduce your study load in the first semester of study, you will not be eligible for a refund of the difference between the tuition fees you paid for that semester and the tuition fees charged. Instead, the difference will appear as a credit in your student account.
- To find out whether you require a release, please refer to Transfer to another education provider
- If you are intending to change study plans and study elsewhere within Australia, you should stay enrolled at RMIT until the outcome of your application for release is finalised.
- If you have applied for a release, please wait for the application to be finalised before applying for a refund.
- If you have any questions about transferring to another education provider or wish to follow up on your release application, please contact isvisa@rmit.edu.au
- If you decide to transfer provider without being granted release, you will not be eligible for a refund. This rule applies to students who require release.
- All refund applications are assessed based on the applicable Schedule of Fees and Charges (see refund guidelines).
- Any refund amount can only be determined after a refund application has been submitted and assessed.
- If your application for a refund is successful any outstanding charges and administrative fees will be deducted from the refundable amount.
- If you paid your fees via credit card, the approved refund amount will be processed back to the same credit card in line with banking compliance rules and regulations.
- If you paid using another payment method other than credit card, the approved refund amount will be paid to your nominated bank account.
Note: Some international bank policies may require the refund to go back to the payer's bank account. If you provide a different bank account, it may cause lengthy delays.
Important:
RMIT reserves the right to request proof of payment. RMIT is not liable for any variance from foreign exchange rate fluctuations. RMIT refuses to process a refund application when a discrepancy in the transferred amount and the issued invoice has been identified.
- Correct and complete applications for refund will be processed within 20 business days. Please note that transfers to overseas bank accounts will take up to 6 weeks.
- RMIT is not responsible for any currency variations in foreign exchange rates.
- It is highly recommended that your application for refund is submitted as soon as possible. Any delays in submitting the application, may impact the refund amount.
How to apply for a refund
Before you submit your online application form:
- Check refund guidelines below to identify whether you are entitled to a full refund/partial refund or no refund.
- Compile any required supporting documents.
The refund amount is determined by an assessment of your reason for refund, supporting documentation and when you apply for a refund, relative to your Program commencement date.
Please refer to RMIT University’s important dates for program commencement and census date
| When you apply | Refund payable | Evidence required |
|---|---|---|
| Within 4 weeks of the program commencement date, up until and including census date | 50% of tuition fee deposit (Higher Education flexi term enrolment see Section 11.8.4) |
No evidence required |
| After census date | No refund | No evidence required |
Table B1: Full refund assessment rules
| Refund reason | Refund payable | Evidence required | Refund submission date |
Visa not granted in time to enrol |
Full refund |
Visa application with visible date of submission. Note: Student must be offshore to be eligible for a full refund. Where a student has: (i) arrived in Australia and (ii) has not enrolled by the enrolment deadline and (iii) their visa has been issued after the last date to enrol. |
Application for refund must be submitted within 12 months of program commencement date. **Enrolled students must cancel their RMIT Australia enrolment by the census date. |
Student is transferring to an RMIT international partner or RMIT Vietnam |
Full refund |
Evidence of enrolment from RMIT international partner or RMIT Vietnam |
|
Student applies to study at RMIT Melbourne then withdraws and is given an offer by RMIT Vietnam |
Full refund | Offer letter | |
| RMIT cancels a student’s Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) due to a likely visa refusal | Full refund | Email notification regarding cancellation of your CoE | |
Compassionate or compelling reason |
Full refund | Supporting documentation for specific compassionate compelling circumstance Proof of return home such as a boarding pass or international movement record may be requested |
|
Provider default – RMIT is unable to provide the program |
Full refund | Email notification from RMIT | |
Permanent Residency granted before the census date of accepted program where change of citizenship is not submitted |
Full refund | Evidence of Permanent Residency grant | |
| Visa application has been refused | Full refund | Department of Home Affairs Visa Refusal Letter | Application for refund should be submitted once you are notified of your visa refusal. Enrolled students must cancel their enrolment before the first semester official result release date for their current program. |
| Overpayment of fees | Full refund | Proof of payment | Application for refund must be submitted within 12 months of program commencement date. |
Student did not meet program conditions *Academic or English condition not met |
Full refund | Official academic transcript or statement of results if not from RMIT or English language proficiency test result |
|
| Student cannot provide release letter from current education provider | Full refund | Evidence of refusal of release |
Table B2: Partial or no refund assessment tool
| Refund reason | Refund submission date | Refund payable | Evidence required |
|---|---|---|---|
|
4 weeks or more before program commencement date | 90% of tuition fee deposit | No evidence required |
| Within 4 weeks of the program commencement date, up until and including census date | 50% of tuition fee deposit (Higher Education flexi term enrolment see Section 11.8.4) |
No evidence required | |
| After census date | No refund | No evidence required |
Table B3: No refund rules
| Refund request scenario | Refund Outcome |
|---|---|
| Application for refund submitted 12 months after program commencement, including students who accepted their RMIT offer and are yet to enrol in an RMIT program. | No refund |
| Students who withdraw from RMIT during the transfer provider restricted period of their student visa to take up a place at another Australian education provider without approved release from RMIT. This includes students who accepted their RMIT offer and are yet to enrol in an RMIT program. | No refund |
| Student whose student visa has been cancelled for breaching student visa condition(s). | No refund Note: Refund may be approved if there is evidence of extenuation circumstances. Visa cancellation letter must be submitted with the application for refund assessment. |
Refund of Overseas Student Health Cover
Commencing international students:
- A student who has not commenced any program with RMIT or enrolled but never arrived in Australia is eligible for a refund of Medibank OSHC premium paid at their time of program acceptance.
- A student who has arrived in Australia including a student who arrived in Australia and decides to return home will be directed to the Medibank OSHC customer service team to apply for a refund of eligible OSHC fees.
- A student who did not arrange their OSHC via RMIT must contact their OSHC provider to apply for a refund of eligible OSHC fees.
Continuing International students:
Continuing International students must contact their OSHC provider to apply for a refund eligible OSHC fees.
If your refund application requires more information or supporting documents to proceed, please provide these within 10 working days. Your refund application will be closed if the required information is not received within this timeframe. If your refund application is closed, you will need to submit a new application if you wish to proceed.
Please note that your application will be processed within 20 business days of receiving a new complete application.
Submit application form
Appeals
You can appeal the outcome of your refund outcome within 20 days of receiving the outcome notification. An appeal must include new information not included in the original application and new supporting documents.
