Overview
What is FEE-HELP?
FEE-HELP limit
Loan Fee
Overview -
If you enrol in a unit of study as a fee paying (non-Commonwealth supported) student:
- you must pay full tuition fees for your studies
- the Commonwealth does not contribute towards the cost of your education and
- you may be eligible for a FEE-HELP loan to help pay your tuition fees.
This section has been designed to assist you in understanding the eligibility requirements for applying for FEE-HELP assistance.
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What is FEE-HELP?
FEE-HELP is a loan given to eligible fee paying students to help pay part or all of their tuition fees.
The Australian Government pays the amount of the loan directly to the student's provider.
Students repay their loan through the tax system once their income is above the minimum threshold for compulsory repayment.
See also: Compulsory and voluntary repayments
FEE-HELP began on 1 January 2005 and is available to all eligible fee paying students.
FEE-HELP limit
You can borrow up to the amount of the tuition fee being charged by your provider for your unit of study. However, over your lifetime you can borrow only up to the FEE-HELP limit. Eligible people may borrow up to the FEE-HELP limit to pay tuition fees over their lifetime. In 2010, the FEE-HELP limit is $85,062, unless a person is undertaking a medicine, dentistry or veterinary science course that leads to initial registration as a medical practitioner, dentist, veterinarian or veterinary surgeon. If they are, the FEE-HELP limit is increased to $106,328. The FEE-HELP limit is indexed on 1 January each year.
As a person uses FEE-HELP to pay tuition fees, the amount they may borrow in future is reduced. Once a person has borrowed an amount equal to the FEE-HELP limit (the indexed amount at that time), they will not be able to receive FEE-HELP to pay tuition fees. This applies even if a person has partially or fully repaid their FEE-HELP loan.
The FEE-HELP limit is the total amount available to an eligible person under both the FEE-HELP scheme and the VET FEE-HELP scheme. This means that any amount borrowed by an eligible person under either FEE-HELP or VET FEE-HELP will reduce the person’s FEE-HELP balance until the person’s FEE-HELP limit is reached. Information on VET FEE-HELP is available through the DEEWR website at www.deewr.gov.au/vetfeehelp.
Loan Fee
A loan fee of 20 per cent applies to FEE-HELP loans for undergraduate courses of study. The FEE-HELP limit does not include the loan fee. No loan fee applies to FEE-HELP loans for postgraduate courses, bridging courses for overseas-trained professionals, enabling courses or units of study undertaken directly with Open Universities Australia
.
Note: Increase in FEE-HELP loan fee for undergraduate students
Subject to the passage of legislation, the FEE-HELP loan fee will increase from 20 per cent to 25 per cent for undergraduate students enrolled in units of study with a census date on or after 1 July 2010.
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