Fees

AFTRS is required by the Commonwealth Government to set a Census Date for each unit of study it offers. To find the census date for the units of study in your course, refer to the Fees Schedule above.

WHAT IS A CENSUS DATE?

• The date that a student become financially liable for any subject/s in which they are enrolled
• The final day that a student can withdraw from a subject without financial liability
• The date when a student incurs a FEE-HELP debt for any subjects for which they have taken out a FEE-HELP loan

Each subject has its own census date based on its study period. Students are expected to be aware of each census date for each subject that they enrol in.

FEE-HELP is a loan from the Australian Government for eligible higher education students to pay tuition fees. All AFTRS award courses are FEE-HELP approved. AFTRS will assess a student’s eligibly for FEE-HELP when a student indicates their intention to utilise the FEE-HELP scheme.

FEE-HELP Factsheet

ELIGIBILITY

To get a FEE-HELP loan, a student must:

• be one of the following:
  • an Australian citizen who will study at least one unit of your course of study in Australia; or
  • a New Zealand Special Category Visa (SCV) holder, or eligible former New Zealand SCV holder; who meets the long term residency requirements and who studies the entire course while living in Australia; or
  • a permanent humanitarian visa holder; or an eligible former permanent humanitarian visa holder; who studies the entire course while living in Australia
• be enrolled in a fee-paying place at a provider that offers FEE-HELP loans
• be enrolled in an eligible course at your provider by the census date (all AFTRS courses are eligible)
• submit the Request for FEE-HELP loan form to your provider by the census date
• have an available HELP balance
• provide your provider with your Unique Student Identifier (USI) prior to the first census date (for new enrolments from 1 January 2021) unless an exemption applies
• not undertake more than 2 years’ worth of higher education study in the last 12 months (unless your provider has approved a higher study load.

To get a FEE-Help loan, a student will need:

• a tax file number (TFN), or Certificate of application for a TFN
• a USI
• to complete an Electronic Commonwealth Assistance Form (eCAF), which will be provided during enrolment

Where FEE-HELP is not available or if a student chooses to, they may choose to pay their fees upfront. AFTRS will issue a tax invoice at the beginning of semester for all upfront payments (with payment options).

If you are a FEE-HELP paying student and you would like to change your payment method to upfront or make a partial upfront payment, contact the Student Centre.

INCIDENTAL FEES

Fees for food, transport and accommodation costs associated with the provision of field trips that form part of the course. Mandatory for specified subjects and payable by invoice.

Tuition assurance is a requirement of the Higher Education Support Act 2003 (HESA) for all Higher Education Providers which means students can access alternative courses of study and or be financially compensated if the Higher Education Provider ceases being able to provide a course of study.

AFTRS has been granted a ministerial exemption from these requirements on the basis that:

• Its funding is secure
• It is extremely unlikely that AFTRS will be in a position where it will be unable to deliver a course of study due to its established position as a federally funded government institution.
• The specialised nature of AFTRS courses of study and the unique production model offered is not available at any other institution in Australia.