TAFE Eligibility for a government subsidised place

• TAFE eligibility process
• How to check if you are eligible
• Apprentices and Foundation Skills
• How to provide proof of eligibility
• Failure to prove eligibility
• More information

TAFE eligibility process

When you apply for a TAFE government subsidised place, your eligibility will be checked against the criteria outlined below.

If you are offered a government subsidised place you must provide proof of eligibility before your first class census date.

How to check if you are eligible

You can use the TAFE eligibility calculator, or see below for details.

Eligibility depends on your:

• citizenship

• age and prior education (Australian qualifications only).

Citizenship

To be eligible for a government subsidised place you must be one of the following:

• an Australian citizen
• an Australian Permanent Resident (holder of a permanent visa)
• the holder of a Special Category Visa (sub-class 444, New Zealand citizen), or

• an East Timorese asylum seeker.

Age and prior education

• Applicants aged 20 years and over as at 1 January in the year of commencement –Government subsidised places will be available for successful applicants applying for a qualification higher than the Australian qualification they currently hold, and where the program is offering government subsidised places
• Applicants aged less than 20 years as at 1 January in the year of commencement – Government subsidised places will be available for all successful applicants satisfying the above citizenship criteria and where the program is offering government subsidised places.

Apprentices and Foundation Skills

If you are an apprentice or are undertaking a Foundation Skills program you only need to provide proof that you meet the citizenship criteria in order to be eligible for a Government subsidised place.

An apprentice is defined as a person who has entered into a registered training contract seeking to undertake a qualification defined as an apprenticeship in a relevant Victorian Approved Training Scheme.

An apprentice does not include a person who:

• has entered into a training contract registered interstate
• is undertaking a pre-apprenticeship, or

• is a party to a registered training contract in a qualification defined as a traineeship in a relevant Victorian Approved Training Scheme.

Note: Trainees are required to meet the standard eligibility criteria.

How to provide proof of eligibility

Visit the Hub on your campus and bring:

• a completed and signed 2012 Evidence of student eligibility for VTG and student declaration form

• the documents required to prove your eligibility, which are listed on the back of the 2012 Evidence of student eligibility for VTG and student declaration form.

Note: If you are not attending classes on campus, please contact your school (or the main contact person for your program) for advice on how to prove your eligibility.

Deadline to prove eligibility

You must prove your eligibility on or before the census date for your first course.

Failure to prove eligibility

Until you submit your form and present your evidence to prove eligibility for a government subsidised place, you will be unable to obtain your RMIT student card or transport concession form, or apply for a TAFE fee concession.

If you fail to prove your eligibility by the census date for your first course you will be considered ineligible for a government subsidised place. At this point your enrolment will be changed to a full-fee place and you will be liable for substantially higher fees. Find out the full-fee rate for your TAFE program.

To avoid paying full fees, please ensure you submit your form and present your evidence as soon as possible but no later than the census date for your first course.

More information

For more information about eligibility and providing appropriate proof, contact:

• the Student Administration Support Line on tel. +61 3 9925 8980 or visit the Hub on your campus during business hours.