VET Student Loans (VETSL) is an Australian Government loan scheme for the Vocational Education and Training sector. Students studying approved Diplomas and Advanced Diplomas may be eligible to apply for a VETSL to defer their tuition costs (up to the VETSL course cap) if they do not elect to pay their tuition fees upfront.
Eligible courses are subject to VETSL course caps which limit the amount able to be deferred to your VETSL and are reviewed annually per government legislation.
Other fees associated with your course, or tuition fees over the VETSL course cap, are to be paid via other means by the student and cannot be deferred to a VETSL.
VETSL debt is repayable by the student to the Government via the tax system based on their repayment income – see Paying Back Your Loan for further information. Interest is not charged on VETSL debt, however indexation is added to debt older than 11 months on the 1st of June each year. Please note that VETSL debt may reduce a person’s take-home wage and/or affect borrowing capacity until it is repaid.
VETSL approved students are required to complete a VET Student Loan Progression Notice via the Government eCAF Portal each February, June and October to confirm their ongoing genuine student status.
You will need to satisfy citizenship eligibility and meet academic requirements prior to your admission into your chosen Diploma/Advanced Diploma course.
You may eligible for a VETSL if you are:
-
An Australian citizen*, or
-
A permanent humanitarian visa holder who is usually resident in Australia*, or
-
A qualifying New Zealand Citizen*
AND you have also:
-
Been assessed as academically suited to undertake the eligible course
-
Not already accessed 100% of your lifetime HELP Loan limit
-
Not already accessed 100% of your course’s VETSL cap
You will be required to provide citizenship documentation (depending on yours, and possibly your parents, place and date of birth) to prove your Australian citizenship before you are invited to apply for a VETSL.
Examples of documents that will be required may include either a current Australian Passport, Australian Birth Certificate, Australian Citizenship Certificate, Permanent Humanitarian Visa or New Zealand Special Category Visa. We will contact you if further citizenship information is required for your application.
You will also be required to provide academic proof (Australian Year 12 certificate, International Baccalaureate Diploma OR Certificate IV or above) before admission, and have a valid Tax File Number (TFN) and Unique Student Identifier (USI).
If you are under 18 at the time of application, you will also be required to provide a signed VET Student Loan Parental Consent form or Centrelink proof of independence.
VET Student Loans will not be approved for students who do not meet eligibility requirements.
*To see if you are likely to meet the eligibility requirements, check out the VET Student Loans Eligibility Tool on the My Skills website
Certain Diploma and Advanced Diploma courses that align with industry needs and employment outcomes are eligible for VETSL. If you wish to access a VETSL to defer the tuition costs of a higher level VET course you will need to select one of these eligible courses.
View the Government’s list of eligible courses and remember to check your specific course page to see if The Gordon is approved to offer a loan for that course.
Your loan may not cover all of your tuition costs. Each course has a VETSL Course Cap, which is the maximum loan amount you can borrow for the course.
Check your specific course information on our website to find its associated loan cap for the current year under Fees.
If your tuition fees are higher than the course cap you will need to pay the difference. These payments will be proportioned across each of your census dates and The Gordon will send you a VET Student Loan Statement of Covered Fees and Fee Notice at least two weeks before each payment is due (your census date). Any tuition amount that is not able to be deferred to a VETSL as it is over the course cap may be paid upfront by the due date, or included on a Gordon payment plan if it meets the criteria.
Additional costs other than tuition fees (such as materials fees) cannot be deferred to a VETSL and must be paid before their due date or included on a payment plan.
Apply early for a Tax File Number (TFN)
To be eligible for a VETSL you must provide your TFN prior to the census date.
You must use your own TFN to access a VETSL. If you don’t already have a TFN, it’s important to organise one as soon as you’re considering a VETSL. Applications to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) for a new TFN will take time, especially at the start of the year.
Apply for a TFN at the Australian Taxation Office website.
You can apply for a VETSL with just a copy of your Certificate of application for a TFN from the ATO but you must provide your TFN to us prior to your census date to access the VETSL.
Your Tax File Number must be able to be verified. This means that your personal details provided to The Gordon must match the details you have supplied to the ATO. Check more information about how TFNs are verified. We will contact you if your TFN cannot be verified.
Ensure you have a valid Unique Student Identifier (USI)
From 1 January 2021, all students who apply for a VETSL will be required to supply their USI.
If you hold a USI exemption, you will be unable to access Commonwealth financial assistance and will not be eligible for a VETSL.
If you are applying to study a VETSL eligible course, a question on your application will ask if you are interested in accessing VETSL. Answering ‘yes’ to that question will prompt The Gordon to contact you once you are enrolled into your course. Relevant citizenship evidence and other supporting documentation will be required before your VETSL application can be finalised.
If you don’t express your interest in VETSL on your application but then change your mind, you can also visit Customer Service to obtain a VET Student Loan Expression of Interest Form.
Before you can formally apply for a VETSL, Commonwealth Government legislation requires you to confirm your eligibility for a VETSL by providing evidence of your citizenship status to be held on file at The Gordon. Relevant citizenship evidence and other supporting documentation will be required before your VETSL application can be finalised.
Once you are admitted into your course, you will receive email communication from The Gordon in regards to providing copies of relevant supporting documents if they are not already held on your file. We will be in contact with you during each stage of the application process via email or text message to help guide you and answer any queries you may have.
See the documents you will need to support your application for a VETSL.
Once your eligibility for a VETSL is confirmed and you are enrolled in units in your course (to be allocated a census date), The Gordon will submit your loan request to the government via the Electronic Commonwealth Assistance Form (eCAF). The Government eCAF Portal will communicate with you via your personal email and provide you with an access code and link to your eCAF.
For all of your tuition fees to be deferred to a VETSL, you must complete the Government eCAF prior to your first census date. Each of your enrolled units has an assigned census date and you will normally have at least 3 census dates throughout your study.
If you miss a census date, you can still apply for a VETSL for your future census dates. However, you will not be able to access a VETSL for past census dates and those fees must be paid upfront or included on a Gordon payment plan if it meets the criteria.
Check the finance section of your eCentral account to find your specific census dates, fees and payment due dates.
Find out about VET Student Loans and census dates here.
Look out for important VETSL communication:
VET Student Loan Statement of Covered Fees and Fee Notice
At least 14 days before each census date, we will email you a VET Student Loan Statement of Covered Fees and Fee Notice detailing the tuition fees that will be deferred to your VETSL on your upcoming census date and any tuition amounts that might need to be paid that are not covered by your VETSL.
Commonwealth Assistance Notice
We will email you a Commonwealth Assistance Notice within 28 days after each census date to confirm the amount of debt that has been deferred to your VETSL.
Progression Points
To continue to be eligible for a VETSL, you will need to submit a VET Student Loan Progression Notice every February, June and October until the completion of your course. This notice is issued via the Government eCAF Portal and we will contact you via SMS when this has been issued to your registered email address. If you do not complete the Progression Notice as required, you may be ineligible to continue accessing your VETSL to defer the remainder of your tuition fees for your course.
Changing your mind
If you no longer want to defer your tuition fees using a VETSL, you must notify us by email - fees@gordontafe.edu.au. If you choose to cancel your VETSL, you will be required to pay the fees for any units with future census dates upfront.
Keep your contact details up to date:
We send you important information about your VETSL via your email and mobile phone so it is important that your contact details are up to date. Login to your eCentral account or contact Customer Service to change your details.
Withdrawing from your course:
If you choose to withdraw from your course or are unable to continue studying, you will not incur any VETSL debt for incomplete units with a future census date as long as your withdrawal advice has been provided in writing to Customer Service or your teaching department prior to your census date.
To be eligible for a refund or credit of materials fees and other levies, you must complete, sign and return a ‘Withdrawal and Refund Request’ form available from Customer Service, your teaching department, or online via your eCentral account.
Find out more about your studies, fees and VET Student Loans: