Study now and pay later at Chisholm

VET Student Loans (VSL) is an income-contingent loan scheme that assists eligible students to pay for all or part of their Vocational Education and Training (VET) tuition fees when studying a VSL approved course at Chisholm.

VSL can be offered to eligible students who are enrolling into an approved Diploma or Advanced Diploma course that are linked to industry needs and employment outcomes.

For a full list of Chisholm's VET Student Loans-eligible courses, download the 2023 Tuition Fee Schedule - VET Student Loans - Eligible Courses and Loan Cap. Chisholm is an approved VSL provider who can offer a selection of VSL-eligible courses that are on the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations website. Each VSL-eligible course has an associated loan cap amount. Students are only entitled to loans up to the specified loan cap amount of each VSL-eligible course, providing the student has not reached their maximum HELP loan limit.

You can also see if your preferred course is eligible for a VET Student Loan by viewing the 'Help with Fees' information on the respective course page.

Students pay back their HELP debt through the tax system once you earn above the compulsory repayment threshold. The compulsory repayment threshold is different each year. You can make a voluntary repayment to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) at any time.

For more information about VET Student Loans, visit https://www.studyassist.gov.au/vet-student-loans.

Alternatively, you can visit the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations website for an overview of the VET Student Loan program and your obligations.

To be eligible for a VET Student Loan

Students must meet the citizenship/residency requirements:

  • Be an Australian Citizen or
  • A New Zealand Citizen with a Special Category Visa (SCV) or
  • A Permanent Humanitarian Visa holder who will be residing in Australia for the duration of the course
  • Provide proof of Identity and Date of Birth documents for verification when studying a VET Student Loans eligible course
  • Have a Tax File Number (TFN) or be able to provide a Certificate from the Commissioner stating that an application for a TFN has been submitted
  • Have a Unique Student Identifier (USI)
  • Have not exceeded your HELP loan limit
  • Have not exceeded the VET Student Loans course cap
  • Submit a request for a VET Student Loan via the Government's eCAF System (including all required information) on or before the first census date and no less than two (2) business days after enrolment date.
  • Be able to demonstrate that you are genuinely studying by completing progression forms at regular intervals throughout your course.
  • Provide a Parent/Guardian consent form if under 18 years of age.
  • Meet student entry procedure requirements.

If you are a New Zealand Citizen who holds a Special Category Visa (SCV) you must also meet the below criteria:

First entered Australia at least 10 years ago as a dependent child aged under 18 years

  • Have been ordinarily a resident in Australia for the previous 10 years (that is, have been physically present in Australia for at least eight of the past 10 years) and 18 months out of the last two years at the time of application for the loan, and
  • Are otherwise eligible for the loan.

New Zealand Special Category Visa (SCV) VSL applicants will need to provide an International Movement Record from the Department of Immigration to prove that they meet citizenship requirements as well as the above criteria. 

Proof of Australian Citizenship

Acceptable forms of evidence include:

  • Current Australian Passport
  • Australian Citizenship Certificate or Naturalisation Certificate
  • Australian Citizenship by Descent extract
  • Australian Birth Certificate where you were born before 20 August 1986 OR
  • If born on or after 20 August 1986 we would require your Australian Birth Certificate plus proof of your parent’s Australian Citizenship at the time of your birth. To find out what proof you, visit our VET Student Loan – Citizenship Confirmation page.

If you are unsure as to what citizenship evidence you may need to provide, please contact us on 1300 244 746.

Please note: Australian permanent residents are not eligible to access VET Student Loans.

Student entry procedure

One of the eligibility requirements for access to tuition fee assistance under the Commonwealth Government's VET Student Loan scheme is an assessment of your suitability to undertake your chosen course of study.

If you wish to apply for a VET Student Loan, you must either:

  • provide a copy of a Senior Secondary Certificate of Education awarded to you by an agency or authority of a State or Territory for your completion of your Australian Year 12 Certificate (VCE Vocational Major Intermediate or VCE Vocational Major Senior certificate also meets requirements); OR
  • hold an Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) Certificate IV or higher qualification, or an overseas qualification that has been formally recognised by a Federal, State or Territory government agency which assesses overseas qualifications (or an organisation contracted to undertake such assessments such as  VETASSESS) as equivalent to an AQF level Certificate IV or higher qualification; OR
  • complete a reading and numeracy assessment that demonstrates your competence at or above Exit Level 3 in the Australian Core Skills Framework. OR
  • provide a copy of your Diploma awarded for completion in an International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme (IB).

Please note: Chisholm will provide access to the bksbLive 2* tool for a reading (English) and numeracy (maths) assessment as part of our information and enrolment process. The assessment must be completed without assistance (Assistance includes help from another person or the use of electronic devices or aids to search for answers to the assessment).

Upon completion of the assessment, you will have immediate access to your results by logging into bksbLIVE 2*. In addition, the results will be reported to the Secretary of the Commonwealth Department of Employment and Workplace Relations - who provides access to a VET Student Loan. The report will be in the form, manner and by the time requested by the Secretary. Chisholm is required to retain the results of your reading and numeracy assessment for at least five (5) years. This assessment is a requirement for the Commonwealth Government to approve your VET Student Loan application.

Added protections for students as part of the VET Student Loans scheme

The VET Student Loans scheme is being implemented to provide sustainable and affordable opportunities for students to undertake higher level VET Courses. The program aligns to industry needs and employment outcomes, to provide students with the skills required by employers and industry. The program is designed to provide greater protection to vulnerable students, taxpayers and the reputation of Australia’s high quality VET system.

One of these protections is the two-day (business days) cooling-off period. You can only apply for a VET Student Loan two business days after you have enrolled in your studies. This rule allows you time to think about the full impacts of taking on a student loan. During the two days cooling-off, you may consider other course options or work out how the debt will affect your circumstances. This is a mandatory requirement for all TAFE, dual sector Universities and private training providers.

Even if you are certain that you want to use a VET Student Loan, Chisholm can only accept a VET Student Loans application at least two business days after you enrolled.

If you decide that you do not wish to utilise VET Student Loans for your enrolment, you can return to Chisholm before the two-day waiting period to arrange an alternate payment method. It is important to finalise your payment option within 14 days of your enrolment. Please Note: Tuition fees will be rounded to the nearest dollar under most payment options.

 Also available:

*bksbLIVE 2 – The Basic Key Skills Builder (bksb) is an online skills review tool used to determine a student’s reading and numeracy levels within the Australian Core Skills Framework (ACSF).