The Tertiary Access Payment is a payment for students from regional and remote areas. It’s to help with the cost of moving for tertiary study.
How much you can get
It’s a payment of up to $5,000 that the government pays in your first year of study. If you’re from an inner regional area, you’ll get $3,000 in one installment shortly after you start your course.
If you’re from an outer regional or remote area, you’ll get $5,000 paid in two installments. The government pays $3,000 shortly after you start your course and $2,000 in your next semester.
You can only get the payment once, even if you change your study.
Who can get it?
This payment is for regional and remote students who need to move away from home to study
after year 12. You can be studying at a university, vocational education and training provider or another
higher education provider.
You need to meet all the following eligibility criteria:
- you’re an Australian resident meeting residence rules
- your family home is in an inner regional, outer regional, remote or very remote area
- you’re moving to study at a tertiary education provider that’s at least 90 minutes away from your family home by public transport
- you have completed year 12 or equivalent
- you’re aged 22 or younger on the day you start your tertiary course
- your parents’ or guardians’ income is under the current combined parental income limit of $250,000.
You also need to meet study rules to get the Tertiary Access Payment
You need to start studying in the 12 months immediately after completing year 12 or equivalent.
You also need to be studying:
- a certificate IV or above
- a course with a minimum duration of one academic year
- at least 75% of a full-time study load of the academic year.
Your study program needs to be face-to-face, a combination of online and face-to-face, or at a Regional University Centre (RUC).
When can I claim the payment?
You can apply for the Tertiary Access Payment from 1 January of the year you start tertiary study.
You must submit your claim by 31 December in your first year of study.
If you’re claiming another student payment, like Youth Allowance or ABSTUDY, this is a separate claim.
You can get the Tertiary Access Payment while getting another student payment from us. But you can also get the Tertiary Access Payment on its own.
You can find more information about the Tertiary Access Payment online.