EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
STATUTORY RULES 1984 NO. 473
Issued by the authority of the Minister for Education
STUDENT ASSISTANCE ACT 1973
STUDENT ASSISTANCE REGULATIONS (AMENDMENT)
Legislative authority
The Student Assistance Act 1973 (the Act) provides legislative authority for the Tertiary Education Assistance Scheme (TEAS) and for Post-graduate Awards.
Section 36 of the Act empowers the Governor-General to make regulations for the purposes of the Act. Sections 10 and 14 provide that approval for the grant of TEAS benefits or a Post-graduate Award is to be subject to and in accordance with the regulations, and sections 11 and 15 provide that the benefit under TEAS or an Award shall be as prescribed in the regulations.
The present Statutory Rules amend the Student Assistance Regulations (the Regulations) which give effect to the Act.
Content of amendments
In addition to drafting changes, the amendments make the following substantive changes to the Regulations:
(i) increase the levels of living allowances and income tests for 1985 (see amendments to existing regulations 29, 41, 42 and 70 made by regulations 4, 7, 8 and 14);
(ii) provide for recognition of a de facto relationship where there is a child of the relationship (see amendment to existing regulation 3, made by regulation 2, and new regulation 30, inserted by regulation 5);
(iii) provide that work undertaken while at school may not qualify a person for independent status under TEAS (see new regulation 30 inserted by regulation 5);
(iv) provide that fares allowance under TEAS is normally to be based on the cost of the cheapest form of available public transport (see new regulation 47 inserted by regulation 9);
(v) amend the TEAS fares allowance provisions to modify the conditions under which a journey attracts an allowance and to provide for allowances for journeys undertaken where public transport is unavailable (see new regulation 47 and new Schedule 6 inserted by regulations 9 and 18);
(vi) delete provisions relating to anticipated approval for permanent entry permits from the definition of “permanent resident of Australia” (see amendments to existing regulation 5 made by regulation 3);
(vii) provide that permanent residents of Christmas Island come within the definition of “permanent resident of Australia” (see amendments to existing regulation 5 made by regulation 3);
(viii) modify the conditions for determining whether the TEAS eligibility rules relating to previous studies are applicable to certain courses (see amendments to existing regulation 34 made by regulation 6);
(ix) modify the provisions for approving periods of overseas study by a holder of a Post-graduate Award, by extending the period for which approval may be given in certain cases and by varying the restrictions on when a holder may depart overseas (see amendments to existing regulation 57 made by regulation 12);
(x) extend in certain cases the present duration of a Post-graduate Award (see new regulation 67B inserted by regulation 13);
(xi) extend in certain cases the time limit for claiming the thesis allowance under a Post-graduate Award (see amendments to existing regulation 72 made by regulation 15);
(xii) amend the provisions for suspending consideration of an application or payment of benefits while further information is sought by including a two week period before payments may be suspended and by allowing information to be sought from a student’s spouse (see new regulation 87 inserted by regulation 16);
(xiii) correct the schedule of institutions to be treated as technical colleges (see amendments to existing Schedule 3 made by regulation 17).
Items (i) to (iv) implement decisions taken in the context of the 1984 Budget. Item (vi) is in response to a change in the procedures of the Department of Immigration and Ethnic Affairs. Item (vii) is part of the general normalisation of income tax and income support arrangements for Christmas Island (see the Christmas Island Administration (Miscellaneous Amendments) Act 1984). The remaining items correct anomalies or make minor policy changes.
Commencing dates
The proposed amendments, other than regulation 17, come into operation on 1 January 1985.
Proposed regulation 17 concerns a change of name by a business college in one State and its closure in another State. Regulation 17 is deemed to have come into operation on 29 May 1984, the date on which the college changed its name. It does not prejudicially affect rights existing prior to the notification of the regulations in the Gazette.
Notes on individual regulations
Regulation 1 concerns commencement dates. Regulation 17, which concerns changes in a business college, is deemed to have come into operation on 29 May 1984, when the college changed its name. The remaining regulations come into operation on 1 January 1985.
Regulation 2 amends the definition of “spouse” in existing regulation 3. It has the effect of removing the previous requirement that, where there was a child of a de facto relationship, the de facto partner was recognised as a “spouse” only after the relationship had continued for one year.
Regulation 3 amends regulation 5, which defines “permanent resident of Australia” for the purposes of the Act. The amendments:
• omit the previous paragraphs 5(c) and (d), which enabled permanent resident status to be approved in anticipation of a successful application for a permanent entry permit;
• provide that persons whose permanent home is on Christmas Island qualify as permanent residents of Australia.
Regulation 4 makes several changes to expressions used in Part III of the Regulations, which deals with TEAS.
Paragraph (a) of regulation 4 omits the previous provisions defining “independent status”: sub-regulations 29(2), (3), (4) and (4A). A definition of “independent status” is given in the new regulation 30.
Paragraphs (b) to (d) of regulation 4 provide for the following increases in the levels of maximum living allowance payable under TEAS:
• the maximum annual away-from-home rate is raised from $2,982 to $3,308;
• the maximum annual at-home rate is raised from $1,837 to $2,048;
• the maximum annual independent rate is raised from $3,255 to $3,581.
Paragraph (e) of regulation 4 corrects a minor drafting error in sub-regulation 29(8).
Regulation 5 inserts a new regulation 30. The new regulation 30 repeats the previous definition of “independent status” under TEAS, which is omitted by regulation 4. In addition to minor drafting changes, the new regulation 30 includes:
• a provision that a person may qualify for independent status where he or she has a de facto partner and there is a child of the de facto relationship (paragraph 30(1)(c));
• a provision that a person may not qualify for independent status on the basis of work undertaken while pursuing full-time primary or secondary studies (sub-regulations 30(3), (4)).
Regulation 6 amends regulation 34, which provides for ineligibility to receive assistance under TEAS because of previous studies or other academic reasons. It modifies the rules relating to study in a previous course so that they apply where the previous course, if undertaken in Australia after the commencement of the Act, was approved for TEAS when it was undertaken (rather than is approved for TEAS, as regulation 34 formerly required).
Regulation 7 amends regulation 41, which determines the living allowance payable under TEAS for students of independent status. It provides for the following changes:
• the threshold for the income test on the income of a student’s spouse is raised from $12,983 to $14,281;
• the dependent child allowance is raised from $10 a week to $14 a week.
Regulation 8 amends regulation 42, which determines the living allowance payable under TEAS for students not of independent status. It provides for the following changes:
• the threshold for the income test on the income of the student’s parents is raised from $12,983 to $14,281;
• the dependent child allowance is raised from $10 a week to $14 a week;
• a minor drafting error is corrected in sub-regulation 42(15A).
Regulation 9 repeals regulation 47, which dealt with the TEAS fares allowance, and substitutes a new regulation 47 in its place.
The new sub-regulations 47(1) to (9) generally repeat the provisions of the previous regulation 47, but with the following changes:
• it is clarified that an allowance is payable for return journeys from the institution and back only where they are undertaken during the year, before the student completes or discontinues studies for the year (sub-paragraph 47(1)(c)(ii));
• an allowance is payable only for a journey to or from the spouse’s permanent home, if the student has a spouse, or the parents’ permanent home, if the student does not have a spouse and does not qualify as independent (sub-regulation 47(2));
• the number of journeys for which an allowance is payable depends on the period for which living allowance is payable, not the duration of the course as was previously the case (sub-regulation 47(3));
• where public transport is available, the allowance is generally the cost of the least expensive practicable form of public transport, rather than second class rail as was previously the case (sub-regulation 47 (5)).
The new sub-regulations 47(10) to (12) provide for the payment of an allowance for journeys where public transport is unavailable.
The new sub-regulation 47(13) provides that taxis are not to be regarded as public transport.
Regulation 10 makes drafting changes to expressions used in Part IV of the Regulations, which deals with Post-graduate Awards. The amendments clarify references to the first and subsequent years of an Award, and will cover the situation where an Award is granted in respect of part only of a course.
Regulation 11 has the effect that an application form for a Post-graduate Award is not to refer to the applicant’s marital status.
Regulation 12 amends regulation 57, which provides for the approval of periods of overseas research for holders of Post-graduate Awards. The amendments make the following changes:
• a holder who undertakes research in anthropology or in the Australian Antarctic Territory will be able to undertake up to 18 months overseas research, rather than 12 months as applies to other holders (paragraph 57(1)(a));
• a holder will be able to travel overseas from 1 November of the first year of the Award, rather than from 1 December as was the case previously (sub-regulation 57(4));
• a holder who travels overseas to observe seasonal phenomena will be required to have undertaken 3 months research; previously no restriction applied in such cases (sub-regulation 57(4B)).
Regulation 13 omits the previous regulation 67B, which dealt with the expiry of Post-graduate Awards on completion of courses, and substitutes a new regulation 67B in its place. The effect of the change is that, where a holder who undertakes a research course submits his or her thesis after completing the course, the Award terminates at the end of the pay period, following the submission of the thesis. Previously, an Award ceased on the holder’s completion of the course.
Regulation 14 amends regulation 70, which determines the living allowance payable under a Post-graduate Award. The basic annual living allowance for an Award holder is raised from $7,330 to $7,616, and the annual living allowance for an Award holder with a dependent spouse is increased from $9,550.40 to $9,836.40. The additional annual allowance payable in respect of a dependent child is increased from $520 to $728.
Regulation 15 amends regulation 72, which relates to the thesis allowance under a Post-graduate Award. It has the effect of extending the time limit for claiming the allowance, in cases where a student submits a thesis after the expiry of the current time limit, for a further period of six months after the submission of the thesis.
Regulation 16 repeals the former regulations 87 and 88 and substitutes a new regulation 87 in their place. Regulations 87 and 88 enabled consideration of an application or payment of benefits to be suspended where further information was required from a student or a student’s parent. The new regulation 87 corrects drafting deficiencies in the previous regulations and provides for:
• information to be able to be required from a student’s spouse (sub-regulation 87(1));
• a two week period before the payment of an allowance may be suspended (sub-regulation 87(4)).
Regulation 17 amends Schedule 3, which lists educational institutions that are to be treated as technical colleges for the purposes of the Act. The amendment reflects the change of name of Key Personnel Business College, Perth, to Australian Business College, and the closure of the former Key Personnel Business College, Brisbane.
Regulation 18 inserts a new schedule, Schedule 6. Schedule 6 gives the rates of allowance payable under TEAS, under the new regulation 47, in respect of a journey where public transport is unavailable for that journey. The rates are based on the motor vehicle allowance provided under the Public Service Determination.
Regulation 19 makes drafting changes consequential on the amendments made by regulation 10.