ABSTUDY

ABSTUDY

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What is ABSTUDY?

ABSTUDY is a payment and support program for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander students, trainees and apprentices. Families and students don’t need to claim different payments separately. When you claim one kind of ABSTUDY they will work out what else you can get.

ABSTUDY can help with: School fees, boarding fees, travel costs and living expenses

For school students, ABSTUDY helps families with the costs of education, especially when a student needs to live away from home. Parents or guardians can usually apply for ABSTUDY from the start of high school and in some cases earlier.

Some ABSTUDY payments are only available to students who need to live away from home to study. This includes financial support for families to visit boarding schools for interviews and tours, orientation and helping students prepare for boarding.

Who Can Get ABSTUDY?

Students can get ABSTUDY if they: Are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander and are studying at school, TAFE, university or with an approved private provider

For boarding students, ABSTUDY is available when there is a clear reason the student needs to live away from home, such as: The local school is too far away, there is no suitable local school, the student has a scholarship to attend a school in another town, home conditions make it difficult to study, the student cannot attend the local school for specific reasons, the student is excluded from local schools, the student has a disability, health condition or special education need, the student is completing an approved special course, parents or guardians travel frequently for work or the family home is in a remote location

ABSTUDY may also apply to: High school students living at home and primary students aged 14 or older.

Families who already receive Family Tax Benefit (FTB) usually continue to receive it alongside ABSTUDY. In most cases: FTB and ABSTUDY can be paid together until the child turns 16, if the student needs to live away from home, both payments may continue until the student turns 19 or completes high school.

When students turn 16 years old they may be eligible to get ABSTUDY Living Allowance, which is paid fortnightly. How much is paid is dependent on the students’ income and their parents’ or guardians’ income.