Instructions for completing an electronic Commonwealth Assistance Form (eCAF) There are 3 types of Commonwealth Assistance Forms:  HECS‐HELP Forms: All students who are admitted into a Commonwealth Supported Course must complete a HECS‐HELP eCAF form online by the relevant census date. You will not be able to enrol in units until this form has been submitted and approved. You can lodge this form without providing your Tax File Number (see below).  FEE‐HELP Forms: All Australian citizens and permanent residents (Humanitarian visa holders) admitted into Domestic Fee Paying courses have the option of deferring their fees to the Australian Taxation Office. Your Tax File Number must be included in the form which must be submitted by the relevant census date.  STUDENT AMENITIES Forms (SA‐HELP): All Australian citizens and Permanent residents (humanitarian visa holders only) admitted into either Commonwealth Supported or Domestic Fee Paying courses have the option of deferring their Student Amenities fees to the Australian Taxation Office. Your Tax File Number must be included in the form by the relevant census date. The table below outlines who is required to pay the Student Amenities fee in 2016: Students 2015 Fees 2016 Fees Full‐time undergraduate domestic students $143 per half‐year $145 per half‐year Part‐time Undergraduate domestic students $77 per half‐year $79 per half‐year Full‐time postgraduate domestic students $143 per half‐year $145 per half‐year Part‐time postgraduate domestic students $0 $0 International Award students $0 $0 Fully external students $0 $0 All full‐time internal non‐award students $0 $0 All part‐time internal non‐award students $0 $0 Offshore, ICMS, City Campus & Open Universities Australia students $0 $0 Cross Institutional students $0 $0 MGSM & Applied Finance Centre students $0 $0 Higher Degree Research students $0 $0 Gifted and Talented Program $0 $0 HSC‐University Pathway for Talented Students $0 $0 New Zealand citizens and permanent residents (non‐humanitarian visa holders) are required to pay all fees by the due date the Friday before each session of study begins as they are ineligible to defer any fees to the Australian Taxation Office. Page 1 of 3 2016 How to Find and Complete the Relevant eCAF Form 1. Log into your eStudent Account 2. Click on the “My Offer” tab or “My Finances” tab 3. Open Panel – Submit Commonwealth Assistance Form (eCAF) 4. Choose the course you are currently “Admitted” into. If you are not Admitted then choose the most recently “Offered” course. o If you have already completed an eCAF and need to submit a new one, please select the “Add New” button 5. The available forms will appear. Select “Complete Form” for the relevant form you need to complete. The relevant forms will appear in a green box. o This is an example only: 6. If you need to complete a HECS‐HELP form or a FEE‐HELP form and then a Student Amenities fee form, you are required to complete the HECS‐HELP or FEE‐HELP form first and then repeat Steps 4 and 5 to complete the SA‐HELP form. 7. Once lodging the appropriate form it should show that the form has been “successfully submitted and approved” within a few seconds at the top of the screen. See below as an example: If this does not occur, and it says “submitted” only  you may have made an error. Please lodge a new form. Once your form has been manually approved or rejected by a staff member, if the form was “invalid” you will see the reason why. This may take up to 2 working days to be manually assessed. Page 2 of 3 2016 The most common errors are:  Incorrect citizenship o If you are an Australian citizen (you are generally an Australian citizen if you were born here) then just answer yes to this question and do not answer any other questions regarding citizenship (ie. permanent residency status) o If you are a permanent resident of Australia but do not have Humanitarian visa status (granted refugee status) answer yes to being a permanent resident but no to being a permanent resident (Humanitarian visa holder)  Incorrect gender  Incorrect date of birth If you cannot detect an error then seek the assistance of a Commonwealth Loans Scheme Officer via email at ask.mq.edu.au. How to Complete a HECS‐HELP Form Without a Tax File Number This only applies to students completing a “Request for Commonwealth Support and HECS‐HELP” eCAF. All other eCAFs must be submitted with a valid TFN. If you an Australian citizen or permanent resident (humanitarian visa holder) you are entitled to defer your university fees to the Australian Taxation Office as long as you have provided the University with a Tax File Number (TFN) by the census date of your first study period. If you do not yet have a Tax File Number: 1. Submit the HECS‐HELP form and tick in “Payment Options” that you intend to pay your fees upfront to the University. This will allow the HECS‐HELP form to be approved so that you can enrol in units. o Note that you will not actually have to pay your fees upfront as long as the university is provided with your Tax File Number by the relevant census date. 2. Apply for a Tax File Number through the Australian Taxation Office: https://www.ato.gov.au/Individuals/Tax‐file‐number/ Your application may take up to 28 days to be processed. Please so this within enough time to receive your TFN by the relevant census date. 3. Once you have received your Tax File Number, send an email including your name, Student Identification Number and Tax File Number to ecaf@mq.edu.au.This must be done by the census date. NB: You must have a TFN to complete a FEE‐HELP and SA‐HELP Form. Page 3 of 3 2016