QMP 25 Fee Administration and Refund Policy Page 1 of 7 1. PURPOSE This policy and procedures is designed to ensure that METS complies with the requirements of state and territory funding bodies and the requirements specified within the Standards for NVR Registered Training Organisations 2012 (SNR 16.3, 17.1, 17.4, 20.1, 22.1, 22.2, 22.3) in relation to the refund of fees paid in advance by METS students. 2. POLICY METS will deal with all students fairly and equitably in relation to the refund of monies collected in advance or otherwise. 3. SCOPE This policy and procedures cover all fees collected from students in advance and apply to all training, assessment, recognition services. It applies to all students enrolled in full or partial nationally recognised qualification. It applies to students enrolled in Fee for Service, subsidised funded or short courses and students who are funding their course through VET FEE-HELP. 4. DEFINITIONS Census date the last day a student may withdraw from a VET unit of study in which they are enrolled without incurring a liability for tuition fees or a VET FEE-HELP debt VET FEE-HELP: the loan scheme for eligible students to access assistance in the form of a loan from the Commonwealth Unit of VET study: a unit of competency that a student may undertake with a VET provider as part of a VET course of study for which the student may access VET FEE-HELP assistance to pay all or part of their tuition fees Tuition fee: fees paid to a Registered Training Organisation covering tuition, Recognised Prior Learning, online learning and resources and mailing charges for each unit of study VET FEE-HELP loan: To be entitled to a, a student must be an Australian citizen or holder of a permanent humanitarian visa who will be a resident in Australia for the duration of their VET units of study Fee for Service student: students who self-fund their training costs
QMP 25 Fee Administration and Refund Policy Page 2 of 7 Subsidised funding: funding provided by the State Government under Smart and Skilled DEC NSW Department of Education and Communities 5. REFERENCES RTO 03 - Effective Financial Management Procedures QMP 01 - Administrative and Records Management QMP 02 - Dissemination of Information QMP 03 Privacy QMP 14 - Financial Management and Systems to Protect Fees paid in Advance QMP 15 Complaints, Grievances, Appeals QMP 20 Access and Equity QMP 23 - Student Review for Re-credit of VET FEE-HELP fees 6. PROCEDURES 6.1 Fee Information for Fee for Service students Refunds will be made in the following circumstances: Students who have overpaid the tuition/administration fee; In the event that METS cancels the course or no longer provides the training and when the student has paid the full student contribution fees, METS will refund the portion of the fee that applies to the training that has not been delivered; Where the student s application for enrolment is refused; The student withdraws from the course, in writing, before training has commenced, a full refund will be given; The student withdraws from the course, in writing, within 3 months of commencement of training and has paid course fees in advance, a refund of 50% will apply to the portion of the course that is yet to be delivered; The student withdraws after commencement of training and produces a medical certificate showing extreme personal hardship and/or any of the circumstances stated in 6.4. In this case, fees may be refunded on a prorata basis. However, should students wish to finalise incomplete units in a future course, the original fee payment can be used as credit towards that course within twelve months of initial payment;
QMP 25 Fee Administration and Refund Policy Page 3 of 7 In METS opinion, the student would be unreasonably disadvantaged if not granted a refund. For example, a student meets with a serious misadventure and is unable to continue his/her enrolment, then METS will refund the full tuition fee and any other fees and charges paid by or on behalf of the student; If a student withdraws from only part of a course, or if only part of the course is cancelled, METS will only refund the portion of the tuition fee and materials fee applicable to that part of the course; Where a student chooses to pay their student fee by instalments with Debit success, the student will incur a $10 administration fee payable with the first instalment. Where a student has chosen to pay by instalments through Debit Success and defaults or otherwise misses a payment or is in arrears, the Contract terms and Conditions of Debit Success will apply; All student fees must be paid in full by the completion date of the training. METS will not issue Certificates, Statements of Attainment or transcripts to any student with outstanding fees; Further, students will be required to have paid in advance and/or be up to date with instalment payments before a Unit of Competency can be deemed Competent. The full course fee and/or student contribution must be paid before the final Unit of Competency can be deemed Competent METS will comply with the national VET regulator standards for RTOs for the protection of student fees: www.asqa.gov.au/news/2094/alternative-feeprotection.html. METS does not accept payment of more than $1000 prior to the commencement of training. Following commencement, where payment of additional fees in advance is required, the total amount does not exceed $1500; 6.2 Fee Information for Government subsidised training students METS refers funded students to the Smart & Skilled Fee Administration policy: https://smartandskilled.nsw.gov.au/for-students/students-with-additional-needs METS will charge the student the relevant fees set by the NSW Government. The relevant fees will be determined when METS enters the student data into the Smart & Skilled Provider Calculator;
QMP 25 Fee Administration and Refund Policy Page 4 of 7 First Aid (HLTAID004) is a requirement of Early Childhood and School Age Care qualifications and is provided at no additional cost to METS students. If the student obtains this unit of competency through another provider, the student is liable for the costs of the course; Where a student chooses to pay their student fee by instalments with Debit Success, the student will incur a $10 administration fee payable with the first instalment. Where a student has chosen to pay by instalments through Debit Success and defaults or otherwise misses a payment or is in arrears, the Contract terms and Conditions of Debit Success will apply; The student fee payable to complete the qualification allows for three (3) attempts to complete a unit of competency. If the unit is still not completed after three (3) attempts, METS will deem the unit as failed and will report such outcome to DEC; All student fees must be paid in full by the completion date of the training contract. METS will not issue Certificates, Statements of Attainment or transcripts to any student with outstanding fees; Further, students will be required to have paid in advance and/or be up to date with instalment payments before a Unit of Competency can be deemed Competent. The full course fee and/or student contribution must be paid before the final Unit of Competency can be deemed Competent. METS will comply with the national VET regulator standards for RTOs for the protection of student fees: METS does not accept payment of more than $1000 prior to the commencement of training. Following commencement, where payment of additional fees in advance is required, the total amount does not exceed $1500; www.asqa.gov.au/news/2094/alternative-fee-protection.html. Refunds will be made in the following circumstances: In the event that METS cancels the course or no longer provides the training and when the student has paid the full student contribution fees, METS will refund the portion of the fee that applies to the training that has not been delivered;
QMP 25 Fee Administration and Refund Policy Page 5 of 7 The student can claim a refund of any fees paid prior to the date that training commences. This date is the withdrawal with no penalty cutoff date. The student must notify METS in writing of their intention to withdraw from training; Where a student withdraws, in writing, from training after the withdrawal with no penalty date, within 3 months of commencement of training and has paid course fees in advance, a refund of 50% will apply to the portion of the course that is yet to be delivered; Where a student withdraws from training, METS will provide the student with a statement of fees that includes all fees applied and any fees refunded, if applicable; Where an eligible student is granted Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) or Credit Transfer (CT), the student fee will be determined by the Department of Education and Communities (DEC); Where RPL or CT is granted after enrolment or after a student commences a qualification, METS will report the outcome and DEC will adjust the student fee accordingly. METS will advise the student of the adjusted fee and will refund any overpayment of fees with regard to RPL or CT granted; 6.3 Refunds for VET FEE-HELP students Students who are eligible for VET FEE-HELP assistance In the event of a student withdrawing from a VET unit of study on or before the census date for that unit of study: The student is entitled to a full refund of any tuition fees paid for that unit of study and Refunds will be paid by METS for that VET unit of study to the Commonwealth within 30 days. The student will not incur a VET FEE-HELP debt In the event of a student withdrawing from a VET unit of study after the census date for that unit of study: The student will incur a VET FEE-HELP debt
QMP 25 Fee Administration and Refund Policy Page 6 of 7 The student will not incur a VET FEE-HELP debt if: In the event that METS cancels the course or no longer provides the training and when the student has paid the full student contribution fees, METS will refund the portion of the fee that applies to the training that has not been delivered; If a student withdraws from only part of a course, or if only part of the course is cancelled, METS will only refund the portion of the tuition fee and materials fee applicable to that part of the course; The student withdraws from a unit of study prior to the Census date; The student withdraws, by written notice, from a course at a time after the Census date because of serious illness or other special circumstance as stated in 6.4. 6.4 Circumstances The following examples are indicative of appropriate circumstances for not incurring a HELP debt, re-crediting a FEE-HELP balance and re-funding an upfront payment. This application must be made within 12 months of the withdrawal day. a) A student meets with a serious misadventure and is unable to continue with their enrolment b) A student is hospitalised for an extended period of time supported by a medical certificate c) A student is ill for an extended period of time supported by a medical certificate d) Pregnancy/childbirth e) Circumstances that are beyond the student s control f) Circumstances that did not make a full impact on the student until the student enrolled or after the census date g) Circumstances that made it impracticable to complete the requirements of the course The following examples are indicative of inappropriate circumstances for granting a refund: a) Job change b) Change in work hours c) Inconvenience of travel to class
QMP 25 Fee Administration and Refund Policy Page 7 of 7 d) Moving interstate e) Retrenchment f) Lack of knowledge of the requirements under VET FEE-HELP 7. Documentation QMS Form 002 QMS Form 011 QMS Form 013 QMSD 002 Action Request for Complaints Grievance Reporting and Action Form Record of Complaint METS Privacy Statement Revision History DESCRIPTION DATE 01 Initial issue 06/04/04 02 Change to enrolment fee in 6.4 12/2/06 03 Change to enrolment fee in 6.4, addition of SNR s and reference to 12/03/12 ASQA 04 Addition of requirements for VET FEE-HELP 29/07/14 05 Specific information for refunds for VET-FEE HELP 03/11/14 06 Additions to 6.1 01/12/14 07 Change of policy from Vocational Education & Training Refunds to Fee Administration and Refund Policy incorporating requirements for Smart & Skilled funding 01/12/14