Eligibility for Austudy 010-04030000

Austudy is an income support payment for full-time students and Australian Apprentices 25 years of age or over. Austudy cannot be paid concurrently with another income support payment.

To qualify for Austudy as a student, a customer must meet all the following criteria:

• be of Austudy payment age, and
• satisfy the residence requirements, and
• for students, satisfy the Activity test for Austudy

Generally, a student or Australian Apprentice is of Austudy age if they are 25 years of age or more when they apply.

A person is not considered to be Austudy payment age if, at turning 25 they have not reached the maximum age for Youth Allowance. See Determining the minimum and maximum age for Youth Allowance.

There is no maximum age for Austudy.

In addition to the age and residency criteria, to qualify for Austudy as an Australian Apprentice, a customer must:

• be employed under a training contract as a full time Australian Apprentice, and
• have had their training contract submitted to the relevant state or territory training authority

Customers who have met the above criteria will have a current Commonwealth Registration Number which is managed by the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR). If a customer stops working for their apprenticeship employer before they have completed their apprenticeship, their Commonwealth Registration Number may remain current for a period of time. This means a current Commonwealth Registration Number on its own does not indicate a customer is currently undertaking an Australian Apprenticeship.

A customer undertaking a part-time apprenticeship may still be eligible for Austudy as a student if they are studying an approved course and undertaking an approved study load.

Note: Austudy is not payable for any period for which the Australian Apprentice has been paid the Living Away From Home Allowance (LAFHA).

A customer may continue to qualify for Austudy as an Australian Apprentice where they:

• have, or will cease employment with their Australian Apprentice employer
• will, or expect to commence employment with another employer within 28 days to continue their full time Australian Apprenticeship
• have a current Commonwealth Registration Number recorded on the Apprentice Details (NAPD) screen

A customer no longer meets the definition of an Australian Apprentice, if:

• more than 28 days have lapsed since employment ceased, and
• they have not commenced with another apprentice employer

Where a customer reports zero or reduced income, determine if the customer will continue their apprenticeship with another employer within 28 days. The customer may continue to qualify for payment until the Entitlement Period End Date (EPED) which occurs immediately after the 28 day period. See the Resources page for examples.