Youth Allowance (YA) job seeker or Australian Apprentice returning to full-time study 102-07010010

YA job seekers under 22 years of age and Australian Apprentices aged under 25 years, continue to qualify for payment if they change their activity from job search, Australian Apprenticeship or other activity to being a student. There is no requirement for these customers to lodge a claim. However, the customer must still qualify for YA as a full-time or concessional study load student.

Note: YA job seekers who transfer to YA (student) will continue to be entitled to a Health Care Card (HCC). They can use their existing card until a new HCC is issued.

Young people who are under 22 years of age, may in some cases, undertake a full-time vocational short course of 12 months or less as an approved activity while receiving YA (job seeker). Service Officers must decide that the course would improve their short-term employment prospects. A customer may also continue to be paid YA (job seeker) when they have reached their satisfactory progress limit (allowable time) but still have less than 12 months of study remaining to complete their course. If the customer cannot be paid YA as a full-time student, it may be possible for the customer to continue to get YA as a job seeker if the course meets short course guidelines.

Note: if a job seeker is provider managed, Services Australia should not approve and code a short course (in accordance with the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR)). Refer the job seeker back to their provider to discuss and approve the short course. This is important because it may affect the level of servicing the provider can offer. If the provider approves the short course, they will code the course details in the DEWR, Employment Services System (ESS). The study will be approved and viewed on the Activity and Exemptions Summary (AEX) screen. However, if the customer is enrolled in a course of study that makes them eligible for a student payment, a discussion with the customer is required and where necessary, transfer them to a more appropriate income support payment.

Customers who were previously entitled to PES as a result of a transfer from Disability Support Pension (DSP) (granted between 11 May 2005 and 30 June 2006), or Parenting Payment Single (PPS) (received on or after 1 July 2006) to YA (Job seeker) after 1 July 2006, will not retain their entitlement to PES if they restart their original course after a break or restart another course.

Some isolated secondary students will be eligible to apply for AIC. Students who are eligible for AIC may be better off on this payment rather than YA (student). This is because only the Additional Boarding Allowance component of AIC is subject to the Parental Income Test.

It may be more beneficial for Indigenous YA job seekers to transfer to ABSTUDY rather than remaining on YA, as ABSTUDY students may be eligible for other supplementary ABSTUDY payments in addition to their Living Allowance. ABSTUDY also offers greater flexibility in its study requirements.

YDS is an income supplement paid to young people with a disability recognising additional costs associated with having a physical, intellectual or psychiatric disability.

YDS is added to the basic payment rate for customers:

• under 21 years of age who receive Disability Support Pension (DSP) at the no dependent children rate
• under 22 years of age, assessed as having a partial capacity to work (PCW), and receiving one of the following payments:
• ABSTUDY (students and Australian Apprentices receiving Living Allowance)
• Youth Allowance (YA) including full-time students, Australian Apprentices or job seekers

If a customer has Working Credits available, they may be eligible to restore these credits to their new Student Income Bank (SIB) or Working Credit balance within 12 months. SIB credits can only be restored to a new Working Credit balance.

Most education providers will have an academic calendar with the standard date many students will start or end their courses or study periods. Service Officers can access these dates on the National Course Approvals sub-site. Education providers often publish their academic calendars on their websites. It is important to note that many students will be enrolled in a course that starts or finishes on a different date to the standard date on the education institution's academic calendar.

From 13 January 2019, Service Officers can accept a student start date advised by a YA or Austudy customer, providing that date is not greater than 14 days prior to the standard course start date published on the National Course Approvals sub-site, or an education provider's website.

When Service Officers are making study updates, consider whether the customer can be a continuing/intending student. This determination may influence the date the customer is eligible to get a student payment. The rules for continuing/intending students vary between different student payments.