Approval of ABSTUDY Away from Base assistance 010-02070050

Away from Base assistance is intended to cover the student's travel costs to attend an approved activity and the reasonable costs of meals and accommodation while away from the normal place of residence.

Assistance available for a student undertaking an approved Away from Base activity includes:

• Fares Allowance
• meals and accommodation, paid via either:
• a residential expenses package, or
• travel allowance
• non-income tested Living Allowance

To be eligible for a residential expenses package or travel allowance, the student would require overnight accommodation to stay away from the permanent home or term address.

Whilst residential expenses and travel allowance are available for the same purpose, they are paid for different circumstances.

Residential expenses

Residential expenses meet the actual cost of meals and accommodation incurred. It is paid to the education provider or service provider who arranged the package. The package includes accommodation and main meals (eg breakfast, lunch and dinner) at a reasonable price for each student per day. There is no restriction on where meals are provided or that they have to be part of the 'accommodation' package. Meals included in the submission at various service providers, can be included if they are 'organised' by the education provider, for each student, and are reasonably priced.

Meal allowance

Where a residential expenses package cannot be arranged to include all main meals during an activity, meal allowance is payable on behalf of each student for any main meal not included in the package. This is paid in a lump sum (in conjunction with the residential expenses package) to the education provider for distribution to students. Additional meals or snacks outside of the residential package or meal allowance are at the expense of the approved traveller.

Participant chooses not to use residential expenses package

Students in an Away from Base activity who choose not to use the approved residential expenses package are not entitled to access travel allowance for that activity. They are still eligible to access any meal allowance that is payable to all participants where meals are not included in the residential expenses package.

Travel allowance

Normally an activity must include a residential expenses package for funding of meal and accommodation costs. Travel allowance can be approved when a residential package cannot be arranged by the education provider or service provider for an Away from Base activity in circumstances where it is:

• unreasonable
• impractical
• not cost effective

For example, when the activity is a placement, travel allowance can be approved for meals and accommodation costs if it is unreasonable to arrange a residential expenses package for an individual student.

In all instances, payment of a residential expenses package for main meals and accommodation is to be considered prior to payment of travel allowance for an activity.

Travel allowance can be paid to either the student directly, or to the education provider conducting the activity for distribution to a group of students. Additional meal or snack costs over the daily travel allowance are at the expense of the approved traveller.

Rate of travel allowance

Travel allowance is a calculated amount regardless of the actual cost incurred by the student.

The rate of travel allowance for the purposes of Away from Base assistance is linked to the locality of the activity. The Resources page contains links to these rates.

Travel allowance will be paid at full rate for a period of up to 21 consecutive days, after which 50% of the rate is payable. Travel allowance is not payable (at either half or full rate) for more than 3 months in total in a calendar year. These provisions apply regardless of the length of a course.

Travel allowance must be acquitted after the activity has been completed. The education provider must confirm the student undertook the activity.

Living Allowance assists students who lose their regular source of income while undertaking an approved Away from Base activity.

Eligibility for, and the rate of Living Allowance, will not be subject to any means testing.

Rate of Living Allowance

Students who attend an approved Away from Base activity and receive a reduced rate of a student payment (ABSTUDY or Youth Allowance) due to means testing (student, parental or partner) and lose their normal source of income, will have their entitlement increased to the maximum rate payable under ABSTUDY.

Living Allowance is calculated according to the maximum rate available for the student's age and status.

Duration of Living Allowance

Living Allowance is only paid for the actual days of the activity for which the usual source of income is lost. Any period of lost income that does not coincide with the activity is not replaced with Living Allowance.

Disallowed costs

The following costs cannot be met with Away from Base assistance:

• fees associated with Away from Base activities e.g. entry fee to a show, festival or exhibition, including conference registration fees or similar costs
• the costs of attending conferences, seminars, forums, performances or similar activities, where these do not form an essential part of an approved Away from Base activity

The above costs are the responsibility of the education provider or the student who is undertaking the activity.

Away from Base assistance can only be paid for students who have been assessed as eligible to attend an approved ABSTUDY Away from Base activity.

Paid in advance or reimbursement

Assistance for the activity can be paid in:

• advance, or
• as reimbursement

A claim for Away from Base assistance, as either an advance or a reimbursement, must be received by the Away from Base submission closing date.

Fares allowance can be authorised in advance or reimbursed after the journey has occurred. Fares Allowance can be arranged separately to the meals and accommodation component of the activity where requested.

Payment in advance

Payment in advance for approved away from base activities normally occurs for each activity individually. However, qualifying institutions can apply and be approved for bulk funding of all residential school activities for a year, payable in a lump sum at the beginning of a semester.

Where the education provider or student requests the payment in advance, this needs to be arranged early to allow any necessary elements of the activity to be secured prior to the activity commencing.

Advance payments are required to be acquitted based on the actual numbers of qualifying participants, the period and the location(s) once the activity has been completed.

Payment to the education provider or the students will not be made if there are outstanding acquittals from previous away from base activities.

Reimbursement

A claim for reimbursement of a residential expenses package must include original paid receipts and accounts verifying expenses after the activity has occurred and upon receipt of acquittal documentation.

A claim for reimbursement of travel allowance will require confirmation from the education provider that participants undertook the activity, including dates and location(s) of the activity.

Payee

• Fares Allowance - paid as a reimbursement to the education provider, service provider or student who arranged and paid for the travel
• Residential expenses - paid to the education or service provider
• Meal Allowance - paid to the education provider as a lump sum (in conjunction with the residential expenses package) when meals are not included in the residential package
• Travel allowance - paid to the student or education provider
• Non-income tested Living Allowance - paid to the student