Table 1: This table describes scenarios in which Fares Allowance and additional costs associated with travel for ABSTUDY are payable via reimbursement.
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Item |
Scenario |
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1 |
Customer travels on appropriate mode of transport
Mikaela lodges a claim for Fares Allowance for a journey from a university in Melbourne to their permanent home in Townsville, QLD for the Christmas break. Mikaela booked and paid for a cheap, non-refundable flight costing $230.
Mikaela qualifies for ABSTUDY Fares Allowance.
The trip by public transport is:
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45 hours via train
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56 hours via bus
As the train and bus service exceed the reasonable travelling time, the appropriate mode of transport is economy airfare.
Mikaela is eligible for reimbursement of $230, the cost of the air ticket. Because Mikaela travelled on the appropriate mode of transport, the actual cost of the ticket is reimbursed. This is irrespective of whether a quote from Corporate Travel Management (CTM) identifies an air ticket as costing more or less than the $230 amount paid by Mikaela. The actual cost of the ticket is reimbursed and therefore obtaining a quote from CTM is not necessary.
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2 |
Customer travels on inappropriate mode of transport and customer's ticket cost is higher than the appropriate mode of transport cost
Jayden lodges a claim for Fares Allowance for the journey undertaken to start a university degree, flying from home in Canberra to the study location in Sydney. The claim is $420 for the cost of the airfare.
Jayden qualifies for ABSTUDY Fares Allowance.
The trip by public transport is:
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4 hours via bus
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4 hours via train
As the journey by rail service and bus take less than 18 hours, the appropriate mode of transport is rail or bus. Jayden is not eligible for rail fare with a sleeping berth, airfare nor Motor Vehicle Allowance (MVA) for the journey. The travel providers website shows that a bus ticket is $90 and a train ticket is $110.Jayden is eligible for Fares Allowance reimbursement of $90, which is the cost of a bus ticket. This is the most cost-effective appropriate mode of transport for the journey.
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3 |
Customer travels on inappropriate mode of transport and customer's ticket cost is lower than the appropriate mode of transport cost
Nellie lodges a claim for Fares Allowance for the journey undertaken to start a university degree. Nellie's home is in Broome and the study location is in Perth. Nellie travelled by bus from Broome to Perth costing $145.
Nellie qualifies for ABSTUDY Fares Allowance.
The trip by public transport is:
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34hours 30 minutes via bus
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No rail service exists
As there is no rail service and the bus journey takes more than 18 hours, the appropriate mode of transport is via an economy airfare. Checks of airline websites found that the cheapest fully flexible economy airfare would cost $470.
Nellie is eligible for reimbursement of Fares Allowance for the cost of the bus ticket paid, even though an airfare is the appropriate mode of transport. For journeys taken on an inappropriate mode of transport, the cheaper cost is reimbursed. |
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4 |
Customer travels on inappropriate mode of transport and cost is higher than the appropriate mode of transport cost
Johanna lodges a claim for Fares Allowance for the journey undertaken to start a university degree. Johanna's home is in Dubbo and the university is in Cook. Johanna travelled by private vehicle from Dubbo to Cook and provides petrol receipts totalling $110.
Johanna qualifies for ABSTUDY Fares Allowance.
The trip by public transport is:
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8 hours 23 minutes via bus
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12 hours 58 minutes via rail service
As a bus journey would take less than 18 hours and a rail journey would take less than 36 hours, the appropriate mode of transport is rail or bus. Johanna is not eligible for rail fare with a sleeping berth, economy airfare nor MVA for the journey. The travel providers website shows that a bus ticket is $45 and rail is $78.
Johanna is eligible for Fares Allowance reimbursement of $45, the cost of a bus ticket. This is the most cost-effective, appropriate mode of transport for the journey.
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5 |
Organisations who claim reimbursement for multiple students
The total amount must be apportioned between each student to reflect their actual individual cost.
For:
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bulk reimbursement claims for 10 eligible students, totalling $5,000. This would be apportioned on each student's record at $500 each and paid to the organisation
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bulk reimbursement claims for 10 students, totalling $5,000, however only 5 of the students are eligible. The total amount is still apportioned on each student's record at $500 each, however 5 of these claims will be rejected, and the other 5 will be paid to the organisation
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reimbursement claim for a charter flight for 10 students totalling $5000, however only 5 of the students are eligible. The total amount in this case must be apportioned between the 5 eligible students at $1000 each. The other 5 students' claims will be rejected. Note: as the total cost of the charter has already been reimbursed, any subsequent reassessment of the claim will not result in additional coding/apportionment
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6 |
Reassessments of previously completed activities prior to the entitlement start date
Aaron previously claimed Fares Allowance reimbursement for travel prior to the ABSTUDY start date totalling:
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Fares: $289
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Accommodation: $500
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Meals: $188
Aaron has now provided an invoice for their airport transfer which was not reimbursed in the original request.
Aaron's new entitlement is:
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Fares: $311
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Accommodation: $500
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Meals: $188
As the forward travel date was before the ABSTUDY start date, the Service Officer will need to create a new booking to pay the additional charges from the original assessment.
The new booking will only code and pay the difference, which is $22 for fares.
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FAA Reimbursement Report template