Payment of Residential Costs Option (RCO) for ABSTUDY and ABSTUDY Pensioner Education Supplement (PES) 010-24092536

To be eligible for the RCO, students must meet all of the following:

• be eligible for one of the following ABSTUDY Awards:
• Schooling B Award
• Tertiary Award
• Masters & Doctorate Award
• be:
• a tertiary student, or
• a secondary non-school student undertaking approved studies of at least 30 weeks duration (full year course) at a university, or
• a student undertaking a university preparation course as a pathway into further substantive tertiary study
• be receiving either:
• an amount of ABSTUDY Living Allowance
• ABSTUDY Pensioner Education Supplement (PES)
• be:
• a dependent student who has been approved for Away from Home entitlements, or
• an independent student or a PES recipient who would, if they are not independent or a PES recipient, meet one of the criteria for approval of Away from Home entitlements, or
• a student who has ceased being in State care only because of their age
• be residing at a residential college attached to an Australian education institution or a hostel

In determining approved residential colleges consider the following:

• the purpose of the accommodation is student accommodation
• the provider of the accommodation, if not the university and a third party provider, is it in partnership with a particular education institution/s to provide this accommodation for students enrolled at the institution/s
• the student (being considered for RCO) is enrolled at the relevant education institution/one of the relevant institutions, and
• the student accommodation type can include room, studio apartment, apartment, with or without shared facilities etc. so long as it is student accommodation, provided by the university or a student accommodation provider associated with the education institution. For example. Uni Lodge, SCAPE

Indigenous Student Success Program (ISSP)

The ISSP provides supplementary funding to universities to help students take on the demands of university and succeed. Universities can offer scholarships, tutorial assistance, mentoring, safe cultural spaces and other personal support services to First Nations students using ISSP funding. The flexibility of the ISSP assists universities to tailor their services to match student needs.

The ISSP superseded the:

• Indigenous Commonwealth Accommodation Scholarship (CAS)
• Commonwealth Education Costs Scholarship (CECS)

Universities now offer the Indigenous CAS or CECS under the ISSP.

Students must provide confirmation of the ISSP and advise if the ISSP is for education costs or relocation and/or accommodation costs.

See Commonwealth Scholarships.

ISSP for relocation/accommodation costs

Students cannot receive a scholarship under the ISSP for relocation and/or accommodation costs to assist with the costs of living away from home and RCO for the same scholarship period.

ISSP for educational costs

Students can receive a scholarship under the ISSP for educational costs only and RCO for the same scholarship period.

There is no separate claim for the RCO. The student must:

• request the Residential Costs Option
• provide an account or invoice for their residential fees, including the following details:
• residential Institution name
• students name
• exact dates charged for accommodation and meals
• itemised list of charges, including if they are compulsory or refundable fees

ABSTUDY and ABSTUDY Pensioner Education Supplement (PES) students may choose to have their residential fees paid directly by Services Australia to their accommodation provider. Students who elect the RCO receive a reduced rate of Living Allowance, see Payment rates and thresholds or a nil rate of PES during the relevant period.

There is no set upper limit on the residential cost's payable by ABSTUDY for approved students who choose the RCO. Services Australia must ensure residential charges are reasonable, particularly where a large proportion of the students are in receipt of ABSTUDY support.

Residential fees will be paid for the whole period that is being charged, where a contract has been negotiated and an invoice from the residential college is provided. The student's usual rate of ABSTUDY Living Allowance at the Away from Home or Independent rates, or the usual rate of ABSTUDY PES, is payable for periods during which residential fees are not being charged.

RCO may be financially favourable to some students but not to others. Students must compare the costs carefully. See Process for details.

Living Allowance recipients who take up RCO, will have the appropriate income tests applied to the full fortnightly rate of Living Allowance. The income tests are:

• student
• partner
• parental

This means Living Allowance recipients who take up RCO will receive the lesser of:

• $41.60 per fortnight, or
• the student's normal fortnightly Living Allowance entitlement, including any amounts of Rent Assistance (RA), Pharmaceutical Allowance (PhA) or Energy Supplement (the amount they would receive after the application of the student, partner and parental income tests)

Note: the residential fees component of the RCO is not subject to a means test.

Services Australia will pay the full residential fees regardless of the student's Living Allowance or ABSTUDY PES entitlement.

Residential costs include:

• accommodation fees
• meals provided
• laundry charges, and
• other compulsory fees

Residential costs do not include bonds or other refundable fees. Non-refundable deposits may be requested by a Residential College or Hostel to be paid prior to the student commencing or resuming studies to secure their accommodation.

A residential college can charge a student up to an additional 4 weeks if they exit early. Students must negotiate with the residential college to have the additional costs reduced. Students may qualify for Additional Assistance if they have been unable to reduce the costs. Additional Assistance will only be approved if the:

• student and/or family would experience significant hardship, and
• student is at risk of withdrawing from education or training

See ABSTUDY Additional Assistance.

Some residential institutions do not provide meals. Therefore, a charge on the residential fees account or invoice for 'Living Allowance' is a component payable under Meals Provided. This is used to support the student with their day to day living costs.

For students who take up the RCO, only the Living Allowance entitlement is assessable as taxable income of the student.

Students who remain in their residential college or in a hostel during semester breaks can continue to receive RCO. Living Allowance and ABSTUDY PES will continue to be payable at the appropriate reduced or nil rate.

Students who travel overseas may lose qualification for ABSTUDY during the period they are overseas. This will not affect the residential fees so long as the student meets all other eligibility requirements. See Eligibility for RCO on the Process page for more information.