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Deferring the SSAF

Can I defer the Student Services and Amenities Fee (SSAF) through SA-HELP?

SA-HELP is a government loan scheme that assists eligible students by allowing them to defer all or part of their Student Services and Amenities Fee (SSAF) for the relevant year. In order to defer payment of your Student Services and Amenities Fee (SSAF), you must submit your request by the SA-HELP debt incurral date. You only need to apply for SA-HELP once per admitted course. You should re-apply for SA-HELP if you enrol in another course, or transfer courses.

Eligibility

In order to be eligible to defer your SSAF through SA-HELP you must be an Australian citizen or hold a permanent humanitarian visa and be enrolled in an award course at the University. New Zealand citizens are eligible for SA-HELP only if certain criteria are met. Please visit the Study Assist website for further information. You must also have submitted a Request for SA-HELP assistance form by your SSAF debt incurral date.

How to apply

After applying

If you have successfully applied for SA-HELP, your SSAF amount will change from mandatory to optional on your student invoice. It will remain as "Optional" on your Statement of Liability and invoices until the incurral date of 31 December. You can choose to make upfront payments, full or partial, of optional SSAF amounts up until the SA-HELP debt incurral date.

More about SA-HELP

There is no limit to the amount of SSAF that you can defer via SA-HELP and there is no loan fee applied. SA-HELP loans are repaid through the taxation system, together with any other HELP debts (for example HECS-HELP FEE-HELP) incurred while studying. Once you have submitted a 'Request for SA-HELP' assistance, any outstanding amount of the SSAF still owing will be reported to the Australian Tax Office (ATO) after the SA-HELP debt incurral date (31 December).

For further information regarding paying back your HELP debts, see the Study Assist website.