Fees Free
What is Fees Free?
Fees Free tertiary education and training is a policy introduced in 2018 to expand participation in tertiary education and reduce student debt in New Zealand. It is targeted towards first-time learners. Fees Free covers up to $12,000 for one year’s study or two years’ training, paid directly to your tertiary education organisation.
To access Fees Free, you must meet the eligibility criteria, and your course or programme must also be eligible. Check the eligibility criteria for Fees Free here.
Enter your National Student Number (NSN) into the tool linked below to find out about your current eligibility status and next steps.
I am eligible for Fees Free, what do I need to do?
If you complete the Fees Free tool check and it says that you are eligible for fees free, you do not need to do anything – we will also check and record evidence of the eligibility on our end.
Once you have entered your NSN you are required to select ‘Provider Based Study’ and then select the ‘Current Year’ and follow the instructions to find your eligibility (do not select ‘Work Based Learning’ as this this does not apply for our courses)
TEC will contact us directly, and we will apply the funds to your fees account for your study.
For more information on the Commission, please visit the Teritary Education Commission website.
Note: the Government will pay up to $12,000 in fees.
Fees Free says I may be eligible for Fees Free, what do I need to do?
If your eligibility status is showing as ‘Maybe”, and you know you meet the eligibility criteria for Fees Free, you need to complete and submit a statutory declaration in order to be recognised as eligible for Fees Free.
Some helpful links and information on completing a statutory declaration are below:
- What are the terms and conditions of declaring that I am eligible for Fees Free?
- How long will it take for my statutory declaration to be processed?
- Who is authorised to witness me signing the statutory declaration?
- Do I need to tell my tertiary education organisation (TEO) when I’ve submitted my statutory declaration?
- Where should I email my signed and witnessed statutory declaration?
I am ineligible for Fees Free, what do I need to do?
If you are advised by the TEC that you are not eligible for Fees Free study and will need part or all of your fees paid by StudyLink for the current year, we strongly recommend that you apply well in advance of your enrolment because student loan applications generally take up to a month to be approved.
Studylink
Studylink is part of the Ministry of Social Development and can help with a no interest loan to cover your course fees.You need to apply as early as you can to make sure you get everything sorted in time, including your payments.
There are a number of ways Studylink can help pay for your study. They can also help you sort a budget and find out what you can get.
You need to apply as early as you can to make sure you get everything sorted in time, including your payments.
They may be able to help with:
- compulsory course fees
- course-related costs (eg, books, laptop, etc)
- day-to-day living costs
- other costs (eg disability or childcare).
How much you can get depends on your age, income and course type.