Reduction of Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) debts for teachers in very remote areas

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Types of assistance and general eligibility criteria

There are two types of assistance under this initiative:

  • waivers of indexation on accumulated HELP debt and
  • reduction of accumulated HELP debt

Both types of assistance are available to teachers who are/were teaching in a very remote area of Australia, based on the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Remoteness Structure, at any of the following:

  • a school providing primary or secondary education
  • a centre based day care service
  • a preschool

To be eligible for either type of assistance, teaching must be face-to-face in a very remote area during the period applied for (or temporarily located in a very remote area if temporarily employed). Teachers must also have completed their initial teacher education qualification and have a HECS-HELP or FEE-HELP debt in relation to that qualification.

The term ‘initial teacher education qualification’ refers to the first teacher education qualification obtained that satisfies the minimum academic requirements for registration as a teacher by an authority of a state or territory

This initiative is administered under the HELP Debtor Guidelines (Teachers) 2023.

Waiving indexation on accumulated HELP debt

You may be eligible to apply if you are/were a teacher in a very remote area of Australia (based on the ABS Remoteness Structure) area on or after 14 February 2019. If your application is successful, indexation on your accumulated HELP debt will be waived for your approved period for as long as you remain eligible. Further information on the indexation waiver.

Applicants must provide supporting documentation as listed in the application form for their application to be assessed.
Acceptable documentation may include but is not limited to the following:

  • an ATO HELP debt statement showing your name and TFN (which can be accessed on the ATO portal through a MyGov account); and
  • a completed teaching qualification (including date completed); and
  • an employment contract(s) or other formal employment documentation that supports employment for the full period applied for; and
  • If you have previously been approved for a waiver of indexation and you are seeking to extend your approved period, you may apply for an extension using the same application form shown below.

Further information on waiving indexation on accumulated HELP debt

Reduction of accumulated HELP debt

To be eligible for a reduction of your accumulated HELP debt, teachers must:

  • complete four years (1400 days) of teaching full time, or the pro-rated part time equivalent in a six-year period, and
  • be teaching at:
    • a very remote school/s providing primary or secondary education
    • a centre based day care service, and/or
    • a preschool

The eligible teaching period commences on or after 1 January 2019.

The debt to be reduced is limited to the HELP debt outstanding at the commencement of the teaching position when you become eligible, and to a maximum of five years of initial teacher education qualification related tuition costs. The department will work with you and the ATO to calculate this amount.

Further information on reduction of accumulated HELP debt

Lists of schools or centre based day care services in very remote areas of Australia

To be eligible, the address of your school or centre based day care service must be located in a very remote area of Australia based on the relevant Remoteness Areas Structure published by the ABS. Please see the following lists of schools and centre based day care services located in a very remote area.

The lists of centre based day care services operating in very remote areas:

The lists of eligible preschools in New South Wales, Northern Territory, Queensland and South Australia:

The list of eligible primary and secondary schools:

Please refer to the very remote schools list shown above for preschools located in eligible locations in Western Australia and Tasmania.

You can view the Remoteness Areas online using the ABS Maps tool.

Application form

The application form for reduction of accumulated HELP debts, indexation waivers and waiver extensions can be found here: Very Remote Teachers Application Form.

Contact us

Email: veryremotehelp@education.gov.au

More information about reduction of accumulated HELP debt and waiver of indexation assistance can be found on the Frequently asked questions page.