If you wish, you may download HECS-HELP benefit 2009(NAT 72575-03-2009) in Portable Document Format [PDF, 220KB].
About the benefit
The HECS-HELP benefit aims to encourage graduates of maths or science undergraduate courses of study to take up employment in specified occupations, and to encourage early childhood education teachers to work in specified locations including rural and regional areas, Indigenous Australian communities and areas of socio-economic disadvantage.
You are referred to as a graduate (regardless of whether you have attended a graduation ceremony) if you have satisfied the academic requirements of your eligible course of study. A course of study is a degree or similar qualification, not an individual subject or unit.
The benefit is not a cash payment. It is a benefit which you need to apply for annually to reduce your compulsory HELP repayment or accumulated HELP debt.
For eligible maths or science graduates, the benefit of up to $1,500 in the 2008–09 income year will reduce:
the amount of your compulsory HELP repayment as shown on your income tax notice of assessment, resulting in a reduction to your accumulated HELP debt.
For eligible early childhood education teachers, the benefit of up to $1,600 in the 2008–09 income year will reduce:
the amount of your compulsory HELP repayment as shown on your income tax notice of assessment, resulting in a reduction to your accumulated HELP debt, or
your accumulated HELP debt – if you do not have to make a compulsory HELP repayment (for example, your HELP repayment income is below the threshold for compulsory repayment). We will send you a letter with details of your benefit and your reduced debt.
If you are an early childhood education teacher, you may also be entitled to the reduction in your accumulated HELP debt where:
due to low family income, a compulsory HELP repayment is not required because you are entitled to a reduction of the Medicare levy or do not have to pay the levy, or
you successfully applied to defer your compulsory HELP repayment for the year.
If you are required to make a compulsory repayment, the HECS-HELP benefit may reduce your overall tax debt or increase your tax refund, depending on your individual circumstances.
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