What is VET FEE-HELP for paralegal qualifications?
VET FEE-HELP has been replaced by VET Student Loans under the VET Student Loans Act 2016 (Cth). It is a Commonwealth income-contingent loan available for approved diploma, advanced diploma, and graduate diploma-level vocational qualifications — including some paralegal, legal services, and conveyancing qualifications. Loans are capped per course and repayments start when the student's income exceeds the minimum repayment threshold (around $54,435 for 2025-26).
Approved legal courses
Not all courses qualify. VET Student Loans is only available for courses on the approved course list published by the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations. Diploma of Legal Services, Diploma of Conveyancing (where available), and some justice administration qualifications are typically included. Check the course loan cap — many sit at $5,000-$17,500 per course.
Eligibility requirements
Students must be Australian citizens or certain eligible permanent residents/New Zealand citizens; enrolled in an approved course at an approved provider; meet academic suitability requirements; have a Unique Student Identifier (USI); and complete the electronic Commonwealth Assistance Form. Tuition fees above the loan cap must be paid upfront.
Repayment
Loans are repaid through the tax system once income exceeds the minimum threshold (approximately $54,435 for 2025-26), indexed annually. Repayment rates scale with income from 1% to 10%. The debt is indexed annually to inflation but carries no real interest — making it cheaper than commercial debt for most students.
How this relates to legal work
For law firms employing paralegals with VSL debts, the debt is generally not the firm's concern — it is repaid through the employee's own tax. For firms supporting staff to upskill, VSL can fund approved diploma and graduate diploma qualifications, though Bachelor of Laws (LLB) and Juris Doctor (JD) degrees use HELP, not VSL.
Common issues
- VET FEE-HELP (the previous scheme) had significant fraud issues — many claims were invalidated
- Course loan caps mean some diplomas require students to top up with private funds
- VSL is not available for all providers — check RTO approval status
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