Fee Free TAFE and vocational education is a joint initiative of the Australian and South Australian Governments providing tuition-free training places to students wanting to train, retrain or upskill.
People from the following groups are strongly encouraged to apply:
Everyone is welcome to apply. Fee Free TAFE is intended for new students. Students need to be new to the course, not new to TAFE SA.
To be eligible for Fee Free TAFE people must at the time the course commences:
Applicants must also meet any specific academic requirements for individual courses.
Depending on the type of training and resources that are required to deliver a course effectively, class sizes may be limited. Fee Free places are subject to availability at each intake and may be subject to capacity constraints.
Course offers are made based upon the date of application, and all other course admission requirements being met.
The number of Fee Free TAFE places that are funded is limited by the terms of the skills agreement signed by the Australian and South Australian Governments.
Fee Free TAFE and vocational education places is a joint initiative of the Australian and South Australian Governments. There will be 12,500 fee free training places available for students to train, retrain or upskill with no tuition fee at TAFE SA and through selected non-government vocational education and training (VET) providers.
Fee Free TAFE covers course tuition fees only. This also means that any fees associated with Recognition of Prior Learning are also fee free.
Some Fee Free TAFE courses may have additional ‘incidental’ costs that students need to pay for things like special equipment, protective clothing, uniforms, police clearance or similar requirements.
To help students who are experiencing financial hardship, TAFE SA has established the Fee Free TAFE Incidental Costs Scholarship. This scholarship can help cover a portion of the incidental costs related to your FFT course.
If you are experiencing financial hardship, you can apply for a Fee Free TAFE Incidental Costs Scholarship.
Fee Free TAFE is intended for new students to the course being offered. Everyone is welcome to apply. People from the following groups are strongly encouraged to apply:• First Nations people • LGBTIQ+ community• Veterans• Job seekers• Young people • Unpaid carers • Women interested in non-traditional fields • People living with a disability • People who are eligible for certain visa sub classesTo be eligible for Fee Free TAFE you must at the time the course commences: • Live or work in South Australia • Be an Australian or New Zealand citizen, permanent Australian resident or an eligible VISA holder • Be aged 16 years or over and not enrolled at any school. Applicants must also meet any specific academic requirements for individual courses. Depending on the type of training and resources that are required to deliver it effectively, class sizes for any given course may be limited. Fee Free places are subject to availability at each intake and may be subject to capacity constraints. Course offers are made based upon the date of application, and all other course admission requirements being met.
The Fee Free TAFE course list can be found here.
Please note, Fee Free TAFE covers the tuition fee of the course. Where applicable some courses may include additional fees such as a Resource Fee or Incidental Fee.
Any additional fees will be identified in course specific information.
Fee Free TAFE places are available for students enrolling to start in 2023, subject to funding availability, and will remain free for eligible students for the duration of the course.
Strong demand in Semester 1 has resulted in limited places being available for Semester 2, 2023, with the remaining Fee Free TAFE places available prioritised for Skill Set courses to meet skill needs in education, cookery, and mining and engineering. Fee-Free TAFE Skill Set Courses that remain available for Semester 2, 2023 are listed here.
As of 9 June 2023 Fee Free TAFE places in full qualifications were no longer available. Applicants offered a Fee Free TAFE place prior to this date but who have yet to enrol will be supported in accepting their Fee Free TAFE place.
Fee Free places are for students enrolling in and commencing a new course in 2023.
Students who need to repeat a unit are entitled to three (3) attempts to complete successfully, all of which will be fee free, as is consistent with our current subsidised training policy.
Students may be eligible for a fee free training place if they are a holder of an eligible visa. In addition to all permanent residency visa holders, the following visa holders are eligible: • Skilled – Work Regional (subclass 491) • Skilled – Regional (Provisional) Visa (subclass 489) • Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (subclass 494) • Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) Visa, subclass 188 • Safe Haven Enterprise Visa (SHEV), subclass 790 • Bridging Visa A, subclass 010*• Bridging Visa B, subclass 020*• Bridging Visa E (BE), subclass 050 and 051*• Temporary Protection Visa (TPV), subclass 785*• Bridging Visa F (BVF), subclass 060*• Partner Visa (Temporary), subclass 820 and 309• Temporary Humanitarian Stay visa (subclass 449) • Temporary Humanitarian Concern (THC) visa (subclass 786) *Individuals on Bridging visas are only eligible where they are waiting on the outcome of an application for a permanent visa or one of the temporary visas listed above.
Visa holders on the following repealed provisional visas are also eligible for Fee Free training: • Skilled – Regional (Provisional) Visa (subclass 489) • Skilled – Regional Sponsored Visa (subclass 475) • Skilled – Regional Sponsored Visa (subclass 487) • Skilled Independent – Regional (Provisional) Visa (subclass 495)• Senior Executive (Provisional) Visa (subclass 161) • Investor (Provisional) Visa (subclass 162) • State/Territory Sponsored Business Owner (Provisional) Visa, subclass 163 • State/Territory Sponsored Senior Executive (Provisional) Visa, subclass 164 • State/Territory Sponsored Investor (Provisional) Visa, subclass 165
Visit career planning for a range of resources and information to help you plan your career and training goals. You can also book an appointment with our careers team to discuss your options.
If you need further assistance, please phone TAFE SA on 1800 882 661 or contact us.
Freecall 1800 882 661