Applying for Commonwealth assistance

If you are a Commonwealth supported student, or if you are requesting a HELP loan, you must complete and lodge your request for Commonwealth assistance form (CAF) online prior to the census date of the first teaching period of your course enrolment.

You must lodge a new CAF when:

  • starting a new course, or
  • transferring to another course (including via an internal course transfer).

There are different forms for different types of assistance:

Request for Commonwealth support and HECS-HELP
You can submit this form online through My Student Admin (login required) if you have a Commonwealth supported place, regardless of whether you intend to pay your tuition fees upfront or defer, if you do not submit this form you will have your enrolment cancelled. You will not be able to enrol into any subjects until you have submitted this form.

Request for FEE-HELP assistance
You can submit this form online through My Student Admin if you are a domestic full fee paying student who is eligible and wishes to access FEE-HELP.

Request for SA-HELP assistance
You can submit this form online through My Student Admin if you are an eligible student and you wish to access SA-HELP.

eCAF 

You must complete a HECS-HELP form before enrolment can be completed. You should lodge your CAF online (eCAF) through the Govt Forms menu in My Student Admin.

  • If you have lodged your eCAF correctly, it will have a status of Approved. You will then be able to enrol into subjects.
  • If any of the details on your eCAF are incorrect or do not match the data in the student system, it will have a status of Submitted by Student. If this occurs, please check the details you submitted and resubmit the form. If the details are now correct, the form will be automatically approved.
  • If your form is still not approved, please contact your Student Centres or ASK UTS for assistance.

You should check My Student Admin to determine the outcome of your lodged CAF.  Please allow a few minutes for the CAF to be processed.

Tax file Numbers (TFN)

Any student requesting a HELP loan (HECS-HELP or FEE-HELP) must declare a valid tax file number on their CAF.  Failure to provide a valid TFN will result in your enrolment being cancelled. 

If you do not yet have your TFN:

  • lodge your eCAF by choosing the full upfront payment of my student contribution amount option. 
  • Submit a copy of your Certificate of Application to your Student Centre. You will then be eligible to defer your tuition fees.  Please advise UTS of your TFN as soon as you receive it from the ATO.

If you don't have a TFN you need to apply for one with the Australian Taxation Office (opens an external site).

Study Assist 

Study Assist (opens an external site) provides information to students about Australian Government assistance for financing tertiary study.

If you are a commonwealth supported or assisted student, you can login to a secure portal using your:

  • Commonwealth higher education student support number (CHESSN),
  • surname, and
  • date of birth.

You can access, where applicable, information on your:

There may be a delay in the inclusion of your most recent enrolment details in the information provided on the Study Assist site, check the enrolment period for the information provided.

Commonwealth higher education student support number (CHESSN) 

A Commonwealth Higher Education Student Support Number (CHESSN) is assigned to all students who receive Commonwealth assistance for their higher education. Your CHESSN stays with you throughout your academic life, allowing you to monitor your eligibility for Commonwealth assistance.

You need your CHESSN, among other things, to access the Australian government secure portal myUniAssist.

Your CHESSN is printed on your Commonwealth Assistance Notice (CAN). You can also access your CHESSN by going to your UTS Student Centre.

Commonwealth Assistance Notice (CAN) 

UTS is required to issue a Commonwealth Assistance Notice (CAN) to each of their Commonwealth supported or assisted students within 28 days of the census date. The CAN will be sent electronically to students via their UTS email account. For subjects enrolled from 2019 onwards the CAN will also be stored in myStudentAdmin under 'Govt forms' tab. 

Your CAN contains information about:

  • the subjects in which you are enrolled
  • the cost
  • any upfront payments made
  • any amounts deferred to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO)
  • student learning entitlement consumed
  • your CHESSN
  • your 20% FEE-HELP loan fee (for undergraduate domestic full fee paying students only)
  • student services and amenities fee.

Incorrect CAN

If you believe that there is an error on your CAN, let UTS know what you believe the error is through My Student Portal

You have fourteen days from the date of issue of the CAN to notify UTS if you think there is an error.

Obtain a copy of a CAN

  1. For subjects enrolled from 2019 onwards - you can access your CAN from myStudentAdmin under 'Govt forms' tab. The CAN will become available within 28 days after the Census date.
  2. If the CAN you require is not there, please submit an Ask UTS enquiry stating the year/s and sessions/s of the CAN you are requesting and it will be emailed to you directly. 

Please allow up to five working days to receive the CAN.          

Acknowledgement of Country

UTS acknowledges the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the Boorooberongal people of the Dharug Nation, the Bidiagal people and the Gamaygal people, upon whose ancestral lands our university stands. We would also like to pay respect to the Elders both past and present, acknowledging them as the traditional custodians of knowledge for these lands.