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      VET student loan complaints

      The Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman investigates complaints about problems that VET FEE-HELP or VET Student Loans students have with their provider. Our services are free, independent an impartial—we do not take sides. To find out how to apply for a VET Student Loan, go to StudyAssist.

      Complaints we can look into

      We can look into complaints from students who have a VET FEE-HELP or VET Student Loan debt, if the complaint is about the debt.

      Issues we can look into include:

      • incorrect or misleading information or advice given by a provider or their representative about your course or loan assistance
      • providers charging you when you are no longer participating in the course
      • you do not think you should have a debt
      • incorrect loan amounts
      • providers refusing your request for a loan re-credit
      • providers cancelling your enrolment in a course you are paying for with VET Loan Assistance
      • unsolicited contact or inducements which led you to apply for a loan
      • provider’s handling of your complaint or appeal

      Complaints we cannot look into

      There are some issues we cannot help with. These include:

      • other higher education loan debts, such as FEE-HELP
      • the grade or mark your provider awarded you for an assessment task, competency or unit
      • the quality of teaching
      • the qualifications and experience of teachers
      • the resources or equipment available at your provider
      • the buildings and facilities at your provider

      Is your complaint about one of the things we can’t look into?

      We have a list of other ombudsmen and agencies that may help you.

      Our role

      • We investigate complaints about providers delivering education and training services under both the VET Student Loans program and VET FEE-HELP scheme
      • We provide best practice complaint-handling advice and training to providers
      • We report on trends and issues we identify with VET student loans
      • We work with industry to maintain the VET Student Loans Code of Practice.

      How we help

      We help students with a VET FEE-HELP or VET Student Loan debt, who are studying or have studied a:

      • diploma
      • advanced diploma
      • graduate certificate
      • graduate diploma course.

      We also help students who don’t think they should have a VET FEE-HELP or VET Student Loan debt.

      It is usually best to contact the agency, provider or organisation you are having issues with, before contacting the Office. It can usually address your complaint quickly or review the decision it made. Read our factsheet to find out how to make a complaint with your agency, provider or organisation.

      View our Complaints page for more information.

      Before you contact us

      Did you incur your debt after 1 January 2017 under the VET Student Loan program?

      • contact your provider before contacting us and tell them why you don’t think the debt is correct.
      • read our factsheet to find out how to make a complaint with your provider.

      Did you incur your debt between 2009 and 2017 under the ‘VET FEE-HELP’ assistance scheme?

      • you can apply to the VET FEE-HELP Student Redress Measures.
      • We will assess whether all or part of your debt should be recredited
      • Read our factsheet to find out more.

      VET Student Loans Code of Practice

      This voluntary code of practice (the Code) is for education providers who deliver VET Student Loan approved courses.

      The Code is designed to give education providers best practice guidelines to resolve complaints before they reach our Office. The Code contains 10 principles that target issues our Office has identified in complaints regarding VET student loans and education providers. It includes good practice guidelines to assist education providers to apply each principle, as well as useful tips to help both education providers and students resolve complaints.

      This list of providers  have registered as signatories to the Code.To become a signatory to the Code please complete and return this form.

      The Office has prepared a self-assessment tool for signatories to the code, which assists providers to assess their practices against the principles in the Code, and identify areas for improvement.

      To obtain further information about the Code, or to return the Signatory Registration form, please email VSL.codeofpractice@ombudsman.gov.au.

      Contact us

      If you, or someone you know, has a problem or complaint about your VET FEE-HELP or VET Student Loans training provider you can contact us here.

      Resources

      Frequently asked questions

      We can help if:

      • you have a VET FEE-HELP or a VET Student Loan to cover all or part of the cost of their studies, or
      • you have a VET FEE-HELP or VET Student Loan debt but you don’t think you should.

      Family or friends of a person with a VET FEE-HELP or VET Student Loan debt can contact us on a student’s behalf by filling out a Permission for someone else to act on my behalf form.

      We don’t take sides. Our investigations are private and usually informal.

      When we receive a complaint, we first decide if it is an issue we can investigate. In some cases, we decide not to investigate. This might be because:

      • you have not complained to the education provider first, or
      • another organisation is better able to help.

      If we decide not to investigate, we will tell you why and let you know what to do next. If you are not happy with our decision not to investigate, you can ask for a review.  More information is available in our factsheet.

      If we decide to investigate a complaint, we will ask the education provider about the problem. We may request relevant information, such as student records, from the provider. Further information on complaint investigations is available in our factsheet.

      VET Student Loans

      It takes an average of 3 months to investigate a VET Student Loans complaint, but this can vary. Some problems are simple to resolve while others are more complex and take longer to investigate. You can help the process by responding quickly to our requests for information and presenting your information clearly.

      We will contact you within 5 working days of receiving your complaint, and we will keep you informed about the progress of your complaint.

      VET Fee-Help

      Complaints about VET Fee-Help can take up to 12 months

      To investigate a problem we usually need to give some information about the complaint to the provider to find out what has happened. This will include your name and a description of your complaint.  You can ask us not to provide specific information.

      We will treat your information with privacy and respect, and collect, store, use and disclose your personal information only in accordance with Australian privacy laws.

      You can view our Privacy Statement here.

      Yes, VET Student Loans approved course providers are members of the VET Student Loans Ombudsman, as the external dispute resolution scheme, as stated in the VET Student Loans Act 2016 section 25(2)(h).

      We recommend VET Student Loans approved course providers give students information about our services.

      If your provider has closed down   and you have a complaint about your VET FEE-HELP or VET Student Loan debt you can make a complaint to our Office.