{"id":"F2024L01231","name":"Education Services for Overseas Students (Calculation of Refund) Instrument 2024","slug":"education-services-for-overseas-students-calculation-of-refund-instrument-2024","collection":"legislative_instrument","jurisdiction":"commonwealth","status":"in_force","isInForce":true,"actNumber":null,"makingDate":null,"administeringDepartment":null,"currentVersion":{"id":442590,"registerId":"F2024L01231-fast-fetch-1775957561904","compilationNumber":null,"startDate":"2026-04-12","status":"InForce","reasons":null,"registeredAt":null},"sections":[{"sectionNumber":"1","sectionType":"section","heading":"Education Services for Overseas Students (Calculation of Refund) Instrument 2024","content":"---\nmeta-content-style-type: text/css\nmeta-content-type: application/xhtml+xml; charset=utf-8\n---\n\n![Commonwealth Coat of Arms of Australia](image.001.jpeg)\n\n \n\nEducation Services for Overseas Students (Calculation of Refund) Instrument 2024\n\nI, Jason Clare, Minister for Education, make the following instrument.\n\nDated 26 September 2024   \n\nJason Clare\n\nMinister for Education\n\n \n\n \n\n \n\nContents\n\n1  Name\n\n2  Commencement\n\n3  Authority\n\n4  Definitions\n\n5  Schedules\n\n6  Meaning of weekly tuition fee\n\n7  Meaning of weeks in default period\n\n8  Method for working out amount of refund of tuition fees in event of provider default\n\n9  Method for working out amount of refund if provider does not enter into compliant student default agreement\n\n10  Method for working out amount of refund in event of student visa refusal\n\nSchedule 1—Repeals\n\nEducation Services for Overseas Students (Calculation of Refund) Specification 2014\n\n \n\n \n\n1  Name\n\n  This instrument is the Education Services for Overseas Students (Calculation of Refund) Instrument 2024.\n\n2  Commencement\n\n  This instrument commences the day after this instrument is registered.\n\n3  Authority\n\n  This instrument is made under subsections 46D(7) and 47E(4) of the Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000.\n\n4  Definitions\n\nNote: A number of expressions used in this instrument are defined in section 5 of the Act, including the following:\n\n(a) agreed starting day;\n\n(b) course;\n\n(c) default;\n\n(d) default day;\n\n(e) intending overseas student;\n\n(f) overseas student;\n\n(g) provider;\n\n(h) registered provider;\n\n(i) student visa; and\n\n(j) tuition fees\n\n  In this instrument:\n\nAct means the Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000.\n\nstudent means an overseas student or an intending overseas student.\n\n5  Schedules\n\n  Each instrument that is specified in a Schedule to this instrument is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this instrument has effect according to its terms.\n\n6  Meaning of weekly tuition fee\n\n (1) For the purposes of this instrument, the weekly tuition fee in relation to a course provided or to be provided by a registered provider to a student means the tuition fee calculated as follows:\n\n![Start formula weekly tuition fee equals start fraction total tuition fees for the course over number of calendar days in the course end fraction times seven end formula ](image.002.png)\n\n (2) If the fee calculated under subsection (1) is not a whole dollar amount, round the fee up to the nearest whole dollar.\n\n7  Meaning of weeks in default period\n\n (1) For the purposes of this instrument, the weeks in default period means the number of weeks in relation to a course:\n\n (a) during which a registered provider or a student defaulted; and\n\n (b) for which the provider received payment of tuition fees in respect of the student;\n\nand calculated as follows:\n\n![start formula weeks in default period equals start fraction number of calendar days from the default day to the end of the period to which the payment relates over seven end fraction end formula ](image.003.png)  \n\n\n \n\n (2) If the number of weeks calculated under subsection (1) is not a whole number, round the number up to the nearest whole number.\n\n8  Method for working out amount of refund of tuition fees in event of provider default\n\n  For the purposes of subsection 46D(6) of the Act, the amount of a refund of tuition fees received by a registered provider in respect of a student is calculated as follows:\n\n![start formula refund amount equals weekly tuition fee times weeks in default period end formula ](image.004.png)\n\n9  Method for working out amount of refund if provider does not enter into compliant student default agreement\n\n  For the purposes of subsection 47E(2) of the Act, if a registered provider is required to provide a refund to a student under subsection 47E(1) of the Act because the provider has not entered into an agreement with the student that meets the requirements of section 47B of the Act, the amount of a refund is calculated as follows:\n\n![start formula refund amount equals weekly tuition fee times weeks in default period end formula ](image.004.png)\n\n10  Method for working out amount of refund in event of student visa refusal\n\n (1) For the purposes of subsection 47E(2) of the Act, if a registered provider is required to provide a refund to a student under subsection 47E(1) of the Act, and the provider is not required to pay a refund to the student because of subsection 47D(5) of the Act, the amount of a refund is calculated as set out in subsections (2) and (4).\n\n (2) If the student was refused a student visa and the refusal caused the student to fail to start the course at the location on the agreed day, consistent with subparagraph 47D(5)(b)(i) of the Act, the amount of a refund is calculated as the amount of the course fees, minus the lesser of the following amounts:\n\n (a) 5% of the amount of course fees received by the provider in respect of the student before the default day;\n\n (b) $500.\n\n (3) For the purposes of subsection (2), the course fees for a course is the sum of:\n\n (a) the tuition fees received by the provider in respect of the student; and\n\n (b) the non-tuition fees (if any) received by the provider in respect of the student.\n\n(4) If the student was refused a student visa and the refusal caused the student to withdraw from the course at that location, or fail to pay an amount that they were liable to pay the provider to undertake the course, consistent with subparagraphs 47D(5)(b)(ii) and (iii) of the Act, the amount of a refund is calculated as follows:\n\n![start formula refund amount equals weekly tuition fee times weeks in default period end formula ](image.004.png)\n\n\n\n\nSchedule 1—Repeals\n\nEducation Services for Overseas Students (Calculation of Refund) Specification 2014\n\n1  The whole of the instrument\n\nRepeal the instrument\n\n \n\n \n","sortOrder":0}],"analysis":{"flash_summary_failed":{"failed":true,"reason":"Unauthenticated. Configure AI_GATEWAY_API_KEY or use a provider module. Learn more: https://ai-sdk.dev/unauthenticated-ai-gateway","source":"analysis-cron"},"flash_summary":{"complexity_score":4,"scope_assessment":{"changed":true,"description":"This instrument repeals the Education Services for Overseas Students (Calculation of Refund) Specification 2014 (Schedule 1) and replaces it with specific calculation methods, rounding rules and a visa-refusal deduction cap (s6–s10). While it narrows outcomes to explicit formulas, operative scope still relies on statutory terms in the Act (s4), so the practical scope is shaped by both the new formulas and existing Act definitions."},"complexity_factors":["Multiple scenario-specific refund formulas (provider default s8; non-compliant student-default agreement s9; student visa refusal s10) require providers to apply different calculations depending on trigger events.","Mathematical calculations rely on calendar-day to week conversions (s6 formula for weekly tuition fee; s7 formula for weeks in default period), including rounding-up rules (s6(2); s7(2)), which can affect small-amount outcomes.","Visa-refusal special rule (s10(2)–(4)) uses a capped deduction—the lesser of 5% of course fees or $500—introducing a non-linear cutoff that changes refund math versus the straight weekly formula.","Dependence on defined terms in the Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 (notably 'default day', 'agreed starting day', 'tuition fees') means legal effect depends on statutory definitions and facts (s4 and Authority s3).","Repeal of the prior instrument (Schedule 1) creates potential transitional and interpretation questions where prior practice differed.","Commencement timing (s2: day after registration) imposes immediate compliance start; providers must update billing/records and refund processes accordingly.","The instrument is mechanically prescriptive (deterministic formulas) which reduces administrative discretion but increases precise calculation and recordkeeping demands on providers (s6–s10)."],"plain_english_summary":"This instrument replaces the 2014 specification and prescribes exact formulas for calculating refunds of tuition and course fees for overseas or intending overseas students when a registered provider defaults, fails to enter a compliant student-default agreement, or a student visa is refused. It defines how to compute a weekly tuition fee, how to count weeks in the default period (with rounding rules), and a visa-refusal cap (the lesser of 5% of course fees or $500). Registered providers must compute and pay refunds; students receive the adjusted amounts."},"kimi_summary":{"content_quality":"ok","complexity_score":3,"scope_assessment":{"changed":false,"description":"The instrument maintains the same narrow, technical scope as its 2014 predecessor. It performs a single function: prescribing refund calculation methods under specific provisions of the ESOS Act. The 2024 version updates the legislative instrument format and numbering but does not expand beyond the original purpose of providing mathematical formulas for tuition protection refunds."},"complexity_factors":["Short instrument: only 10 substantive sections plus a repeal schedule","Minimal defined terms: only 2 definitions in section 4 (Act, student), with other terms imported by reference from the parent Act","Straightforward mathematical formulas: 4 distinct calculation methods using basic arithmetic (division, multiplication, rounding)","Limited cross-referencing: references only to specific subsections of the Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 (ss 46D, 47B, 47D, 47E)","Clear structure: each section addresses one discrete scenario (provider default, no agreement, visa refusal)","No nested exceptions or conditional logic beyond the three distinct scenarios in sections 8-10"],"plain_english_summary":"This instrument replaces the 2014 rules with updated 2024 formulas to calculate tuition refunds for international students when a provider defaults, fails to give a proper written agreement, or a student’s visa is refused. It standardises the weekly-fee and refund-period calculations and includes a capped retention for pre-course visa refusals.\n\nIt affects international students, registered Australian providers and the Tuition Protection Service — protecting students’ prepaid fees and reducing disputes by giving clear, enforceable refund rules."}},"importantCases":[],"_links":{"self":"/api/acts/education-services-for-overseas-students-calculation-of-refund-instrument-2024","history":"/api/acts/education-services-for-overseas-students-calculation-of-refund-instrument-2024/history","analysis":"/api/acts/education-services-for-overseas-students-calculation-of-refund-instrument-2024/analysis","conflicts":"/api/acts/education-services-for-overseas-students-calculation-of-refund-instrument-2024/conflicts","importantCases":"/api/acts/education-services-for-overseas-students-calculation-of-refund-instrument-2024/important-cases","documents":"/api/acts/education-services-for-overseas-students-calculation-of-refund-instrument-2024/documents"}}