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CAN: what it is

Your Commonwealth Assistance Notice (CAN) is the official advice of your enrolment, CHESSN/USI, and HELP debt for your unit(s) of study for a specific study period. It shows any units in which you were enrolled into as at a specific census date. This notice is sent to you so you can confirm your enrolment and payment method appears correctly as at a specified census date.

You should retain this notice for your records and for taxation purposes.

Please note: the CAN is not an invoice. Once you have enrolled in unit/s, You can print your statement of charges on ‘My Study’ Tile.

Information about the CAN

  • The CAN is not an invoice. You will receive your CAN within 28 days after the census date for each study period in which you are enrolled.
  • CANs are sent to all eligible students via email to a student’s official email account only. You should check your student email at least once a week as this is the University’s formal channel of communication.
  • Unit/s you withdrew from after the census date will still appear on the CAN, as this notice shows your enrolment as at a specific census date. This includes unit/s you have withdrawn from after the census date and been approved for no penalties due to special circumstances.
  • No action is required if all the details are correct. You will need to keep this information as a record of any HELP debt which has been deferred to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) on your behalf.

If any enrolment or fee details are incorrect, you will have a certain amount of time to advise the University for a review. This is usually 14 days from receiving the notice. Check the CAN for the actual date which corrections can be requested by.

Send an email enquiry to AskMQ with the words ‘Commonwealth Assistance Notice’ in the subject line. Ensure you provide:

  • your full name
  • your Student ID
  • the unit codes for which you believe there has been an error.

If any of your contact details are incorrect such as your address, you will need to ​self update these details ​via ‘My Details’ in eStudent.

The SSAF fee is a non-academic fee levied on students. These fees must be paid when due to avoid financial sanctions. This can be done by login to eStudent and clicking on to ‘My Finances’ tile. For a list of payment methods, please see How to pay. For domestics students eligible for HELP, the SSAF payment can be deferred by completing a separate SA-HELP form on eStudent by the relevant census date.

You can use your CHESSN or USI to access myHELPbalance on the Study Assist website.

Note: you cannot make any upfront payments to the University for the unit/s of study. You must make any payments directly to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).

If you defer your fees with a HELP loan, it usually takes two to four weeks after the census date for your debt to appear on your myHELP portal. This is due to the reporting schedule between the Government and universities.

For more information on how to repay your HELP loan, go to the StudyAssist website.

Term

Meaning

Census date

The last date that you can withdraw from your unit/s of study without financial and academic penalty.

CHESSN

A Commonwealth Higher Education Student Number (CHESSN) is a 10-digit number provided by the Australian Government to all students with a:

  • Commonwealth Support Place (CSP)
  • Higher Education Loan Program (HELP) loan (including HECS, FEE, SA, OS)
  • Commonwealth Learning Scholarship.

The CHESSN is a unique identifier used by higher education providers. It allows you to view details of your Commonwealth-assisted study, including any HELP debts incurred.

Your CHESSN is on your Commonwealth Assistance Notice. This notice is available in the Web Enrolment System (WES) 28 days after the census date. To view information on how much Commonwealth assistance you have received, log in to myUniAssist.

The CHESSN is being replaced by the Unique Student Identifier (USI) from 1 January 2021.

EFTSL

The equivalent full-time student load (EFTSL) of the unit/s of study in which you are enrolled. Learn more about EFTSL.

FEE-HELP debt

The amount of debt that will be deferred to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) on your behalf for the unit/s of study.

Note: Any FEE-HELP debts that you incur in a given year can become part of your accumulated HELP debt for the following tax return period (not the current tax period).

FEE-HELP loan fee

There is a 25 per cent loan fee for FEE-HELP loans for undergraduate courses of study.

HECS-HELP debt

The amount of debt that will be deferred to the ATO on your behalf for the unit/s of study.

Note: Any HECS-HELP debts that you incur in a given year will become part of your accumulated HELP debt for the following tax return period (not the current tax period).

HECS-HELP discount

A 10 per cent discount on payments made above $500, if applicable.

Due to changes in legislation, the upfront payment discount was removed from 1 January 2017 to 31 December 2020 and re-introduced from 1 January 2021.

SA-HELP

The amount of Student Services and Amenities Fee (SSAF) that will be deferred to the ATO for the relevant study period.

Student contribution

The rate a student is required to contribute for the unit/s of study. Learn more about fees.

SSAF (Student Services and Amenities Fee)

This fee provides funding towards student services, support and facilities that are not of an academic nature and can benefit all students.

See SSAF-supported services and initiatives.

Tuition fee amount

The amount of tuition fees payable for the unit/s of study. Learn more about fees.

USI (Unique Student Identifier)

The USI is a lifelong reference number issued by the Australian Government for your education journey.

Learn more about USIs.

Upfront payments

Amount of tuition fees paid upfront to the University. This column may include any amounts which you have not paid yourself but have been approved for a sponsorship.

Note: If your CAN shows an amount in the ‘Upfront Payment’ column, this amount may refer to any sponsorships you have been approved for. If you withdraw from these units, you will not be eligible for a refund of these amounts, as the money will be returned to the sponsor.

More information about CANs can be found on the StudyAssist government website.