COVID-19- International student Emergency Relief Fund  

Premier Daniel Andrews’s government in Victoria has set up a $45 million International Students Emergency Relief Fund for helping international students in Victoria. The government will be working with and through Victorian universities and TAFEs who will play a key role in helping the state Government to administer funds to international students.

Applications are now open and international students in Victoria who are facing financial hardship through lost wages and work as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic should apply. The fund is being delivered in partnership with Victoria’s tertiary education providers.

This International Student Emergency Relief Fund complements the range of relief programs offered by the Victorian Government and Victoria’s universities and education providers.

Partnering universities and TAFEs will process applications and distribute funds.

Working together on a co-contribution basis, the government, universities and TAFEs shall build on the significant funding and support programs already in place in our public institutions and offer more customised support.

The state government believes our universities and TAFEs are best placed to assess your welfare need and ensure you have access to their support networks.

If you are enrolled in a public university or TAFE, you can apply through your institution. Information for each university and TAFE is listed below.

If you are studying in a Private College
International students who are studying in colleges run by private providers can also apply. The state government has prepared a list of participating private providers.

Students will need to provide the following documentation (as attachments) in a commonly used file format (i.e. PDF, JPEG, PNG) to support your application:

Attachment 1: Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) form (screenshot or PDF)

Attachments 2 and 3: Valid Student Visa Documentation – You can provide up to two documents that provide information about your visa. These must be uploaded screenshots or PDFs of your visa details from the Department of Home Affairs, Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO) website. One or two documents can be provided, and together they must show the following eight points of information:

1. A visible Australian Government crest or logo or URL address
2. Must be clearly date stamped and show that this date stamp was generated within five days of submitting your application(to show your current location is onshore)
3. Your full name
4. Your current location (Onshore)
5. Visa Grant Number
6. Visa Class/subclass (Student)
7. Visa Grant Date
8. Visa Expiry Date – Length of Stay (must be after 30 June 2020)

Attachment 4: Passport (scan)

Attachment 5: Evidence of employment

Attachment 6: Evidence of reduction of hours or loss of employment

For list of eligible private colleges and more information, please click here.

In addition to International Students Emergency Relief Fund, the state government is also offering one-off rent relief grants for people in rental hardship due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, to help keep renters in safe and stable accommodation and to help with finding work opportunities through Working for Victoria.

There is also COVID-19 health costs waiver program. Victorian hospitals will waive the costs of treatment for overseas travellers, including international students, with symptoms of coronavirus who fall ill in Australia and do not have adequate insurance coverage.