Free TAFE for Priority Courses is a Victorian Government program offering tuition-free study in non-apprenticeship courses and pre-apprenticeship courses as of 1 January 2019.
Any Australian citizen, a New Zealand citizen or holder of a Permanent Visa, is eligible for one tuition fee free place in a Free TAFE course as long are you:
Please note: some exceptions apply for referred asylum seekers and victims of human trafficking.
If you completed a Free TAFE course tuition fee free by accessing a JobTrainer place prior to 2023, you can access another tuition fee free place in any of the Free TAFE courses or Free TAFE Pathway Program courses on offer. If you are unsure if you accessed a JobTrainer place, contact our team to check for you.
Students who have completed a pathway course under Free TAFE can do another Free TAFE course in the same pathway (click here to see the listed eligible pathway courses).
Students who have already accessed Free TAFE, including for a non-pathway course, can do another Free TAFE course if they hold a qualification that is part of a Free TAFE pathway and are continuing in the same pathway. It does not matter if their previous qualification was completed by government-subsidised or fee-for-service training.
There are a range of courses offered at South West TAFE tuition fee free for eligible students via a range of initiatives.
View Free TAFE courses offered at South West TAFE.
View Free TAFE Pathways Program courses offered at South West TAFE.
View Free at TAFE short courses offered at South West TAFE.
If you’re eligible for Free TAFE, the Victorian government will pay the tuition fees for your whole course. Depending on the course, you may still need to pay all other fees, such as materials.
The Victorian government will only pay tuition fees for courses on the Free TAFE for Priority Courses list. We still have over 150 more courses on offer, some of which are government-subsidised or may offer a concession rate.
If you are eligible for a tuition fee free place in a Free TAFE course or Free TAFE Pathways Program course, you can complete that course on campus or via a traineeship.
Tuition fee free places are not available you would like to complete the training as an apprenticeship. Free TAFE courses and Free TAFE Pathways Program courses are only offered tuition fee free to eligible students if studied on campus or via a traineeship.
Some of our courses are already government-subsidised. This means the government funds a large portion of tuition fees and you may be paying the smaller remaining amount.
If you’re eligible under the Free TAFE for Priority Courses program, the Victorian government will pay all of your tuition fees for the duration of your priority course.
If you are eligible, the Victorian government will pay your tuition fees for one Free TAFE course in your lifetime, even if you don’t finish the course.
You may be eligible to access additional tuition fee free places if you complete a course that's on the Free TAFE Pathways Program course list.
If you completed a Free TAFE course tuition fee free by accessing a JobTrainer place prior to 2023, you can access another tuition fee free place again in any of the Free TAFE courses or Free TAFE Pathway Program courses on offer. If you are unsure if you accessed a JobTrainer place, contact our team to check for you.
If you’re continuing in the same course at a TAFE or dual sector provider, the course will continue to be tuition-free.
If you’re continuing in the same course – but not at a TAFE or dual sector provider – you’ll pay the standard tuition fees at that institute.
If you’re enrolled in high school, you won’t be able to access a tuition fee free place in a Free TAFE course (unless you’re doing a school-based traineeship). Apprenticeships and school-based apprenticeships are not part of Free TAFE.
You can find out more by contacting us or visit the Department of Education and Training website.
