Eligibility for government subsidised training

Eligibility and subsidy criteria apply. Individuals can check what government subsidised training options they may be eligible for by answering a few questions through the following eligibility. You can also view the current Subsidised Training List (STL) online on the Skills & Employment website (www.skills.sa.gov.au). The STL shows Courses that may be subsidised through the South Australian Government’s initiative and provides information about the Courses, conditions, The current STL can be viewed online or search by course.

You may be eligible for a government subsidised training place if you either live or work in South Australia and you are:

• an Australian or New Zealand citizen, or
• a permanent Australian resident, or
• the holder of a an eligible visa (Visa types as below).

You also need to be one of the following:

• aged 16 years or over and not enrolled at school, or
• aged 16 years or over, enrolled in school and undertaking training through the Training Guarantee for SACE Students (TGSS), or
• undertaking training through a training contract as an apprentice or trainee in identified courses.

Eligible individuals may be able to access:

• one foundation skills course (if you are assessed to need it)
• up to five bridging units at every qualification level (if assessed to need them)
• limited priority courses.

Temporary visa types eligible for government subsidised training
In addition to all permanent residency visa holders, the following visas are eligible for subsidised training:

• Skilled – Work Regional (subclass 491)
• Skilled – Regional (Provisional) Visa (subclass 489)
• Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (subclass 494)
• Business Innovation and Investment (Provisional) Visa, subclass 188
• Safe Haven Enterprise Visa (SHEV), subclass 790
• Bridging Visa A, subclass 010*
• Bridging Visa E (BE), subclass 050 and 051*
• Temporary Protection Visa (TPV), subclass 785*
• Bridging Visa F (BVF), subclass 060*
• Partner Visa (Temporary), subclass 820 and 309
• Temporary Humanitarian Stay visa (subclass 449)
• Temporary Humanitarian Concern (THC) Visa (subclass 786)

*Individuals on Bridging visas are only eligible where they are waiting on the outcome of an application for a permanent visa or one of the temporary visas listed above.

Visa holders on the following repealed provisional visas are also eligible for subsidised training:

• Skilled – Regional (Provisional) Visa (subclass 489)
• Skilled – Regional Sponsored Visa (subclass 475)
• Skilled – Regional Sponsored Visa (subclass 487)
• Skilled Independent – Regional (Provisional) Visa (subclass 495)
• Senior Executive (Provisional) Visa (subclass 161)
• Investor (Provisional) Visa (subclass 162)
• State/Territory Sponsored Business Owner (Provisional) Visa, subclass 163
• State/Territory Sponsored Senior Executive (Provisional) Visa, subclass 164
• State/Territory Sponsored Investor (Provisional) Visa, subclass 165

If you are unsure whether your visa category is permanent or temporary you can type your visa subclass number into the site search area of the Immigration website and find out.
To check your work or study entitlement conditions attached to your visa, we will use the Australian Government’s Visa Entitlement Verification Online service (VEVO).

Foundation skills
Before you start training, you may need to gain some basic skills. This may include improvement in reading, writing or numeracy skills. If assessed to need them, DP Training will support you to link with an organisation for foundation skill training.

Bridging units 
To help you successfully complete your qualification, you may need to undertake additional learning. Bridging units, including vocational, literacy and numeracy units of competency, can equip you with these necessary basic skills. If assessed to need them, eligible individuals can undertake up to five bridging units.

Conditions
Some subsidised training courses are only available to certain participants and we describe these as Conditions.
Conditions explained:  

• This course is available while at secondary school
  You must be enrolled in school and undertaking vocational education and training within your South Australian Certificate of Education program as part of the Training Guarantee for SACE Students program to enrol in this course. Read more about training for school students.
• This course is available if you need help with reading, writing and maths
  If your pre-enrolment assessment identifies skills gaps you may enrol in this course. Contact your training provider. All participants receive an upfront assessment of their learning and support needs using a foundation skills assessment tool. Based on the assessment and individual preferences you can access subsidised training and foundation skills courses or bridging skills, if you need them.
• This course is available under a traineeship or apprenticeship
  An apprentice or trainee with an approved Training Contract including School-based Training Contracts may enrol in this course.
• This course may have additional conditions.
  Eligibility for courses may vary, please contact your training provider for more information. You must be aged 17 years or over and not enrolled in secondary school.

If the course you want to study is not currently subsidised check again later. Funding periods generally run for six months and are announced and communicated via the Subsidised Training List (STL).

The government subsidised training place available to you will depend on what DP Training can offer from the list at the time of enquiry. You will need to meet the entry requirements of any course.

If it looks as if you do not meet the eligibility criteria, or you’d like more information, call the Skills and Employment Infoline on 1800 506 266.

Persons under the Guardianship of the Minister
South Australians of any age who have been, or are under the Guardianship of the Minister for Education and Child Development are eligible for an exemption from Student Course Fees for courses delivered under the Skills SA. The normal government subsidised training eligibility rules apply. Call the Skills and Employment Infoline on 1800 506 266 for an application form.

WorkReady Application and Enrolment Process

Enrol with DP Training.

What to take with you when you enrol
When you enrol, DP Training will assess whether you meet the entry requirements of the course and do an upfront assessment of your learning and support needs. We will also verify your eligibility and collect some personal information including:

• Proof of identity (Driver’s licence, Proof of Age Card, Passport etc)
• Proof of residential address (Driver’s licence, Proof of Age Card, Bank Statement etc)
• Proof of citizenship
• Proof of previous learning if you are claiming Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL).
• Employment Service Provider name
• Participant job seeker ID.

Upfront assessment of learning and support needs – DP Training will conduct an assessment of your learning and support needs before you can enrol in a course. This should ensure you have the best chance of success in your course of choice by finding out more about your individual needs.

The process includes:

• checking if your Employment Service Provider has provided you with a referral to training
• discussing whether the course is a good fit for you and providing you with detailed information relating to the course
• assessing your reading and maths skills, and sometimes writing as well, to make sure that any additional learning support needs are addressed
• discussing with you whether there are any personal/life issues that could interfere with your training, and planning to provide support where needed.

By discussing these before enrolment, we can work with you to identify early what is needed to help you achieve your training goals and record the strategies in a Learning and Support Plan.

What to know before enrolling

Student/Participant Number and Participant Agreement
If you enrol in a government subsidised course you are given a Participant Number (prior to 1 July 2015 it was known as a Skills for All Student Number). You cannot access government subsidised training without this.

This number stays with you and is used for any further subsidised training.

To get a Participant Number, you need to provide some personal details and sign a Participant Agreement. DP Training will ask you to complete a Participant Agreement and write your Participant Number on the top of the form.

If you are a new student you may receive confirmation of this number by text message or email from the Department of State Development (DSD).

This number is used by the Training Provider and DSD to record your participation in and your results of government subsidised training.

Your personal information may also be used to determine future eligibility for subsidised courses and for statistical purposes, including reporting to other bodies.

Keep a record of your Participant Number particularly if you plan to do further study. If you misplace your Participant Number you can call the Infoline on 1800 506 266 or ask your Training Provider to search for your number.

Collecting Information
The Participant Agreement sets out the purposes for which personal information is collected by the Minister and how it will be used. The Department of State Development (DSD), on behalf of The Minister collects, uses, stores and discloses information only in accordance with the South Australian Information Privacy Principles.

Freedom of Information
If you require access to your personal information held by DSD, call the Infoline on 1800 506 266 who will advise you of the process you need to follow. In some cases you may need to apply through the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 1991.

The Freedom of Information Act 1991 (FOI Act) gives you the right, subject to certain restrictions, to make an application to access your personal information held by DSD. You can request your records personally or through another person acting with your authority (ie a solicitor). The FOI Act gives you the right to apply to have your personal information held by DSD amended if it is incorrect, out of date or misleading.

Call the Infoline on 1800 506 266 for more information about:

• making an FOI application
• fees and charges that may apply and
• access to application forms.

How much does training cost?

Course fees
If you are eligible for enrolment DP Training will advise what fees you will have to pay.

The Student Course Fee covers charges to the student for the delivery of all essential components of the Course, including items that are consumed as part of the teaching and assessment.

Additional costs
In some courses, there will be incidental charges for optional items like textbooks and uniforms and anything which becomes the property of the student. The student generally pays for these things.

Incidental charges can only cover:

• optional items that are not essential to complete the Course
• alternative access to an essential item for the Course  eg  a charge to purchase learning resources to take home that a DP Training may normally provide to the Student through the Provider’s Library or for use only in the classroom or workshop
• items that become the property of the student where there are other suppliers eg retail outlets, borrowing the text from the library, purchasing second hand, using items they already own
• food, transport and accommodation costs associated with field trips that form part of the Course.

Concessions
DP Training do offer a concession if you are enrolling through the subsidised program and if you:

• hold a current health care card, or
• hold a current pensioner concession card, or
• hold a current pensioner concession card issued by the Department of Veteran Affairs, or
• are a prison inmate, a detainee, on remand, held in a South Australian institution in connection with the commission of an offence, or a child in a South Australian detention centre older than 16 years.

To claim a concession you must show the relevant concession card and state your Centrelink customer reference number and the expiry date on your card. If you qualify for a concession your course fees will be lower.

Student Course Fees

Students eligible for the subsidised training will have part of their training subsidised through SA Skills Subsidy.

There will also be a particpant fee to be covered by the student. (Concession fees are available to eligible concession card holders).