Student Assistance Scheme Tasmania: How Kinship Carers Get School Fees Waived

What STAS Covers

The Student Assistance Scheme (STAS) waives government school levies for eligible families in Tasmania, from Kindergarten through Year 12. It's administered by the DECYP Financial Assistance Unit and applies to public schools only — private school fees are a separate matter.

For kinship carers, STAS removes one of the immediate costs that hits when a child arrives: the school expects levy payments, and the carer is already covering food, clothing, and everything else out of pocket.

Who Qualifies

STAS eligibility is straightforward for most kinship carers:

• Centrelink Health Care Card holders — if you receive FTB at maximum rate, you typically get an automatic HCC
• Pensioner Concession Card holders — Age Pension, Disability Support Pension, Carer Payment recipients
• Grandparents with legal responsibility for their grandchildren
• Children in out-of-home care — formal placements get automatic eligibility

You don't need a court order or DECYP involvement. A concession card plus proof that the child lives with you is enough.

How to Apply

Online: Go to the DECYP STAS portal (stasonlinesubmission.education.tas.gov.au). You'll need your Centrelink Customer Reference Number (CRN) and the child's school details.

Paper: Collect a form from the school administration office or a Service Tasmania centre. Complete it and email to [email protected], or hand it to the school.

The application asks for parent/carer details, student details, and your CRN. If you're an informal carer, the school may need a brief note confirming the child's living arrangements — a statutory declaration or a letter from the school principal usually covers it.

Timing and Renewals

Apply as early in the school year as possible. If a child arrives mid-year, apply immediately — STAS can be granted mid-term.

Families approved for STAS in a previous year are generally rolled over automatically for the following academic year. New students or children arriving mid-cycle need a fresh application. If the child is returning for Year 13 (an extra year at college), a new application is also required.

What STAS Doesn't Cover

STAS waives the government school levy — the compulsory charge that covers instructional materials and activities. It doesn't cover voluntary contributions, excursion fees, or uniform costs. For those, check whether the school has its own hardship fund, and look at Ticket to Play vouchers for sport registration fees.

Combining STAS With Other Support

STAS stacks with every other payment available to kinship carers. It's an in-kind benefit — a direct waiver — so it doesn't count as income for Centrelink means tests and doesn't affect your FTB, Age Pension, or any other payment.

The Support for Grandparents and Kinship Carers in Tasmania guide includes the STAS application steps alongside every other education concession a kinship carer can claim, plus the evidence you'll need if you're enrolling a child for the first time at a new school.

See more Tasmania guides →