Taxation and Centrelink Information for Current Scholarship Holders

Income Tax

Only scholarship/bursary payments made to recipients studying on a full-time basis, i.e. 0.375 EFTSL or greater per semester, are tax exempt. Scholarship/bursary payments made to recipients studying on a part-time basis will be assessed for tax and must be declared in tax returns.

Further information can be obtained from the Australian Taxation Office.

The Department of Education, Science and Training (DEST) have confirmed that the Commonwealth Scholarships are tax exempt, for full-time students, and should not be included as income in tax returns.

Centrelink Benefits

The Social Security Act 1991 (SSA) makes no distinction between part-time and full-time; all scholarship/bursary payments are considered as income by Centrelink in the calculation of income tests for awarding of benefits. The Guide to Social Security Law and the Centrelink website provide further information.

However the following are specifically excluded from the definition of income for Centrelink purposes:

• Commonwealth Education Costs Scholarships (CECS)
• Commonwealth Accommodation Scholarships (CAS)
• Indigenous Access Scholarships
• Scholarships that pay or waive student fees and where the student has no choice in the use of the scholarship and cannot choose to receive the scholarship as a direct payment 

Students wishing to apply for/or in receipt of Youth Allowance/AUSTUDY or other Centrelink benefits should contact Centrelink for advice regarding a scholarship or bursary's likely effect, if any, on any application or current payment.