Eligibility
Applications must be submitted to the school by 26 June 2026.
Where a school or family is unsure if the concession card is eligible, they are encouraged to submit the application into the CSEF system for validation.
Those that are eligible to apply for the CSEF must meet both of the following 2 criteria.
Criterion 1 – General eligibility
The applicant must be one of the following on the first student day of Term 1 (28 January 2026) or Term 2 (20 April 2026):
- a parent or carer who is the beneficiary of a financially means-tested card
- a student over 16 years who is considered a mature minor and holds a valid means-tested concession card (such as a Youth Allowance Health Care Card). For guidance on assessing whether a student is a mature minor, refer to the department’s Mature Minors and Decision Making policy
- a parent or carer whose child is 16 or over and the beneficiary of a financially means-tested card but are not considered a mature minor.
Where the parent or carer is seeking eligibility based on an eligible financially means-tested card, eligibility will be determined when the relevant concession card successfully validates with Centrelink on either the first student day of Term 1 or Term 2.
For students over 16 years of age and where the eligible card is in the name of the student, the fund is only granted to that student, not their siblings.
Eligible means tested cards
Only financially means-tested cards are eligible. For example, the Veteran Gold Card is means-tested and is eligible for CSEF. This card must be sighted, and a coloured photocopy taken by the school to confirm the expiry date and eligibility.
Disability and Carer’s Cards are not means-tested and therefore not eligible for CSEF.
Criterion 2 – Be of school age and attend a Victorian school
For the purposes of CSEF, students may be eligible for assistance if they attend a registered Victorian school.
CSEF is not payable to a student attending pre-school, kindergarten, TAFE or who are home schooled.
Special consideration
Category 1
The special consideration category aims to assist families who are not permanent residents and do not have access to Centrelink or have a means tested Health Care Card, including:
- asylum seekers
- temporary protection visa holders
- Humanitarian or Safe Haven visa holders.
Permanent residents or applicants with a Health Care Card should apply as a general application and not under special consideration.
Evidence required
An applicant’s VEVO status showing the applicant’s current residential status is required to apply for special consideration. If this is unavailable, then a supportive letter from Asylum Seeker Resource Centre, Red Cross or similar organisation confirming that the applicant has an eligible status can be attached.
Category 2
Students in out-of-home care arrangements, including statutory kinship care, foster care and permanent care.
Evidence required
A letter of support from the institution facilitating the arrangement (for example, Mackillop Family Services or the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing (DFFH)) is required as evidence and must be no more than 18 months old. Copies of court orders and Permanent Care Certificates are permitted to support special consideration applications.
Applications for special consideration can be made through the standard application form. Further information is available in the Submitting an application section.
Schools are able to accept special consideration applications where students enrol in Terms 3 and 4. For these applications, supporting documentation is required to be attached to the application form and a scanned copy emailed to csef@education.vic.gov.au for processing before the end of Term 4.
Reviewed 24 December 2025