The Department of Social Services has revealed fewer regional students are applying for the Youth Allowance. Photo: Supplied.
New figures from the Department of Social Services (DSS) indicate a decline in the number of regional students applying for government financial assistance.
University and TAFE students living away from their parents may be eligible to apply for a Youth Allowance payment from Centrelink to help with living costs.
In May this year only 375 young adults from Wagga claimed the student allowance, compared with 521 students in May 2020, according to DSS data.
University student and former federal Greens Party candidate Pheonix Valxori believes there are two major reasons behind this drop.
“People aren’t willing to take the student debt because they don’t think they’ll ever pay it off,” they said.
“There are already other things that people struggle to afford – you can’t really take the time off to go study these days.
“The second is, student payments in general are not enough. Youth Allowance is only about 660 bucks a fortnight. You know, rents just for living, even on campuses, minimum 300, so that’s not even considering any food.”
According to the Centrelink website, Youth Allowance is financial help for people who are:
- 16 to 21 and looking for full-time work
- 18 to 24 and studying full time
- 16 to 24 and doing a full-time Australian apprenticeship
- 16 to 17 and independent, or needing to live away from home to study
- 16 to 17, studying full time and have completed Year 12 or equivalent.
The maximum a single student with no children and living away from home can receive is $663.30 a fortnight. If the applicant is under 21, without an exemption, they are considered a dependant of their parents, which results in a parental income test to see whether the student is eligible for the payment.
If a student is considered a dependant and their parents are earning more than $65,189, the student’s payment will be reduced by 20 cents for every dollar over $65,189.
In response to the current restrictions and limitations on applying and receiving the student allowance, Pheonix said the age of independence, currently 21, should be reduced.
“These days, people are becoming independent at a younger age,” they said.
“Most people are independent in some regard by the age of 18, some even as young as 16, because people know that JobSeeker is available or youth allowances are available.
“I was independent from the age of 16, and the only reason I got classed as independent was because of the fact that I had a police case for it. That’s how difficult it is to apply for independence.
“The poverty line for people in Australia is $40,000 a year, yet Centrelink is telling people earning only 1.5 times that amount that they effectively have to pay for two households – their own and their child who is off to study.
“You should just base it on an individual’s income. I don’t think that parents’ income testing should exist, because parents could be making hundreds of thousands of dollars a year, yet still not want to support their kids at university. This is why the independence age should be lowered.”
