Commonwealth prac payment

The Commonwealth Prac Payment is a government program that offers eligible nursing, teaching and social work students financial support while undertaking mandatory placements. This payment can help ease the financial burden of placement costs and ensures you can focus on your learning and practical training.

The Commonwealth Prac Payment (CPP)

If eligible, you will be able to access to $331.65 (2025 CPP benefit) per week of placement. Each year this rate is benchmarked against the single Austudy rate.

The maximum funded weeks of placement depends on the field of education of your course:

Discipline/Course	Funded Weeks of Placement across your course
Nursing (UG and PG)	20 weeks
Midwifery (UG and RN entry)	20 weeks + 6 weeks of COCE
Teacher Education (UG)	16 weeks
Teacher Education (PG)	12 weeks
Social Work (UG and PG)	26 weeks

CPP is considered assessable income for taxation and social security purposes and may impact the rate at which you receive social security payments. We recommend you seek personalised taxation advice

If you receive Commonwealth Prac Payments, you are required to declare the amount you receive to:

The ATO as part of your annual tax return
Services Australia to assess your ongoing rate of social security payment or other allowance (if applicable)
Department of Veterans Affairs (if applicable)

Eligibility

To be eligible for CPP you must be:

A domestic student
Enrolled in a Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP)
Completing an eligible course
Undertaking mandatory placements that are either:
- On average 30 hours or more per week for the duration of the placement; OR
- as part of course of study in midwifery known as a continuity of care placements which prevents you from being able to maintain paid work due to the need to ensure your availability during the placement

You must also meet one of the following criteria:

Currently in receipt of an eligible Commonwealth Income Support Payment; OR
Meet the need to work test and income test

More information is available on the Federal Government’s Department of Education website.

Domestic Student

Commonwealth supported (CSP)

Studying a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Education, Midwifery, Nursing or Social Work

Undertaking placement of 30 hours (or more) per week

Receiving Commonwealth ISP or working more than 15 hours a week and earning less than $1500 per week.

Need to work test

To meet the need to work test, you need to show proof that you have worked at least 60 hours over a continuous four-week period during your most recent study period (not during holidays or back-to-back placements) before submitting your application.

If you are paid fortnightly, the four-week period should be based on the end of the most recent pay period before the application and start four weeks before that date.

Income test

To meet the income test, you need to show your gross (pre-tax) income does NOT exceed $6,000 during the same four-week period used for the need to work test. This means, on average, you should earn no more than $1,500 per week before taxes.

Receipt of other support

When assessing your eligibility for the income test, Flinders will consider all sources of income paid directly to you, including:

Scholarships
Bursaries
Wages
Wage subsidies
Any other support from universities or government (both Commonwealth and State/Territory)

This also includes payments received outside the four-week period used for the need to work test. You will need to declare all this income in your application.

However, payments for student contribution amounts or other fees, such as provided accommodation, or any other indirect/in-kind support will not count towards the income test.

Eligibility for exceptional circumstances consideration

To be eligible to be considered for exceptional circumstances you must be:

a student who requires reasonable adjustments for work or study (evidenced by an access plan or medical documentation)
unable to undertake mandatory placements greater than 30 hours per week
unable to work more than 15 hours per week during normal study despite relying on paid employment of less than $1500 per week (pre-tax)

Applications for exceptional circumstances are required to be submitted to the Government’s Department of Education for assessment. Applications must be sent to the department at least four (4) weeks prior to your placement commencing. Please ensure you allow time prior to this for Flinders to assess and send your application to the Department. We suggest submitting your application at least six (6) weeks prior to placement if you believe you meet the criteria for exceptional circumstances.

For future Commonwealth Prac Payments, you will need to meet the standard program requirements unless the exceptional circumstances continue. In either case, you need to apply through InPlace at the time of your next placement.

Continuity of Care Experiences (COCE)

The Government is still finalising details of COCE. We will update this information when it becomes available.

The application process

1. Enrol in your placement topic

2. Apply via InPlace

3. Upload your supporting documentation

4. Receive application outcome

5. Go on your placement

6. Submit your timesheet

Step 1 - Invitation to apply

Eligible students will be invited to apply for the CPP at a maximum of six (6) weeks prior to the placement commencement date. Applications for CPP for applicable Semester 2 placements should be open from 1 July 2025.

Step 2 - Submit your application

You can access the application form via InPlace. A notification will be shown in the ‘To Do’ list.

Relevant documents need to be uploaded as evidence to support your application. Acceptable evidence includes:

Commonwealth Income Support statement/ payment summary
Payslips
Timesheets
Invoicing and billing information (for those self-employed or sole traders)
Scholarship offer letters
Documentation relating to any other form of income

Read the declaration provided on InPlace and tick the corresponding boxes.

If need any further information, you will be contacted. Please reply promptly to ensure we can process your application as quickly as possible. Delay in providing additional information may lead to a delay in your payment.

Step 3 - Application assessment

We assess your application. This process can take up to 15 University days.

Step 4 - Application outcome

If your application is successful, you will receive further instructions and details.

If your application is unsuccessful, you will receive a notification. Please read the email/communication you received carefully. There may be information included regarding why your application was declined and any additional information/documentation you can provide for a reassessment of your application.

Step 5 - Enter your bank details via the Student Portal

While on placement

You need to attend your scheduled placement and complete a weekly timesheet.

Once you have completed a week of placement, you will need to attach the timesheet as evidence in your Log Book on InPlace and submit it for review.

Please note:

Your placement attendance is mandatory
Your Topic Coordinator will sign the timesheet off at the end of your placement
Your signed off hours will be sent to Finance and used for reconciliation purposes, and reporting to the Commonwealth Government
Please inform your Topic Coordinator and the Work Integrated Learning team if you do not attend placement, the timing or duration of your placement changes as soon as practical. Please see Change of circumstances.

Change of circumstances

You need to inform your Topic Coordinator and Work Integrated Learning team if you:

withdraw your CPP application
withdraw from your placement, topic or course
postpone your placement
no longer qualify for ISP or have exceeded the income threshold

Please contact:

cepsw.placements@flinders.edu.au for education and social work related placements
cnhs.placements@flinders.edu.au for nursing and midwifery related placements

Confirmation of Eligibility

To remain eligible for the CPP, you need to confirm your ongoing eligibility at the start of each placement. If there are any changes in your situation this might affect your eligibility for the payment. You will be required to update all relevant and applicable information in your application, including:

Changes in your income (such as getting extra support from other scholarships) and employment.
Changes to your ISP.
Any other information that might affect your CPP payments.

If your eligibility changes in any way, your eligibility will need to be reassessed through the full application process.

If your placement is outside a study period, you may use the most recent study period before the placement to confirm your eligibility.

Re-application

Flinders University is required to receive evidence of your eligibility at least once every 12 months. You also need to confirm your eligibility for each placement within those 12 months. Therefore, if you are completing a subsequent placement in a calendar year you will be required to confirm there have been no changes in your circumstances or situation since you last applied via a confirmation on InPlace.

Withdrawal, deferment and failure of placement

If you defer or withdraw from a placement, ensure that you contact the placement team as soon as possible.

You will be eligible to keep the funds from your completed full weeks of placement. Any further payments will be stopped.

If you have withdrawn, you will be required to pay back any overpayment for placement not completed.

If you have deferred your placement, you may retain your payments including payments for incomplete placement weeks. However, you will not receive any further payments until you have completed the weeks previously paid to you by the University.

You do not need to pay back any funds for a failed placement.

Please note, you are only eligible for a capped number of weeks of payments including those from withdrawn, deferred or failed placements. Failed placements may impact the number of payments you receive for future placements.