Government extends special Youth Allowance access to Inner Regional students

Image: University of the Sunshine Coast

The Government has announced that it will introduce legislation allowing students from inner regional areas to access independent Youth Allowance under the same rules that apply to students from Outer Regional, Remote and Very Remote areas.

This follows the Government’s release of a scheduled review of student income support reforms conducted by Professor Kwong Lee Dow (the Dow Review).

The Government brought forward the review by 12 months in response to concerns about access to income support by students in rural and regional areas. The Government has not accepted Professor Dow’s most contentious recommendation which is to remove the current special arrangements for young people from Outer Regional, Remote and Very Remote Australia and establish a single new self-supporting criterion for independence for young people.

Will access to ‘gap year’ Youth Allowance improve regional students participation in higher education?

In the recent Senate debate on Senator Nash's private member’s bill to extend the criteria for Independent Youth Allowance to Inner Regional students the issue of why so few regional students go on to tertiary education was raised and an argument made that the ability to take a gap year and qualify for Youth Allowance would improve regional students’ access to and participation in higher education.