HIGHER EDUCATION FUNDING ACT 1988

CHAPTER 1 - INTRODUCTORY  

SECTION 3  

3   DEFINITIONS  

In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:

Aboriginal
means a member of the Aboriginal race of Australia, and includes a descendant of the indigenous inhabitants of the Torres Strait Islands.

approved form
means a form approved by the Minister.

building project
means any of the following:

(a) the purchase of land with or without buildings;

(b) the designing, erection or extension of a building or other facilities;

(c) the development or preparation of land for building or other purposes;

(d) the installation of water, electricity or other services;

and includes:

(e) in the case of the erection or extension of a building - the provision of furnishings or equipment for the building, or for the extensions of the building, as the case may be; and

(f) a renovation project.

capital expenditure
means expenditure on a capital project.

capital project
means a building project (other than a minor building project), or a non-building capital project.

co-operative multimedia centre
means a body corporate established, ordinarily by a consortium of persons or organisations with interests that relate to the multimedia industry, for purposes that include:

(a) arranging for, or providing services relating to, education and training; and

(b) undertaking other activities; and

(c) research and development;

that will assist in the development of that industry.

course of study
, in relation to an institution, means a course the completion of which leads to the granting of a degree, diploma, associate diploma or other award of the institution and includes a course of instruction provided by the institution for the purpose of enabling persons to undertake a course of study provided by the institution or by another institution but does not include a course of vocational education and training.

course of vocational education and training
means a course that is identified as a course of vocational education and training in accordance with guidelines issued by the Minister for the purposes of this definition.

educational profile
means an educational profile referred to in section 14 .

electronic communication
has the meaning given by the Electronic Transactions Act 1999 .

fees
, in relation to an institution, means tuition, examination or other fees payable to the institution by a student enrolled at, or applying for enrolment at, the institution in connection with a course of study or attendance at the institution, and includes fees payable to the institution in respect of the granting of a degree, diploma, associate diploma or other award but does not include:

(a) fees the payment of which is voluntary;

(b) fees payable in respect of an organisation of students, or of students and other persons, or in respect of the provision to students of amenities or services that are not of an academic nature;

(c) fees payable in respect of residential accommodation;

(d) fees imposed in accordance with guidelines issued by the Minister for the imposition of fees in respect of overseas students and students who are New Zealand citizens because of the operation of section 29 of the Citizenship Act 1977 of New Zealand;

(e) fees payable in respect of studies (other than a course of instruction provided by the institution for the purpose of enabling persons to undertake a course of study provided by the institution) that are not required or permitted to be undertaken for the purpose of obtaining a degree, diploma, associate diploma or other award of the institution;

(f) fees payable, in accordance with guidelines issued by the Minister, by persons who attend or otherwise participate in courses of study but do not enrol for those courses, other than persons whose attendance at, or participation in, those courses is, or is to be, credited towards a degree, diploma, associate diploma or other award of another institution by arrangement between the institutions concerned;

(g) fees of a kind that are incidental to studies that may be undertaken at institutions and that the Minister has notified each institution to be fees of a kind to which this paragraph applies; or

(h) contributions payable under Chapter 4 .

information system
has the meaning given by the Electronic Transactions Act 1999 .

institution
, except in Chapters 4 and 5B , has the meaning given by section 4 .

instrument
, in relation to the Minister, means a determination, specification, approval, declaration, direction, requirement, guideline or notification made, issued or given by the Minister under, or for the purposes of, this Act.

limited operating purposes
, in relation to an institution, means:

(a) the general teaching purposes of the institution in connection with courses of study provided by or at the institution, including preparatory work in connection with proposed courses of study to be provided by or at the institution;

(b) the purchase of equipment for the institution for purposes referred to in paragraph (a); and

(c) minor building projects of the institution for purposes referred to in paragraph (a).

minor building project
, in relation to an institution, means a building project of the institution that is determined by the institution to be a minor building project.

multimedia industry
means the industry concerned with all aspects of the presentation of information through a single format by making co-ordinated use of a range of different means of communication.

non-building capital project
, in relation to an institution, means a project that satisfies the criteria set out in guidelines issued by the Minister under section 26.

open learning organisation
means a body corporate established by one or more institutions for the purposes of providing access, by clients of the organisation to tertiary education courses, or units of study, for which particular institutions or other tertiary education providers undertake to grant credit towards accredited tertiary awards.

operating purposes
, in relation to an institution, means:

(a) the general teaching purposes of the institution in connection with courses of study provided by or at the institution, including preparatory work in connection with proposed courses of study to be provided by or at the institution;

(b) the general research purposes of the institution;

(c) the provision by the institution of courses of continuing education;

(ca) capital project of the institution for purposes referred to in paragraph (a), (b) or (c);

(d) the purchase of equipment for the institution for purposes referred to in paragraph (a), (b) or (c); and

(e) minor building projects of the institution for purposes referred to in paragraph (a), (b) or (c).

overseas student
means a person who:

(a) is not an Australian citizen; and

(b) is enrolled, or proposes to become enrolled, in a course of study of an institution;

but does not include:

(c) a person entitled to stay in Australia, or to enter and stay in Australia, without any limitation as to time; or

(d) a New Zealand citizen; or

(e) a diplomatic or consular representative of New Zealand, a member of the staff of such a representative or the spouse or dependent relative of such a representative.

permanent resident
has the same meaning as in the Australian Citizenship Act 2007 .

permanent visa
has the same meaning as in the Migration Act 1958 .

previous Assistance Act
means the States Grants (Tertiary Education Assistance) Act 1987 .

qualified accountant
means:

(a) a person registered as a company auditor or a public accountant under a law in force in a State or Territory;

(b) a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia or of the Australian Society of Certified Practising Accountants; or

(c) a person approved by the Minister as a qualified accountant for the purposes of this Act.

qualified auditor
means:

(a) the Auditor-General of a State; or

(b) a qualified accountant.

renovation project
means either of the following:

(a) the renovation or alteration of a building or other facilities, including the provision of furnishings or equipment for the renovated or altered parts of the building or other facilities;

(b) the installation of water, electricity or other services.

Secretary
means the Secretary of the Department.

State
includes the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory.

teaching hospital
, in relation to an institution, includes a hospital in which students enrolled in the Faculty of Medicine, or School of Medicine, of the institution receive clinical instruction.

this Act
does not include Chapter 7 .

year
means a calendar year.

year to which this Chapter applies
means:

(a) in Chapter 4 - the year 1989 or any subsequent year up to and including the year 2004; or

(aa) in Chapter 4A - the year 2002 or any subsequent year up to and including the year 2004; or

(ab) in Chapter 5 - the year 1994 or any subsequent year up to and including the year 2004; or

(b) otherwise - the year 1989 or any subsequent year up to and including the year 2004.