When to have your HELP debt removed?
You may apply to your higher education provider to have your HELP debt removed (remitted) for a unit of study. It will only be granted if you couldn’t complete your study because of special circumstances.
The following table provides links to specific arrangements for having your HELP debt removed.
What happens to your debt if you die?
If you die, your trustee or executor should lodge all outstanding tax returns up to the date of death. Any compulsory repayment included on an income tax notice of assessment relating to the period prior to the date of death must be paid from your estate, but the remainder of your HELP debt is cancelled. Neither your family nor the trustee is required to pay the remainder of your accumulated HELP debt.
What happens to your debt if you go bankrupt?
From 1 January 2005, HELP debts and accumulated HELP debts are not provable under the Bankruptcy Act 1966 and you will have to pay them as if you had not been declared bankrupt. If you incurred a HECS debt before 1 January 2005, your HECS debt became part of your accumulated HELP debt on 1 June 2006.
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