Eligibility
To be eligible to receive the CPP, students must meet the below criteria:
- be a domestic student (full time or part time)
- be enrolled in a subject of study in an eligible Bachelor or Masters course that leads to entry-to-practice in teaching, social work, nursing or midwifery*
- be enrolled in, or expected to be enrolled, in a Commonwealth supported place (CSP)[[link]]
AND EITHER
- be required by your course to participate in mandatory placements for an average of 30 hours or more per week**
OR
- be required as part of your course in midwifery to participate in a continuity of care placement
Notes:
*If you enrolled in an eligible subject during 2025, you can receive the payment for any placement weeks that occur on or after 1 July 2025 — whether that's part of your placement or the full duration. All applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis to ensure that they meet the Department of Education's eligibility requirements. Subjects enrolled in prior to 2025 are not eligible.
**Placement hours that occur prior to 1 July 2025, will not be considered toward the 30-hour-per-week requirement for CPP eligibility. However, for students who have a placement that includes the week of 30 June 2025, if they complete at least 30 placement hours during the period from 1 July 2025, they may be eligible for payment in that week, provided all other eligibility criteria are met.
Teaching
Bachelor of Education (Primary) (1876)[[link]]
Bachelor of Education (Secondary) (1939)[[link]]
Bachelor of Education (Early Childhood) (1926)[[link]]
Master of Teaching (Primary) (1781)[[link]]
Master of Teaching (Secondary) (1714)[[link]]
Master of Teaching (Secondary) STEM (1848)[[link]]
Master of Teaching (Early Childhood and Primary) (1773)[[link]]
Master of Teaching (Birth - 5 Years/Birth - 12 Years) (1783)
Master of Teaching (Birth - 5 Years) (1784)
Bachelor of Education (Primary) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Education (1717)
Nursing & Midwifery
Bachelor of Nursing (4691)[[link]]
Bachelor of Nursing WSU Online (4780)[[link]]
Bachelor of Midwifery (4684)[[link]]
Master of Nursing Practice (Preregistration) (4785)[[link]]
Social Work
Bachelor of Social Work (1666)[[link]]
Master of Social Work (Qualifying) (1792)[[link]]
Eligible Subjects
Eligible Subjects can be viewed here.
- be currently receiving an eligible Commonwealth Government Income Support Payment (ISP). You will be asked to select the ISP from which you receive the highest payment. Documentation to verify income support payments can be requested from Services Australia.[[link]]
Refer to the table below for eligible Australian Government Income Support Payment (ISP)s.
OR
- meet a Need to Work Test and an Income Test where you provide evidence of working an average 15+ hours per week over a 4-week period during your normal study (outside placement), with an individual income threshold of $1,536.37 per week (before tax), including income from State, Territory or Commonwealth scholarships during the same period
Eligible Australian Government Income Support Payments (ISP)
-
Centrelink income support payments:
- Age Pension
- Austudy
- Carer Payment
- Disability Support Pension
- JobSeeker Payment
- Parenting Payment
- Special Benefit
- Farm Household Allowance
- Youth Allowance
-
DVA payments:
- Age Pension
- Income Support Supplement
- Service Pension
- Veteran Payment
- Education Allowance
-
ABSTUDY
- ABSTUDY Living Allowance
If you are completing a Statutory Declaration[[link]] (as supporting documentation) in that declaration please describe your exceptional circumstances, how they impacted your eligibility and any ongoing implications. You might also want to consider uploading additional supporting documentation such as medical certificates, statements of support (from registered service providers) or other documentation provided by an independent organisation.
Income Support Payments (ISP)
If you receive an ISP, you’ll need to attach one of the following to your application:
- for an ISP from Centrelink – your Centrelink Payment Details or Income Statement demonstrating your current eligibility, which you can download from Centrelink online services via your myGov account (find out more about logging in to myGov[[link]])
- for an ISP from Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA) – your DVA Payment Summary or a General Statement of Pension.
Please review the Income Support Payments - Supporting Documentation Guide[[link]]
‘Need to Work Test’ and ‘Income Test’
If demonstrating that you meet requirements of the ‘Need to Work’ and ‘Income Test', you’ll need to provide evidence of working an average 15+ hours per week over a 4-week period during your normal study (outside placement). Evidence can include:
- payroll prints
- time and wages sheets or payslips
- a letter from your employer
- for self-employed students, client invoicing and billing information and/or sole trader timesheets.
What your documents should contain?
Please review the Income and Mean - Supporting Documentation Guide.[[link]]
Payroll prints, time and wages sheets or payslips
These should include:
- your employer’s identity (such as their name, ABN, company logo)
- your full name
- pay period
- income (before tax).
A letter from your employer
An official letter from an appropriate representative of your employer should include:
- your full name
- your employer’s letterhead
- a physical signature and phone number of an appropriate representative
- the date the letter was created
- pay period
- income (before tax).
Client invoicing and billing information
These should include:
- your full name
- date the invoice was issued
- brief description of the goods or services
- amount that was paid.
Sole trader timesheets
These should include:
- your full name
- a record of hours worked on tasks or projects
- the time period covered
If your timesheet does not include the gross income earnt, you’ll need to provide other documents showing this amount.