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Refunds

Refund Eligibility

Students may be entitled to a refund due to:
  • over paying of fees, tuition or accommodation
  • discontinuing units before the census date
  • withdrawing or intermitting from the course before the census date
  • being entitled to a sibling discount on tuition fees
  • living expenses, textbooks or off campus accommodation (if paid to Monash South Africa on the payee’s bank’s insistence)

Any student discontinuing a course or unit enrolment after the census date s liable for the fees in full.

Census Dates:
  • Semester One: 31 March
  • Semester Two: 31 August
  • Full Year: April

No refund is available for application fees, administrative fines or service fees levied by Student Administration.

Credit in a student’s account will be applied to any other debts held by the student before a refund is issued. This may result in no refund being available.

Generally refunds can be provided as either a cheque/bank draft or electronic transfer, less any bank charges as advised by Monash South Africa’s official financial provider, First National Bank (FNB).

Take note Monash South Africa doesn’t provide any cash refunds.

Refund Periods

  • Semester 1: 10 January – 31 April
  • Semester 2: 1 July – 31 September

Requests received outside these periods will be submitted to Management for consideration.

Refunds for International Students
International students holding a student visa are required to maintain a full-time enrolment for the duration of the course. All refund requests made by international students must be authorized by the Manager, Student Services Monash South Africa, or their delegate/nominee.

Monash South Africa is also obliged to inform the immigration authorities of the following changes to an international student’s enrolment:

  • Course withdrawal
  • Early course completion
  • Transfer to another campus/institution
  • Academic exclusion
  • Deferral or intermission from study
  • Other changes that affect anticipated course duration

The student will be required leave South Africa within 4 weeks of application submission of intermission or cancellation.

Refund Processing

To apply for a refund, students must submit the following documentation to the Student Accounts Officer via fax or in person:

  • Complete the Refund Request Form
  • Attach a signed authorisation letter from the person/organization that paid the funds into Monash South Africa’s bank account.

It is the student’s responsibility to ensure all requirements are met before submitting a refund request. Only requests who comply with all the above mentioned requirements will be considered.

Monash South Africa reserves the right to confirm with all parties involved with the refund request at any time during the preparation of the request.

It will take approximately 8 working days to process a local, to another South African account, refund and approximately 10 working days to process an international, to an account outside of South Africa’s borders, once all required documentation have been received.

Refund Policy

a. An enrolled student, who withdraws from a unit or course for whatever reason beyond the census date, is not eligible for a refund.
b. The funds covering the tuition fees must reflect in Monash South Africa bank account (i.e. cheques cleared, telegraphic transfers received, etc) prior to a refund being sought.
c. All debts to Monash South Africa must be settled before any refund can be issued with any outstanding amounts to be deducted from the refund.
d. Funds can only be transferred back to the original account it came from, the student’s personal student bank account, an off campus accommodation provider, or alternatively, to another academic institution. Approved refunds will be paid within 2 weeks of receiving a written claim from the student.
e. A refund will normally be made in the currency of the student's country of permanent residence and payable in that country. Exceptions include payment to another educational institution, in the case of a student transferring, or a refund to a third party who paid fees on behalf of the student.
f. If a successful applicant receives permission to defer commencement of a course, a non-refundable deposit of 50% up to a maximum of R5,000.00 allocated from any prepaid fees will be retained and the balance refunded. The amount retained may be offset against the commencing student fee in the appropriate year.
g. For commencing students, applications for a full or partial refund must be made in writing to the Manager, Student Services Monash South Africa, stating the reasons for the request and accompanied by supporting documentation, as appropriate. The authority for approving a refund of fees for a commencing student rests with the Manager, Student Services Monash South Africa, or the delegate/nominee.
h. Requests for refunds from continuing students who are enrolled should be made to Student Services Monash South Africa, by completing the appropriate request for refund form.

The grounds for refunds are set out below:

Full refunds
A full refund will be made:

a. if the refund application was made on or before the census date;
b. where an offer is withdrawn by Monash South Africa;
c. where Monash South Africa is unable to provide the course;
d. where a student was not able to meet a condition required by Monash South Africa in its letter of offer;
e. where a student has been excluded by Monash South Africa for failure to meet award progression rules where fees were paid in advance of notification of exclusion;
f. where there is a refusal by South African government authorities to grant a student visa;
g. where a commencing student withdraws or discontinues their studies more than 4 weeks prior to the commencement of teaching;
h. when illness or disability prevents the student from commencing with the course;
i. if Monash South Africa makes an offer on the basis of incorrect or incomplete information supplied by the student, the offer will be withdrawn;
j. where a continuing student re-enrolls and withdraws before census date;
k. when death of a close family member (this only includes parent, sibling, spouse or child) occurs;
l. when other special or extenuating personal circumstances prevent a student from commencing with a course, and which may be accepted for a full or partial refund at the discretion of the Manager, Student Services Monash South Africa, or their nominee/delegate, provided a submission under this provision is made to Monash South Africa prior to the commencement of the course.

Documentary evidence must be provided in support of an application for a refund under any of the above provisions.

Partial Refunds
The partial refund amount will be at the discretion of the Manager of Student Services after evaluating the refund application in the event where a commencing student cancels within 4 weeks of the commencement of the semester.

Annual Course Fee Refunds A full refund will be made under the “Full Refund” conditions above.
Where a commencing or continuing student having paid his or her tuition fees for the full year in advance and gives less than four (4) weeks notice, prior to the commencement of teaching in the commencing semester, due to an inability to undertake the course; or withdraws from a course prior to the census date.
All of the tuition fees paid for the first semester are refundable, less any administration/bank charges. The full second semester tuition fee is refundable.
A student who withdraws after the census date in either semester, for whatever reason, shall not be eligible for a refund for that semester.

Credit Refund
Students who have commenced study at Monash South Africa and have been invoiced for a second or subsequent semester and who have reduced their load or overpaid their fees may apply for a refund or carry the credit balance forward to the next semester/year.

Accommodation Fee Refunds
A full refund will be made under the conditions of “Full Refunds” as listed above.
Where a student wasn’t offered a place in on-campus accommodation, but has paid the required deposit, they will be eligible for a full refund. However, if the student has been made an offer but rejects or cancels the offer, they will forfeit the deposit paid for accommodation.