Tuition Fee Reimbursement for Project Yi Jin Students

In the 2008/09 academic year, full-time and part-time students enrolled on Project Yi Jin (PYJ) may be eligible for financial assistance for tuition fees – this comprises 30% or 100% reimbursement of the tuition fees paid, subject to the students' meeting the prescribed criteria.

1. Reimbursement of 30% of Tuition Fees Paid

1.1 All PYJ students are eligible for reimbursement of 30% of the tuition fees paid for each satisfactorily completed module, subject to their having passed an overall assessment and having achieved 80% attendance or above for the module as confirmed by the institution. The modules must be essential for the completion of the PYJ programme and the students must not have obtained financial assistance for the same module under the Continuing Education Fund. In addition, students who have obtained reimbursement under the Financial Assistance Scheme for Designated Evening Adult Education Courses (FAEAEC) will not be eligible for reimbursement under PYJ unless they have refunded the HKSAR Government all the reimbursement obtained under FAEAEC. All PYJ students who meet the aforementioned criteria will automatically be reimbursed 30% of the tuition fees paid for the relevant modules. The institutions will inform the Student Financial Assistance Agency (SFAA) of the details of the students who are eligible for reimbursement of tuition fees at the end of each term. The reimbursement will then be credited to the students'/applicants' bank accounts direct.

2. Full Fee Reimbursement (FFR)

2.1 To further assist needy PYJ students who meet the criteria described in Section 1.1 above, 100% reimbursement of the tuition fees paid for each satisfactorily completed module will be made, subject to the student's having passed a means test and obtained an Eligibility Certificate (EC) issued by the SFAA indicating that he is eligible for "FULL" assistance and his submitting the EC to his institution for Full Fee Reimbursement (FFR). The application procedures for FFR are described in Section 3 below. The EC will apply to modules taken in the 2008/09 academic year only.

3. Application Forms and Procedures for Full Fee Reimbursement (FFR)

3.1 The applicant should normally be the parent or the legal guardian of the student. Eligibility for "FULL" assistance is based on a means test – see Section 3.6 below. The application forms are "Application for Assessment of Eligibility" Form A (SFAA 7B) or Form B (SFAA 106B)

3.2 In general, the SFAA will not accept Form A or Form B submitted on or after 1 March 2009. If applicants need to apply for FFR on or after 1 March 2009 for their children attending part-time PYJ commencing during the period from 1 March 2009 to 31 May 2009, they should contact their institutions for details of the application procedures and the deadlines for application.

Applicant who has already submitted Form A (SFAA 7B) or Form B (SFAA 106B) to the SFAA

3.3 If an applicant has already submitted Form A or Form B to the SFAA for assessment of eligibility in 2008/09, he does not need to submit another application. The SFAA will assess his eligibility according to the information already provided in the application and in accordance with the means test described in Section 3.6 below. Successful applicants will be notified by the SFAA of their result in writing. Students provided with an Eligibility Certificate (EC) for "FULL" assistance should apply for FFR by completing the EC and submitting the EC to the PYJ institution in accordance with Section 3.8 below. Students assessed as eligible for "HALF" assistance are not eligible for FFR, but they will be reimbursed 30% of the tuition fees paid if they satisfy the criteria mentioned in Section 1.1 above.

3.4 If the applicant has already submitted Form A or Form B to the SFAA and is eligible for "FULL" assistance, please approach the SFAA (Address: Room 803-806, 8/F., One Mong Kok Road Commercial Centre, 1 Mong Kok Road, Kowloon) in person, to obtain replacement of an EC for the PYJ student if (i) you have lost the EC; or (ii) you omitted to indicate in your Application for Assessment of Eligibility the request for an EC for the student-applicants; or (iii) you omitted to include the student-applicants who need to apply for 2008/09 student financial assistant in your Application for Assessment of Eligibility.

Applicant who has not submitted an application for assessment of eligibility

3.5 The applicant should obtain a set of application Form A (SFAA 7B) from the institution, the SFAA or the District Offices, complete the form, then mail it with the required supporting documents to the SFAA for processing of the application. The applicant can use the envelope enclosed with the application form. You may also download the Guidance Notes and the application form at http://www.sfaa.gov.hk/eng/public/index.htm#fts. For details about the application procedures for Full Fee Reimbursement, please visit the procedures for assessment of eligibility for Primary and Secondary students.

Means Test

3.6 The SFAA will use the "Adjusted Family Income" (AFI) mechanism as the means test to assess the eligibility of a family for student financial assistance and its assistance level. The formula is as follows:

AFI =	Gross annual income of the family#
	Number of family members @ + 1 *

3.7 Applicants with AFI value not exceeding 20,156 are eligible for "FULL" assistance. Applicants with AFI value between 20,157 and 53,829 are eligible for "HALF" assistance. The SFAA will conduct authentication, including home visits or other means to verify the truthfulness and completeness of the information reported in the application. The SFAA may adjust the level of assistance granted, if necessary, according to the findings of the authentications.

Notes:

# Gross annual income of the family includes the annual income of applicant and his / her spouse; 30% of the annual income of unmarried child / children residing with the family if applicable; and the contribution from relatives / friends if applicable.
@ The members of a family normally refer to the applicant, his / her spouse, unmarried child / children residing with the family and the dependent parent(s) who are supported by the applicant and / or his / her spouse.
* For single-parent families of 2 to 3 members, the "plus 1 factor" in the divisor of AFI formula will be increased to " 2 ".

Eligibility Certificate (EC)

3.8 Applicants will be notified of the result of the means test in writing. Students eligible for FULL or HALF assistance will be issued with ECs. However, only students eligible for FULL assistance may apply for FFR. Other students (including those students being issued with ECs indicating their eligibility level being "HALF" assistance) may still be eligible for reimbursement of 30% of the tuition fees paid if they satisfy the criteria mentioned in Section 1.1 above. Full-time students who are assessed as eligible for HALF assistance may apply for Student Travel Subsidy Students with Full assistance should complete and return the ECs to the institution within one week from the commencement date of school or within two weeks from the date of issue of the EC (whichever is the latest) in accordance with the Guidance Notes issued with the EC for FFR applications.

3.9 At the end of each term, the institution will inform the SFAA which students have satisfactorily completed each module. Students who have submitted their ECs with "FULL" eligibility level to the institution will receive FFR of the modules through direct credit to their bank accounts.

Other Financial Assistance Schemes for Project Yi Jin Students -

(A) Student Travel Subsidy (STS) Scheme

Full-time PYJ students are eligible to apply for STS if -

1. applicants passed the means test and are issued with ECs for either FULL or HALF assistance;
2. student-applicants are not in receipt of Comprehensive Social Security Assistance;
3. student-applicants are residing beyond 10 minutes walking distance from their institutions during term time and travelling to institutions by public transport

Students wishing to apply for STS should complete and submit their ECs to the institution within one week from the commencement date of school or within two weeks from the date of issue of the EC (whichever is the latest) in accordance with the Guidance Notes issued with the EC. Payment will be made to eligible applicants by direct credit to their bank accounts. For details about STS scheme, please click here.

(B) Non-means Tested Loan (NLS) Scheme

PYJ students who have the right of abode or the right to land in Hong Kong or are permitted to stay in Hong Kong without restriction or have resided or have had their home in Hong Kong continuously for three complete years immediately prior to the commencement of the course may apply for a loan under NLS to pay their tuition fees. Applicants are required to pay an administrative fee for each application. Interest is chargeable upon drawdown of the loan and throughout the repayment period until the NLS loan is fully repaid (please visit our website at http://www.sfaa.gov.hk/eng/whats/index.htm for current NLS interest rate). NLS loan is repayable in 40 quarterly instalments within 10 years upon (i) graduation; or (ii) termination of studies; or (iii) lapse of 6 years from the first disbursement of loan, whichever is the earliest. For application details, please refer to the Application Guidance Notes [SFAA 140] and the Application Form which are obtainable from the SFAA and the District Offices. You may also download the documents from our website http://www.sfaa.gov.hk/eng/public/index.htm#nls2. For details about NLS scheme, please click here.