Fees
When you study with us, you need to pay for your tuition and field trips, as well as covering administration and student services fees.
When are fees due?
Your fees are due the day that your study programme begins. If you enrol after the first day of the semester, you need to pay your fees as soon as your enrolment is complete.
International students studying in New Zealand should pay their fees with enough time for a student visa application to be issued by the relevant start date.
If you are an international student outside of New Zealand and are studying with us online, you do not need a student visa. Your fees should be paid in full by the first day of the relevant semester.
International students enrolled in a full-year course must pay the year's fees at the start of the enrolment period.
Australian Students
Australian citizens or permanent residents studying in New Zealand will pay the same fees as New Zealand citizens. If you are studying by distance in Australia, you pay international fees.
You are not eligible to apply for a New Zealand Student Loan or Allowance unless you've been living in the country for at least three years and you normally reside in New Zealand.
Paying your fees
Domestic
As a domestic student, you have a variety of payment options, including several fees-free offers from the Government or Lincoln University:
- Pay by student loan: If you are paying your fees by New Zealand Student Loan, please apply to Studylink as soon as possible to allow time for your loan to be processed before you start your enrolment
- Pay through LUCAS: The available options are Account to Account, which is online banking, or by credit card
- Study fees-free: The Government's fees-free scheme is for students who are new to study. You may be able to get one year's study fees-free. Check if you are eligible for fees-free
- Take advantage of Lincoln's fee waiver: Lincoln University provides domestic students with a fee waiver for selected programmes. This is for tuition fees only, you will need to pay the student services fees and course-related costs such as textbooks yourself.
You can find the eligible programmes here. This fee waiver offer is only available until the end of 2024. - Scholarships: If you have been awarded a scholarship that will cover part or all of your fees, please contact studentfinance@lincoln.ac.nz
International
All international fees payments should be made through LUCAS.
We proudly partner with Convera to offer you a simple, secure, and smart way to pay your fees online. Convera's platform is trusted by 800+ institutions worldwide to enable payments in 140+ currencies across 200+ geographies. Convera is a multilingual platform available in 10 languages.
Convera Global Pay payment portal, is our preferred payment method for international students. It makes it easier for you to pay your NZD student fees, tuition, accommodation and insurance fees using your home currency or another international currency, and to avoid costly transaction charges from your bank. You can pay from your bank account with a telegraphic transfer or use a credit or debit card, eWallet, or other means of payment options for certain currencies.
Convera will match any cheaper quote from your bank, with their Price Promise Guarantee.
International Payment by a third party on behalf of the student
Our Convera payment portal allows for third parties (parents/guardians or others) to make a secure international payment on behalf of a Lincoln University student without having access to confidential student information. You will need the student’s full name and ID number.
Please note: Convera does not process payments to, from or involving residents of Iran, North Korea, Cuba and the Crimea, Luhansk and Donetsk provinces of Ukraine. More information about sanctions and potential restrictions payments that can be processed is available through the Convera Website.
To pay your fees using Convera Global Pay:
- Open the Convera Global Pay for Students payment portal and follow the instructions. Make sure you enter your full name and Lincoln student ID.
- Convera will email you a Funds Transfer Confirmation. The exchange rate on the confirmation remains fixed for 72 hours.
- Arrange a transfer of funds from your bank (or other forms of payment) to the Convera partner or Custom House bank listed on your Funds Transfer Confirmation.
- On receipt of funds, the Convera partner or Custom House bank makes a payment to Lincoln and you will receive an email confirmation when this is complete.
- Track your payment status by SMS and email.
If you have any issues using this service, access 24/7 live chat on the platform or contact Convera's friendly team here.
- Pay through LUCAS: The available options are Account to Account, which is online banking, or by credit card.
Goods and Services Tax (GST)
GST is charged at 15% on goods and services in New Zealand, which includes study fees. However, it is not charged to a non-resident who is outside New Zealand at the time the services are delivered.
If you are unsure if this applies to you please read the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) on GST below
FAQs on GST
The conditions under which a person may be exempted from payment of GST are set out in the Goods and Services Tax Act 1985.
GST is charged at 15% on the supply of goods and services in New Zealand, and at 0% (zero-rate) where the supply is to a person who is a non-resident and who is outside New Zealand at the time the services are delivered/charged (known as the “time of supply”).
The following guidelines are for your assistance, but any application for exemption will be with reference to full provisions of the Act.
- Section 11A (1)(k) of the GST Act 1985 provides for the zero rating of services which "...are supplied for and to a person who is not in New Zealand and who is outside New Zealand at the time the services are performed...",
- For an individual person to be non-resident the following tests must be met:-
The person must be absent for a period exceeding 325 days in any 12-month period. The 325 days do not have to be consecutive. If you’re here for only part of a day, it is counted as a whole day. For example, if you arrived in New Zealand at 3pm on 28 July, that day would be counted as a full day of presence.
AND
The person does not have a permanent place of abode (i.e. a house or other dwelling) in New Zealand.
In Semester One 2020, international students studying online overseas did not meet the IRD criteria for zero-rated GST for the following reasons:
Time of Supply: The GST of 15% is charged on tuition, administration and student services fees at the time of enrolment. At enrolment the intention was that courses would be provided on-campus and students enrolled on this basis.
Location of students: The University has a requirement to report to the IRD with a high level of certainty that the service is being provided to an international student residing offshore in order to zero-rate GST. This could not be confirmed for Semester One 2020 due to the extent of student movements as students;
- were recalled home or had returned home after enrolment but before the New Zealand Level 4 lockdown in March
- managed to return to New Zealand via other countries
- continued to return to their home country throughout Semester One 2020 as flights became available.
From Semester Two 2020 onwards, international fee-paying students studying online overseas because of COVID-19 border restrictions, who meet the IRD criteria, will have zero-rated GST.
Please complete and return the application form for GST exemption to studentfinance@lincoln.ac.nz if you believe that you are eligible for zero-rated GST (but have been invoiced at 15% GST).
Students who meet the criteria will receive an email when the credit has been applied.
If you return to New Zealand within the same study period after the zero-rated GST credit has been applied, you are required to notify us of the change. The GST credit may be reversed, proportionately adjusted and the GST reapplied.
If the GST is reapplied, we will inform you if there is an outstanding balance due to be paid.
If you have any questions, please contact studentfinance@lincoln.ac.nz