Charitable organisations: Charitable organisations and the Student Loan Scheme 1992

Charitable organisations and the Student Loan Scheme 1992

If you're an approved charitable organisation, and a student loan borrower is, or will be, working overseas for you as a volunteer (or for token payment), they can apply to us for an exemption to keep their entitlement to an interest-free student loan. We can grant them an exemption for volunteer work for a maximum aggregate period of 24 months.

Find out about keeping an entitlement to an interest-free student loan.

Approved charitable organisations

Approved charitable organisations are listed in the regulations to the Student Loan Scheme Act 1992.

If you wish to become an approved charitable organisation you must:

• have been established for charitable purposes, and
• operating for at least two years, and
• be undertaking charitable activities.

How to apply

Write to us outlining the reasons why you should become an approved charitable organisation, and include a copy of your trust deed (or other founding document).

Send your letter to:

Policy Advice Division
Inland Revenue
PO Box 2198
Wellington

We will contact you if we need any more information.

How we assess your application

We will consider:

• the credibility of your organisation
• whether you are a non-profit organisation
• whether you have recognised record-keeping practices
• whether you are publicly accountable
• the monitoring and evaluation processes you have in place.

We will also take into account (although these are not compulsory) whether you have:

• a base in New Zealand
• a presence in at least five countries.

Date published: 20 Jan 2009

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