Education Rights
Fees Went Up
University charges international student illegal fees above the agreed amount
Premium
intermediate
8 minutes
The Situation
What They Said
“Fees went up. You still have to pay. It's in the standard contract.”
International students represent a significant and economically important part of Australia's higher education sector, contributing billions of dollars to the economy each year. They also represent some of the most financially vulnerable students in the system: they have typically paid large upfront fees, are often living far from support networks, and have made life-altering decisions based on the financial commitments their institution made to them at enrolment. The claim that fees can be unilaterally increased mid-course, and that the student simply has to pay, exploits this vulnerability.
The Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 (ESOS Act) was enacted specifically to protect international students from this kind of exploitation. It is one of the most student-protective frameworks in Australian higher education law, and it creates binding obligations on registered education providers — including universities, TAFE colleges, and private providers — about how they manage international students' financial arrangements.
One of the most important protections is the requirement for a written agreement before study begins, specifying the fees the student will pay. The ESOS Act and the National Code set strict limits on when and how fees can be changed. A mid-course fee increase that was not disclosed in the original written agreement, or that exceeds what the agreement permits, is not simply a billing dispute — it may be a breach of a registered provider's legal obligations, with consequences including de-registration from the CRICOS register that authorises the provider to enrol international students.
The Fallacy
Contractual Override Fallacy — Using a 'Standard Contract' to Displace Statutory Protections for International Students
The claim that 'it's in the standard contract' is designed to close the conversation by invoking contractual authority. But in Australian consumer and education law, contract terms cannot override statutory protections. If the ESOS Act creates a right for an international student regarding fee arrangements, that right cannot be contracted away — and a standard contract clause that purports to allow unlimited fee increases without notice may itself be void or unenforceable.
Beyond the ESOS Act, fee increases in higher education must comply with the Competition and Consumer Act 2010, including the Australian Consumer Law's provisions on unfair contract terms. A term in a standard-form student contract that allows the provider to increase fees at will, with no cap or process, is a strong candidate for being declared unfair and void under the Australian Consumer Law.
International students are particularly vulnerable to this tactic because they may not know their rights, may fear visa consequences if they push back against their institution, and may be in a position where withdrawing or transferring has enormous personal and financial consequences. The legal framework was built with exactly these power dynamics in mind.
What the Law Says
Your Legal Foundation
Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000 (Cth)
Section 47B — Written agreement
“A registered provider must enter into a written agreement with each student enrolled with the provider. The agreement must contain the fees that are payable by the student for the course, any conditions associated with payment of the fees, and any conditions associated with the refund of any fees paid.”
The written agreement is a legally binding document that must set out the fees the student will pay. A fee increase that was not agreed to in writing at the time of enrolment, and that is not permitted by the terms of the agreement, is a potential breach of Section 47B. The student is entitled to hold the provider to the terms agreed at enrolment.
ESOS National Code of Practice for Providers of Education and Training to Overseas Students 2018 (National Code)
Standard 3 — Education Agents — Student information obligations
“Registered providers must ensure that any material provided to students before enrolment — including information about fees, refunds, and course requirements — is current, accurate and not misleading.”
If a student enrolled on the basis of fee information that was not accurate, or that was later changed without proper notice, the provider may have breached the National Code. The Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) and the Department of Education investigate provider compliance with the ESOS Act and the National Code and can take action against providers who breach them.
Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) — Schedule 2, Australian Consumer Law
Section 23 — Unfair contract terms — Unfair terms in standard-form consumer contracts
“A term of a consumer contract or small business contract is void if the term is unfair; and the contract is a standard form contract. A term is unfair if it would cause a significant imbalance in the parties' rights and obligations under the contract; and it is not reasonably necessary in order to protect the legitimate interests of the party who would be advantaged by the term; and it would cause detriment to a party if it were to be applied or relied on.”
A clause in a standard-form student contract that allows the institution to increase fees unilaterally and without limit is a strong candidate for an unfair contract term under Section 23 of the Australian Consumer Law. If such a term is found to be unfair, it is void — meaning the institution cannot rely on it to enforce the fee increase.
What Scripture Says
God's Word on This
Leviticus 19:33-34 (NIV)
“When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the Lord your God.”
God's instruction to ancient Israel was radical: the foreigner in your midst is not a lesser category of person — they have the same standing as a native. An international student, in a foreign country, investing their family's savings in an Australian education, is entitled to the same fair dealing that any domestic student would expect. Exploiting their vulnerability through arbitrary fee increases is the precise mistreatment this passage prohibits.
Matthew 5:37 (NIV)
“All you need to say is simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.”
Jesus calls for simplicity and integrity in commitment: what you say, you mean; what you agree to, you honour. An educational institution that commits to a fee in a written agreement and then unilaterally changes the terms is operating against this principle. Contracts, like spoken commitments, should mean what they say — and institutions that exploit the complexity of their own contracts to extract more from vulnerable students are moving away from this standard.
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What They'll Say Next
Common Counter-Arguments
After you respond, they may push back with these arguments. Members get the full rebuttal for each.
They might say: “If you don't pay, we'll cancel your enrolment and report your visa status to the Department of Home Affairs.”
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They might say: “The fee increase was disclosed in an email update we sent to all students. You received it.”
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They might say: “All universities increase fees. This is standard across the sector.”
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