TCSI Newsletter September 2020

An information pack is now available for VET Student Loans and higher education providers to find out more about the extension of the USI to higher education and phasing out of CHESSNs.

The pack contains background information about the expansion, key messages for students, a fact sheet, student and provider FAQs, social media suggestions and some useful links.

For regular updates, please visit: www.usi.gov.au/higher-education

If you have any questions, please feel free to send us an email: USItoHigherEd@dese.gov.au

You will need an API compatible solution to connect with the TCSI test environment. Check with your TCSI developer to find out what is possible in your system.

The TCSI testing environment currently allows dummy records to be reported, revised, and deleted. The real time validations are in test and will trigger fatal and warning messages if the data you submit is inconsistent. Most of the validations are final, but some changes may still happen in response to provider testing.

Scheduled validations will check your test records for any missing elements. To trigger these, you can report incomplete records in the test environment and wait for a scheduled validation to be returned.

Mock TFNs will verify or fail TFN verification based on the number at the end of the mock TFN. This allows you to view the error messages that are returned from the system. Mock TFNs can be requested from TCSIsupport@dese.gov.au.

CHESSN management is occurring in the test environment so that when a student is reported with sufficient personal information CHESSNs will be allocated. Find out more in the CHESSN management in TCSI guide.

COMING VERY SOON are the StEME notifications and HELP Balance end point which are due at the end of September 2020.

Test environment options

There are a few options in terms of setting up your test environment so you can select what works best for you. 

There is information on the TCSI Support website on how to set up your test account and the information we require from you on the “TCSI – Setting up a test account” scenario on the TCSI – Testing for providers page.

Please note that test environments cannot be refreshed by the department. Test account users can use APIs to DELETE data that is no longer required.

With the passage of the Education Legislation Amendment (2019 Measures No. 1) Bill 2019, we are reminding providers that the new data sharing provisions are now in effect.

The information below is provided by Services Australia (formerly Department of Human Services) to assist providers in taking appropriate steps to ensure students are aware of the new arrangements.

It is time to review your notifications to students

Sharing personal information with Government agencies is not new. Tertiary education providers are already providing information to Government agencies using a range of different channels. The TCSI project is helping to streamline the way education providers share their information with Government agencies.

Why do I need to review privacy messaging?

To ensure there is openness and transparency in reporting student information under TCSI, we recommend providers review their notifications they give to their students. Each organisation needs to consider their own obligations and consider the 13 Australian Privacy Principles outlined under the Privacy Act 1988. Each organisation may also consider obtaining their own legal advice to assist with meeting these obligations.

Where do I start?

The below messaging has been developed to assist providers identify how their information may be shared with Services Australia.

This messaging does not change the need for providers to consider their own messaging, obligations and obtaining their own legal advice. It is important to clarify to students their information will not be shared with Services Australia if they have not claimed or received a payment. Students can also be assured the information provided to Services Australia will be kept safe and secure.

Privacy notification messaging for your students

• We may disclose your personal information to Australian Government agencies, including Services Australia, where this is required or authorised by Australian law.
• Information about your enrolment with us may be disclosed if you are claiming or receiving a payment from Services Australia.
• You are still required to notify Services Australia of any change in circumstances that may affect your payment.

Personal information disclosed to Services Australia is protected by law, including the Privacy Act 1988. More information about the way Services Australia handles personal information can be found on their privacy webpage.

Are you missing out on important information and regular updates because we can’t contact you?

To ensure we have the current contact details of the right people in your organisation please ensure they managed their details. They should:

• Sign up to receive the TCSI and HEIMS Data Collections eNews publication via the subscription link on the News and Media page on the TCSI Support website. This list is used to share updates and invites for both TCSI and HEIMS.

• Maintain their details in the HITS system. This is where education provider primary contacts and CEO details are stored. These official contacts are used by the TCSI project team to send notices to the executive of VSL providers and Private Higher Education providers.

• TCSI developers need to sign up to the TCSI GovTEAMS developer community to stay updated on technical documentation and announcements. The contacts provided and maintained in GovTEAMS are used to send developer webinar invites and developer updates. Details on requesting access are at "step 1" of the developer guide and your existing GovTEAM details can be updated at https://www.govteams.gov.au/.

Signed up and still not receiving the emails?

Have you checked the Junk Folder in your inbox? Due to different security protocols our email might sometimes end up in your junk folder. Please remember to check there and if you are still not receiving communications please let us know at TCSISupport@dese.gov.au.

Here are a few of the most recent frequently asked questions providers are asking:

How do I request a TCSI data set for my provider?

Information on how to request your data can be found on the TCSI Support website on the Transitioning to TCSI page.

Where can I find information on USI, the changes and the timeframe for implementation?

For information on USI you can visit the website https://www.usi.gov.au/higher-education and you can email any queries to USItoHigherEd@dese.gov.au.

How often is data from HEPCAT uploaded to TCSI?

Data is synchronised from HEPCAT to TCSI every night.

What is TCSI safemode and who is it for?

TCSI safemode is only for Higher Education providers and will only be available when they first go live in TCSI production. TCSI safemode turns off the pipeline that would normally send debts to the ATO. This allows providers to check their system is working before impacting students’ debt records at the ATO.

VSL provider have an in-built safe mode because debts are not sent to the ATO until after the 7^th calendar day of the month.

When is the past course completion file for 2020 due?

For Higher Education providers, the 2020 past course completions file is due by 31 January 2021 and must be submitted via HEPCAT. Access to HEPCAT will be made available for this submission even if a provider has transitioned to TCSI.

For dual providers, can the transition can be done separately for their HE and their VET records?

Yes, you can transition your Higher Education and VSL data independently.

Data on individual students that are undertaking both Higher Education and VSL study at your organisation must not be submitted in TCSI until their records are finalised in HEPCAT and HEIMS.

Can we request more than one data extract?

Yes, we are now offering multiple data extract requests to support providers in their data verification step as part of preparation for migrating to TCSI. Information on how to request your data can be found on the TCSI Support website on the Transitioning to TCSI page. We do ask that you don’t do this too frequently though as we have a small team that will be providing the data extracts and we need to ensure we are able to provide extracts to everyone.

How do I set up a test account?

There is information on the TCSI Support website on how to set up your test account and the information we require from you on the “TCSI – Setting up a test account” scenario on the TCSI – Testing for providers page.

How are Campuses and Course on Campus packets going to be loaded?

Higher Education providers will need to load up their Campus and Course on campus packets as an early part of onboarding. The scope will only include courses undertaken by students in 2021. Going forward it won’t need to go back in time for every campus.

VSL providers will need to report delivery location packets to report unit enrolments in TCSI.

Can the data already sent to TCSI during previous testing cycles be deleted? Can we get a data refresh?

TCSI is not able to offer a data refresh to providers, because refreshes impact all test accounts.

Providers who would like to change their test account can:

1. delete records they would like removed from their test account using the DELETE APIs
2. ask for another (empty) test account (see more here). Providers can only get one test account with pre-loaded data.

Are all of the validations from TCSI Validations v0.2 (18 August 2020) spreadsheet available within the test environment?

In that spreadsheet there was a colour coding for changes that are planned for introduction:

• Text in red indicates amendments to validations that are planned to be included in the December release
• Text in blue indicates amendments to validations that are planned for after the December release

The spreadsheet can be found on the TCSI Support website here: https://www.tcsisupport.gov.au/validations-download

The proposed Job Ready Graduate Package includes simplified Commonwealth Grant Scheme funding clusters and student contribution bands.

In response, the TCSI project team is working on potential updates to contribution amount validations. The Maximum Student Contribution Code (E392) is also being considered to allow providers to identify grandfathered students. There will not be any changes to the Student status code (E490) as part of these changes.

The following changes are proposed for allowable values on the Maximum Student Contribution Code (E392):