School Student Broadband Initiative

National Referral Centre

We can support your child’s education with free internet at home. Contact our team to check eligibility and for help getting your family connected.

The program is primarily intended as an affordability measure to help those with school-aged children who may be experiencing financial hardship.

Call 1800 954 610 (10am – 6pm AEDT Monday to Friday, excluding Victorian Public Holidays) or fill out the form below.

Free internet until December 2025

The Australian Government has announced that they are extending the School Student Broadband Initiative until 31 December 2025.

The extension means that the SSBI nomination period will remain open until 31 December 2024 with free National Broadband Network (nbn) internet service for all new and existing families on the SSBI until 31 December 2025.

For existing SSBI families who have already signed up, this means their SSBI service will automatically be extended until 31 December 2025 (no further eligibility checks will be required).

For eligible families who connect before the end of this year, they will get up to two years of free nbn broadband.

How can the School Student Broadband Initiative help your child?

Children who can access online learning at home as part of their education are more likely to engage in classroom activities.

Access to fast internet at home can also support children to build their digital skills, learn how to safely use the internet and participate in a world that is more dependent on digital technology.

Is my family eligible for the School Student Broadband Initiative?

To be eligible, families must:

✓ Have a child living at home that is enrolled in an Australian school (up to year 12 including Prep in Qld/Vic/Tas, Kindy in NSW, Reception in SA, Transition in NT/ACT and Pre-Primary in WA).

✓ Not have an active National Broadband Network (nbn®) Internet service at home. Having a mobile internet service does not affect eligibility.

✓ Live in a premises that can access the National Broadband Network via a standard connection – this will be checked for you.

✓ Not have had an active nbn connection during the previous 14 days.

Call 1800 954 610 (10am – 6pm AEDT Monday to Friday, excluding Victorian Public Holidays) and our team will check your eligibility.

How does the School Student Broadband Initiative work?

Community organisations, including Anglicare Victoria, have been nominated to help families participate in the initiative.

From 9 October 2023, people not connected via an existing Nominating Organisation will be able to self- nominate via the National Referral Centre (NRC).

If you are eligible, the home internet service will be provided at no cost until 31 December 2025 through a participating internet provider over the National Broadband Network. These internet providers will have their own step-by-step process to get you connected, which may involve identification.

Once you sign up, the internet provider will help you set up your connection. The initiative does not include devices such as a computer or tablet. Other household members can use the internet service provided through this initiative.

The free internet period will start from the day your service is activated with your chosen participating internet provider. At the end of the free internet period, you should not be placed on a paid service by your internet provider without your consent. The Australian Government is considering options beyond 31 December 2025.

Eligible families have until 31 December 2024 to use their free internet voucher.

Call 1800 954 610 (10am – 6pm AEDT Monday to Friday, excluding Victorian Public Holidays) to check eligibility and apply.

What to expect when you call our team

You can anticipate that the call will last approximately 20 minutes, with around 10 minutes spent with a member of our team and another 10 minutes with the internet service provider who will commence the connection to your address.

Internet activation time at the household can vary depending on the internet service provider, ranging from within a few hours to up to 10 business days.

To help facilitate the process, we kindly request that families be prepared to share contact details and to answer the program eligibility and criteria questions. Additionally, if you are a new tenant, your move-in date will also be required.

Where can I find additional information on the initiative?

For more information on the School Student Broadband Initiative, visit www.infrastructure.gov.au/SSBI

Enquiry

Call us on 1800 954 610 (10am – 6pm AEDT Monday to Friday, excluding Victorian Public Holidays) or complete the form below and a member of the team will get back to you.

If you need this form translated into another language, click here.

You can obtain further information in relation to AV’s privacy policy, or contact our Privacy Officer, by visiting our privacy policy.

Frequently Asked Questions

To view a full list of SSBI Frequently Asked Questions, please follow the link below.

Sharing resources

Below are some useful resources which may be useful to share across your networks so families in need hear about the SSBI program.