Information for school staff

Travelling home has become a lot more accessible. However, there are still several factors to consider when planning travel home, including possible quarantine requirements in home countries.

Students travelling to their home countries during current coronavirus (COVID-19) restrictions

Schools are asked to work closely with all students and their parents / legal guardians as they make their travel plans.

Students may find travelling during this time different to earlier periods of pre-coronavirus (COVID-19) travel. School staff are requested to take additional time to discuss this with students and to prepare them for the experience. 

Please confirm whether students have any pre-existing health (physical and mental) issues that may impact their ability to safely return home. If such conditions do exist, the host school must develop a relevant safety plan, in conjunction with the wellbeing team / medical practitioners and department regional offices (if relevant) for the student during their travel.

The student must have a copy of the safety plan with them during their travel home. In some cases, and when students have a history of suffering from a certain condition (for example, hay fever or asthma) they should visit their GP and request a letter which outlines the treatment they have been receiving for the condition. They should always carry this letter with them throughout their travel.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) testing

All students should determine if COVID-19 testing is required for entry into any transit stops or their final destination. 

Health requirements

Students must ensure they have appropriate supplies of medication with them. Schools should advise students to also take an adequate supply of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for their entire journey home (including spares). This includes masks and hand sanitiser. Students should wear masks as required, including during any overnight periods, and maintain social distancing requirements.

Home country re-entry requirements

Most countries have re-entry requirements in place. All students and ISCs must check these details with the relevant Embassy and / or Consulate well in advance before booking tickets. Some of these re-entry requirements may include the need to undertake quarantine and / or other requirements. To access information about the main Embassies and Consulates for our students, see:

• Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in Melbourne
• Vietnamese Embassy
• Royal Embassy of Cambodia
• Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Melbourne
• Consulate General of Japan, Melbourne

For a list of all overseas embassies and consulates in Australia, see: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Students should not attempt to embark on their homeward bound journey if they have not completed all their home country re-entry requirements. They should be strongly advised to re-book their flights as they risk being turned away by airline staff.

Additional travel documents or travel items

In addition to normal travel documents, students must always have their school student emergency / safety card with them throughout the journey. Students should always be contactable via telephone (call and/or other platforms such as WeChat) , particularly on the day of departure. Schools should explain what to do and who to call in the event of an emergency.

Travelling via Sydney or other domestic airports

Students must take direct international flights home from Melbourne. All students holding a Confirmation of Appropriate Accommodation and Welfare (CAAW) must have their proposed travel plans approved well before travel is booked to ensure the student's safety and welfare. 

The department may advise the Australian Department of Home Affairs (DHA) of any students travelling without approved care and welfare arrangements as the failure to maintain approved CAAW arrangements is a breach of their student visa and could jeopardise their ability to return to Australia in the future. 

If there are no other alternatives and a student must depart from another Australian city, travel must not be road or rail (i.e. car / taxi / ride share / bus / train). Driving for long periods may expose students (particularly unaccompanied minors) to high risks. Please contact your Department School Support Officer as soon as possible if you have a student wishing to travel via road or rail via another Australian city to board a flight to their home country.

Transit times

If transiting through another Australian city cannot be avoided, then it is recommended that the student's transit should be for a short period of time. Students and parents must not book flights with long transit periods or overnight stays. If this is the only flight option, please contact the department so that appropriate accommodation and welfare arrangements can be arranged for the student.

Cancelled international flights (departing from Sydney or other domestic airports)

Prior to departure, the student and parent should be advised to continually check airline websites for any change to departure times or dates prior to leaving Melbourne. Students should not embark on their homeward journey without checking all flights. Please advise the student and their parent / legal guardian verbally and in writing to limit opportunities for confusion.

If the student's travel plans are delayed for any reason, they should call their ISC as soon as they learn of any delay. ISCs should try to obtain as much information as possible from the student and ask if they can speak directly to the official who is with the student to better understand the situation. If the situation cannot be resolved and the student is detained please advise your school leadership and lodge an IRIS report if it constitutes a critical incident.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) symptoms

If a member of a homestay family has one of the symptoms of coronavirus (COVID-19), they should seek medical advice and test. For a list of symptoms, see: About COVID-19 or call the 24-hour coronavirus hotline 1800 675 398 or see your general practitioner. 

Emergencies / severe symptoms

If the student or anyone in the household is experiencing severe symptoms, such as shortness of breath, follow the below steps:

• Step 1: call 000 and request an ambulance
• Step 2: inform the ambulance officers of the person’s symptoms
• Step 3: follow the advice of the emergency professionals.
  

Getting tested

For the latest information about testing and what to expect, see:

• Rapid antigen tests
• Get a COVID-19 test
  

Managing COVID-19

Managing COVID-19 in homestays

For information to provide to homestay families about look after someone with COVID-19 and how to isolate effectively, see: Managing COVID-19 at home. 

If an international student is a confirmed case

If an international student is a confirmed case of COVID-19, the international student coordinator must be notified so they can advise next steps. In addition, the student will need your ongoing care and support. Students will need to isolate and meet all health directions. They should not be moving house when positive with COVID-19.

Medical attention for international students

Homestay students' medical attention, in response to their positive test result, can be initiated by the school principal, international student coordinator or homestay family. Students are required to be accompanied for any medical assessment (if they are not able to do so individually) and the homestay family is requested to maintain communication with school staff.

Vaccinations

COVID-19 vaccines are free for everyone living in Australia regardless of Medicare or visa status, including international students. Vaccination providers cannot charge international students for COVID-19 vaccines or for appointments to receive the vaccine. If students don't have a Medicare card, or are not eligible for Medicare, they can get their free vaccination at a:

• Commonwealth Vaccination Clinic
  
• state or territory vaccination clinic.

For more information about the COVID-19 vaccination, including eligibility, please see: 

• COVID-19 vaccines
• Australian Government Department of Health: COVID-19 vaccine if you don't have a Medicare card
  

Physical and mental health, wellbeing and welfare services

Some international students are feeling heightened stress and anxiety. Please encourage students to access the welfare and support services available at your school as soon as they start to feel distressed. Please pre-empt this need by proactively providing students with accurate and current information about how to access counselling or welfare services available at your school or local community (if none exist at your school). 

Remind students that these school services are confidential, provided at no extra charge, and that they should not be reluctant to use these services for fear of cost or causing trouble. It can also be helpful to work with your student and their overseas health cover provider to understand what level of health insurance cover the student has for mental health issues.

If students feel anxious or have concerns during out of school hours, please encourage them to contact you using the 24/7 emergency contact number.

Department mental health resources

A range of mental health resources are available to help reduce the impact of COVID-19 for students, parents and school staff, including a mental health toolkit and resources aimed at VCE students. For more information, see: 

• Student resources
  

• Quick Guide to Student Mental Health and Wellbeing.
  

Face-to-face and over the phone counselling is also available to all secondary students through Headspace. A Medicare card is not required to access the service. For more information, see: Headspace counselling for secondary students

Interpreted mental health resources

Alternatively, students and homestay families can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 46 36 if they have feelings of stress, anxiety, worry or depression. To access free interpreting services for these providers, see below.

• Lifeline
  • Call Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS) on 131 450 and ask to talk to Lifeline on 13 11 14 in the language required. TIS will call 13 11 14 on behalf of the caller.
• Beyond Blue
  • A free interpreter service is available for Beyond Blue phone counselling, see: Beyond Blue.
    

Consular assistance

Students may also wish to contact their local consulate if they would like to connect with the consulate’s cultural activities and programs, or require more specific consular support or information. For a list of overseas embassies and consulates in Australia, see: Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Online safety considerations during COVID-19

Fraud and scams

The department has been made aware of scams targeting international students, particularly from China. The scam callers often speak in Chinese (Mandarin) and claim to be a representative from a Chinese Government authority or logistics company. The scammers convince students to pay large amounts of money to them. Please advise your students that they must not provide any personal details or pay any money if approached (via phone, email or social media) and must report any such approach to their school ISC immediately. If a student is impacted by a scam, schools are requested to undertake the following as soon as possible:

• Raise an IRIS alert (mentioning that an international student is involved), and
• Contact Victoria Police, see: Victoria Police - Fraud

Counteracting discrimination

Schools should ensure that all students feel safe and supported and that bullying and discrimination are not tolerated. The following resources may be of assistance.

• Bullystoppers
• Navigating intercultural issues at school, see: VCAA intercultural capability
  

Information for homestay families

A factsheet with helpful information on maintaining physical and mental health, hygiene and how to seek medical assistance has been developed specifically to help homestay families and schools. For more information, see: ISP homestay factsheet.

For more advice and support in relation to homestay families, contact: international@education.vic.gov.au.

Sourcing additional homestay families

The department strongly encourages all schools to ensure they maintain a well-resourced emergency homestay register. 

Should current homestays not be able to accommodate the students, you may also consider the following approaches to sourcing homestay families:

• contact your emergency homestay families
• consider working in cluster groups to share homestay families, including teaching staff from neighbouring schools, who are willing and able to host students
• source third-party homestay providers that meet homestay requirements and advise us if you chose this option so we can provide you with more information.
  

Attendance requirement

An international student's overall attendance should not fall below 80% for the term. Please note that ‘approved absences’ count towards the 20% acceptable absence rate for immigration purposes. If a student is at risk of not participating for 80% of the scheduled days, follow the normal procedures for international students at risk of not meeting attendance requirements.

Please refer to the Department's coronavirus web page for the latest advice and information, see: Coronavirus (COVID-19) Victoria.