Refund Policy

Our Refund Policy relates to course withdrawal "With Cause" or "Without Cause". The Policy is governed by the Student Contract entered into between the School and the student.

1. Refund of Tuition Fee (With Cause)

All application/registration, enrolment, sponsorship and Escrow bank charges / insurance premiums paid to/through SMa Institute of Higher Learning Pte Ltd are non-refundable. 100% of tuition fee paid are refundable under any of the following conditions:

• Student's Pass application is rejected by the ICA.
• SMa Institute fails, for any reasons, to start the course on the commencement date.
• SMa Institute fails, for any reasons, to complete the course by the completion date except those that are caused by the students themselves, such as, deferment, re-sit, re-module, etc.
• SMa Institute terminates the course for any reason prior to the completion of the course.
• SMa Institute is in material breach of its obligations under this Agreement.

Application/Registration Fee is not refundable.

Without Cause

If you withdraw for any reason other than those set out above (With Cause), the following refund percentages apply:

• 100% of the aggregate amount of the course fees and additional fees paid when student's written notice of withdrawal is received by the School more than 60 days before the course commencement date.
• 75% of the aggregate amount of the course fees and additional fees paid when student's written notice of withdrawal is received by the School between 30 to 60 days before the course commencement date.
• 25% of the aggregate amount of the course fees and additional fees paid when student's written notice of withdrawal is received by the School lesser than 30 days to 1 day before the course commencement date.
• No refund when student's written notice of withdrawal is received by the School upon course commencement.

Registration/Application Fee is not refundable.

It takes 7 working days to process the refund request upon receipt of the necessary documents. Refund will be less any applicable bank administrative charges.

2. Requests for Fee Refund

The following conditions must be fulfilled for refund of tuition fee, if any is to be considered:

• Any request for withdrawal must be submitted in writing with the Request for Post-Enrolment Withdrawal (duly completed) to the Student Services Office. Request for refund not relating to course withdrawal must be submitted in writing with the Request for Refund (duly completed) to the Student Services Office.
• Refund will be based on the remaining number of unconsumed semester(s) / module(s) from the date (of notice) of withdrawal in accordance to the stipulated timeline prior to the commencement of the next semester as drawn out in the Refund Policy.
• No refund will be given for modules that have already completed and/or have commenced within any given semester.
• Students with medical conditions or face genuine financial difficulties must support their claims with official documentary evidence to the School for consideration.
• All requests pertaining to withdrawal matters are to be approved by the School.
• Any decision relating to refund of tuition fee arising from withdrawal shall be made at the sole discretion of the School and that shall be final. Upon which, the student concerned shall be informed in writing of the School's decision.

3. Refund of SPS Tuition Fee Insurance Premium

Refund of insurance premium for the Student Tuition Fee Insurance under the Student Protection Scheme (SPS) will be made to the student as follows once all administrative formalities are fulfilled:

Full Premium Refund (after deducting administrative charge)

NTUC Income will retain an administrative charge under the Full Premium Refund Conditions as follows:

• When ICA rejects the Student's Pass Application of the international student.
• When the international student applicant declines to accept SMa Institute's offer to begin his/her course and does not enter Singapore.

Partial Premium Refund (subject to administrative charge)

NTUC Income has the discretion to retain the first six to twelve months premium subject to the minimum administrative charge under Partial Premium Refund Conditions before refunding the balance premium. The conditions include:

• When the insured student discontinues his/her studies with SMa Institute in order to continue his/her education with a government school.
• When the insured student switches to another course within the School.
• When the insured student needs to return to his/her country of residence due to severe illness or other legitimate reasons, subject to the discretion of NTUC Income.

4. Refunds from SPS Tuition Fee Account (Escrow)

Tuition fee paid into Student Tuition Fee Account (Escrow) under the Student Protection Scheme (SPS) will be credited by the Bank into the student's bank account as indicated (by student) in the Escrow Confirmation once all administrative formalities are fulfilled. Terms of refund as follows:

• Tuition fee paid into the Student Tuition Fee Account will be fully refunded to the student should his/her Student's Pass application (new application) be rejected by the ICA.
• Non-utilised tuition fee paid into the Student Tuition Fee Account will be refunded should the Student's Pass renewal be rejected by the ICA.
• Non-utilised tuition fee paid into the Student Tuition Fee Account will be refunded (subject to administrative charge) under the following circumstances:
• When the student switches to another course within the School.
• When the student withdraws from the course before the course end date as indicated in the Escrow Confirmation.
• When the student defers the course to a later date.
• The terms of refund as approved by CASE and drawn out in the School's Refund Policy is applicable for the refund.

Transfer Policy

At SMa Institute of Higher Learning, we value all feedbacks, complaints & suggestions from our students on our services, academic quality, facilities, pastoral care and student welfare. We believe that actions taken to resolve these feedbacks will improve our service quality and reinforce our branding & reputation as a Quality Education Provider.

1. Transfer of Level

Transfer of level within a course may be possible depending on the regulations of the respective course of study but the student shall be solely responsible for future outcomes resulting from the transfer should it be approved.

If a student wishes to have a transfer of level of study, he/she should adhere to the following procedures:

• The student must complete the Request for Transfer of Course/Level Form and submit it to our Student Services Office at least 14 working days prior to the commencement date of the level.
• Parent's formal letter of consent to the transfer and to absolve SMa Institute's responsibilities for any disruption to the student's study in Singapore is required if he/she is below the age of 18.
• An appointment will be arranged for him/her to meet with the respective staff in-charge for assessment session. With advice from our staff, the student will decide on whether to continue with his/her current level or proceed with the transfer request, subject to the student satisfying the pre-requisites of the intended level.
• Assessment of the student's request will be based on his/her current academic performance, level of understanding (language proficiency), lecturer's recommendation and most importantly the student satisfying the pre-requisites of the requested level.
• Decision of the School pertaining to the request is final. SMa Institute shall put it in writing to inform the student on the outcome of the request.
• If the request is approved: the student must approach our Student Services Office as soon as possible to complete formalities with SMa Institute for the transfer of level.

2. Transfer of Study Mode

Transfer of study mode refers to a change from full-time study to part-time study or vice versa for the same course. This may be possible depending on the regulations of the respective course of study but the student shall be solely responsible for future outcomes resulting from the transfer should it be approved. Student's Pass holders are not eligible for such transfer.

If a student wishes to have a transfer of study mode for study, he/she should adhere to the following procedures:

• The student must complete the Request for Transfer of Course/Level Form and submit it to our Student Services Office at least 14 working days prior to the commencement date of the module/level.
• Parent's formal letter of consent to the transfer and to absolve SMa Institute's responsibilities for any disruption to the student's study in Singapore is required if he/she is below the age of 18.
• An appointment will be arranged for him/her to meet with the respective staff in-charge for assessment session. With advice from our staff, the student will decide on whether to continue with his/her current study mode or proceed with the transfer request.
• SMa Institute shall put it in writing to inform the student on the outcome of the request.
• If the request is approved: the student must approach our Student Services Office as soon as possible to complete formalities with SMa Institute for the transfer of study mode.

3. Transfer of Course

For transfer of course, the student's current Students' Pass must be cancelled in order for a new Student's Pass application to be made to the ICA. All Student's Pass applications are subject to approval by the ICA.

If a student wishes to have a transfer of course, he/she should adhere to the following procedures:

• The student must satisfy the pre-requisites of the requested course and have a good class attendance record before such request can be considered.
• The student must complete the Request for Transfer of Course/Level Form and submit it to our Student Services Office at least one (1) month prior to the commencement date of the course.
• Parent's formal letter of consent to the transfer and to absolve SMa Institute's responsibilities for any disruption to the student's study in Singapore is required if he/she is below the age of 18.
• An appointment will be arranged for him/her to meet with the respective staff in-charge for assessment session. With advice from our staff, the student will decide on whether to continue with his/her course of study or proceed with the transfer, subject to him/her satisfying the pre-requisites of the intended programme.
• SMa Institute shall put it in writing to inform the student on the outcome of the request.
• If the request is approved: the student must approach our Student Services Office as soon as possible to complete formalities with SMa Institute and the Student's Pass application (Student's Pass holder only) processes for the transfer of course. His/her Student's Pass and highest education qualification certificates / academic transcripts are required for the application.
• As a policy, internal transferring from one course/programme to another is "Deemed Withdrawal" in the Student Contract.

4. Transfer to another School - Deemed Withdrawal

For Student's Pass holder, his/her Student's Pass with SMa Institute must be cancelled in order for a new Student's Pass application to be made to the ICA by the new School.

If a student wishes to transfer to another School, he/she should adhere to the following procedures:

• The student must complete the Request for Post-Enrolment Withdrawal Form and submit it along with his/her Student's Pass to our Student Services Office.
• Parent's formal letter of consent to the transfer of School and withdrawal from SMa Institute, and to absolve SMa Institute's responsibilities for any disruption to the student's study in Singapore is required if he/she is below the age of 18.
• An appointment will be arranged for him/her to meet with the respective staff in-charge for counselling session. With advice from our staff, the student will decide on whether to continue with his/her current study or proceed with the withdrawal/transfer.
• Should the student decide to continue with the transfer, he/she must first confirm his/her enrolment with the school of his/her choice. The student (Student's Pass holder) is required to submit to our Student Services Office Form V36A of ICA where Section A has been fully completed by the school that he/she intend to transfer to.
• Our Student Services Office will notify the student to collect the Form V36A once it is completed by SMa Institute.
• The student's (Student's Pass holder) attendance record and progress report (if any) for the processing of this transfer will only be released if he/she does not have any outstanding financial obligation to SMa Institute.
• SMa Institute reserves the right to reject a request for transfer if the student has failed to comply with the terms and conditions of their enrolment at SMa Institute or ICA.