2018 to 2024 data

This page presents statistics relating to the seven years of tertiary education funded through the first-year Fees Free policy, (referred to as the Fees Free policy on this webpage), including demographic data, student loan borrowing, course and qualification completion rates and study load. Fees-free study has been offered since 1 January 2018 to learners with little or no prior tertiary study, at the New Zealand Qualifications and Credentials Framework (NZQCF) Level 3 and above. The first-year Fees Free policy will be discontinued after this year, so this will be the last time this page will be updated.

Where relevant, this page notes the impact of the Targeted Training and Apprenticeship Fund (TTAF) policy on participation in fees-free study. TTAF was introduced on 1 July 2020, supporting non-degree study at Levels 3 to 7, regardless of any prior study or training. Learners who started in fees-free and then moved to TTAF were counted in both categories in 2020. The TTAF policy was discontinued at the start of 2023, and its effect can be seen in the time series data. Unless otherwise stated, learners described as “fees-free” on this page are those whose education was funded through the Fees Free policy.

Statistics for previous years’ fees-free study have been updated. Changes to the data occur because of corrections and adjustments to students’ fees-free entitlements and payments. This report uses data from the Tertiary Education Commission dated 22 September 2025.

Key findings

• In 2024, there were approximately 64,685 fees-free students or learners in provider-based and workplace-based settings, including 21,945 who started fees-free study between 2018 and 2023.
• The total number of new fees-free learners in 2024 was 42,740, down by 13 percent from 2023 but higher than in 2021 and 2022. The decline was due to the large decrease (69 percent) in new workplace-based learners in 2024. New fees-free students in provider-based settings were up by 5 percent.
• The number of new fees-free learners in workplace-based settings had been unusually high in 2023, following the discontinuation of the Targeted Training and Apprenticeship Fund (TTAF). However, the decline in new fees-free learners in 2024 also reflects a large decline in these types of learners generally, with a downturn in the construction industry in particular.
• Most of the increase in new enrolments in fees-free study at government-funded providers was at Certificates at Level 3 (up 1,570 or 27 percent), accounting for 84 percent of the total increase. New fees-free enrolments in provider-based study increased across nearly all demographic categories. All age groups increased other than those 40 years and over. There were larger-than-average increases for Māori and Pacific Peoples students, and females increased more than males (7 percent compared to 3 percent).
• The biggest difference between fees-free and non-fees-free students in 2024 was by age-group. In provider-based settings, 62 percent of fees-free students (new and continuing) were aged 18 to 19 years of age compared to 5 percent of non-fees-free students in formal study at Level 3 and higher. Provider-based fees-free students were also more likely to be European, and a little less likely to be Asian, than non-fees-free students.
• Course completion rates were slightly higher than before the introduction of the Fees Free Policy, while average study loads for first-time 18- to 19-year-olds remained at similar levels.

Who participated in Fees Free study in 2024?

In 2024, there were approximately 64,685 unique fees-free students and learners. This included 16,065 learners in workplace-based settings benefiting from fees-free study. Approximately 46,220 equivalent full-time students (EFTS^[1]) were fees-free in 2024, accounting for around 18 percent of total EFTS in formal study at Level 3 and above.

Table 1 shows key breakdowns for 2024 fees-free and non-fees-free learners in provider-based tertiary education. More data is contained in the spreadsheet file in the Downloads section. Table 2 shows the equivalent data for learners in workplace-based settings.

New fees-free learners

The total number of new fees-free learners in 2024 was 42,740, a decrease of 13 percent (down 6,230 students) from 2023, but higher than in 2021 and 2022.

This decline was driven by a large decrease of 8,220 learners (69 percent) in workplace-based settings. The number of new fees-free learners in workplace-based settings had been unusually high in 2023, following the discontinuation of the Targeted Training and Apprenticeship Fund (TTAF). However, the decline in new fees-free learners in 2024 also reflects a decline in these types of learners, particularly in the construction industry. Among workplace-based learners, nearly all learners are apprentices, and it is likely that also played a role in decreasing these numbers.

In provider-based settings, new fees-free students increased by 5 percent (1,870 students) from 2023 to 2024.  Enrolments in Levels 3 to 7 non-degree study increased by 9 percent in 2024, while those at bachelors-level increased 1 percent, and post-graduate and higher study decreased slightly. Students in the 18- to 19-year-old group remained the largest single age group at 62 percent of new fees-free students in 2024. However, their numbers increased by only 2 percent from 2023, while all other age groups saw much larger increases apart from the 40 years and over group, which saw a decline. New fees-free learner numbers for female students rose 7 percent while males were up 3 percent, and Māori increased by 18 percent, the largest increase across all the ethnic groups.

Provider-based Fees Free study

Table 1 summarises the key characteristics of provider-based students by fees-free status in 2024. Of the 48,805 fees-free students enrolled in provider-based formal^[2] study, 25,190 (52 percent) were enrolled at universities, 15,415 (32 percent) at Te Pūkenga, and 8,440 at private training establishments (PTEs, 17 percent). Less than half a percent of fees-free students were enrolled at wānanga. By comparison, the distribution of non-fees-free students by sub-sector was universities 44 percent, Te Pūkenga 31 percent, PTEs 19 percent and wānanga 8 percent. Lower fees-free enrolments at wānanga may be due to learners being older on average and more likely to have completed prior tertiary study that makes them ineligible for fees-free study. Also, many sub-degree programmes at wānanga did not attract fees prior to the introduction of the Fees Free policy.

More than half of provider-based fees-free students were female (55 percent), a slightly lower proportion than for non-fees-free with 59 percent female. Most fees-free students were aged 18 to 19 years (30,145 learners, 62 percent), 15,765 (32 percent) were aged 20 years and over and only 2,845 (6 percent) were aged under 18 years. By comparison, the distribution of non-fees-free students by age group was 94 percent 20 years and over, 5 percent aged 18 to 19 years and 1 percent aged under 18 years.

Most provider-based fees-free students were European (32,665 students, 67 percent), 9,280 (19 percent) were Māori, 6,085 (12 percent) were Pacific Peoples and 7,865 (16 percent) were Asian. By comparison, the distribution of non-fees-free students by ethnicity was European (58 percent), Māori (20 percent), Pacific Peoples (10 percent) and Asian (22 percent).

Slightly more provider-based fees-free students were enrolled in degree-level study (49 percent) and 46 percent were enrolled in non-degree-level study (Levels 3-7). This compares with 37 percent of non-fees free students who were enrolled in degree-level study and 44 percent in non-degree-level study.

Fees Free workplace-based learners

Changes in the number of learners in workplace-based settings under the Fees Free policy have been strongly influenced by the introduction in 2021, and then the stopping at the end of 2022, of the Targeted Training and Apprenticeship Fund (TTAF).

By 2019, there were 9,875 workplace-based fees-free learners. However, in 2022, only 45 workplace-based learners had their programme and assessment fees paid through the Fees Free policy, while around 124,000 workplace-based learners received free tertiary study through the TTAF policy. Following the end of the TTAF policy, in 2023 the number of fees-free workplace-based learners increased again to 16,465. The proportion of learners in this total who were newly taking up first-year fees free was 72 percent.

In 2024 the total number of fees-free workplace-based learners fell 2 percent, to 16,065. New learners only comprised 23 percent of this total, so the majority were carrying on from the large influx of learners in 2023.

The distribution of these learners across the different reporting categories in 2024 can be seen in Table 2. Most fees-free workplace-based learners were European males, 18- to 24-years-old, in apprenticeships, studying at Level 4.

Were study loads influenced by Fees Free study?

Table 3 shows the average study load of provider-based students from 2016 to 2024 with a split for fees-free status for 2018 to 2024. It is limited to first-time students aged 18 to 19 years to match the age concentration of most fees-free students. Since 2018, students that accessed fees-free have had an average study load of around 0.93 EFTS per student, compared with average study loads ranging from 0.60 to 0.68 for non-fees-free students. However, the total average study load has remained steady at an average of 0.90 EFTS per student both before and after the introduction of the Fees Free policy. Differences between fees-free and non-fees-free students are likely to be about the eligibility criteria for fees-free study, rather than about fees-free study itself.

Were more courses completed in 2024?

Table 4 contains EFTS-weighted course completion rates for provider-based students from 2016 to 2024 with a split for fees-free status for 2018 to 2024. As for average study load, this table focuses on 18- to 19-year-old first-time students to match the age distribution of most fees-free students. Completion rates for fees-free students are higher than rates for non-fees-free students but are consistent with the rates for all students from previous years. This suggests that it is not the Fees Free policy itself, but factors related to fees-free eligibility, that affect course completion rates.

An explanation of the Ministry’s method for calculating completion rates is available here.

Have qualification completion rates changed?

With the Fees Free policy in place now for seven years, it is possible to consider whether the policy has influenced qualification completion rates.

Table 5 shows qualification completion rates for 18- to19-year-old full-time students in provider-based settings. This group of students makes up the majority of those who are eligible for fees-free study and enables a comparison to be made between those who started their study after 2018, and those who started in 2016 or 2017, prior to the introduction of the policy. Different periods of study after starting have been used, reflecting the minimum number of years it takes to complete the different levels of qualification.

The data shows that while these completion rates vary from year to year, there is no clear pattern of either improvement or decline after the introduction of the Fees Free policy. The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic can be seen in a relative drop in the qualification completion rate for bachelors-level students starting in 2020, and for the other levels in 2021 and 2022, for both fees-free students and overall.

Participation rates in tertiary education

In 2024, 10.4 percent of the total New Zealand population aged 15 years and over was enrolled in formal tertiary education (excluding micro-credentials and formal training schemes), down from the 10.8 percent seen in 2023. Participation rates had been generally falling since 2009, in line with improving economic conditions in New Zealand. There was a temporary jump in participation in 2021 and 2022, due in part to the economic shock of the COVID-19 pandemic, but the rate in 2024 is lower than the rate prior to the pandemic.

For fees-free students, the participation rate remained steady at 1.5 percent. It was steady for provider-based and workplace-based settings. It was slightly down for those 19 years or younger.

Of all 18- to 19-year-olds, 35 percent participated in provider-based tertiary education in 2024. Two thirds of this group were in fees-free study.

Student loan borrowing

Table 6 shows the number of domestic EFTS, the number of student loan fee borrowers and the total amount borrowed each year from 2016 to 2024. Domestic EFTS are a measure of tertiary enrolments by citizens and permanent residents – most of whom are eligible to borrow from the student loan scheme.

After the Fees Free policy was introduced in 2018 there were around 31,600 fewer students borrowing for fees – a reduction of 20 percent compared with a year earlier. The total amount borrowed fell by $194.2 million or 19 percent. Since the domestic EFTS fell by only 0.3 percent in 2018, most of this decrease can be attributed to the Fees Free policy.

From 2018 to 2020 the number of fee borrowers remained relatively steady when compared with domestic EFTS, but from 2021 to 2024 this number has been a little lower. From 2017 to 2024 the average amount borrowed for fees by fee borrowers has increased by between 1.6 percent and 4.0 percent each year as fees have increased.

Further data on student support (loans and allowances) can be found on the Ministry of Social Development’s StudyLink statistics page. The Student Loan Scheme Annual Report for 2024 is available on Education Counts.

Footnotes

1. One equivalent full-time student (EFTS) unit is defined as the student workload that would normally be carried out in a single academic year (or a 12-month period) by a student enrolled full-time.
2. Formal study refers to learning that is organised, intentional, institutionalised (but not just provider-based) and nationally recognised. For this report, only provider-based formal study of greater than 0.03 EFTS (more than one week’s full-time duration) is counted.