Address Collection Checklist

Use this checklist to complete the Australian Government Department of Education’s (DoE) annual Student Residential Address and Other Information Collection (Address Collection).

Before completing this checklist, it is important to familiarise yourself with the Address Collection documentation on the EducationHUB website.

For details on how TASS extracts data for this return, see the 'Address Collection (Aus)' article. Refer to the 'Address Collection FAQ' articles for frequently asked questions about this return.

Step	Task	Details	✅
1	Ensure TASS is up to date	Ensure your TASS software is current by upgrading to the latest TASS Software version. Contact your Administrator if an update is required. Where can I find the TASS Software Version?	🔲
2	Check User Security Permissions	Ensure relevant staff can access the ‘Address Collection (Aus)’ program and other programs mentioned in this checklist. The 'Address Collection (Aus)’ permission can be enabled in TASS.web System Admin > Users > Security Role Permissions or TASS.web System Admin > Users > User Maintenance.	🔲
3	Review and validate address data	The steps that you need to follow will depend on whether you have the ‘Address Validation API’ enabled. The Address Validation API isn't a requirement to complete this return. You can use either option. If the Address Validation API is enabled, validate and tokenise the existing addresses in your database using TASS.web System Admin > Utilities > Bulk Address Validation. Review missing address tokens and correct them if necessary. If an address cannot be tokenised, format the address as if the API is disabled. Important! If the Address Validation API is not enabled or an address cannot be tokenised, 'Address Line 1' should be used only to record property and building names, not physical addresses. The Address Collection will only include data from Address Lines 2 and 3. Refer to the 'Non-Tokenised Address' format in the ‘Address Collection (Aus)' article for details. From 2026, the Address Validation API is included in your school's TASS license at no extra cost. This API verifies parent addresses against known Australian postal addresses and supports your school's Address Collection, saving time and resources. If the Address Validation API is enabled and you have not run 'Bulk Address Validation' before, TASS recommends running it outside normal working hours to reduce system load on first use.	🔲
4	Ensure Student data is populated	Check that the ‘Full-Fee Paying Overseas Student (FFPOS)’, ‘Distance Education’ and ‘Boarder’ fields are correct on each Student Record. You can generate a report to check this data in TASS.web Student Admin > Student Records > Listings/Reports/Merges > Details Listing. From here, go to ‘Report Options’, select ‘FFPOS’, ‘Distance Ed.’ and ‘Boarder’ as Additional Fields, then click ‘GO’. Important! If your school has students with ‘unusual residential address circumstances' as defined by EducationHUB, ensure you can easily identify and, if necessary, exclude them from the report using the filters in the Address Collection (Aus) program or the ‘Excl Addr Coll' Communication Rule in TASS.web Student Admin > Student Records > Student information > Students on the 'Addresses & Comm. Rules' tab. If your school has unusual residential address circumstances, contact TASS Customer Care for further guidance. To edit individual student data, go to TASS.web Student Records > Student Information > Students on the ‘General’ tab. To edit multiple students' data, use TASS.web Student Records > Student Information > Students Grid Entry. Select ‘FFPOS’, ‘Distance Ed.’ and ‘Boarder’ as Additional Fields, then load the grid to update the necessary students.	🔲
5	Review how address information is extracted for split families	Read the 'How Parent Data Is Extracted for the Address Collection' section of the 'Address Collection (Aus)' article to understand how Parent Address data is extracted for each Family Arrangement (Nuclear, Simple Split, or Complex Split). Check which ‘Address Block’ is linked to Person Position 1 and Person Position 2 in TASS.web Student Admin > Parent Records > Setup Information > Parent Records Setup on the ‘Addresses’ tab. TASS recommends using this address block to enter split-family residential details for parents living at separate residences when the parents' address differs from the student’s address. Refer to ‘Setting Up Parent Addresses in TASS.web’ for more information. To check parent address data, you can run the ‘Communication Rules Listing’ in TASS.web Student Admin > Student Records > Listings/Reports/Merges. Click here for more information. To find Split Family data, on the ‘Student’ tab, set ‘Multi Parenting Arrangements’ to ‘Yes’. On the ‘Print’ tab, select all Communication Rules, check ‘Include Address Details’, ‘Consolidate Communication Rules by Address’, ‘Export to Excel’, then click ‘GO’. Alternatively, you could also use the ‘Student Parent Relationship List’ to check this in TASS.web Student Admin > Student Records > Listings/Reports/Merges.	🔲
6	Ensure Student Communication Rules, Relationship Tags and Address Details are populated	Use the ‘Communication Rules Listing’ in TASS.web Student Admin > Student Records > Listings/Reports/Merges, to check: All students must have the ‘Lives With’ Communication Rule applied to at least one parent or guardian’s street/residential address, and not a non-residential address, such as a PO Box or business address. Click here for more information. To identify students missing the ‘Lives With’ rule, go to the ‘Print’ tab, select Communication Type: ‘Student Lives With’, check ‘Only Include Students with NO Communication Rules for the Selected Communication Types’, and click 'GO’. Verify that each student has this rule to reflect their living situation. To check which addresses the ‘Lives With’ rule applies to, on the ‘Print’ tab, select Communication Type: ‘Student Lives With’, check ‘Include Address Details’ and ‘Export to Excel’, then click 'GO’. Ensure ‘Address Line 1’ and ‘Address Line 2’ do not contain PO Box information. The ‘Lives With’ rule applies only to street or residential addresses. ‘Biological’ parents and ‘Guardians’ are flagged correctly by checking the ‘Tag’ column of the report. If your school uses more than one 'Relationship Tag' to identify 'Biological Parents' (e.g. Biological Mother, Biological Father), or 'Guardians' (e.g. Aunty, Uncle, Grandparent), contact TASS Customer Care for guidance. ‘Tokenised’ and ‘Non-Tokenised Addresses’ are formatted correctly. Review Step 3 above for more information. Click here for more information. Check the ‘Address Barcode’ column. If the Barcode is missing, this means that the address has not been tokenised. Alternatively, you could also use the ‘Student Parent Relationship List’ to check this in TASS.web Student Admin > Student Records > Listings/Reports/Merges.	🔲
7	Check the Address Collection Raw Data Records	Use the ‘Raw Data Records’ extract to verify that your address data is accurate and stored in the correct fields. Go to the TASS.web Student Admin > Student Records > Government Returns > Address Collection (Aus). Select the Student and Parents Records to include in your extract using the ‘General’, ‘User Defined’ or ‘Billing’ tabs. Refer to the ‘Address Collection (Aus)’ article for more information. Complete the required fields on the 'Location Details' tab. On the ‘Process' tab, select your preferred Extract Option. TASS recommends using the ‘Use Communication Rules (Lives With Communication Type)’ option to accurately extract parent information for split families. On the ‘Process’ tab, select your preferred Parent Options. In the ‘Biological Parent Tag’ field, select the Relationship Tag that is used to identify ‘Biological’ parents on the 'Addresses and Comm. Rules' tab of a Student Record. In the ‘Guardian Tag’ field, select the Relationship Tag that is used to identify legal ‘Guardians’ on the 'Addresses and Comm. Rules' tab of a Student Record. TASS recommends leaving the ‘Person Label 1 Residential Address’ and ‘Person Label 2 Residential Address’ fields blank unless required. On the ‘Process’ tab, select ‘Raw Data Extract' and the 'Excel' option. Then click ‘GO’. Review the Raw Data Extract. Items to note: PO Boxes: will be rejected by DoE if any are present. Deceased Parents: will be excluded when the ‘Deceased' flag is set to 'Yes’ on the Parent record. Blank Student Addresses: Ensure each student has an address. Blank Parent Address: If a parent's address matches the student's address, the parent's address will be blank. This is expected. Student Numbers: Verify the report shows the correct number of Student Records (St) based on your Student and Parents Record filters. To exclude addresses from the export, such as alternative international addresses, select the ‘Excl Addr Coll' Communication Rule for the relevant Address Block in TASS.web Student Admin > Student Records > Student information > Students on the 'Addresses & Comm. Rules' tab.	🔲
8	Export the Address Collection Extract Excel and XML File	When you're ready to export your data: Go to the TASS.web Student Admin > Student Records > Government Returns > Address Collection (Aus). Use the same filters and fields as you selected in Step 7. On the 'Process' tab, select ‘Address Collection Extract' and the 'Excel' option. Then click ‘GO’. Conduct a final check of your data using the Excel version. Then, when you are happy with your export, rerun the Address Collection (Aus) with the same selections, but this time on the 'Process' tab, select ‘Address Collection Extract' and the 'XML File' option. Then click ‘GO’. Do not open the XML file before uploading it to EducationHUB. To review the XML data export to Excel for review.	🔲
9	Upload your data to EducationHUB	Go to the EducationHUB website, sign in to the Education Funding System (EFS) and follow the EducationHUB guidelines to submit your return. The XML file exported from TASS in the previous step is correctly formatted and ready for upload. You do not need to use the address-collection Excel template from EducationHUB to convert your Excel data to XML. You would only ever need to use this method if special circumstances apply.	🔲

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