What Should Online Course Terms And Conditions Cover?

Your online course terms and conditions should cover enrolment, live classes, recordings, refunds, payment, community access, student conduct and what happens if a cohort changes.

That sounds simple enough, but live and cohort-based courses have a few moving parts that generic website terms often miss. You're not just selling a digital product. You're managing dates, group dynamics, access periods, expectations and sometimes a very personal learning experience.

The good news is that your terms don't need to be complicated. They just need to clearly explain what students are buying, what you're promising, what you're not promising, and how you'll handle the situations that tend to cause friction.

What Should Online Course Terms And Conditions Cover?

Your online course terms and conditions, or online course agreement, should clearly set out the commercial deal between your business and your students.

For a course creator or training business, that usually means covering more than payment and login access. Your course enrolment terms should reflect the way you actually deliver the course.

At a minimum, your terms should deal with:

• What the student is buying: the course name, format, inclusions, live sessions, resources, templates, community access and any support included.
• Enrolment requirements: who can enrol, any prerequisites, age limits, technology requirements and whether places are capped.
• Fees and payment: upfront fees, payment plans, instalment dates, failed payments, late fees if used, and what happens if payment isn't made.
• Start dates and access periods: cohort dates, expiry dates for course materials, replay access and whether access can be extended.
• Live class rules: attendance expectations, time zones, rescheduling, cancellations, student participation and technical issues.
• Recordings: whether sessions are recorded, who can access recordings, how long recordings are available and whether students may download or share them.
• Refunds and cancellations: your refund policy, cooling-off style offers if you choose to provide them, and Australian Consumer Law obligations.
• Student conduct: behaviour in live sessions, forums, group chats and communities, including what happens if a student breaches the rules.
• Intellectual property: ownership of your materials, limits on copying or reusing them, and any licence students receive to use resources.
• Disclaimers and outcomes: what results you do and don't promise, especially for business, career, wellness or skills-based courses.
• Privacy and marketing: how you collect personal information, use recordings and send course updates or promotional emails.

Say Mia runs a 10-week live marketing course for freelance designers. Her sales page says students get weekly Zoom classes, a private community and lifetime access to recordings. If her terms don't explain what lifetime access means, whether recordings include student questions, and what happens if Mia moves a class, she may end up dealing with unhappy students instead of running the course.

Clear terms help you avoid those awkward conversations. They also make your course feel more professional from the moment someone enrols.

Do You Need Different Terms For Cohort-Based Courses?

Yes, cohort-based course terms usually need extra wording because the timing and group experience matter.

A self-paced online course is often a simple access product. A cohort-based course is closer to a scheduled service. Students may be joining because of the start date, live teaching, accountability, networking or feedback from you.

Your terms should explain what happens if the cohort changes. For example:

• You need to move the start date by one week.
• A guest teacher becomes unavailable.
• You need to combine two small cohorts.
• A live session needs to be rescheduled because of illness or a platform outage.
• A student wants to defer to a later cohort.
• The cohort doesn't reach the minimum number of enrolments.

You can usually build flexibility into your terms, but it needs to be fair and consistent with the Australian Consumer Law. A clause that lets you change almost anything without giving students a real option may be risky, especially if your customers are individuals or small businesses.

Minimum Numbers And Cohort Changes

If your course only works with a certain number of students, say so before enrolment. Your terms can state that you may postpone or cancel a cohort if minimum enrolments aren't reached, and explain the student's options.

Those options might include:

• transferring to the next available cohort;
• receiving a credit for another course; or
• receiving a refund if you cancel the cohort and can't provide the course they paid for.

This is much better than simply saying you can cancel at any time. Students want certainty, and the law expects your terms to be fair.

Deferrals And Transfers

You don't have to offer unlimited deferrals, but you should be clear about your rules. For example, you might allow one deferral if the student requests it at least 7 days before the course starts, subject to availability in the next cohort.

If your course has limited seats, live feedback or a high-touch support component, missed attendance can affect your business. Your terms can explain that a student's failure to attend live sessions doesn't automatically entitle them to a refund.

Can You Refuse Refunds For Online Courses In Australia?

No, you can't simply refuse all refunds in every situation because the Australian Consumer Law gives customers certain rights that your terms can't override.

It's common to see online education refund policies in Australia that say all sales are final or no refunds under any circumstances. That wording can cause problems. You can have a strict change-of-mind policy, but you can't exclude refunds or other remedies required under the Australian Consumer Law, which is in Schedule 2 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010.

For example, if your course isn't delivered, is significantly different from what you advertised, or has a major problem, a student may be entitled to a remedy. Depending on the issue, that could be a refund, partial refund, replacement service or another fix.

Your refund policy should separate two things:

• Change of mind: where the student changes their mind, becomes too busy, doesn't attend, or decides the course isn't right for them after enrolling.
• Legal remedies: where there's a problem with the course or service that gives the student rights under the Australian Consumer Law.

For change-of-mind refunds, you can usually set your own policy. You might offer:

• a refund within a set period after enrolment, such as 7 or 14 days, if the student hasn't accessed substantial materials;
• a partial refund before the first live class, less an administration fee if that fee is reasonable and disclosed;
• no change-of-mind refunds after the course starts;
• a credit or transfer to a later cohort; or
• a satisfaction guarantee with clear conditions.

The right setting depends on your course model, pricing and how much value students receive immediately after enrolling. A $49 mini-course will be treated differently from a $4,000 cohort with live coaching and limited places.

Also keep unfair contract terms in mind. Since November 2023, unfair contract terms in standard form consumer and small business contracts can attract significant penalties. If your terms are one-sided, unclear or give your business very broad rights without reasonable balance, they may create legal risk.

How Should Your Terms Deal With Live Classes And Recordings?

Your terms should say exactly how live sessions work and get clear consent if you're recording students.

Live classes are where many disputes start. Students may assume they can ask unlimited questions, receive individual feedback, access replays forever, or share recordings with their team. If that's not what you're offering, your terms should say so.

Live Session Rules

Your terms can cover practical points such as:

• class dates and times, including the time zone;
• whether dates are fixed or may change;
• how much notice you'll try to give for rescheduled sessions;
• whether attendance is required to complete the course;
• whether students can submit questions before or during class;
• whether one-on-one support is included;
• what happens if the student has internet or device problems; and
• what happens if your platform has an outage.

If you run live sessions through third-party platforms, you should also make it clear that students need to comply with any reasonable technical requirements and platform rules.

Recording Consent

If you record live classes, say this clearly before students enrol and again at the start of sessions. Recording laws vary between Australian states and territories, and privacy obligations may also apply, so consent is the safest approach.

Your terms and course notices should cover:

• whether video, audio, chat messages, names and profile images may be recorded;
• why you record sessions, such as replay access or internal training;
• who can access the recordings;
• how long recordings will be available;
• whether students can turn off their camera or use a display name;
• whether recordings may be reused in future courses or marketing; and
• how a student can raise a concern about being recorded.

Be especially careful about using student images, testimonials, chat comments or questions in marketing. Get specific permission rather than burying broad consent in your terms.

Access Periods And Downloads

Your terms should say whether students receive temporary access, lifetime access or access for as long as your business continues to host the course.

If you use the phrase lifetime access, define it. Does it mean the student's lifetime, the lifetime of the course, or the lifetime of your platform? Many businesses prefer wording like access for 12 months from enrolment or access for as long as we continue to make the course available.

You should also say whether students can download materials and whether recordings are streaming-only. Without a written limit, you may struggle to stop students sharing materials with others.

What Can You Say About Learning Outcomes?

You can describe the skills, knowledge and support your course is designed to provide, but you should be careful not to guarantee results you can't control.

This is especially important if your course relates to income, business growth, employment, health, fitness, mindset, investing education or professional skills. Under the Australian Consumer Law, you must not make misleading or deceptive claims. That includes claims made on your sales page, webinars, social media, testimonials and emails.

For example, a claim like join this course and make $10,000 in 30 days is risky unless you have a solid basis and the result is typical or clearly explained. A more balanced statement might say the course teaches a sales framework and includes examples from past students, but results depend on the student's business, effort, market and other factors.

Your terms can help by saying:

• the course is educational and doesn't guarantee a particular result;
• students are responsible for how they apply the material;
• examples and case studies are illustrative, not promises of future performance;
• completion may depend on attendance, participation and assessment requirements; and
• any certification, badge or completion statement is only available if the student meets stated criteria.

If you provide accredited training, nationally recognised training or regulated professional development, you may have extra obligations. Registered Training Organisations are regulated by the Australian Skills Quality Authority or a state regulator, depending on the course and jurisdiction. CRICOS and overseas student rules can also apply in some education models. Get tailored advice if your training falls into a regulated category.

How Do You Manage Student Conduct And Community Access?

You should set clear behaviour rules and reserve the right to remove students who disrupt the learning environment or breach your terms.

Live cohorts and private communities can be incredibly valuable, but they can also create risk. A student might spam the group, harass another student, share confidential information, post offensive content, record others without permission or use the community to promote a competing service.

Your training provider terms and conditions should set expectations for:

• respectful communication in live sessions and community spaces;
• no harassment, bullying, discrimination or threatening behaviour;
• no spam, self-promotion or scraping member details;
• no sharing of another student's confidential or personal information;
• no recording or screenshotting private sessions without permission;
• no copying, reselling or distributing your course materials; and
• compliance with platform rules for forums, chat groups and learning portals.

Your terms should also explain the consequences. Depending on the issue, you may want the right to:

• give a warning;
• remove a post or comment;
• suspend community access;
• remove the student from live sessions;
• terminate access to the course; or
• refuse future enrolments.

Try to keep this flexible but fair. If you're removing a student for serious misconduct, your terms should support the decision. If the issue is minor, a warning may be more appropriate.

Privacy also matters here. If you collect student names, email addresses, payment details, course progress, recordings or community posts, you're handling personal information. The Privacy Act 1988 may apply if your annual turnover is more than $3 million, or if another exception applies. Even if it doesn't strictly apply, a clear Privacy Policy is good practice for an online education business.

What Other Documents Might Your Training Business Need?

Your enrolment terms are the main document, but you may need a few supporting documents depending on how your course is sold and delivered.

Templates can be a helpful starting point, but online courses vary a lot. A live leadership program, a yoga teacher training course and a self-paced software course all need different protections.

You may also need:

• Website Terms Of Use: rules for browsing your website, using free resources and accessing general content.
• Privacy Policy: how you collect, use, store and disclose personal information, including recordings and learning data.
• Refund Policy: a customer-friendly version of your refund rules that aligns with your full enrolment terms and the Australian Consumer Law.
• Recording Consent Wording: clear wording for enrolment pages, booking forms and the start of live sessions.
• Community Guidelines: plain-English rules for Facebook groups, Slack, Circle, Discord, forums or other student spaces.
• Contractor Agreements: if guest teachers, coaches, assessors or moderators help deliver the course.
• IP Assignment Or Licence Terms: if someone else creates course materials, slides, videos, templates or curriculum for your business.
• Trade Mark Protection: if your course name, framework or brand is becoming valuable, registration through IP Australia may help protect it.

If you sell to businesses, you may also need business terms that deal with group enrolments, corporate licences, substitute attendees and internal use of materials. If you sell subscriptions or memberships, your subscription terms should cover renewal dates, cancellation steps and recurring payments.

If you send promotional emails or SMS messages, remember the Spam Act 2003. You generally need consent, clear sender details and an easy unsubscribe option.

Key Takeaways

• Online course terms and conditions should go beyond generic website terms and reflect how your course is actually delivered.
• Cohort-based courses need clear rules for start dates, minimum numbers, deferrals, rescheduled classes and missed attendance.
• You can set a strict change-of-mind refund policy, but you can't contract out of the Australian Consumer Law.
• If you record live sessions, get clear consent and explain who can access recordings, how long access lasts and how recordings may be used.
• Be careful with promises about outcomes, income, certification or career results. Your marketing and terms should line up.
• Community rules, privacy wording and intellectual property protections are essential if students interact with you and each other online.

If you'd like help with your course enrolment terms, refund wording, recording consent process and community rules, you can reach us at 1800 730 617 or team@sprintlaw.com.au for a free, no-obligations chat.