4.—(1) A graduate shall be exempt from liability for the graduate endowment if, on the relevant day applicable to the course of higher education in respect of which the graduate would otherwise be liable to pay the graduate endowment, the graduate–
(a)has attained the age of 25 years;
(b)is married; or
(c)has supported himself or herself out of his or her earnings for periods aggregating not less than 3 years.
(2) A graduate shall be exempt from liability for the graduate endowment if, at any time during the course of higher education in respect of which the graduate would otherwise be liable to pay the graduate endowment, the graduate–
(a)is eligible for an allowance under the Students' Allowances (Scotland) Regulations 1999(1) in respect of their being a lone parent;
(b)is eligible for an allowance under those Regulations in respect of their being a disabled student; or
(c)is a person mentioned in paragraph 7 of Schedule 1 and would have been eligible for either of the allowances mentioned in sub-paragraphs (a) and (b) above if the graduate had been a person mentioned in paragraph 2 of that Schedule.
(3) For the purposes of paragraph (1)(c) above, a person shall be regarded as having supported themself out of their earnings for any period or periods during which that person satisfies any of the conditions set out in paragraph 3(2) of Schedule 2.
(4) For the purposes of paragraph (1) above, the relevant day applicable to a course of higher education shall be–
(a)as respects a course starting in the period 1st August to 31st December, 1st August;
(b)as respects a course starting in the period 1st January to 31st March, 1st January;
(c)as respects a course starting in the period 1st April to 30th June, 1st April; and
(d)as respects a course starting in the period 1st July to 31st July, 1st July,
in each case the relevant date being in the year of commencement of the first academic year in which the graduate undertook the course of higher education.
S.I. 1999/1131