National vocational education provider Fitlink is being investigated following complaints by students over its financial collapse.

Key points: Fitlink collapsed in December but students weren't notified

Fitlink collapsed in December but students weren't notified The man who ran Fitlink, Tim Boman, declared bankrupt in February

The man who ran Fitlink, Tim Boman, declared bankrupt in February Fitlink Australia had its registration cancelled by ASQA in July last year

Fitlink students, many of whom have paid thousands of dollars in course fees up-front, were not told by Fitlink about its financial collapse and have been left wondering about the future of their education.

7.30 can reveal that late last year two of the companies behind Fitlink — Fitlink Australia and Traincorp Operations — were placed under administration and liquidation after being unable to pay their bills.

As a result 7.30 understands that Fitlink staff, including its Australian tutors, lost their jobs.

Brisbane student Debbie Howell said the first she knew of Fitlink's financial difficulties was when she was unable to contact her trainer or continue her online course in January.

"I had a question and I contacted my tutor and I hadn't had any response for a few days," Ms Howell said.

"I thought that was really weird because they always contacted me straight away.

"I rang the office number, it was the middle of the day, and the recording said these are our office hours and I thought, 'well, I'm calling you during office hours' and that's when I started to get concerned.

"Just by doing a Google search on the internet, I saw in the search results Fitlink and liquidation, so I clicked on that and discovered they had gone into liquidation in December."

Ms Howell paid $2,200 in advance to complete a Certificate IV in Fitness, which she needs to run her fledgling personal training business.

"I've forked out a lot of money to do this course, I paid for it up front because that was the cheapest way to do it."

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Man behind Fitlink has close links to the new company running it

The man behind Fitlink, Brisbane accountant and property entrepreneur Tim Boman, had also run into personal financial strife and was declared bankrupt in February.

He ran Fitlink from a gym in the Brisbane suburb of Woolloongabba until last year, but now the gym is locked up and the building is for sale.

Angela Eluik and Tim Boman ( Facebook )

Despite Mr Boman's financial collapse, Fitlink continues to enrol new students and is now operated by another company with strong ties to him called Silver Academy.

In December, just days after Mr Boman's company Traincorp Operations was placed in liquidation, the registered training organisation documents for Silver Academy showed Tim Boman was named as its new director and CEO.

Current and former directors of Silver Academy also have close links to Mr Boman.

Mr Boman's wife Angela Eluik was registered as a director of Silver Academy for several months last year.

She has also been a director of Fitlink Australia and her LinkedIn page said she was an owner of Fitlink Australia until January.

When 7.30 approached Angela Eluik outside the Woody Point penthouse apartment she shares with Mr Boman she denied ever being involved with Silver Academy.

Sorry, this video has expired Fitlink aggressively markets itself using celebrity trainer Tiffiny Hall from the TV show The Biggest Loser

"No, I was never a director of Silver Academy," she said.

"I'm not involved with Silver Academy and students are being serviced and will continue to be serviced."

Another of Mr Boman's associates, Brisbane woman Kerri Curtain, is a current director of Silver Academy and has also been involved with Traincorp International.

Silver Academy is run from a small office block in Redcliffe, 45 minutes north of Brisbane.

Staff there refused to tell 7.30 whether Tim Boman remained in charge and no one, including Tim Boman or Kerri Curtain, was available for interview.

Repeated attempts to contact Mr Boman and Ms Curtain have been unsuccessful.

Many students remain concerned that the financial collapse will eventually impact on Silver Academy.

Silver Academy is trying to reassure students by email saying they are restoring the online course, offering course extensions and staff from another company, Fitlink New Zealand, will continue to train them.

Vocational training regulator investigating Fitlink

Fitlink student Debbie Howell has made a complaint to the vocational education regulator, the Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA).

ASQA is currently investigating six complaints by students about Silver Academy and has the power to suspend or cancel its registration.

Chief Commissioner Chris Robinson said ASQA would also consider Tim Boman's links to Silver Academy.

Student Debbie Howell outside the closed Fitlink gym in Brisbane ( Michael Atkin )

"There's been a number of complaints made by students about that training organisation since late last year and we're currently looking at those," he said.

"I'm not aware that Tim Boman is a director or a high managerial agent of that organisation but that's something we'll investigate as well."

Fitlink Australia had its registration cancelled by ASQA in July last year, but Mr Robinson would not disclose why.

"We did get some matters raised with that organisation [Fitlink] and [after that] it went into liquidation so the companies he [Mr Boman] was involved in no longer operate as training organisations," he said.

It is not the first time Mr Boman and the companies he has operated have run into severe financial difficulty.

Corporate regulator ASIC prosecuted him in 2010 for failing to assist a liquidator, fining him $4,000 and he was fined again in 2011.

Professor of Business Law from the University of South Australia, Jennifer McKay, has examined Mr Boman's chequered business record and believes ASIC will be interested in him again.

"He's been declared bankrupt and also he has two current companies under investigation and they will take action in order to ensure that the prudential standard remains high," she said.

Professor McKay believes ASIC could also examine whether Mr Boman has breached corporate law by running Silver Academy as a shadow director.

"When you've got these clusters of complicated intertwined companies and directors, and particularly if we decide on the evidence that Mr Boman is a shadow director of Silver Academy, then it is a very serious offence," Professor McKay said.

"He seems to be linked to Silver Academy through a director who he has been a director with in other cases but of course we need to know his side of the story.

"If he is, in practice, managing it but he has other people fronting the company that is very serious breach of the Corporations Act."

ASIC declined to comment, saying it was waiting on final reports from the liquidator and administrator of the failed companies.