What are the requirements for a student visa in Australia?

To be granted a student (Subclass 570–576) visa, you must meet key requirements. These include a genuine temporary entrant requirement, your financial capacity, English language proficiency, likely compliance with the conditions of your visa and any other matters considered relevant to assessing your application.

A student visa application will be assessed against one of the following:

-one of five assessment levels for each visa subclass
-the streamlined visa processing requirements if you are an eligible student.
-Assessment levels are prescribed according to the passport you hold and the education sector of your course. Assessment Level 5 has the most stringent requirements.

To be eligible for streamlined visa processing, you must provide evidence of your confirmation of enrolment for an eligible course from a participating university at the time that you lodge your application. Eligible courses include Bachelor, Masters and
Doctoral degrees.

To be granted a student visa, you must also satisfy the general requirements that are applicable to all student visa applicants. General requirements include you being of good character and sound health, and having acceptable health insurance and no
outstanding debts to the Commonwealth of Australia.

Genuine Temporary Entrant requirement

Factors considered under this requirement include:
-your personal circumstances such as your potential circumstances in Australia and personal or financial commitments that may provide an incentive for you to return
home
-your immigration history such as previous compliance with immigration laws
– if you are a minor, the intentions of your parent, legal guardian or spouse will also be considered.
Evidentiary requirements

Key requirements include:

-Your capacity to cover the cost of air fares, course tuition fees and living costs for the duration of your stay in Australia. Your living costs in Australia are set at AUD18 610 pa. The period for which you must provide evidence of funds, the type of funds considered acceptable, and the savings period for funds may vary with your assessment level and education sector of study. Living costs are a minimum amount set for visa
purposes. Living costs vary depending on where you will be living and studying. It is your responsibility to determine what your own costs will be to live and study in Australia. Even if you have permission to work you should not rely on work to
support yourself in Australia as a student.
– Your capacity to cover the cost of air fares, living costs and school tuition costs for your family unit members for the duration of your stay in Australia. Living costs for family members are set at AUD6515 for your partner, AUD3720 for your first child and AUD2790 for each child thereafter. School costs are set at AUD8000 pa. Except in very limited circumstances, you are required to provide this evidence regardless of whether your family members intend to accompany you to Australia.
– Demonstrating and/or providing evidence in your application that the funds you are relying on will genuinely be available to you during your stay in Australia.
– Your level of English language proficiency in relation to that required for your assessment level and education sector of study. Where an English language test result is required, it must be a ‘specified English language test’ and you should have the results of this test before making your visa application.
– your academic record and qualifications completed.

General requirements

General requirements you must meet include that:
– You are of good character.
– You are of sound health.
– You have acceptable health insurance through the Overseas
Student Health Cover (OSHC) for yourself and members of
your family unit accompanying you to Australia. Refer to
OSHC on page 5.
– You have no outstanding debts to the Commonwealth of
Australia, or have made arrangements acceptable to the
Minister to repay such debts.
– Where you are under 18 years of age, acceptable arrangements
for your accommodation, support and general welfare are in
place.
– If you are in Assessment Level 2, 3, 4 or 5, do not hold a student visa and are applying in Australia, you must provide exceptional reasons to justify the grant of your visa.

Offer of a place in a course and confirmation of enrolment

If you are lodging a paper application you should provide either an electronic confirmation of enrolment certificate or an ‘offer of a place in a course’ letter from your Australian education provider when you lodge your application.

However, even if an ‘offer of a place in a course’ letter has been provided to lodge your application, an electronic confirmation of enrolment certificate is usually required before a student visa can be granted. Exceptions to this include, but are not limited to the following:
– AusAID/Defence scholarship recipients
– Secondary exchange students
– Postgraduate research students on a subclass 574 student visa while their thesis is being marked.

This is because these students provide other forms of evidence of enrolment. To confirm whether you need to provide an electronic confirmation of enrolment certificate, you may contact the department.

If you are applying using the department’s online lodgement facility, eVisa, you will need your electronic confirmation of enrolment certificate to lodge your application.
To be eligible for streamlined visa processing, you must provide a confirmation of enrolment for full-time study in an eligible course at a participating university when you lodge your application. If you package your courses, you must provide your confirmation of enrolment in an approved enabling course and the eligible course
in your package at the time when you lodge your application.

An approved enabling course must be provided by an education business partner nominated by your university, that is, your main course provider. Your university will be able to provide you with details of their nominated education business partners.