Student Visa Extension Australia

Visa Entitlements

Apply for a student visa in Australia and enjoy the following perks:

• Study full-time registered courses in Australia, from primary school to doctorate.
• Accompanied by dependent family members to Australia.
• You can work up to 40 hours per fortnight and your family members can generally work for a specified number of hours.
• You can stay in Australia until your course is finished.
• Multiple travels in and out of Australia.

Key Eligibility

Must have Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) unless:

• Sponsored by Department of Foreign Affairs, Defence,
• Or secondary exchange student,
• Or a research student waiting for the marking of thesis.

You must also meet the minimum English requirement below if required (depending on the country and educational provider).

English test exemption applies if the international student is or has:

• Enrolled in full-time school studies as a principal course including in a secondary exchange programme, a postgraduate research course, a standalone English Language Intensive Course for Overseas Students (ELICOS), and Foreign Affairs or Defense sponsored students.
• Completed at least five years’ study in one or more of the following countries: Australia, UK, USA, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, or the Republic of Ireland.
• Citizen and a passport from UK, USA, Canada, NZ or Republic of Ireland.
• Within the two years before applying for the student visa, completed, in Australia and in English either the Senior Secondary School or a substantial component of a Certificate IV or higher course while holding a student visa.

Evidence of Financial Capacity

Effective 10 May 2024, the Department of Home Affairs increased the financial capacity requirement for student and student guardian visa applicants.

All applicants must declare that they have genuine access to funds whilst studying in Australia. If required, they must provide evidence of their financial capacity. For specific amounts required for each applicant, refer to the table below.

Applications made before 10 May 2024 will be assessed in accordance with the financial requirement at that time, which is outlined in the table above.

Students are advised to demonstrate more than the minimum required fund for the visa especially if you are applying from a high-risk country.

The types of evidence that are permitted are:

• Money deposit(s) with a financial institution (bank statements, term or fixed deposits etc)
• Loan with a financial institution (credit cards or line of credit facility are only acceptable if funds are withdrawn)
• Government loan
• Scholarship or financial support
• Property items are not acceptable.

(Must be from an acceptable financial institution, country dependent)

Genuine Access to Funds

For a successful visa outcome, students must demonstrate that they have genuine access to these funds. The decision makers will look at the following:

• The employment history of the applicant/person providing the funds.
• The income and assets of the applicant/person providing the funds.
• The source of the income used to meet the financial requirements (for example, if the student is relying upon funds from a third party i.e. a family friend), and the nature of the relationship between the applicant and the person providing the funds.
• If the person providing the source of income has provided financial support for another student.
• If the student has previously been granted a visa, any information in relation to their ability to meet their financial requirements while they were in Australia.
• The immigration activities in Australia of other nationals from the applicant’s home country.

Applicants are advised to provide genuine and persuasive evidence demonstrating they have access to these funds. More
evidence should be provided in higher risk countries.

New Genuine Student (GS) Requirement

The new Genuine Student requirement replaces the old Genuine Temporary Entrant (GTE) requirement and is a primary criterion for those who applied on or after 23 March 2024. For existing applicants prior to this date, the old GTE requirement shall apply.

The GTE condition can be the most difficult requirement to meet for many students, where the ultimate interpretation of the criterion is at the full discretion of visa case officers or tribunal members.

In assessing whether an applicant is a genuine student, the decision maker would generally have regard to all circumstances of the student visa applicants in relation but not limited to the following:

1. Country of profiles of the student’s home country, which may include political upheavals, natural disasters, general visa compliance and visa frauds from other visa applicants.

2. Applicant’s or a relative of the applicant’s past immigration history to Australia and other countries

• Including past visa compliance and non-compliances
• whether applicant has previously applied for temporary or permanent visas
• Whether these visas were refused, cancelled or granted
• The amount of time spent on these visas and the likelihood of using student visa to prolong student’s stay
• Whether the student has undertaken a series of short, inexpensive courses, or remained on student visa for some time without successfully completing a qualification

3. Applicant’s own circumstances in their home country and applicant’s potential circumstances in Australia

• Family and community ties with student’s home country and Australia
• Economic and employment prospect in Australia and home country
• Military service commitments

4. The course(s) the student wishes to study

• Whether it is consistent with their current level of education
• Whether they will assist the student to obtain or improve employment prospect in their home country
• Any changes to career or study pathways should be reasonable
• Whether the student has reasonable reasons for not undertaking the study in their home country or region if similar course is available.
• Relevance of the course to the student’s past or proposed future employment in their home country or third country.
• Remuneration the student would expect to receive in-home or third country compared to Australia after completing the intended course

5. Whether the student and dependant spouse have entered into a relationship for visa purposes (contrived relationship)

6. Student’s knowledge of living in Australia, their intended course of study and the educational provider. It could be based on the student’s previous studies and qualifications, and realistic expectations of the level of the student’s research into their course of study, living arrangement, etc.

7. Applicant’s and financial sponsor’s ability to fully support the student’s costs in Australia, whether the student has genuine access to the funds.

Common Mistakes Made by Student Visa Applicants

Avoid delaying your Australian education by being wary of common mistakes being made by applicants.

• Not disclosing all relevant information.
• Not able to substantiate all the claims, especially in relation to the source of funds and how these funds will be accessed.
• Not able to demonstrate the genuine intention to study as the enrolled courses do not fit with the student’s future career plans.
• Unable to answer key questions during a face to face or phone interview.
• Failure to disclose important information intentionally or by mistake leading to the decision maker doubting the person’s character and genuineness of the case.
• Failure to check mistakes, information or documents provided by a third party leading to the decision maker believing they are bogus documents.
• Failure to take appropriate steps in assisting with Department’s background check process and verification.
• Combination of factors raises doubt in the decision maker’s mind that the student has no genuine intention to return to his/her home country after completing the courses.
• Enrolling in the wrong courses leads to difficulties in future studies, not completing courses or achieve desired academic performance, causing severe stress and result in serious physical and psychological health issues. It may also cause difficulties in further visa applications or even have student visa cancelled for serious breaches.
• Not understanding the student visa conditions after the visa grant and in breach of these conditions, resulted in the visa being cancelled.