Australia is a great choice to pursue your studies, with a well-organized education system. The Student Visa is processed by the Type of Course you study and the Assessment Level of your own country.

For those who want to study in Australia:

Type of Course

  • English Language Intensive Courses for Overseas Students (ELICOS) – Subclass 570
  • School Sector – Subclass 571
  • Vocational Education Training (VET) – subclass 572
  • Bachelor or Master Degree – Higher Education Subclass 573
  • Postgraduate Research Sector – Subclass 574
  • Non-award Sector – Subclass 575

Assessment Levels:

There are three assessment levels in the student visa program. The higher the assessment level, the greater the evidence an applicant is required to demonstrate to support their claims for the grant of a student visa.

Assessment Level 1: The lowest immigration risk
Assessment Level 2: Medium immigration risk
Assessment Level 3: The highest immigration risk

The higher the assessment level, the greater the evidence an applicant is required to demonstrate to support their claims for the grant of a student visa.

If You Are Studying in Australia and want to stay in Australia after Graduation:

Graduate Visa – subclass 485

You are studying in Australia and you’d like to stay and work here. The Skilled Graduate Visa subclass 485 is a temporary work visa for you to live and work in Australia upon completion of your course.

How this Visa works:

There are two streams for the Temporary Graduate visa:

  • Graduate Work Stream which is valid for 18 months
  • Post-study Work Stream which is valid for either two or four years, depending on the qualification completed.

There is no restriction on work or study. With a subclass 485 visa you will be able to do the following:

  • Work
  • Complete a professional year to be able to score additional points ina skilled application.
  • Study to improve English skills.
  • Travel within Australia

General Requirements for the Two Streams:

  • You must be younger than 50 years of age at the time you apply for this visa.
  • You must hold an eligible visa at the time you apply for this visa, e.g. student visa.
  • You must have met the two-year Australian study requirement in the past six months: this is 2 academic years with at least a total of 92 weeks being the duration of one or more courses.
  • You must provide evidence that you have at least competent English Language skills, which is an IELTS test result with at least 6 in each band.
  • You must have acceptable health insurance in Australia and meet Australian health and character requirements.

Specific Requirements for the Two Streams:

Graduate Work Stream

  • Only valid for 18 months:
  • Each degree,diploma or trade qualification used to meet the Australian study requirement is closely related to your nominated skilled occupation.
  • Provide evidence that your nominated occupation is on the Skilled Occupation Lists (SOL) and your skills have been assessed by a relevant assessing authority as suitable for your nominated skills occupation (suitable skills assessment).

Post-Study Work Stream
A two year visa can be granted for a Bachelor or Masters Degree and a four year visa for a PhD Degree.

  • Your first student visa to Australia was lodged on or after 5 November 2011.
  • You must have completed one or more of the following qualifications in Australia;
  • Bachelor Degree
  • Bachelor with Honours
  • Masters by Coursework
  • Masters (Extended)
  • Masters by Research
  • Doctorate -e.g. PhD
  • Study resulting in a diploma level qualification or trade qualification will not be considered.
  • You hold an eligible qualification which was conferred or awarded by an Australian university or non-university education provider that is registered on the Commonwealth Register of Courses and Institutions for Overseas Students (CRICOS) and that provider offers courses at degree level and above.
  • Degree level courses packaged with a Graduate Certificate or Graduate Diploma course may be considered, provided they otherwise meet the Australian study requirement.

Graduate Visa-Gateway to other visas in Australia:

A 458 visa holder will be able to apply for further stay in Australia, via Employer Sponsorship or Skilled Migrations.

CLICK THE HEADINGS FOR MORE VISA INFORMATION