All overseas students MUST ensure that they have a valid Australian visa while studying in Australia.
Australia has very stringent Border Protection laws in place. The tables below describe different types of visas as defined by Department of Home Affairs. These tables can also be found on Department of Home Affairs website: https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/Trav/Stud/More/Visa-conditions/visa-conditions-students
Please make sure you comply with your student visa conditions. Breach of any condition may have sever consequences.
The table below describes the conditions that apply to all student visa holders.
Conditions that apply to all student visa holders
| Condition number | Who this applies to | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 8105 | All students | Due to current workforce shortages, the Government is temporarily removing the limit on student visa holder working hours. This applies to all sectors of the economy. See Temporary changes to visa work conditions for Students and Working Holiday This is a temporary measure and will be reviewed in April 2022. It is for all ongoing students, as well as new student arrivals who want to find and start work prior to course commencement. This also includes secondary visa holders. For more information see Temporary relaxation of working hours for student visa holders Understanding your work rightsWe are working with the Fair Work Ombudsman to help employees and employers understand and follow Australian Workplace laws. For information on pay rates, shift calculations, leave arrangements and notice and redundancy entitlements see the Pay and Conditions Tool (PACT). The Fair Work Ombudsman website has more information on workplace rights and entitlements see visa holders and migrant workers. For the full list of conditions relevant to your visa, see the Federal Register of Legislation. |
| 8202 | All students | You must:
Note: A registered course is one that is on the Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students (CRICOS). Gap between courses Generally course gaps should not be more 2 months. A course gap can be more than 2 months if:
Additional information |
| 8501 | All students*** | You must have and maintain adequate health insurance for the whole of your stay in Australia. For more information on how this condition might apply to you see your visa details. |
| 8516 | All students | You must continue to satisfy the criteria for the grant of the visa. |
| 8517 | All students | You must maintain adequate schooling arrangements for your school-age dependents who joined you in Australia for more than 3 months as part of your student visa application. |
| 8532 | All students | If you are younger than 18 years of age, you must have accommodation and support, and your general welfare must be maintained for the duration To maintain your welfare, you must stay in Australia with:
You must not change your arrangements without the written approval of your education provider. If your welfare arrangements are approved by your education provider you must not travel to Australia until your welfare arrangements start
|
| 8533 | All students | You must let your education provider know your residential address within 7 days of arriving in Australia if you were outside Australia when your visa was granted. If your residential address changes you must let your education provider know within 7 days of the change. You must also your current education provider know you have changed your education provider within 7 days of receiving:
We will contact you through your school. If you don’t update your contact details we won’t be able to contact you. |
| 8303 | All students | You must not become involved in activities disruptive to, or violence threatening harm to, the Australian community or a group within the Australian community. For example, engaging or promoting extremist views and interrupting the operation of the Australian community. |
| 8203 | All students | You must not change your course of study, thesis or research topic without the approval of the Minister. This approval can only be given after the Minister has obtained an assessment from the competent Australian authorities that you are not likely to be directly or indirectly a risk to Australian national security. If you are considering changing your thesis, major or research topic you must: complete Form 1221 – Additional personal particulars information (PDF) and email to Adelaide.student.centre@homeaffairs.gov.au. Your subject line must be ‘8203/8204 assessment’. |
| 8204 | All students | You must not undertake or change your course of study, thesis or research topic without the approval of the Minister, for a:
This approval can only be given after the Minister has obtained an assessment from the competent Australian authorities that you are not likely to be directly or indirectly a risk to Australian national security. If you are considering changing your thesis, major or research topic you must complete Form 1221 – Additional personal particulars information (PDF) and submit to Adelaide.student.centre@homeaffairs.gov.au. Your subject line must be ‘8203/8204 assessment’. |
The table below describes the conditions that might be attached to a student visa. You can find your visa conditions in VEVO.
| No. | Who this might apply to | Description |
|---|---|---|
| 8104 | All students | Due to current workforce shortages, the Government is temporarily removing the limit on working hours for student and secondary training visa holders. This temporary measures applies to all sectors of the economy. Family members of students may also find and start work prior to the student’s course commencement. For more information see Temporary relaxation of working hours for student visa holders. Non-student visa holders other than training visa holders can only work up to 40 hours in a fortnight. A fortnight means the period of 14 days starting on a Monday. Understanding your work rightsWe are working with the Fair Work Ombudsman to help employees and employers understand and follow Australian Workplace laws. For information on pay rates, shift calculations, leave arrangements and notice and redundancy entitlements see the Pay and Conditions Tool (PACT). The Fair Work Ombudsman website has more information on workplace rights and entitlements see visa holders and migrant workers. For the full list of conditions relevant to your visa, see the Federal Register of Legislation. |
| 8534 | Any student | While you are in Australia, we will not grant you a new substantive visa, other than:
For the full list of conditions relevant to your visa, see the Federal Register of Legislation. Additional informationCondition 8534 can be applied to subclass 500 Student visa holders and their family members at our discretion. The case officer that assesses your application will decide whether to apply the condition. Applying for a graduate visaIf condition 8534 applies to your current visa you can only apply for the Temporary Graduate visa using the paper form. You don’t need to ask us to waive the condition before you submit your application. Download and complete Form 1409 Application for a Temporary Graduate visa. Ensure you tick the box saying you want to waive this condition. Applying for any other visaIf you have completed the course we granted you the visa for, you don’t need to ask us to waive condition 8534 to make a valid application for one of these visas:
You can ask us to waive this condition in limited circumstances if you want to apply for any other visa, including a further Student visa. |
| 8535 | Students sponsored by the Commonwealth or a foreign government | while you remain in Australia, you are not entitled to be granted a further substantive visa, other than:
Note: The effect of this visa condition is that, except in extremely limited circumstances, it will not be possible for you to remain in Australia beyond the date authorised by your visa. |
Length of stay for Student visas
Reference: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/student-500/length-of-stay
The length of stay is based on the course you intend to study. Additional time may be granted at the end of the course depending on its length. The ‘expiry date’ of your Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) (and any welfare arrangements, where relevant) will also be taken into account. At minimum OSHC must cover the course length.
To be granted a student visa to cover the additional time students must have OSHC in place for the same period. For example, if your course is a year in length ending 30 August, you will be eligible for a student visa to 30 October, provided you have OSHC to that date.
You should consider this when deciding how much OSHC to purchase, as your visa end date cannot be changed once granted.
Subject to the ‘expiry date’ of your OSHC and any welfare arrangements (where relevant), your length of stay will generally be as follows:
| Length of course | Length of stay |
|---|---|
| 10 months or longer, finishing at the end of the Australian academic year (November to December) | We will usually grant a visa stay period to 15 March of the following year |
| 10 months or longer, finishing from January until October | We will usually grant a visa stay period of 2 months longer than the course |
| Less than 10 months | We will usually grant a visa stay period 1 month longer than the course |
The maximum length of stay for a Student visa will generally not exceed 5 years.
Disclaimer: This information obtained from sources within the Department of Home Affairs, and is subject to change without notice. PCBT has used its best endeavours to ensure that the Information is correct and current at the time of publication but takes no responsibility for any error, omission or defect therein. Readers should rely on their own enquiries in making decisions AND should read the most updated visa conditions and criteria from the DoHA website or other resources:
Page updated 27 June 2022.