• participate in an eligible course of study in Australia
• travel in and out of Australia
• work up to 40 hours every 2-week period once your course starts

This is a temporary visa to study up to 5 years. The type of course and its length will determine the length of stay Primary school children enrolled in years 1-4 will generally only be granted a student visa for a maximum period of 3 years.

To continue studying in Australia, you must apply for a new Student visa. If your Student visa will expire before your graduation you might be eligible for a Visitor visa (subclass 600). You will need a letter from your education provider with the date of your graduation. If you hold or held a student visa and completed specific qualifications in Australia in the last six months, you might be eligible for a Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485). If you are a recent engineering graduate of a recognized institution you might be eligible for the Skilled Recognition Graduate visa (subclass 476). If you want to stay longer for other reasons, you must apply for a new visa that suits your circumstances. Explore your visa options.

You can include family members when you lodge your visa application. For student visas, your family member is:

• your partner, or
• your or your partner’s dependent child who is unmarried and has not turned 18 years of age.

We cannot grant a student visa to your child if they have turned 18 years at the time your visa is finalised. They need to apply for their own visa.

You must declare your family members in your student visa application even if they do not plan to travel with you to Australia. If you do not do this, your family members will not be eligible for a student visa to join you in Australia.

Your family members can also apply as a subsequent entrant (at a later time, separate from your application) in ImmiAccount.

Family members who apply for the visa must meet our requirements for health and character.

Check the annual school costs you will need to pay for any dependent children to go to either public or private schools in Australia.

For more information see ‘Evidence you have enough money for your stay’ section under Gather documents.

The visa costs from AUD620 for the main applicant, unless they are exempt. There is also a charge for each family member who applies for the visa. Students who were unable to complete their course within their original student visa validity due to COVID-19 and need to apply for a further student visa to complete their study may be eligible for a fee-waiver. See COVID-19 and the border – Student visa. You might also have to pay other costs for health checks, police certificates and biometrics. To work out what your visa will cost use the Visa Pricing Estimator. The estimator does not take into account the other costs.

You can be in or outside Australia when you apply for the visa and when we decide on your application.

You will need to give us Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) for each course. The last course you take as part of the course package is your main course of study. We use your main course of study to work out what financial and English language skills evidence you must give us. If your visa application includes a package of courses, course gaps must be less than two calendar months, unless the first course finishes at the end of the standard academic year and the next course commences at the beginning of the standard academic year. For example, the academic year generally ends in November and starts again in February the following year, three to four months is an acceptable gap between courses. Standard visa grant periods apply to packaged courses.

We process:

Foreign Affairs or Defence Sector

• 75% of applications in 28 days
• 90% of applications in 55 days

Postgraduate Research Sector

• 75% of applications in 4 months
• 90% of applications in 8 months

Non-Award Sector

• 75% of applications in 4 months
• 90% of applications in 9 months

Schools Sector

• 75% of applications in 4 months
• 90% of applications in 8 months

Independent ELICOS Sector

• 75% of applications in 83 days
• 90% of applications in 8 months

Vocational Education and Training Sector

• 75% of applications in 3 months
• 90% of applications in 6 months

Higher Education Sector

• 75% of applications in 80 days
• 90% of applications in 4 months

Your application can take longer to process if:

• you do not fill it in correctly
• you do not include all the documents we need or we need more information from you
• it takes us time to verify your information

We can’t process your application if you do not pay the correct visa application charge. We will notify you if this is the case.

You and your family must meet all visa conditions and follow Australian laws. See which conditions will and might be attached to this visa.

You can travel outside Australia and return as many times as you want while the visa is valid. The time you spend outside Australia does not extend the visa.

We will digitally link your visa to your passport. You will not get a label in your passport.

• come to Australia to provide care and support for a student visa holder who is under 18 years of age (or over 18 in exceptional circumstances)
• care for more than one student
• study an English Language Intensive Course for Overseas Students (ELICOS) for less than 20 hours per week, or any other study or training for no more than 3 months

You cannot work.

You can stay in Australia until a date specified on your visa grant letter. In deciding this date, we usually consider the length of the student visa holder’s stay or when that student turns 18.

You can stay in Australia by applying for a further Student Guardian visa.

If any member of your family unit has not turned 6 years old, you cannot be granted the visa unless:

• there are compelling and compassionate reasons or
• granting the visa would significantly benefit the relationship between the Australian Government and the government of another country

The child must meet the same health requirements as you and have health insurance for the duration of their stay in Australia. You can’t include children under 6 years old after you have submitted your application. Children 6 years old or older can come with you but they must apply for their own student visa.

The visa costs from AUD620 for the main applicant. There is also a charge for each family member who applies for the visa with you. You might also have to pay other costs for health checks, police certificates and biometrics. To work out what your visa will cost use the Visa Pricing Estimator. The estimator does not take into account the other costs.

You can be in or outside Australia when you apply for the visa and when we decide on your application.

Your application may take longer to process if:

• you do not fill it in correctly
• you do not include all the documents we need or we need more information from you
• it takes us time to verify your information

We cannot process your application if you do not pay the correct visa application charge. We will notify you if this is the case and if necessary return your application.

You and your family members must meet all visa conditions and obey Australian laws. See which conditions will and might be attached to this visa.

You can travel outside Australia and return as many times as you want while the visa is valid. But you can’t leave Australia without the student visa holder unless you have made alternative welfare arrangements. The time you spend outside Australia does not extend the visa.

You will need to be able to financially support yourself while in Australia. You will need to be able to financially support accompanying family members.

We will digitally link your visa to your passport. You will not get a label in your passport.