Contents
STUDENT VISA (SUBCLASS 500)
Overview | This visa allows you to visit Australia to participate in a course of study. |
Visa type | Temporary |
Cost of application | From AUD620, unless exempt |
Duration of visa | Up to 5 years in line with enrolment |
Uses of this visa |
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Eligibility | Applicants must meet the following requirements-
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School Student Age
If you are a school student (but not participating in a secondary school student exchange program), you must be aged 6 or older to apply for this visa.
You must also be:
- less than 17 years old when you begin Year 9
- less than 18 years old when you begin Year 10
- less than 19 years old when you begin Year 11
- less than 20 years old when you begin Year 12
Evidence of Enrolment
You must include evidence of enrolment in study with your student visa application, or your application will not be valid and cannot be processed.
Providing a Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE)
You must be enrolled in a full time course registered on the Commonwealth Register of Institutions and courses for Overseas Students (CRICOS).
Applying outside Australia: provide a Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) for each course of study with your visa application.
Applying inside Australia: You must be enrolled in a full time course before we grant your visa.
Packaged courses and CoEs
If you are applying for more than one course in your student visa application, you must include all CoE codes in the application form or your visa period may only consider the duration of the course according to the CoE provided.
You can apply to take 2 or more courses on your Student visa where one course clearly leads to the next. 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.
If you are applying for more than 1 course in your student visa application you must include all CoE codes in the application form or your visa may only cover the CoE provided.
Other evidence of enrolment
You do not need to provide a Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) if you are:
- enrolled in a full-time course of study or training under a scholarship scheme approved by the Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade: provide a letter of support
- sponsored by the Australian Department of Defence: provide a letter of support
- a secondary exchange student: provide an Acceptance Advice of Secondary Exchange Student (AASES) form
- a postgraduate research student who needs to stay in Australia while your thesis is marked: provide a letter from your education provider
English Requirements
ENGLISH LANGUAGE TEST PROVIDERS | MINIMUM TEST SCORE | MINIMUM TEST SCORE WHERE COMBINED WITH AT LEAST 10 WEEKS ELICOS | MINIMUM TEST SCORE WHERE COMBINED WITH AT LEAST 20 WEEKS ELICOS |
International English Language Testing System | 5.5 | 5 | 4.5 |
TOEFL internet based test | 46 | 35 | 32 |
Cambridge English: Advanced (Certificate in Advanced English) | 127 | 154 | 147 |
Pearson Test of English Academic | 42 | 36 | 30 |
Occupational English Test | B for each test component | N/A | N/A |
NOTE: The test must have been taken no more than two years before you apply for your student visa.
English language evidence exemptions
You do not need to provide evidence of an English test score with your visa application if one of the following applies:
- you are a citizen and hold a passport from the UK, USA, Canada, NZ or Republic of Ireland
- you are an applicant who is a Foreign Affairs or Defence sponsored student or a Secondary Exchange student (AASES)
- you are enrolled in a principal course of study that is a registered school course, a standalone English Language Intensive Course for Overseas Students (ELICOS), a course registered to be delivered in a language other than English, or a registered post-graduate research course
- you have completed at least 5 years’ study in English in one or more of the following countries: Australia, UK, USA, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, or the Republic of Ireland
- in the 2 years before applying for a student visa, you completed, in Australia and in the English language, either the Senior Secondary Certificate of Education or a substantial component of a course leading to a qualification from the Australian Qualifications Framework at the Certificate IV or higher level, while you held a student visa.
List of Visas
If you have one of these visas, you can’t apply for this visa while you are in Australia:
- Domestic Worker (Temporary) Diplomatic and Consular visa (subclass 426)
- Temporary Work (International Relations) visa (subclass 403) in the Domestic Worker (Diplomatic or consular) stream
- Diplomatic (Temporary) visa (subclass 995) – primary visa holder only. A family member of a Diplomatic (Temporary) visa (subclass 995) can apply for a Student visa in Australia
- Transit visa (subclass 771)
- Visitor visa (subclass 600) in the Sponsored Family stream or in the Approved Destination Status stream
Usually you must hold a visa that allows you to stay in Australia when you apply.
You might be able to apply for a new student visa if it has been less than 28 days since your student visa expired and provided this has not happened before
If you do not hold a substantive visa, you can’t apply for a student visa if you have ever held a substantive visa that you applied for in Australia while unlawful.