Day: June 4, 2026

Subclass 485 Visa — The 2026 Fee Doubling and Updated Rules On 1 March 2026, without prior consultation with the international education sector, the Australian Department of Home Affairs doubled the primary applicant Visa Application Charge (VAC) for the Temporary Graduate Visa (Subclass 485) — from AUD $2,300 to AUD $4,600. The change took effect […]

National Planning Level 2026 — 25,000 Additional Student Places Explained On 4 August 2025, in a joint announcement from the Ministers for Education, Home Affairs, Immigration and Citizenship, Skills and Training, and the Assistant Minister for International Education, the Australian Government confirmed its 2026 National Planning Level (NPL) at 295,000 new international student commencements — […]

On 23 March 2024, the Australian Department of Home Affairs replaced the longstanding Genuine Temporary Entrant (GTE) framework with a new requirement: the Genuine Student (GS) test. Two years on, the data, the patterns, and the practical reality of how this assessment is applied are clear enough to draw meaningful conclusions. For students from Pakistan […]

On 1 July 2025, the Australian Government raised the Student Visa (Subclass 500) application fee from AUD $1,600 to AUD $2,000 — making it, as of May 2026, the most expensive student visa application charge in the world. The fee is non-refundable, payable in full at lodgement, and applies even when an application is refused. […]