Post Study Work Visa in Australia for Indian Students 2026: Fee and PR

Post Study Work Visa in Australia for Indian Students
Post Study Work Visa in Australia for Indian Students

The post study work visa in Australia for Indian students is the Subclass 485 Temporary Graduate visa. It lets Indian graduates work in Australia for 2 years after a bachelor’s and 3 years after a master’s. For a coursework master’s, that is a year more than the standard 2 years, thanks to the Australia-India trade deal (AI-ECTA). In 2026 the visa costs AUD 5,750 for the main applicant. Your course must be long enough to qualify. Where you study and then live decides whether you can get a second 485, so check both before you choose. Below you’ll see how long you can stay, what your family pays and how to apply without a refusal. Our study in Australia guide covers the rest of the move.

Key Takeaways

  • Indian master’s graduates get 3 years for AUD 5,750 (approx. INR 3.87 lakh).
  • With a degree, half of 485 decisions come within 5 days and 90% within 55 days.
  • Apply within 6 months of finishing, with an English test and Australian Federal Police (AFP) check from the last 12 months.
  • A spouse in Australia when you apply costs AUD 2,875 (approx. INR 1.93 lakh). A spouse joining later pays the full charge: AUD 5,750 (approx. INR 3.87 lakh).
  • Plan 92 weeks of study over 16+ months; a regional campus plus 2+ years living regionally can add a second 485.
  • For PR, 65 points is the minimum, not a guarantee. Australian study adds 5; regional living and study add 5 more.
Table of Contents
Post Study Work Visa Stay Length for Indian Graduates Under AI-ECTA Scroll here ↓ 485 Visa Requirements: Age, English Scores and the 92-Week Rule Scroll here ↓ 485 Visa Fee in 2026 for You, Your Spouse and Children Scroll here ↓ How to Apply for the 485 Visa Without a Refusal Scroll here ↓ Post Study Work Visa to PR in Australia: Points and the Employer Route Scroll here ↓ Frequently Asked Questions Scroll here ↓

Post Study Work Visa Stay Length for Indian Graduates Under AI-ECTA

Your degree decides how long your first 485 lasts. Where you study and then live can earn you a second one. Under the Australia-India ECTA side letter, an Indian PhD graduate gets 4 years instead of the standard 3. With a second 485 in a Category 3 area, a PhD graduate’s two visas can total up to 6 years.

You can get a second 485 only if you study and then live outside Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. Places fall into three groups:

  • Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane: no second 485.
  • Category 2 cities (Perth, Adelaide, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, Canberra, Newcastle and Lake Macquarie, Wollongong and Illawarra, Geelong, Hobart): usually 1 more year, or up to 2 more years in Tasmania.
  • Category 3 (every other regional town and city): 2 more years if you study and live there.

To get it, you must study at a campus in that area. Then you must live only in a regional area for at least the 2 years right before you apply. If you move between a Category 2 and a Category 3 area, you’re considered for the shorter extension, unless both areas are in Tasmania.

Your degreeFirst 485 for Indian graduatesSecond 485 in a Category 2 city (outside Tasmania)Second 485, studied and lived in Category 3Longest possible total
Diploma or tradeUp to 18 monthsNot eligibleNot eligibleUp to 18 months
Bachelor (including honours)2 years1 year2 years4 years
Bachelor, first-class honours in STEM or ICT3 years1 year2 years5 years
Master’s (coursework)3 years1 year2 years5 years
Master’s (research)3 years1 year2 years5 years
PhD4 years1 year2 years6 years

What to do now, by degree:

  • Diploma or trade: apply for a skills assessment (a check that your qualification matches a listed skilled job) before you apply for the 485.
  • First-class honours: this means first-class honours in STEM or ICT on a bachelor’s you complete in Australia, not an Indian “First Class” result.
  • Master’s: check the course is long enough for the study rule in the next section.
  • Over 35: you can’t get a second 485 if you’re over 35 when you apply. The age exception is a first 485 that came from a research master’s or PhD: then the limit is under 50. You must also still hold your first 485 when you apply for the second.

Want that extra time? Shortlist regional campuses from our universities in Australia list.

485 Visa Requirements: Age, English Scores and the 92-Week Rule

Take your English test in the 12 months before you apply. The 485 English test scores are IELTS Academic 6.5 overall with 5.5 in each skill, or PTE Academic 55. A score from your admission year has usually expired by the time you graduate.

  • Age: 35 or under when you apply, or under 50 with a research master’s or PhD.
  • Sub-scores: PTE 40 listening, 42 reading, 41 writing, 39 speaking, which are separate from the scores in your Australia admission requirements.
  • Study: the 485 study requirement is 92 weeks of CRICOS-registered study (on Australia’s official course register) in Australia, over at least 16 months.
  • Timing: you finished your course within the last 6 months, held a Student visa in the last 6 months, and you’re in Australia when you apply.

Check the course length before you accept an offer. A one-year master’s on its own is too short to qualify for the post study work visa in Australia for Indian students.

Students we advise who check this when they pick a course almost never get caught by it.

485 Visa Fee in 2026 for You, Your Spouse and Children

The 485 visa costs AUD 5,750 (approx. INR 3.87 lakh) for the main applicant on Home Affairs' current visa pricing table. Each family member aged 18 or over adds AUD 2,875 (approx. INR 1.93 lakh), and each child under 18 adds AUD 1,450 (approx. INR 97,527). A family of four applying together pays about twice the single fee.

Who appliesFirst 485 (AUD)First 485 (INR)Second 485, degree graduates only (separate lower charge, AUD)Second 485, degree graduates only (separate lower charge, INR)
Single graduate5,7503,86,7452,2651,52,344
Couple (spouse in Australia when you apply)8,6255,80,1183,4052,29,020
Couple and 1 child under 18 (all in Australia)10,0756,77,6453,9802,67,695
Couple and 2 children under 18 (all in Australia)11,5257,75,1724,5553,06,369

INR figures use the live Google-published rate captured on 2026-10-08: AUD 1 ≈ ₹67.26. Rates fluctuate intraday; figures are indicative.

Parents: on top of the visa charge, you might also pay for health checks, police certificates and biometrics. Health insurance, which every applicant must hold, is a further cost. Our cost of studying in Australia guide breaks these costs down.

If you’re married, the 485 is now usually the easier way to bring your spouse. From 2 October 2026, most Subclass 500 Student visa applicants can’t include family. Our Australia student visa guide covers that change. Family can be added to your 485 application only if they are in Australia when you apply. A spouse still in India joins later as a subsequent entrant (a family member who applies after your visa is granted, from India or inside Australia). Subsequent entrants pay the full Visa Application Charge, not the AUD 2,875 family rate, so plan for AUD 5,750.

The catch: if your 485 is refused, you don’t get the charge back, so get the paperwork right the first time.

How to Apply for the 485 Visa Without a Refusal

Steps 1 to 3 can start before results day:

  1. Choose your stream. Degree graduates use the Post-Higher Education Work stream. Diploma and trade graduates use Post-Vocational Education Work, and they must have applied for a skills assessment first. You can’t change your stream after you apply.
  2. Apply for the AFP check (a criminal-record check) at least a day before you apply for the 485, and no more than 12 months before. Every applicant aged 16 or over needs one. You need an Indian police certificate only if Home Affairs asks for it.
  3. Buy health insurance for every applicant: Home Affairs asks for adequate cover. It says Overseas Visitor Health Cover (OVHC, private cover sold to overseas visitors) commonly provides the minimum cover it recommends.
  4. Apply in ImmiAccount (your Home Affairs online account) within 6 months of finishing your course. Home Affairs says to begin the 485 application steps as soon as possible after your university or college confirms you have successfully completed your course. Attach that evidence of completion when you apply. Home Affairs won’t accept a late application.

If you graduate with a degree, decisions are quick. On the Home Affairs global visa processing times updated 29 September 2026, half of these applications were decided within 5 days and 90% within 55 days.

From our counselling desk: In our 2026 Hyderabad cohort's 485 briefings, late police clearances were the most common near-miss. Request the AFP check when final exams end.

Post Study Work Visa to PR in Australia: Points and the Employer Route

The post study work visa in Australia for Indian students is not permanent residence (PR), but it gives you the working years to build the points PR needs.

Three skilled visas use a points test: the 189 (no nomination needed), the 190 (a state nominates you) and the provisional 491 (a regional state nomination or a sponsoring relative). You need at least 65 points to be invited. Even then, 65 is a minimum, not a promise of an invitation. Points that matter most for a 485 holder:

  • Age 25 to 32: 30 points.
  • Studying in Australia: 5 points, plus 5 more if you lived and studied in a regional area.
  • Australian work experience in your skilled job or a closely related one: 5 points after 1 year, 10 after 3 years.
  • A nomination: 5 points for the 190 or 15 for the 491, on the subclass 190 points table.

English is where you can add points on your own, because you can retake the test yourself. Superior English earns 20 points on the subclass 189 points table. It needs IELTS Academic 8 or more in every part, or PTE Academic at least 69 listening, 70 reading, 85 writing and 88 speaking. Proficient English earns 10: IELTS 7+ in every part, or PTE at least 58 listening, 59 reading, 69 writing and 76 speaking. For the 189, points alone are not enough. You also need a skills assessment in an occupation on the skilled occupation list and an invitation.

If the points don’t add up, an employer can sponsor you instead on the temporary Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482). On its Core Skills route, the job must pay at least AUD 79,423 a year for nominations lodged between 1 July 2026 and 30 June 2027. Pick a field employers need from our in-demand courses in Australia list.

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Frequently Asked Questions

No. The 485 isn’t tied to an employer, so you don’t need a job offer or a sponsor. Once it’s granted, you can work any number of hours in any job, says Study Australia’s 485 visa guide. That means you can job-hunt or switch employers freely.

No. The 485 eligibility rules set no minimum bank balance and ask you for no funds evidence. You still pay the visa charge. You and every family member must also show adequate health insurance when you apply, and keep it for your whole stay in Australia.

No. You must be in Australia, holding an eligible visa, on the day you apply. If you plan to fly home to India after your final exams, submit your 485 application before you leave. You can’t apply from India at all.

No. A 485 holder can’t apply for a Student visa from inside Australia, and there are no exemptions. The 485 itself lets you live, study, work and travel during your stay, says Home Affairs’ 485 page. If you want a Student visa for a second degree, decide before taking the 485. Afterwards you’d have to apply from outside Australia.

Yes. The study rule counts weeks from one or more acceptable qualifications, so a graduate diploma plus a one-year master’s can add up. Check that both courses together reach 92 weeks over at least 16 months before you accept the second offer.

Plan your 485 when you choose your course, not when you graduate; our top courses in Australia guide compares fields by graduate job rate. Your degree sets how long your first 485 lasts. Your campus, and where you then live, decide whether you get a second. Late paperwork can cost you the 6-month window.

Ardent Overseas advises Indian students on Australian admissions and visas from offices in Hyderabad and Tirupati. Our study in Australia consultants in Hyderabad handle the 485 stage end to end. That runs from checking course length at admission to timing the English test and the AFP check before you apply.

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