Australia Student Visa for Indian Students: 2026 Rules

Australia Student Visa for Indian Students
Australia Student Visa for Indian Students

The Australia student visa for Indian students is the Subclass 500, and in 2026 it costs from AUD 2,000 (approx Rs 1,36,959) to lodge, with a separate living-cost requirement of AUD 29,710. Two changes hit Indian families hardest this cycle: India moved to the strictest funds-evidence tier in January 2026, and a new processing rule, Ministerial Direction 115, now influences how quickly offshore student visa files enter processing. This guide leads with the numbers, the 2024-to-2026 rule changes, and a full first-year cost table in rupees, so you and your parents can budget honestly before you commit. Here are the takeaways first.

Key Takeaways

  • The Subclass 500 visa application charge rose to AUD 2,000 (approx Rs 1,36,959) from 1 July 2025.
  • The financial capacity requirement is AUD 29,710 (approx Rs 20,34,532) for 12 months of living costs for the main applicant.
  • From 8 January 2026, India sits at Evidence Level 3, so you must show bank statements covering at least three months plus a clear source of funds.
  • The Genuine Temporary Entrant test retired on 23 March 2024 and the Genuine Student requirement replaced it.
  • Ministerial Direction 115 sets offshore processing priority by your provider’s status on the day you lodge, not simply first-come-first-served.
  • Australia’s 2026 National Planning Level is 295,000 new overseas student commencements, 25,000 above 2025.
  • Indian grant numbers fell to 50,516 in 2023-24, down from 102,696 the year before.
Table of Contents
Subclass 500 explained: is it the right student visa for you? Scroll here ↓ What changed in 2024 to 2026: the fee, the 295,000 cap and why Indian grant numbers fell Scroll here ↓ How much money do you need to show? The AUD 29,710 rule and Evidence Level 3 for India Scroll here ↓ What the Subclass 500 costs to apply: your first-year bill in INR Scroll here ↓ The Genuine Student requirement: the four questions and the 150-word rule Scroll here ↓ Your Subclass 500 document checklist: CoE, OSHC, English bands and source-of-funds Scroll here ↓ How Ministerial Direction 115 sets your processing priority in 2026 Scroll here ↓ Top reasons Indian student visa applications are refused Scroll here ↓ Your step-by-step Subclass 500 application timeline Scroll here ↓ Working during study and staying after: 48 hours a fortnight and the Subclass 485 Scroll here ↓ Frequently Asked Questions Scroll here ↓

Subclass 500 explained: is it the right student visa for you?

The Subclass 500 is Australia's single student visa for international students enrolled in a registered full-time course. In 2025-26, it permits work of a maximum of 48 hours per fortnight during study, per Study Australia, Student visa (subclass 500). One visa therefore covers tuition, part-time work, and the right to bring eligible family members.

So is the Subclass 500 student visa the one you actually need? For almost every Indian student heading to an Australian university, college, or English-language school, the answer is yes. It lets you study full-time, work part-time, and live in Australia for your whole course. There’s no separate “university visa” versus “college visa”, the Subclass 500 does the lot.

A few things define this visa. You must hold a place at an institution registered on CRICOS (the official register of courses Australian providers can offer to international students). Your enrolment is confirmed through a CoE, and your health cover runs through OSHC. We’ll unpack each of those below. If a parent or guardian needs to accompany a student under 18, that’s a different visa, the Student Guardian visa (Subclass 590), not the 500.

Quick check: If you're enrolling in a full-time course at a CRICOS-registered provider and you're over 18, the Subclass 500 is your visa. Guardians of minors apply separately under the Subclass 590.

What changed in 2024 to 2026: the fee, the 295,000 cap and why Indian grant numbers fell

Between 2024 and 2025, the number of student visas granted across all nationalities fell about 2%, while ELICOS programme applications fell 39%, according to ICEF Monitor, Full-year data for 2025 (2026). The AUD 2,000 visa fee and tighter rules reshaped who applies and who gets through.

If the Australia study visa feels harder to win than it did two years ago, you’re not imagining it. A run of policy changes between 2024 and 2026 tightened the system, and the data shows the effect plainly. In 2023-24, only 50,516 student visas were issued to Indian applicants, compared with 102,696 the year before, according to Business Standard reporting on Department of Home Affairs program data. That’s less than half, in a single year.

What drove the drop? Three levers. First, the fee. From 1 July 2025, the visa application charge for Student and Student Guardian visas increased from AUD 1,600 to AUD 2,000 (approx Rs 1,36,959) for a primary applicant, per Study Australia. ICEF Monitor links the ELICOS collapse directly to that fee.

Second, the planning ceiling. For 2026, the National Planning Level (Australia’s annual ceiling for new international students) will be 295,000 new overseas student commencements, an additional 25,000 allocations compared with 2025, according to Study Australia, Increased student intake for Australia in 2026. The ceiling works through provider-level allocations rather than a hard national law.

Parents reading this: the figure that matters isn’t the headline ceiling, it’s what it means for timing, and we cover that priority rule in its own section below. For now, the Australia student visa 2026 picture is simple: higher fee, a national ceiling, and stricter evidence for Indian applicants specifically.

50,516

Indian student visas granted 2023-24 Business Standard, 2025

-39%

ELICOS applications, 2024 to 2025 ICEF Monitor, 2026

295,000

2026 National Planning Level Study Australia, 2026

How much money do you need to show? The AUD 29,710 rule and Evidence Level 3 for India

The financial capacity requirement for a primary Subclass 500 applicant is AUD 29,710 (approx Rs 20,34,532) for 12 months of living costs, according to Study Australia, Student and Temporary Graduate visa changes 2024. This sum sits on top of tuition and travel, and India now faces the strictest evidence tier.

This is the section most families read twice, so let’s be exact about the Australia student visa for Indian students. The Australia student visa financial requirements come down to one living-cost figure, and it is not your tuition. It’s the amount you must prove you can cover for one year of living, separate from course fees and airfare. As of the 2025-26 intake, the financial requirement for the primary applicant is AUD 29,710 (approx Rs 20,34,532), according to Study Australia, reflecting the Department of Home Affairs change that took effect on 10 May 2024.

Bringing family? The amounts stack. As of the 2025-26 intake, a spouse or de facto partner adds AUD 10,394 (approx Rs 7,11,778) and a dependent child adds AUD 4,449 (approx Rs 3,04,667), according to Migration Alliance. So a student plus spouse needs to show living costs of roughly AUD 40,104 (approx Rs 27,46,310) before tuition even enters the maths.

One caveat before you lock your figures: evidence amounts and the document list do get updated. Confirm the current living-cost figure and evidence list against the official Home Affairs Document Checklist when you lodge, since that checklist is the safer reference on the day. Treat the AUD 29,710 as your planning baseline, then verify it the week you apply.

Evidence Level 3: what changed for Indian applicants

Here’s the part that catches Indian families off guard. On 8 January 2026, India moved from Evidence Level 2 to Evidence Level 3, the strictest tier under the Simplified Student Visa Framework (the system that sorts countries by how much financial and academic proof their applicants must front-load), according to VisaHQ. At Evidence Level 3, you must supply bank statements covering at least three months plus detailed source-of-funds evidence.

What does source-of-funds mean for a student visa Australia for Indians? A sudden lump sum parked in an account days before you apply won’t pass. The case officer wants to see where the money came from, salary slips, business income, property sale deeds, a sanctioned education loan, with a paper trail that holds together. Students we’ve counselled in Hyderabad this year have had the cleanest approvals when the funds sat in the account for the full three months and every large credit had a matching document behind it.

Family action step: If you're applying for an intake from mid-2026, start the three-month bank seasoning now. A loan sanction letter from HDFC Credila, Avanse, or SBI counts as a valid source, but the sanction and disbursement need documentation that matches the statement.

What the Subclass 500 costs to apply: your first-year bill in INR

The Subclass 500 visa application charge rose to AUD 2,000 per visa application from 1 July 2025, per Study Australia, Student Visa Application Charge increase. Health cover and an English test add to that, so the visa-stage outlay for one applicant typically runs into the low-to-mid thousands of Australian dollars before tuition.

Let’s put real numbers on the Australia student visa cost, because the fee headline is only one line of the bill. From 1 July 2025, student visa fees are from AUD 2,000 (approx Rs 1,36,959) per visa application, per Study Australia. That’s the visa charge alone, paid through ImmiAccount (the online portal where you lodge and pay).

On top of the Australia student visa fee, two mandatory costs land at the visa stage. As of 2025-26, OSHC single cover typically runs about AUD 500 to 750 per year (approx Rs 34,240 to 51,360), a third-party estimate from approved OSHC insurers, since premiums are insurer-set. Then there’s your English test, IELTS or PTE, a one-off booking fee rather than a visa charge.

Visa-stage costAmount (AUD)Approx INRScope
Visa application charge (VAC)2,0001,36,959One-off, primary applicant
OSHC single cover500 to 75034,240 to 51,360Per year, insurer-set
Funds you must show (not spent)29,71020,34,53212 months living costs

So how does the maths land when you and your family plan? The money you actually spend at the visa stage, the VAC plus a year of OSHC, comes to roughly AUD 2,500 to 2,750 (approx Rs 1,71,000 to 1,88,000). The AUD 29,710 isn’t spent, it’s the balance you prove you hold. Tuition sits on top and varies by course, the figure to confirm before you shortlist a CRICOS provider through our study in Australia guide.

The Genuine Student requirement: the four questions and the 150-word rule

The Genuine Student (GS) requirement applies to all Subclass 500 applications lodged on or after 23 March 2024, according to Roam Migration Law, GTE Requirement Replaced with GS. It replaced the older Genuine Temporary Entrant test and assesses whether an applicant has a genuine intention to study in Australia.

If you’ve read older guides, you’ll have seen the term GTE, the Genuine Temporary Entrant test, everywhere. Forget it. Since 23 March 2024, the Genuine Student (GS) requirement replaced the GTE, and applicants with a genuine intention to study in Australia are welcome to apply, per Study Australia. The shift matters because the old test centred on whether you’d return home; the new one centres on whether you’re a real student.

So how do you actually satisfy the Genuine Student requirement? You answer four targeted questions inside the application form. In 2026, each response carries a limit of up to 150 words, answered in the form rather than a separate statement, in English, according to the Department of Home Affairs Genuine Student requirement guidance. The Department gives more weight to answers backed by supporting documents, so every claim you make should have a paper trail behind it. The four questions cover:

  • Your current circumstances: your ties to family, community, employment, and economic circumstances in your home country.
  • Why this course and provider: why you chose this course with this provider in Australia, and how it fits your study history and goals.
  • How the course benefits you: what completing it does for your career or future plans.
  • Any other relevant information: anything else you want the case officer to weigh, with documents to back it.

Some applicants, such as those who previously held a student visa or who apply onshore from a non-student visa, may see an additional question. This is the part most students lose sleep over, and we understand why, it feels subjective. In visa briefings we delivered this year, the students who answered in plain, specific language, naming the exact units of their course and tying them to a job goal, read far more convincingly than those who wrote generic ambition statements. Specificity is your friend, and 150 words is enough when every line earns its place.

Your Subclass 500 document checklist: CoE, OSHC, English bands and source-of-funds

A Subclass 500 application is built around a Confirmation of Enrolment for each course, plus Overseas Student Health Cover, which is mandatory for the entire duration of study, per Study Australia, Overseas Student Health Cover. English evidence, financial proof, and Genuine Student answers complete the core document set every applicant must assemble.

Let’s turn the Australia student visa requirements into a checklist you can actually work from. Knowing how to apply for Australia student visa from India starts with assembling these documents before you open ImmiAccount, because a half-built application invites delay. Our Australia student visa page tracks each requirement as the rules shift.

The English bands you must hit

Since 23 March 2024, the English thresholds for a Student visa are set by your entry route, per Study Australia, English Language Requirements changes. The minimum is IELTS 6.0 for direct entry, but two packaged pathways lower that bar a little.

Entry routeMinimum IELTS
Direct entry to your main course6.0
With an ELICOS English course first5.0
With a university foundation or pathway program5.5

The core documents

  • CoE for each course. Before you apply, you will need a Confirmation of Enrolment (the official electronic proof that your CRICOS provider has accepted you and you’ve paid the required deposit) for each course you plan to take, per Study Australia.
  • OSHC for the full duration. In 2025-26, OSHC is mandatory for the entire duration of your study in Australia, per Study Australia, and it must cover any dependants travelling with you.
  • English evidence. IELTS 6.0 for direct entry, or a packaged ELICOS (an intensive English course bundled with your main degree) or foundation pathway at the lower bands above.
  • Financial and source-of-funds evidence. Three months of bank statements plus the paper trail behind your funds, matching your Evidence Level 3 obligations.
  • Genuine Student answers, passport, and biometrics. You’ll provide biometrics (fingerprints and a photo collected at a visa application centre) as part of lodgement.

One scheduling note for families: a CoE only issues once you’ve accepted an offer and usually paid a tuition deposit, so the visa document chain has a built-in order. Sequencing the offer, deposit, and CoE without losing an intake is exactly the timing our counsellors map out for students heading to providers like Monash University or RMIT University.

How Ministerial Direction 115 sets your processing priority in 2026

Ministerial Direction 115 governs the order in which Australia processes offshore student visa applications, in effect from 14 November 2025 and remaining for 2026, per Study Australia, Ministerial Direction 115. It sets three processing priorities based on each provider's status on the day you lodge, not simply first-come-first-served.

Most guides still quote the old rule. For the Australia student visa for Indian students, this direction explains your Australia student visa processing time better than any other single factor. From 14 November 2025, Ministerial Direction 115 sets offshore processing priority in three lanes based on your provider’s status on the day you lodge, per Study Australia. It is not simply first-come-first-served: Priority 1, 2 or 3 depends on whether the provider is below 80%, at or above 80%, or above 115% of its New Overseas Student Commencement (NOSC) allocation.

Here’s how the three lanes work in practice, with the indicative processing windows the Department of Home Affairs aims to meet, though timing is subject to change.

Priority 1 - 1 to 4 weeks
Schools, ELICOS, TAFE, PhD and headroom providers
 
School, standalone ELICOS, TAFE, postgraduate research, scholarship and Pacific applicants, plus higher-education providers still below their 80% NOSC threshold.
Priority 2 - 5 to 8 weeks
Providers at the 80% threshold
 
Higher-education and VET providers that have reached their prioritisation threshold of 80% of their NOSC allocation.
Priority 3 - 9 to 12 weeks
Providers over the upper threshold
 
Providers that have exceeded their upper threshold, set at NOSC allocation plus 15%, sit in the slowest lane.

Critical warning: Your priority lane affects the timing of your decision only, not whether your visa is granted or refused. A Priority 3 file with clean funds and strong Genuine Student answers still gets granted; it just waits longer.

If your visa includes packaged courses, Home Affairs uses the provider of your main CoE, usually the final course in the package, to set your MD115 priority. This changes how you choose: your processing speed depends partly on which provider you pick, not just on how strong your file is. If you’re the parent researching this for your child, ask any provider, or your counsellor, where it sits against its allocation before you accept an offer. Our advisers track this for the Australian institutions we work with, including the University of New South Wales, so the priority lane feeds into your shortlist rather than surprising you. MD111 applied to applications lodged before 14 November 2025; MD115 is the current rule.

Top reasons Indian student visa applications are refused

A refusal almost never comes from one missing form. It comes from a file that doesn’t tell one honest, joined-up story. Knowing the common failure points lets you and your family stress-test the application before a case officer does, and most are fixable months ahead of lodgement.

  • Weak or generic Genuine Student answers. Copy-paste ambition statements that never name your actual course units or a concrete career goal read as scripted.
  • Sudden, unexplained funds. A lump sum that lands days before you apply fails a source-of-funds check, exactly what Evidence Level 3 is designed to catch.
  • Course or career mismatch. A degree that doesn’t fit your study history or stated goals raises a logic flag the officer must resolve.
  • Unverifiable sponsor income. Family income with no salary slips, tax records, or business proof behind it can’t be relied on.
  • Fake or unclear documents. Anything that looks altered or can’t be verified risks not just refusal but a fraud finding.
  • Incomplete CoE or OSHC. A missing course on the CoE, or health cover that doesn’t span the full duration, leaves the application defective.
  • Poor academic progression history. Unexplained gaps, repeated failures, or an unclear step down in level need an honest cover.
  • Work-rights misuse risk. Signals that study is a cover for full-time work undercut the genuine-student finding.

Work through this list with your parents early, and you turn most of these from refusal risks into a stronger file. The fixes, clean statements, seasoned funds, matching documents, all take time, which a rushed application lacks.

Your step-by-step Subclass 500 application timeline

Wondering what happens, and in what order, from offer letter to decision? The Subclass 500 has a built-in sequence, and skipping a step usually costs you an intake.

  1. Receive your offer letter from a CRICOS-registered provider.
  2. Accept the offer and pay the tuition deposit your provider requires.
  3. Provider issues your CoE (Confirmation of Enrolment) for each course, per Study Australia.
  4. Buy OSHC for the full course duration, which is mandatory for your entire study, per Study Australia.
  5. Assemble financial evidence with three-month bank seasoning and source-of-funds proof, matching Evidence Level 3.
  6. Draft your four Genuine Student answers (up to 150 words each) in the application form, per Home Affairs guidance.
  7. Lodge and pay AUD 2,000 (approx Rs 1,36,959) in ImmiAccount, per Study Australia.
  8. Complete biometrics at a visa application centre and any required health examination.
  9. Wait for Home Affairs to commence processing according to your MD115 priority lane, then respond quickly to any request for more information.

Start this chain three to four months before your intended intake. The funds seasoning alone needs a clear three months, so the calendar, not the paperwork, is usually the real constraint.

Working during study and staying after: 48 hours a fortnight and the Subclass 485

A Subclass 500 holder may work a maximum of 48 hours per fortnight during study and unlimited hours during scheduled course breaks. After graduating, eligible students may apply for the Temporary Graduate visa (Subclass 485), whose age limit dropped to 35 in 2024, according to I-Migration, Changes to 485 visa age limit.

Now the part that helps your family see the return on the spend. In 2025-26, you can work a maximum of 48 hours per fortnight during study, per Study Australia, and unlimited hours during scheduled course breaks, when many students bank the bulk of their earnings. A fortnight means any two-week period, so the hours can’t be saved up across weeks.

And after you graduate? The Australia post study work visa is the Temporary Graduate visa (Subclass 485), which lets eligible graduates stay on to work. But the rules tightened here too. Since 1 July 2024, the Subclass 485 age limit was reduced to 35, with 50 retained for Masters by research and PhD graduates, according to I-Migration reporting the Department of Home Affairs change. For most Indian students finishing in their twenties, the age cut changes nothing, but it matters for later-career applicants.

During study
48 hours / fortnight
 
Capped work hours while your course is in session. The cap resets each fortnight; unused hours don’t roll over.
Course breaks
Unlimited hours
 
Full-time work is allowed during scheduled breaks, when most students earn the most.
After graduation
Subclass 485
 
Post-study work visa for eligible graduates; age limit 35, or 50 for research Masters and PhD.

Get in Touch

Frequently Asked Questions

There’s no fixed decision date. Home Affairs aims to commence processing Priority 1 within 1 to 4 weeks, Priority 2 within 5 to 8 weeks, and Priority 3 within 9 to 12 weeks, based on your provider’s status when you lodge. A complete file still moves faster within any lane.

Yes, eligible partners can be included, but the funds you must show grow. A spouse or de facto partner adds AUD 10,394 (approx Rs 7,11,778) to your living-cost proof, and a dependent child adds AUD 4,449 (approx Rs 3,04,667). Your partner’s work rights depend on your course level.

You need accepted English evidence. The minimum is IELTS 6.0 for direct entry, 5.0 if you package an ELICOS course first, or 5.5 with a university foundation or pathway program. PTE and some other tests are also accepted. Your provider may set a higher bar than the visa minimum.

Evidence Level 3 is the strictest funds-evidence tier under the Simplified Student Visa Framework. India moved to it on 8 January 2026, so as an Indian applicant you must show at least three months of bank statements and a documented source of funds. A last-minute lump sum will not satisfy a case officer.

No. The visa application charge of AUD 2,000 (approx Rs 1,36,959), paid through ImmiAccount, is generally non-refundable even if your application is refused. That’s exactly why a complete Genuine Student answer and a clean source-of-funds trail matter so much before you lodge.

The Australia student visa for Indian students rewards families who plan early and document honestly. Lead with the numbers, the AUD 2,000 fee, the AUD 29,710 you must show, the three-month statement rule, and the rest follows. Get the source-of-funds trail clean, answer the four Genuine Student questions specifically, and factor your provider’s MD115 priority lane into where you apply. Ardent Overseas has counselled Indian students from offices in Hyderabad and Tirupati since 2014, and we keep pace with each rule change so your application reflects the current cycle, not last year’s. For how we research and verify every figure, see our blog.

Sources

Official sources first, then reputable third-party.

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