Australia hikes foreign student visa fees by more than 125 per cent

Australia announced on July 01, 2024, a significant increase in visa fees for international students, marking the latest effort by the government to control record migration levels that have intensified pressure on the country’s tight housing market.

Effective July 1, 2024, the cost of visas for international students will rise sharply from AUD 710 ($473) to AUD 1,600 ($1,068). This rise makes applying for a student visa in Australia far more expensive compared to competing countries like the U.S. and Canada, where visa fees are approximately $185 and C$150 ($110) respectively. Additionally, visitor visa holders and students with temporary graduate visas will no longer be able to apply onshore for a student visa.

The Federal govt said that the additional revenue from the visa fee increase will support several key initiatives in education and migration. These include recommendations from the Universities Accord, such as making the Higher Education Contribution Scheme (HECS) fairer, providing paid practical experience, and offering FEE-Free Uni Ready courses. In the vocational education and training sector, funds will be allocated to support apprentices and their employers, in line with the ongoing rollout of the Migration Strategy.

The government also aims to close loopholes in visa regulations that have allowed foreign students to extend their stay in Australia continuously. The number of students on a second or subsequent student visa surged by over 30 per cent to more than 150,000 in the 2022–23 period.

Several other elements of the Migration Strategy will also take effect from July 1. These include:

• Increasing the Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT) from $70,000 to $73,150, reflecting annual indexation. This is the second increase under the current government, after a decade-long freeze at $53,900.
• Shortening the duration of Temporary Graduate Visas and reducing age eligibility.
• Implementing measures to end ‘visa hopping,’ which will close loopholes allowing students and other temporary visa holders to extend their stay indefinitely.

Temporary skilled migrants will benefit from increased mobility; as the time they can remain in Australia between employer sponsors is extended from 60 to 180 days. The Strengthening Employer Compliance Bill 2023 introduces new criminal measures against employers exploiting migrants. Moreover, the Workplace Justice Visa Pilot will allow temporary visa holders to remain in Australia for a short period while pursuing workplace justice.

Brendan O’Connor, Minister for Skills and Training said, “Australia has a world-class education sector, one that draws international students from around the globe – so we need to make sure all students are getting the quality of education they pay for. We are continuing our work to weed out the unscrupulous providers who are looking to take advantage of international students. Most providers do the right thing and are in the business of education and training for the right reasons. They will benefit from the removal of non-genuine actors, who undermine integrity and trust in VET.”

Jason Clare, Minister for Education, said “International education is an incredibly important national asset and we need to ensure its integrity and quality. These changes will strengthen integrity in the international education system and help to fund important reforms recommended by the Universities Accord, including making HECS fairer, paid prac, and expanding FEE-Free Uni Ready courses.”

Clare O’Neil, Minister for Home Affairs and Cyber Security said, “When we came to government we inherited a migration system that was broken and dysfunctional, and an international education system which was being compromised by rorts and exploitation. Reform was essential, after a decade of neglect under the former government. This sector has the power to drive growth and opportunity for our country, but to get there, we’ve got to work with quality providers to clean it up. The changes coming into force today will help restore integrity to our international education system, and create a migration system which is fairer, smaller and better able to deliver for Australia.”

Andrew Giles, Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs said, “Our reforms will help vulnerable workers speak up, while we crack down on employers doing the wrong thing. We’re getting on with the job of delivering higher wages for skilled migrants and Australians after a decade of the former Liberal Government deliberately keeping wages low.”