Australian Student Visa – A Step By Step Guide

If you are planning to study in Australia, especially for a longer period of time, you will be required to apply for an Australian student visa. In this article, we take you through the entire application process step by step.

1. Apply to a school in Australia and get a CoE (Confirmation of Enrolment)

Before you can make an application for an Australian Student Visa, you are required to be enrolled at an Australian academic institution. After you have been given an offer letter from a school, and you have accepted the offer of admission in writing and made payment for their tuition fee deposit, the school will send you a CoE. You will need to have this document before you can start your visa application. If you will be taking more than one program, for instance, a preparatory language program and then study at college, you will have to get one CoE for each program.

2. Create an account

In this day and age, you normally carry out application online for Australian visas. Before you begin your visa application you have to sign up for an account at this website.

You will be asked to supply your name, phone number and e-mail address. Then you get to set a password and accept their terms.

3. Ensure that you have all the required credentials in digital format

To submit an application for an Australian student visa you will need the following credentials:

  1. Your CoE
  2. An OSHC health insurance.
  3. Passport that if possible should be valid for your entire stay in Australia since it will be difficult to exchange your passport there when you study on an Australian student visa
  4. Evidence of temporary stay: on your application for Australian Student Visa you will need to confirm that you only intend to stay temporarily in Australia. You can verify this claim by submitting an evidence of employment or a letter from your school in your home nation or relevant credentials.

Based on where you make an application from and where you will school, other credentials may be required. Some common credentials you might require for an Australian Student Visa are:

  • Extra ID documents like a birth certificate
  • Evidence that you can fund your studies, like a bank statement
  • Evidence that you possess the required talent to pass your proposed studies, like accredited grade reports and IELTS-test result.
  • Evidence of former employment like a letter of employment, pay checks etc.
  • Records of criminal transgressions if you have ever been incarcerated.
  • To get a more comprehensive document list, go to this website and avail yourself of the Document Checklist tool.

4. Fill out the visa application online

You are to apply for an Australian student visa subclass 500. The application can be done 124 days prior to your program start date (in line with the date on your CoE). You apply online. Find more instructions at: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/student-500

5. Make payment for the visa fee and get a TRN-number

When you have finished the application, you will have make payment for the application fee which at the moment is 575 AUD. The easiest way to make payment is with a credit card online. Find more information about the payment here: https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/help-support/applying-online-or-on-paper/online/how-to-pay

When the application and payment for application fee is successfully done, you will get a confirmation of payment receipt with a TRN-number (Transaction Reference Number). Ensure to save it so you can use it later on to check the status of your application.

6. Possible health check-up and interview

Dependent on where you will study and where you reside, you might also be required to do a health check-up and/or a visa interview. You will get the information about this when you fill out the application.

Don’t do the health check-up before you have filled out the application as you will require your TRN-number and you will get guidelines on what you need to check. On this link, you can find doctors in your nation that are endorsed by the Australian Immigrations to carry out this check-up.

7. Get your visa decision

The time it will take to get your visa decision is dependent on where you are making the application from and how engaged the Australian immigration authorities are. Usually, the Australian authorities will inform you through e-mail the moment your visa decision is ready. The visa is an e-visa, so if you need physical proof, you can print the grant letter that you obtain online once your Australian Student Visa is approved.

8. Travel to Australia

The moment you have secured your visa, you can get into Australia 90 days prior to the program start date stated on your CoE. If you have not made reservations for accommodation through your school, you have to notify them of your address in Australia within 7 days of getting into Australia.

Generally, you can remain in Australia for 30 days after your program finishes or 60 days if your program lasts for over 10 months. All these date restrictions should be stated on your visa and if that detail varies from what you find here, you should always stick with the instructions on your Australian Student Visa.

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