Effective July 1, the Student (Subclass 500) visa application charge has risen from AUD $2,000 to $2,500, while the Temporary Graduate (Subclass 485) visa application fee has increased to $5,750.
The government has introduced a lower tier Student visa application charge of $2,050 for students from ASEAN countries, those undertaking study abroad programs and ELICOS students, while applicants from Pacific Island countries will continue to pay $745.
International Education Association of Australia (IEAA) CEO Phil Honeywood described the visa fee hikes as a blow to Australia’s competitive position.
“Australia’s competitor study destination countries will be celebrating today at our market share’s expense. With no consultation and no phase in period, all visa categories have been increased overnight by approximately 25%.”
Honeywood noted that just two years ago, the non-refundable Student visa application charge stood at $745.
“Even then, given our unprecedented visa refusal rate, it is a veritable lottery ticket scenario whether the student gains approval to study here.”
Despite the creation of a reduced fee category for ELICOS students, Honeywood said the concession fell well short of what the sector had sought.
“While IEAA has been advocating for a special ELICOS visa for some time now, our expectation was for this to be at a 50% discount to the standard student visa charge.”
English Australia chief executive Ian Aird said ELICOS providers had again been hit hard by the changes, despite the partial exemption from the full increase.
Aird said the sector had been left reeling by the announcement, pointing to what he described as “frustration, disappointment, even heartbreak” among providers following the sudden implementation.
“The increase in the student visa application charge from $710 to $1,600 on 1 July 2024 caused a 38% drop in student visa applications for Independent ELICOS. The second visa application charge increase to $2,000 as of 1 July 2025 led to a fall of another 25%.”
“To study English for four or five months – the average length of an ELICOS enrolment in Australia – in one of the other key ELICOS destinations, including USA, Canada, UK, Ireland, New Zealand, Malta, etc, an applying student will pay a visa application charge of between 1% and 60% of the Australian student visa application charge,” explained Aird.
Elsewhere, Honeywood also criticised the increase to the Temporary Graduate visa, arguing it undermined Australia’s appeal for international graduates.
“For those who are just completing their degree here, to suddenly have to find $5,750 for a post-study work right (485 category) visa, flies in the face of being treated fairly.”
Meanwhile, The Group of Eight’s chief executive Vicki Thomson warned that international students should be viewed as a strategic investment rather than a source of revenue.
“Every major competitor nation understands that attracting talented students is an investment in future economic growth and national capability. Australia increasingly appears to view them as a revenue source,” she said.
“The risk is not short term. If talented students choose Canada, the UK, Europe, Singapore or emerging destinations instead of Australia, those relationships, skills and research connections are lost for decades. Once market share and reputation are lost, rebuilding them is difficult and costly.”
Universities Australia chief executive Luke Sheehy said the latest increase was part of a broader pattern of policy changes that had steadily eroded Australia’s attractiveness as a study destination.
“Today’s fee hike doesn’t stand alone. It comes on top of higher visa refusal rates, policy uncertainty and a series of decisions that have made Australia a less attractive destination.”
Australia is becoming a harder sell, and the sector’s slow nosedive continues
Luke Sheehy, Universities Australia
“The cumulative effect is clear. Australia is becoming a harder sell, and the sector’s slow nosedive continues.”
While acknowledging concessions for ASEAN students and genuine mobility students, Sheehy argued they did little to offset wider concerns.
“These are welcome and sensible measures, and they point to the kind of long-term policy approach Australia needs. But they don’t offset the broader damage being done by repeated fee increases, higher refusal rates and ongoing policy uncertainty.”
Independent Higher Education Australia (IHEA) also criticised the government’s decision, highlighting the scale of recent increases.
IHEA chief executive Peter Hendy noted that the Student visa application fee has increased by 252% in just over two years.
“The independent higher education sector already provides $3 billion of tax revenue to the treasury but the government continues to demand that students pay more and more.”
The Department of Home Affairs has been approached for comment and is expected to respond.
