Documentary & Funds Evidence List for Student Visa Australia

Documentary & Funds Evidence List for Student Visa Australia

Identity

Evidence of your identity. Attach a copy of your passport. Also include a certified copy of your birth certificate, national identity card or driver licence where you have these.

Evidence of intended study

Evidence of your intended study must be provided to make a valid application. Unless you are in a special category listed below, you must provide:

• A Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) for all intended courses if applying outside Australia.
• A CoE or letter of offer for all intended courses if applying in Australia (a CoE must be provided before the visa can be granted).

Special categories

• Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade sponsored – provide a letter of support
• Australian Department of Defence sponsored – provide a letter of support
• secondary exchange student – provide an Acceptance Advice of Secondary Exchange Student form
• Postgraduate research student required to remain in Australia for marking of your thesis – provide a letter from your education provider.

Welfare arrange for under 18 year old student

Evidence of accommodation and welfare arrangements in Australia if you are under 18 years of age must be provided to make a valid application.

This must be one of the following:

Form 157N – Nomination of a student guardian in Australia

• Confirmation of Appropriate Accommodation and Welfare letter from the student’s education provider.
• An Acceptance Advice of Secondary Exchange Student form for secondary exchange students only.
• Letter of Support from the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade or the Australian Department of Defence that arrangements have been made for the student’s welfare.

 

 

Parentall Concent

If you have a child under the age of 18 included in the visa application and one or both parents (or legal guardians) are not applying for an Australian visa, both parents will need to complete and sign the Form 1229 – Consent form to grant an Australian visa to a child under the age of 18 years.

If you have sole custody of the child/ran, provide evidence such as a court order.

Health insurance

Evidence of adequate health insurance. Health insurance must be Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC).

You must obtain OSHC for yourself and any accompanying dependants from at least one week before your course starts and for the duration of your stay in Australia.

If you or your agent have organised OSHC, you will need to include the name of your health insurance provider, the dates your policy starts and finishes and the policy number in your application form.

If your education provider arranged your OSHC, you will need to include the name of your health insurance provider and the dates your policy starts and finishes. You do not need to include the policy number in your application.

Note: If you are from Norway, Sweden or Belgium, you might not have to obtain OSHC. Check our website for more information.

Evidence of financial capacity

You must provide either:

• sufficient funds to cover your travel costs and 12 months of living and tuition fees for you and your accompanying family members and school costs for any school aged dependants, or
• evidence that your spouse or parents are willing to support you and they have an annual income of at least AUD 60,000 for single students or at least AUD 70,000 for students that are accompanied by family members
• an Acceptance Advice of Secondary Exchange Students form for secondary exchange students only
• A letter of support from Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade or Department of Defence.

Evidence of English llanguage ability

This must be evidence that you have either obtained a satisfactory test score in an English language test that has been approved by us or evidence of certain eligible studies in English or if you fall into an exemption category.

 

Genuine Temporary Entrance requirement

Evidence to show that you meet the Genuine Temporary Entrant requirement for a student visa. This must include a statement in your application form that you intend to stay in Australia temporarily and/or documentation to support claims. The statement must be written by the applicant even if using an agent.

You can include evidence such as:

• Proof of employment – your current or most recent employment which includes payslips or a contract. You can also attach your most recent curriculum vitae or résumé. Your curriculum vitae or résumé should include employment and educational history.
• Qualifications – a certified copy of your academic transcripts, Educational Certificate (Degree, Diploma etc.) or letter/statement from your overseas Education Institution.
• Australian qualifications – a certified copy of your academic transcripts, Educational Certificate (Degree, Diploma etc.) or letter/statement from your Australian Education Institution.

We will consider your circumstances, your immigration history, if you are a minor and the intentions of a parent, legal guardian or spouse, and any other relevant matter.

Change of name

If anyone in the application has changed his or her name, certified copies of documents verifying the name change. This includes a marriage or deed poll certificate or a certified copy of evidence of the name change.

Relationship – spouse, de facto partner

Evidence of your relationship with your spouse/de facto partner. This includes a certified copy of your marriage certificate, Family Book, Household Booklet or other evidence of family composition.

Employment history

Evidence of your employment history can include payslips or a contract if you are currently or recently employed. You can also attach your most recent curriculum vitae or résumé outlining both employment and study for the past five years.

If you have been studying you can include copies of your transcripts.

Note: You do not need to provide this if you are sponsored by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade or the Department of Defence or if you are a secondary exchange student.

Migration agent – Form 956 Advice by a migration agent/exempt person

Provide a completed and signed Form 956 – Advice by a migration agent/exempt person of providing immigration assistance.

Make sure you tick yes to having an authorised recipient and complete the required contact information in the application form if you attach this document. Only attach Form 956 if it is in the list of required documents at the end of the application form.

Appointment or withdrawal of an authorised recipient – Form 956A

Provide a completed and signed Form 956A Appointment or withdrawal of an authorised recipient.

Make sure you tick yes to having an authorised recipient and complete the required contact information in the application form if you attach this document. Only attach Form 956 if it is in the list of required documents at the end of the application form.

Evidence of school enrolment for dependants

Evidence of enrolment of an accompanying dependent child 5 to 18 years of age at an Australian school. If any family unit members are 5 to 17 years of age (inclusive) and will live with the applicant in Australia, documentation confirming their enrolment in an Australian school.

Research Students

If you are undertaking research in Australia, attach a copy of your research (thesis/project) topic and your curriculum vitae or résumé.

Evidence of Funds

What are the funds required?

Depending on your passport nationality, and the institution you will be attending, you may be asked to show proof that you have sufficient funds to cover yourself, and your family members if they are joining you, for your first year.

Keep in mind, you can ALWAYS be asked for proof after you have submitted your visa application should there be concern about your case.

Living costs

From 1 July 2016, the 12 month living cost is:

• student or guardian – AUD 19,830
• partner or spouse – AUD 6,940
• Child – AUD 2,970.

The institution or government case officer who is assessing your visa application must be satisfied that the funds you are relying on will genuinely be available to you during your stay in Australia.

Nobody in immigration will touch, or have access to, this money – you must only PROVE it is in the bank.

Course Fees

Example 1: if your course fee is AUD 50,000 for three years, determine the fee for one year (12 months) by dividing the total amount by the number of years. The amount will be AUD 16,666. Deduct any pre-paid amounts.

Example 2: If your course fee is AUD 15,000 for ten months, and you have already paid AUD 5,000, deduct this prepaid amount from the total amount. The amount will be AUD 10,000.

Example 3: if your course fee is AUD 20,000 for 18 months, determine the fee for one year (12 months) by dividing the total amount by the number of months, then times by 12 (20,000 / 18 x 12). The amount will be $13,333. Deduct any pre-paid amounts.

Schooling costs

Where school aged children are included in your student visa application, schooling costs of at least AUD 8,000 per year for each child will need to be added to the amount of funds required. You are responsible for researching schooling costs, which vary between states, territories and schools in Australia.

Travel Cost

If applying outside Australia, include AUD 2,000.

If applying in Australia, include AUD 1,000.

Who can prove the funds for you?

Anyone, but your case officer will take into account the following:

Nature of the relationship between you & the person providing the funds (if applicable). Your income, assets, and employment, and/or the same of the other person providing the funds. Your previous visa history, and/or that of the person providing the funds

 

What sources of income can be used as evidence?

Income tax statement of your parents or spouse

You can provide a tax statement for the past tax year in your country to the minimum value of $AU 60,000 for a single student, or $AU 70,000 for a couple. The income demonstrated must be the personal income of your spouse (who is not travelling with you) or your parents. If both of your parents are working, their combined income can be considered for this requirement. In all cases, the evidence of annual income must be provided in the form of official government documentation, such as a tax assessment.

Bank deposit statement or loan

You can prove the funds through at least one of the following ways (multiple sources are accepted):

1. A money deposit in a financial institution.
2. A loan from:

(a)    A financial institution – it must be in your name or an eligible family member’s name.

(b)    The government of your home country.

3. A scholarship from your Australian Education Provider.
4. A scholarship of Financial Support from:

(a)    The government of your home country

(b)    The government of a foreign country

(c)    Your Employer

(d)    Multilateral agency

(e)    Gazetted organisation (i.e. Rotary International, National Red Cross)

(f)     Australian Government

(g)    Australian State or Territory Government

(h)    Acceptable non-profit organisation

What documents can I use to show evidence of the funds?

You can provide one or more of the following documents:

(a)     Tax statement

(b)     Income statement

(c)     Business statement

(d)     Loan documents

(e)     Bank account statement(s)

(f)      Savings history or other evidence of regular income

Further evidence

As any time during the visa application, your case officer can ask for more evidence to prove that you have access to enough funds for your studies.

Genuine access to funds

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You and your accompanying family members must be able to access the funds shown while you are in Australia. When considering whether the funds will be genuinely available, we will take into account additional information and supporting evidence you provide, such as:

The nature of the relationship between you and the person who is providing the funds, where applicable. Your income, assets and employment or those of the person providing the funds. Evidence of financial support history Source of funds for any lump sum deposits.

 

Processing time

Stream	75 per cent of applications processed	90 per cent of applications processed
Foreign Affairs or Defence Sector	13 days	24 days
Postgraduate Research Sector	51 days	4 months
Non-Award Sector	4 days	9 days
Schools Sector	31 days	57 days
Independent ELICOS Sector	38 days	50 days
Vocational Education and Training Sector	46 days	67 days
Higher Education Sector	36 days	68 days

Last updated 14 June 2017 (for month ending 31 May 2017)

 

Enrolment

With limited exceptions, you must be enrolled in a course of study that is registered on the Commonwealth Register of Institutions and courses for Overseas for Overseas Students (CRICOS).

If you are applying from outside Australia, you must include a Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) for each intended course of study with your visa application. A letter of offer from your education provider will not be accepted.

If you are applying for more than one course in your student visa application, you must include all Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) codes in the application form or the visa may only be granted for the CoE provided.

You do not need to provide a Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) if you are:

Sponsored by the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade – provide a letter of support.

Sponsored by the Australian Department of Defence – provide a letter of support.

A secondary exchange student – provide an Acceptance Advice of Secondary Exchange Student (AASES) form.

A postgraduate research student required to remain in Australia for marking of your thesis – provide a letter from your education provider.

If you are in Australia, you can apply with one or more letters of offer but you must provide the CoE/s to be granted the visa.

Health requirements

You must meet the health requirements. You might need to undergo health examinations as part of the visa application process. The health assessment process can take several weeks to complete. To help avoid delays, you can choose to undertake your health examination prior to lodging your visa application. More information is available about my health declarations

https://www.border.gov.au/Trav/Visa-1/500-?modal=/Trav/Visa/Heal/meeting-the-health-requirement/health-examinations/my-health-declarations

Character requirements

Everyone who wants to enter Australia must be of good character and will be assessed against the character requirements. You must answer a number of character related questions on your visa application form and the information you provide will be used to assess your character. You might be asked for more information. More information is available about Character and police certificate requirements.

https://www.border.gov.au/Trav/Visa-1/500-?modal=/Trav/Visa/Char

English Language Intensive Course for Overseas Students (ELICOS)

Student visa applicants can apply to study in ELICOS in Australia. If you are intending to study standalone ELICOS for more than 12 months, you should provide lots of information with your application showing how you meet the Genuine Temporary Entrant (GTE) requirement. There is flexibility to extend the length of ELICOS where it is needed. This will be determined on a case by case basis.

School students

Students can apply for a student visa to study at primary or secondary school in Australia, regardless of their country of citizenship

What this visa lets you do

This visa is for students who want to come to Australia to study at a registered education institution.

• You can study a CRICOS registered full-time course in Australia.
• Eligible family members can accompany you to Australia.

How long this visa lasts

This visa allows you to stay in Australia for the duration of your course.

Cost From AUD 560

You might have to pay additional costs:

• additional applicant charge 18 and over
• additional applicant charge under 18

Use the Visa pricing estimator to estimate the cost of your application.

https://www.border.gov.au/Trav/Visa-1/500-?modal=pricing-estimator

You might have to pay other costs, such as the costs of health assessments, police certificates, or any other certificates or tests. You are responsible for making the necessary arrangements.

Location

You can apply when you are in or outside Australia.

Packaged courses

You can apply to undertake two or more courses on your Student visa (subclass 500) where there is clear progression from one course to another. This is known as course packaging. You will need to provide a confirmation of enrolment (CoE) or prove that a CoE is not required for each intended course with your visa application. The final course that you will undertake as part of your package of courses is your main (or principal) course of study. Your main course of study will be used to determine you’re financial and English language evidentiary requirements.

Visa conditions

You must abide by your visa conditions or your visa could be cancelled. Different visa conditions apply to you and your family members. You can check your visa conditions in https://www.border.gov.au/Busi/visas-and-migration/visa-entitlement-verification-online-(vevo) you must comply with the state and territory laws of Australia.

Working while studying

You must comply with the state and territory laws of Australia. The number of hours you can work in Australia can be found in your visa conditions.

Extend your stay in Australia

You need to either leave Australia before your visa expires, or lodge a new visa application. If your visa expires, contact us immediately. If your visa has expired for more than 28 days, you might not be able to return to Australia for three years. You can only extend your stay in Australia if you do not have a ‘No Further Stay’ condition (8534 or 8535) on your current student visa or this restriction has been waived. You can find out if you have this condition by looking in your visa grant information or through Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO)

You might be able to extend your stay in Australia for:

• further study
• graduation
• a holiday
• work
• Migration.

In general, you can only hold one visa at a time. A new visa (other than a bridging visa) will generally replace any other visa that you hold and come into effect as soon as it is granted. You should contact us before lodging a visa application if you have questions about how a new visa would affect your existing visa.

NISAC Expertise

NISAC has had a significant amount of expertise in assisting international students with difficult issues in applying for their Student Visa. We can assist in choosing the best application pathway for you, ensuring that you meet the 2 year study requirement and that your application is lodged on time even if there is a tight deadline.