Student Visa Changes from 2 October 2026: Most Applications Must Now Be Made Outside Australia

From 2 October 2026, most Student visa (subclass 500) applications must be lodged from outside Australia, and the applicant must also be outside Australia when the visa is granted. This now includes most people who already hold a Student visa and need a new one. There are exemptions, but they are narrow. The biggest practical change: if you are in Australia on a Working Holiday visa, you can no longer switch to a Student visa without leaving the country.

The new rules are in force from 2 October 2026. They also affect the Student Guardian visa (subclass 590) and the rules for including partners and children in a Student visa application.

Applications lodged before 2 October 2026 are not affected: they will be assessed under the rules in place when they were lodged.

At a glance

Who must now apply from outside Australia

If you hold one of the following visas, as a primary or secondary visa holder, you cannot lodge a Student visa application in Australia. There are no exemptions.

• Subclass 400 Temporary Work (Short Stay Specialist)
• Subclass 403 Temporary Work (International Relations), Domestic Worker (Diplomatic or Consular) stream
• Subclass 407 Training
• Subclass 408 Temporary Activity
• Subclass 417 Working Holiday
• Subclass 457 Temporary Work (Skilled)
• Subclass 462 Work and Holiday
• Subclass 482 Skills in Demand / Temporary Skill Shortage
• Subclass 485 Temporary Graduate
• Subclass 600 Visitor, 601 ETA and 651 eVisitor
• Subclass 602 Medical Treatment, 771 Transit, 988 Maritime Crew and 995 Diplomatic (Temporary, primary holders only)

Visitor, Temporary Graduate and several other visas were already on this list. What is new is the addition of Working Holiday (417 and 462), 482, 457, 400, 407 and 408. Moving from a Working Holiday visa to a Student visa onshore was one of the most common routes for young people who wanted to stay and study after their working holiday year. That route is now closed.

Already on a Student visa? The exemptions

Current Student visa holders now also need to apply from outside Australia, unless they meet one of these exemptions:

• You need more time to finish your course. You need up to 12 more months after your original course end date to complete your main course, with the same education provider.
• You are progressing to a higher qualification. You have completed your main course and are moving to a course at a higher Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) level. If you completed a higher education course, the next one must also be a higher education course with a higher education provider.
• You are applying for a PhD. A Master's by Research does not qualify.
• Your education provider has defaulted and you cannot continue your course.
• Other limited categories: students sponsored by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) or Defence, primary and secondary school students, and some progressions between AQF and non-AQF courses.

If you hold a Student visa as a dependant and want to apply as the main applicant, you must apply from outside Australia. There are no exemptions to this rule.

Outside Australia at grant, not only when applying

If you must apply from outside Australia, you must also be outside Australia when the visa is granted. Leaving for a few days, lodging the application and flying straight back does not work. You may return to Australia on another valid visa while the application is processed, but you must be offshore again when the decision is made. Applications lodged outside Australia also do not come with a Bridging visa.

Lodging in Australia when you are not eligible is a serious mistake. Home Affairs warns that the application will be invalid, which can affect your visa status, and that invalid decisions cannot be reviewed at the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART).

Partners and children

Student visa applicants can no longer include a partner or dependent children in their application unless an exemption applies. The exemptions cover PhD students, DFAT or Defence-sponsored students, foreign government scholarship recipients, and eligible students from Pacific and ASEAN countries.

Family members cannot be added after a Student visa has been granted. There are no exemptions to this rule. In some cases, family members already included on your current Student visa can be included in your next application, for example if you need up to 12 more months to finish your course or your provider has defaulted.

What this means in practice

1. You are on a Working Holiday visa and planned to study next. You can still study in Australia, but the Student visa application must be lodged from overseas and you must stay overseas until it is granted. Plan the timing around your course start date, your current visa expiry, accommodation and the cost of being offshore while you wait.
2. You are a student and your visa is ending soon. Check carefully whether you fit an exemption. Finishing the same course within 12 extra months, or moving up an AQF level, may still allow an onshore application. Switching to a course at the same or a lower level generally means applying from outside Australia.
3. You are planning to come to Australia first and choose a visa later. That approach no longer works. Decide which visa you need before you leave home and apply from there.
4. You are not sure whether an exemption applies. The exemptions are technical (CoE dates, AQF levels, provider type). Get advice before you lodge anything, because an invalid onshore application cannot be fixed afterwards.

The student visa application fee is currently from AUD 2,500, so getting the location and timing right the first time matters.

Frequently asked questions

Can I still get a Student visa if I am on a Working Holiday visa?

Yes, but not from inside Australia. You need to lodge the application from outside Australia and be outside Australia when it is granted.

Can I fly to Bali, apply and come straight back?

You can lodge from Bali, but you must be outside Australia again when the visa is granted. If you are in Australia at the time of the decision, the visa cannot be granted.

I lodged my application before 2 October 2026. Do I need to do anything?

No. Applications lodged before 2 October 2026 are assessed under the previous rules.

I am on a Student visa and want to change course. What happens?

It depends on the course. If you need a new visa, you can only apply in Australia if you are finishing your main course within 12 extra months with the same provider, or progressing to a higher AQF level. Otherwise, the application must be made from outside Australia.

Official sources

• Changes to Student visa application rules (subclasses 500 and 590), Department of Home Affairs
• Subclass 500 Student visa, Department of Home Affairs
• Migration Amendment (Student Visa Reform) Regulations 2026 (F2026L01347)
• Migration (Student Visa Applications to Be Made from outside Australia) Instrument 2026 (F2026L01348)
• Migration (LIN 20/158) Amendment Instrument 2026 (F2026L01349)