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Published 02 Oct 2026 Updated 15 Oct 2026 Rise Migration Lawyers

Who can still apply for a student visa - and from where

Sandstone university quadrangle with a jacaranda tree in bloom

The short answer: most people now have to apply for a Student visa from outside Australia. You can only apply while you are in Australia if you hold a visa that is still eligible and, if you are already a student, you fit one of the exemptions. Home Affairs puts it this way on its Student visa page: you must “apply from outside Australia unless you hold an eligible visa and meet an exemption allowing you to apply in Australia”.

Our article on who can no longer apply onshore from 2 October 2026 sets out the full list of barred visas. This one is the other side of the coin: who can still apply, and from where.

Who can still apply, at a glance

Your situation Can you apply in Australia? What it means
You are outside Australia Not relevant - you apply offshore The usual criteria apply (genuine student, enrolment, funds, health cover). The new location rules do not stop you.
You hold a Visitor (600), ETA (601), eVisitor (651), Temporary Graduate (485), Working Holiday (417), Work and Holiday (462), Skills in Demand or Temporary Skill Shortage (482) visa, or another visa on the list No You must leave and apply from outside Australia. Home Affairs says “There are no exemptions to this rule.”
You already hold a Student visa Only if you are exempt See the exemptions below - including going up to a higher-level course.
You hold a Student visa as a partner or child (secondary holder) and want to apply as the main student No You must apply from outside Australia.
You hold no substantive visa (for example, only a bridging visa) Generally no The old 28-day window for former Student visa holders was repealed on 2 October 2026. A narrow route remains where the Administrative Review Tribunal set aside a Student visa cancellation - and it is only 28 days.
You hold another substantive visa that is not on the list and is not a Student visa The new list does not stop you Other restrictions can - for example condition 8503 or the section 48 bar. Check before you lodge.

If you already hold a Student visa: the exemptions

A Student visa holder applying for another Student visa as the main applicant must now be outside Australia, unless they fall into an exempt class. Three classes are in the Regulations themselves, and four more were specified in a separate instrument (LIN 26/087) that started on the same day:

  • Defence students and Foreign Affairs students (sponsored by the Australian Government).
  • School students.
  • Doctoral students - you are enrolled in a course leading to a doctoral degree.
  • Provider default - your provider could not deliver your course, and you apply within 12 months of the provider default day.
  • Finishing your course - you have started your principal course (or an alternative principal course with the same provider), have not finished it, and will complete it within 12 months of the end date on your Confirmation of Enrolment.
  • Going up a course - you have completed your principal course and are enrolled in no more than one further course at a higher AQF level.

Going up a course: the “up the scale” rule

This is the change most students are asking about. When the Minister announced it on 17 September 2026 he put it simply: “You can go up the qualification scale, but only up the qualification scale.” The rule that started on 2 October is more precise:

  • You must have completed the course your current visa was granted for (or an alternative principal course that was consistent with your visa).
  • The next course must be at a higher AQF level. Same-level and lower-level courses do not qualify for an onshore application.
  • If your completed course was a higher education course, the next one must also be a higher education course with a higher education provider. A Bachelor degree followed by a Graduate Diploma at a VET provider, for example, does not fit.
  • It covers one further course only.

If you are not changing visas at all, the long-standing rule still applies: while you hold your current Student visa, condition 8202 requires you to stay enrolled in a course at the same or a higher AQF level than the one the visa was granted for. Changing to a lower-level course is a breach of that condition. Changing providers has its own new limit too - from 2 October 2026 the education rules generally stop a provider from enrolling a transferring student until they have completed 12 months of their principal course.

Partners and children

The same changes also restrict family members. In most cases a partner or child can no longer be included in a Student visa application, and family members can no longer apply separately later. There are exceptions - including for Defence and Foreign Affairs students, holders of Pacific-regional and ASEAN passports, doctoral students, fully foreign-government-funded scholarship students, and some families already in Australia - but they are narrow and depend on dates. Check your own position before you plan around a family member joining you.

What every application still needs

Where you apply from is only the first question. The criteria that decide most applications have not changed:

  • Genuine Student requirement - in force since 23 March 2024. You must be a genuine applicant for entry and stay as a student, assessed against your circumstances and immigration history. See our guide to the genuine student requirement.
  • Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) - since 1 January 2025 a CoE number is needed for each intended course; a letter of offer is no longer enough for an application made in Australia. Home Affairs says an application without a CoE at lodgement “will be invalid”.
  • Funds - the living-cost figure is AUD 29,710 a year for the student (unchanged since 10 May 2024), plus amounts for any family included and course and travel costs.
  • Health cover - Overseas Student Health Cover, unless you are exempt.
  • The charge - the Student visa charge starts from AUD 2,500. Some applicants in Australia also pay a subsequent temporary application charge. Confirm the current amount on the Home Affairs pricing page before you lodge.

If you have to apply from outside Australia

  • If you were required to apply offshore, you must also be outside Australia when the visa is granted.
  • An application made offshore does not give you a bridging visa to stay on in Australia.
  • Leaving affects your current visa, any bridging visa and your enrolment. Get advice before you book travel, not after.
  • Applications validly lodged before 2 October 2026 are assessed under the rules that applied when they were lodged.

What was announced on 17 September, and what is now law

These changes carry out part of the package the Minister announced on 17 September 2026, which we covered in Tony Burke’s 2026 migration changes explained. Here is where the student measures stand:

Measure Status at 2 October 2026
Most Student visa applications to be made offshore In force from 2 October 2026
“Up the scale” rule for current students applying in Australia In force from 2 October 2026
Restrictions on partners and children of students In force from 2 October 2026
Restrictions on family members of Temporary Graduate (485) visa holders Announced only - no law yet and no start date

Where to start

Two questions answer most of this: what visa do you hold today, and if it is a Student visa, do you fit one of the exemptions? Your grant notice or VEVO will answer the first. If the answer is that you need to apply from outside Australia, plan the timing carefully before you leave.

If you would like a lawyer to check which rule applies to you and what is still open, book a consultation or send us an enquiry.

Sources

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