Revised Financial Requirement for Student and Student Guardian Visa from October 2019

From 23 October 2019, student (Subclass 500) and student guardian (Subclass 590) visa applicant will need to show an increased amount of funds available to account for the increased living costs in line with the consumer price index.

Subclass 500 Student Visa Application	Annual Living Costs (AUD)	School/Course Fees
Primary Applicant	21,041*	– Course fees for the first 12 months if the period of study is more than 12 months minus prepaid amount (deposit) that has been paid; – If period of study less than 12 months, the course fees for the entire course of study or the remaining period of study.
Secondary Applicant: Spouse/De Facto Partner	7,362*
Secondary Applicant: Dependent Child	3,152* (for each secondary applicant)	– AUD$8296 (per year for each school-aged secondary dependent, this amount might vary between states, territories and schools); – NIL (if primary applicant is a PhD student or receiving Australian Commonwealth Government scholarship and his/her school-age dependant is enrolled in a course of study at a State or Territory government school where the fees have been waived).

* If less than 12 months, living costs will be on a pro rata basis.

Besides the costs outlined above, travel costs also need to be accounted for for all applicants included in visa application. As a general guide:

• If applying from outside Australia (anywhere else besides Africa): AUD$2000 for each applicant included in the visa application.
• If applying from East or Southern Africa: AUD$2500 (higher due to significantly higher travel costs from these regions).
• If applying from West Africa: AUD$3000 (higher due to significantly higher travel costs from this region).
• If applying in Australia: AUD$1000 for each applicant included in the visa application (AUD$1500 if applying in Australia and will be returning to Africa at the end of the course).

Types of acceptable evidence of financial capacity to be provided varies and can be in the form of:

• Money deposit in financial institution.
• Loan or financial support approved by/obtained from financial institution, government, education provider or international organisation.
• Acceptance Advice of Secondary Exchange Students (AASES) form (only applicable to secondary exchange program students).
• Letter of Support from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) (only applicable to DFAT students. Additional evidence of financial capacity might need to be provided if secondary applicant(s) is/are included in the student visa application).
• Letter of Support from the Department of Defence (only applicable to Department of Defence students. Additional evidence of financial capacity might need to be provided if secondary applicant(s) is/are included in the student visa application).