Australian government said on July 1 that it has doubled the visa price for international students.
The latest move by the government, reportedly, is to rein in record migration, which has put additional pressure on an already tight housing market.
As per the reform, the international student visa fee increased from AUD710 to AUD1,600 ($1,068), and the tourist visa holders and students with temporary graduate visas are no longer permitted to apply for a student visa onshore.
“The changes coming into force today will help restore integrity to our international education system, and create a migration system which is fairer, smaller and better able to deliver for Australia,” home affairs minister Clare O’Neil said in a statement.
A large chunk of Indian students seeking to study abroad prefer Australia, besides the US, UK and Canada. With the tensions emerged between India and Canada last year, and with the Rishi Sunak government in the UK bringing in stricter immigration rules, Australia has almost gained an upper hand.
International education is one of Australia’s largest contributor to the economy and was worth AUD 36.4 billion in the 2022-2023 financial year. The fee hike would make applying for a student visa in Australia far more expensive than in other countries such as the United States and Canada, where they cost approximately $185 and C$150 ($110), respectively.
As the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions in 2022 increased yearly migration to record levels, Australia has been continuously tightening its student visa regulations. Recently, the amount of funds required for overseas students to obtain a visa was increased in May to AUD29,710 ($19,823) from AUD24,505, marking the second increase in around seven months.
The English language standards were also tightened in March.
Universities Australia CEO Luke Sheehy stated that the government’s continued policy pressure on the education sector would cause damage to the country’s economic strength.
“This is not good for our economy or our universities, both of which rely heavily on international student fees,” Mr. Sheehy said.
