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Third level headingAustralia’s Student Visa Programme

Australia’s Student Visa Programme

• The role of the Student visa programme

• Recent reforms and review

• Recent trends

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Student Visa Subclasses

Subclass Sector570 ELICOS 571 Schools 572 Vocational Education and Training 573 Higher Education 574 Postgraduate Research 575 Non-Award 576 AusAID/Defence 580 Student Guardian

Top Source Countries 2012-13

Citizenship country Student visa grants1. China 54 0152. India 24 8083. South Korea 12 9424. Vietnam 10 7255. Brazil 10 6826. Thailand 9 274

• Genuine Temporary Entrant (GTE) Requirement –5 November 2011

• Streamlined Visa Processing arrangements – 24 March 2012

• Post-study work arrangements – 23 March 2013

• Simplification of the Assessment Level Framework and the extension of streamlined visa processing arrangements to low immigration risk non-university providers in the higher education sector – March 2014.

Reforms to the Student Visa Programme

Genuine Temporary Entrant (GTE) requirement

• Foundation stone of the Student Visa Programme.

• Has made other reforms, such as streamlined visa processing arrangements possible.

• An important integrity measure.

• Not designed to exclude students who develop appropriate skills to obtain further temporary visas or permanent residency through labour market programmes.

• Assessment of the GTE requirement is based on a holistic consideration of all the applicant’s circumstances to determine whether, on balance, it is likely that the applicant is a genuine student and genuinely intends a temporary stay.

Temporary Graduate (Subclass 485) Visa

Applicants must apply through either the Graduate Work stream or the Post-Study Work stream of the Subclass 485 visa

Graduate Work stream Available to international students who have recently graduated with skills and qualifications that relate to an occupation that is in demand in the Australian labour market, as determined by the Skilled Occupation List

Post-Study Work stream Available to international students who applied for, and were granted, their first student visa to Australia on or after 5 November 2011 and have recently graduated with an eligible higher education qualification from an Australian educational institution, regardless of their field of study.

Streamlined Visa Processing

• From 24 March 2012, Student visa applicants with a CoE from a participating university at Bachelor, Masters or Doctoral degree are assessed as though they were a lower migration risk (similar to the current AL1), regardless of their country of origin.

• Streamlined processing is also available for:

– students who package their non-university courses with an eligible university course, including for students coming for semester or year long non-award courses, for example, as part of an agreed student exchange programme.

Review of the Student visa Assessment Level (AL) Framework

• Recommendation 32 of the Knight Review

• AL Framework Review released by Government on 29 October 2013

• Eight recommendations

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Review recommendations

The Review made eight recommendations:

1. That selected low immigration risk providers be invited to participate in streamlined visa processing arrangements similar to those currently available to universities.

2. Continue the current system of using a student visa applicant’s passport country and the visa subclass for which they are applying as the factors used to determine an AL for student visa applicants.

3. That the AL framework be simplified to comprise AL1, AL2 and AL3.

4. That the financial requirement for AL3 applicants be reduced to 12 months evidence of funds with the condition that these funds be provided by a close relative of the applicant.

5. Remove consideration of applications for permanent residence (other than skilled) as a risk factor from the statistical analysis of data undertaken to set AL’s, and instead consider it as part of qualitative analysis.

Review recommendations continued6. Change the weightings applied to the rate of the remaining risk factors:

• Rate of refusals due to fraudulent documents: increase weighting from 28 per cent to 40 per cent;

• Rate of refusals (due to reasons other than fraud): increase weightings from 8 per cent to 10 per cent;

• Rate of student visas that have been cancelled: increase weightings from 29 per cent to 30 per cent; and

• Rate of former student visa holders who have become unlawful: decrease weightings from 28 per cent to 20 per cent.

7. Maintain the existing benchmarks used to determine which AL is assigned to a country and student visa subclass.

8. Implement approximately annual review of AL settings to be informed by quantitative and qualitative factors with qualitative factors to include input from the international education sector through the Education Visa Consultative Committee and other groups as appropriate.

Simplification of the AL Framework

• AL Framework will comprise AL1, AL2 and AL3

• All AL4 to be reduced to AL3

• Financial requirements for AL3 reduced to 12 months evidence of funds with the condition that these funds be provided by a close relative of the applicant

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Financial requirements under the simplified AL Framework

AL1 AL2 AL3Declaration of sufficient funds to support entire stay in Australia

Evidence of funds to pay for expenses for the first 12 months of stay

Declaration of sufficient funds to support the remainder of the applicant’s stay in Australia

Evidence of funds to pay for expenses for the first 12months of stay

Declaration of sufficient funds to support the remainder of the applicant’s stay in Australia

Funds to be provided by the applicant or any individual willing to support the applicant with demonstrated income stream

Funds to be provided by the applicant or a close relative with demonstrated income stream

Money deposits must continue to be held for a period of at least 3 months

Extended Streamlined Visa Processing (SVP) from 22 March 2014

• Extension of SVP to non-university higher education sector providers

• Education provider responsibilities under SVP

• SVP and the AL Framework

Provider eligibility to participate in SVP

• Registered to deliver bachelor, masters or doctoral degree level courses to international students

• Low immigration risk rating equivalent to AL1 or AL2

• Associated with at least 100 active student visas

SVP student eligibility flow chart

YES

YES

YES

YES

NO

NO

NO

YES

NO

NO

Does the student intend to study at a participating

provider?

Has the student provided a Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) for all their intended

courses provided at visa lodgement?

Does the student intend to study a course at the bachelor, masters or doctoral degree level or are they participating in a student exchange or study abroad programme?

Are all courses that the student intends to study at a participating provider?

Are all preliminary courses at one of the participating provider’s nominated educational business partners?

Application is not streamlined. Application is assessed under applicable AL (determined by applicant’s passport country and main course of study

Application is streamlined

More Information

• DIBP website www.immi.gov.au/studentsIncludes:Review of the AL FrameworkStreamlined Visa Processing ArrangementsAssessment Level FrameworkOther relevant fact sheets and FAQs