Australia’s Student Visa Changes: Are Your Plans Affected?

Planning your next course in Australia? Hoping your partner or children can join you? Changes to Australia’s Student visa rules could affect both decisions.

From 2 October 2026, new restrictions apply to applications for Student visas (subclass 500) and Student Guardian visas (subclass 590). They change who can apply while in Australia and when family members can be included.

For international students and temporary visa holders, checking your eligibility before committing to a course is now more important than ever.

Can you still apply for a Student visa in Australia?

Many temporary visa holders can no longer lodge a Student visa application while in Australia.

The affected visas include:

• Working Holiday and Work and Holiday visas: subclasses 417 and 462.
• Work and training visas: subclasses 400, 407, 408, 457 and 482.
• Temporary Graduate visas: subclass 485.
• Visitor visas: subclasses 600, 601 and 651.

Other visa subclasses and certain streams are also affected, so this is not a complete list.

If your visa falls within the restrictions, you must apply from outside Australia. You must also be outside Australia when the Student visa is granted. An offer of enrolment does not, by itself, mean you can apply for a Student visa from within Australia.

Already studying here? A further visa may require closer planning

The changes also affect current Student visa holders who want to apply for another Student visa in Australia. This includes dependants seeking to become the primary student applicant.

Your existing Student visa is not changed by these reforms. However, your next application may need to be lodged offshore.

For primary Student visa holders, exemptions may allow a further application in Australia where you:

• Need up to 12 additional months beyond your original course end date to finish your studies with the same provider. For packaged courses, this must relate to your main course.
• Are applying to study a PhD.
• Are sponsored by DFAT or Defence.
• Are applying for primary or secondary school studies.
• Have completed your main course and are progressing to a higher Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) level.
• Have completed school studies and are progressing to a course without an AQF level, or completed a course without an AQF level and are progressing to one with an AQF level.
• Cannot continue your course because your education provider has defaulted.

If you completed a higher education course, the progression exemption requires your next course to also be a higher education course delivered by a higher education provider.

The details of your completed course, proposed studies, and current visa will determine whether an exemption applies.

Planning to bring your partner or children?

Family arrangements are another major part of the changes.

Student visa applicants generally cannot include a partner or dependent children unless an exemption applies. This restriction also applies to further Student visa applications.

Exemptions may allow family members to be included at the time of application for:

• PhD students.
• Students sponsored by DFAT or Defence.
• Foreign government scholarship recipients.
• Eligible students from Pacific countries or ASEAN member countries.

Family members can no longer apply to join a Student visa holder as subsequent entrants after the visa has been granted. Home Affairs states there are no exemptions to this rule.

If your family already holds Student visas linked to yours, transitional provisions may allow them to be included in a further application lodged in Australia. Eligibility depends on their visa history and circumstances. The primary applicant and included family members must be in the same location when the application is lodged.

What if you applied before 2 October 2026?

Student visa applications lodged before 2 October 2026, including those with family members, continue to be assessed under the rules in place when they were lodged.

Before you make your next move

A new course can be an exciting step towards your future. Before paying course fees, booking travel or making family relocation plans, check:

• Whether your current visa permits an application in Australia.
• Whether your proposed studies meet an exemption.
• Whether your partner or children can be included.
• Where you need to be when you apply and when the visa is granted.

How SCA Connect can assist

SCA Connect can review your current visa, proposed studies, and family circumstances to help you understand how the new rules affect your plans. Contact SCA Connect before making your next study or visa decision.