Australia increased most visa application fees by 25 per cent, including a $500 increase for student visa applications, sparking concern from the education sector over future enrolments and losing international students to competitors.
From 1 July, the student visa now costs $2500 while the Temporary Graduate (subclass 485) is $5750. This marks the second price hike for the Temporary Graduate visa that allows international graduates to work in Australia temporarily. In March, the application fee doubled from $2300 to $4600.
Australia currently holds the record of having the most expensive student visa cost amongst other countries, with the UK ($939) and USA ($773) following behind, and Japan with a mere $60 fee being the lowest.
Group of Eight Vicki Thomson said international students are “a core part of Australia’s future skilled workforce” and that if they study in other countries other than Australia, “those relationships, skills and research connections are lost for decades”.
The higher fee adds to the significant cost of studying in Australia as international students face tuition fees, living expenses and accommodation costs. Education leaders argue increased financial burden could encourage students to study in other locations.
“Every major competitor nation understands that attracting talented students is an investment in future economic growth and national capability. Australia increasingly appears to view them as a revenue source,” said Thomson.
Australia’s visa application is more expensive compared to what competitors offer. While Australia’s fee is $2500, New Zealand is $790, $240 for Canada and $935 for the UK.
Chief executive of International Education Association of Australia Phil Honeywood told Australian Financial Review that a price increase during an inflationary period could cause “every university and private provider into an unanticipated financial crisis”.
National president of Council of Australian Postgraduate Associations, Jesse Gardner-Russell compared the price hike to treating students like commodities.
“International students are not just another resource to be mined, their value extracted and then shipped offshore, like iron ore,” said Gardner-Russell.
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, international students bring $53 billion to the Australian economy through expenditure in 2024 to 2025. As there were 622,043 international students studying during January to February period this year, this makes education Australia’s fourth largest export, behind iron ore, coal and natural gas.
A Department of Homes Affairs spokesperson told ABC News that “the cost of visas remains a small proportion of the overall costs of visiting or migrating to Australia.”
Assistant Minister for International Education Julian Hill said that visa categories excluded from the price hike include the pacific, applicants studying English (ELIOS), non-award courses, refugee and protection visas.