How To Renew Student Visa In Australia
If you are an international student studying in Australia, you must be aware of the importance of your visa. A level of confusion amongst International students regarding the Student Visa Renewal process is evident. That’s why we decided to come up with a blog post which will help you with all your queries about renewal of students visa.
Visa regulations in Australia are stringent, and it is difficult to secure visa for students onshore. So, you have applied for student visa and all you can do for now is wait for the student visa officers to make a decision. Here we guide you through the renewal process of student visa in Australia so that you do not get into trouble while staying in the country.
Importance of student visa. Student visa Australia is given for a period of 2 or 4 years, which depends on your program. If you studied in Australia and completed your degree successfully, you might need to take care of some things to extend your stay.
How To Renew Student Visa In Australia
Applying for student visa renewal can be stressful and time consuming. However, the right steps can help you complete your student visa renewal procedures in the most efficient way.
Reasons to apply for a new visa may include:
- Your current visa will expire before you can complete your course due to failed subjects in your final study period, a Leave of Absence, or Reduced Study Load
- You have commenced a new course
- Your graduate research candidature has been extended
- You have submitted a graduate research thesis for marking, but your current visa will expire before the marking can be finalised
- Your first visa was cancelled administratively by the Department of Home Affairs.
If you’re changing courses or levels of study, please see Changing courses or providers for more information.
How to apply for a new visa
We generally recommend applying for a new visa no earlier than four months before your current visa expires. This does not prevent you from requesting a Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE).
If you’ve had a previous visa cancelled by the Department of Home Affairs for a breach of your visa conditions, we recommend seeking assistance from a qualified migration agent or lawyer.
Student visa fee waiver eligibility (Form 1545)
The Department of Home Affairs will waive the visa application fee if you held a student visa on or after 1 February 2020 and aren’t able to complete your course within the original visa dates due to the impacts of COVID-19. The fee waiver is only valid for situations where you:
- had to take leave from your course due to travel restrictions,
- were forced to reduce to a part-time study because the University of Melbourne couldn’t provide you with a required or core subject(s), or
- were unable to complete your work-based training or placements.
If you needed to apply for a student visa prior to 2020 due to ordinary reasons, such as being suspended, taking leave of absence, a reduced study load, or failing subjects, you won’t be assessed as eligible. This includes students who voluntarily reduced their study load or had leave due to the impact of COVID-19.
How to apply
If you meet the eligibility requirements, please submit an enquiry here – select ‘Enrolment’, then ‘Student visa’. Please include ‘1545 request’ in the subject line of your enquiry.
- Step one: Extend your Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC)
- Step two: Request a new Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE)
- Step three: Consider your location
- Step four: Submit your application
- Step five: Update your visa status
Extending your visa for thesis submission
Finishing on time
Graduate researchers must finish their thesis within their expected course duration.
If you don’t submit your thesis by the expected date, your Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) will finish and you will have 28 days to depart the country or make other visa arrangements.
If you submit your thesis and receive notification that it has been accepted for examination within 28 days after your expected submission date, you should request a Confirmation of Marking Thesis (CMT) letter immediately. This will confirm your eligibility to remain in Australia during the examination period. Your work rights will also continue. If your candidature was confirmed after 31 December 2017 and you submit after reaching your maximum course duration your thesis will only be accepted for examination if you have approval for late submission.