Australia student visa reform takes effect on October 2

Australia has changed the rules for student visas. The new requirements concern the inclusion of family members in visa applications, changes of study program, and attempts to extend stay through implausible academic transitions. The reform is aimed at combating unscrupulous agents and students who use visas for purposes other than study.

Family members will find it harder to obtain a visa

If a student included family members in the initial visa application, they will be able to remain with the student on subsequent visas. However, if family was not listed in the original application, adding them later will become impossible or extremely difficult.

Additionally, schemes are now prohibited where two students arrive on separate visas, then declare themselves as partners and one transfers to a partner visa — this violation of conditions will no longer be permitted by the system.

Program change will require leaving the country

Students can no longer change study programs while remaining in Australia if this represents a downward move or sideways transition:

• from postgraduate to diploma education;
• from language courses to language courses (without an embedded pathway to the main program);
• from bachelor to bachelor;
• from postgraduate to postgraduate.

Logical transitions — from English to bachelor, embedded study pathways, as well as “Bachelor with Honours” or “Master by Research” programs under certain conditions — can be submitted within Australia. For all other cases, the student will need to leave and reapply.

Applications submitted before October 2 follow the old rules

If a student submitted a visa application before October 2, 2026 and is still waiting for a decision or has already received a visa, the old requirements apply. New rules do not extend to already-considered or issued documents.

However, applications submitted under the old rules after the official announcement of the reform are considered invalid by technical regulation. This occurred because many agents rushed to submit documents before the new requirements took effect.

The goal of the reform is to restore logic to the system

The new rules combat not so much students in general, but falsified routes: cheap visa schools where study is a cover for prolonged stay, and schemes where a person changes programs to extend their visa.

The Australian government protects students who are genuinely interested in education and professional development. It is expected that over time, low-quality educational providers will close, and the flow of students will concentrate on prestigious institutions with serious programs.

This is a reform, not legislation

It is important to understand that the changes affected existing law and regulations, not the legislation itself. In Australia, immigration rules can change rapidly and unexpectedly: recently, a ban was introduced on transitioning from a tourist visa to a student visa. Therefore, even today’s requirements may be clarified and adjusted as authorities see the practical results.