Can you study in Australia on a subclass 500 visa in 2026? Eligible students can study at CRICOS-registered providers and work and travel subject to visa conditions. The rules about applying from Australia and bringing family changed significantly on 2 October 2026. This guide explains the key planning questions before you enrol, pay tuition or lodge.
Reviewed: 27 October 2026. General information only, not personal immigration advice. Published by A2MS – Aussie Academics and Migration Services®. Migration advice is led by Sunil Choudhary, Registered Migration Agent (MARN 2418425).
Student visa 500: four checks before you apply
Start with your own circumstances, not a generic “guaranteed visa” checklist. A suitable course offer is only one part of the application.
Is your enrolment valid?
Check the CRICOS-registered course, campus and Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) for each intended course. A CoE is required at lodgement in most cases. Compare courses responsibly.
Where may you lodge?
Following the 2 October 2026 changes, many applicants must apply from outside Australia. Check your current visa and whether a specific onshore exemption applies before paying fees or changing enrolment. Review the changes.
Can you substantiate your plans?
Prepare genuinely individual Genuine Student responses, supporting academic history, English evidence where required, and current health-cover details. Use our GS evidence guide.
Are your finances documented?
Consider tuition, travel and realistic living costs, not just a one-day bank balance. Where financial evidence is required, Home Affairs also examines genuine access to funds. Estimate indicative funds.
Before lodging: check the current Home Affairs subclass 500 requirements and Document Checklist Tool. Education/admissions questions go to Manmeet Chhabra; individual visa advice belongs with Sunil Choudhary, Registered Migration Agent (MARN 2418425). Separate booking links are at the end of this guide. Visual checklist reviewed 3 November 2026.
1. What is the Student visa (subclass 500)?
It is a temporary Australian visa for an eligible course of study, with duration generally linked to enrolment and individual grant conditions, up to the maximum permitted under current rules. You generally need a valid Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE), must meet Genuine Student, financial capacity, English, health and character requirements as applicable, and maintain OSHC unless exempt. A course offer or CoE does not itself guarantee a visa.
2. Check where you can apply after 2 October 2026
The 2 October 2026 changes affect onshore visa lodgement and location at grant. Most temporary visa holders must be outside Australia to lodge a subclass 500 or subclass 590 application unless an applicable exception permits onshore lodgement. Rules also restrict further onshore Student visa applications and the location where affected people must be at grant. A decision depends on the applicant’s existing visa, application history, any exemption and commencement/transitional provisions. Consult the official Home Affairs changes and the A2MS October 2026 explanation.
3. Family members: limited exemptions, no subsequent entrants
From 2 October 2026, most new Student visa applicants cannot include a partner or dependent child. Limited exemptions may apply to certain categories, including eligible PhD students, DFAT or Defence-supported students, foreign government scholarship recipients, certain eligible Pacific and ASEAN applicants, and some continuing-study situations. Family members cannot be added to an already granted Student visa through a subsequent entrant application under the new arrangements. Pending applications lodged before the commencement date are generally assessed under the rules applicable at lodgement.
If an exemption applies, all applicants in the family application must meet the applicable location, eligibility and documentary requirements. Read Home Affairs’ specific family guidance before making commitments.
4. Genuine Student requirement: the questions are personal
The Genuine Student (GS) criterion generally applies to applications lodged from 23 March 2024. The former Genuine Temporary Entrant (GTE) criterion applies to relevant earlier applications. In the application, describe your circumstances, why you chose the particular course and provider, how it supports future plans, and other relevant facts. Home Affairs places greater weight on supported evidence than unsupported declarations; it generally prefers the application-form answers over a stand-alone GS essay. Each GS answer has a 150-word limit. See the A2MS evidence guide.
5. English, academic admission and course selection
- Check the institution’s entry and English requirements for your actual course; course admission criteria are not identical to visa requirements.
- Confirm that the education provider and course are on the CRICOS register.
- Review any prior study, study gaps, changes of provider and overseas study history that may affect the GS assessment.
- Check the version and date of any accepted English-language test and whether a visa exemption or different threshold applies.
- For under-18 applicants, check age, approved welfare and accommodation arrangements.
6. Financial capacity: more than a bank balance
Depending on the financial evidence pathway and individual circumstances, demonstrate genuine access to funds for the first 12 months of course fees (or pro-rated costs), living expenses, travel and eligible family/school costs. Current Home Affairs guidance refers to living costs of AUD29,710 per year for a student as a financial-capacity benchmark, but actual expenses may be higher. The department may request evidence even where a document checklist initially does not show it as mandatory. Funding sources, transfers and the history of savings matter; simply showing a one-day bank balance is not necessarily enough.
The alternative annual-income route requires qualifying official evidence of income, including specific eligibility as to whose income may be used. Read the official financial criteria and use the A2MS indicative funds calculator only as a planning aid.
7. Work rights, OSHC and visa conditions
Many primary Student visa holders have work rights capped at 48 hours per fortnight while their course is in session; exceptions include eligible research Master’s and doctoral students after commencing. Official breaks and family members can have different conditions. Never assume that a CoE, new application or bridging visa confers work rights. Maintain the insurance required by your visa and check the conditions of the actual grant using VEVO.
8. Student Guardian visa (subclass 590)
Where an under-18 student requires care and welfare support, a parent, custodian or eligible relative may be able to apply for subclass 590. This is a separate visa with its own financial and health-insurance rules and work restrictions. The 2 October 2026 application-location rules may also affect guardians. See official subclass 590 guidance.
9. Application preparation checklist
- Identify your course, provider, campus, intake and fees; confirm CRICOS registration.
- Check whether you must apply outside Australia under the current visa and family rules.
- Prepare a valid CoE (as required), academic evidence, passport, English evidence and a realistic budget.
- Prepare honest, individualised GS form responses with corroborating records.
- Arrange compliant insurance and welfare plans if relevant; consider existing visa conditions and lawful stay.
- Lodge in the correct location with complete information; monitor ImmiAccount for requests and changes.
- Check the grant notice, dates, conditions and arrival arrangements before working or travelling.
10. What happens after graduation?
A completed course does not automatically confer permanent residency. The Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) has separate eligibility requirements, qualification and stream tests, age criteria (with exceptions), health insurance, Australian location and application deadlines. Review the 485 guide well before course completion.
Official references and next steps
- Home Affairs: Student visa 500
- Home Affairs: Student and Guardian rule changes from 2 October 2026
- Home Affairs: Genuine Student requirements
- CRICOS course and provider register
- A2MS Study in Australia service page
For individual migration guidance, choose Sunil’s appointment below or contact the Adelaide team. Visa approval or permanent residence is never guaranteed.
This information is current to the review date and is general in nature. Eligibility, charges and policy settings may change. Your visa and family arrangements require individual advice before lodging, travelling or committing to a course.
Talk with the right A2MS adviser
For course choice, admissions and education pathways, book Manmeet’s education-only consultation. For Student visa subclass 500 eligibility, conditions and migration legal questions, book Sunil, A2MS’s registered migration agent.
Manmeet Chhabra
QEAC T284
Education & admissions only: choosing a CRICOS course or provider, entry requirements, education pathways and enrolment planning. Manmeet’s education consultations do not provide visa or migration legal advice.
Book Manmeet: free 10-minute education call45-minute education session — $150
Sunil Choudhary
MARN 2418425
Visa & migration legal guidance: Student visa (500), Student Guardian visa (590), Temporary Graduate visa (485), visa conditions and changing-provider visa implications. Outcomes depend on individual facts and law; no visa or migration outcome is guaranteed.
Book Sunil: free 10-minute migration introduction45-minute migration consultation — $250