500 visa for studying in Australia detailed explanation

Since July 1, 2016, the visa policy has been adjusted again, and the SSVF Simplified Student Visa Framework of the Australian Immigration Department has officially come into effect, aiming to simplify the process of applying for a student visa for international students. The original 8 types of student visas are simplified to 500 student visas and 590 guardian visas. Cancellation of PVA (paper visa), all applications must be applied online.

What is a 500 visa?

From July 1, 2016, all international students, no matter what major they study, will apply for a 500-class student visa (subclass 500). The new policy is only applicable to student visa applications submitted from July 1, and will not affect international students currently holding 570 to 576 student visas. However, if the family members of these students want to apply for accompanying visas, they will apply for 500 visas (subclass 500).

Changes to the new visa framework include:

• The number of student visa subcategories has been reduced from eight to two;
• Adopt a simplified single immigration risk assessment framework for all international students. This new system will replace the current two systems of “Simplified Visa Processing” (SVP) and “Assessment Level Framework” (ALF) and will apply to all international students. Under the new SSVF system, the evaluation of students’ economic ability and English proficiency is based on two aspects: the immigration record of the student’s country of origin and the information of the educational institution providing the student’s education.
• The age requirements for international students have been relaxed: under Australia’s latest visa system, children over the age of 6 can come to Australia to study. However, primary school students need to be accompanied by their parents or other guardians when they come to Australia to study.
• Under the latest visa system for studying in Australia, the Immigration Bureau will set levels for Australian educational institutions, which are divided into level one, level two and level three risks (level one is the lowest risk, level two is the middle level of risk, and level three is high risk risk level). At the same time, the Immigration Bureau will set the risk level of each country’s nationality, which is divided into first-level, second-level and third-level risks. A student’s visa risk level and material requirements are determined by the student’s nationality and the educational institution to which he is applying. When the sum of the two is 2~4, the student can apply for the Streamlined Visa, and when the sum of the two is greater than 4, the student must apply for the Regular Visa. Generally speaking, the visa level of Chinese students belongs to S level: Generally speaking, the risk level of the Top Eight University or four-star universities and other universities that Chinese students apply for the longest time plus the risk level of China will be in the range of 2~4, so The visa class belongs to the S class. Therefore, Chinese students who study language courses in Australia will not need to consider IELTS scores. However, the USCIS reserves the right to require students to supplement their language scores.

• Under the latest visa system for studying in Australia, S-level international students only need to provide a statement when submitting a visa application, promising to have enough funds to support their study and life in Australia, without providing relevant proof. If the visa officer thinks it is necessary, he still reserves the right to ask the student to supplement the guarantee certificate.
• The condition that short-term courses cannot be overstayed is relaxed: if a student holds a short-term course visa to go to Australia, before the visa expires, he can apply for a long-term course locally and apply for a long-term student visa. If a student holds a tourist visa to go to Australia, he can also apply for a course locally and convert it into a student visa without going abroad.

What can I do with a 500 visa?
You can study full-time registered courses in Australia; eligible family members can accompany you to Australia; you and your accompanying family members have certain working hours; you can stay in Australia until the course is completed

How long is the visa valid for?
The duration of the visa will vary according to the length of your course:
Courses of more than 10 months, completed at the end of the Australian school year (November-December): the visa will be signed on March 15 of the next year;
Courses of more than 10 months (completed between January and October): the visa will be two months longer than the course time;
10 months or less: the visa time will be one month longer than the course duration;

Application requirement：
From July 1, 2016, all applicants who come to Australia to study and apply for a student visa will be assessed through the Simplified Student Visa Framework (SSVF). Under the framework of SSVF, a risk assessment will be carried out based on the combination of the student’s educational institution and the student’s nationality, that is, based on the assessment to determine how much proof of English language and financial ability the student visa application needs to provide.

Englishrequirement：
To provide proof of English proficiency, the minimum English language test scores generally accepted are:
IELTS overall score of 5.5 or
IELTS overall score of 5 plus at least 10 weeks of English Language Intensive Course for Overseas Students (ELICOS) or
IELTS overall score of 4.5 plus at least 20 weeks of intensive English language courses for overseas students.
It is also acceptable to receive English test scores equivalent to the above IELTS scores, such as TOEFL; Pearson PTE Academic English Test; Cambridge English: Advanced; Vocational English Test.

Proof of funds required:
Students who are assessed to be at higher immigration risk based on the immigration risk results generated by the student’s nationality and their educational institution will generally be required to attach additional documentary evidence of financial capacity to their visa application. The following documents can be provided: proof of payment of travel expenses to Australia, 12 months of living expenses in Australia, tuition fees, and (if a school-age child) student’s education expenses and accompanying family members; or evidence of meeting the annual income requirements such as Guarantor’s work income certificate and tax bill, etc.

Part-time work for visa holders while studying abroad：
Compared with the previous visa, the working time has not changed much. In general, student visa holders are entitled to a maximum of 48 hours of work per fortnight during the term, after the start of the course, and no time-limited work benefits during the holidays. There are no restrictions on part-time jobs for international students studying a research master’s degree or a doctoral degree.