As an overseas student, if you are just out of your school or college in Australia, you may find it challenging to decide what to do now. Most of the students choose to stay back to explore more opportunities available in this beautiful country and make their future bright. If you are one of them, you can consider applying for the temporary graduate visa subclass 485, which will allow you to stay, do a job, and study simultaneously for a considerable period.
However, before submitting your application for the Graduate Visa Australia, you must keep in mind several important points, including its eligibility requirements, benefits of the two streams, what opportunities you can have while staying and studying in a regional area, and current updates. Go through this blog to have a comprehensive idea of it.
What Is The Temporary Graduate Visa Subclass 485?
The Temporary Graduate Visa Subclass 485, also called a Graduate Visa or Temporary Graduate Visa, lets an international student stay in Australia for 18 to 48 months. During this period of stay, the student can enjoy full work rights in Australia.
There are two streams under this visa, which are:
- Graduate Work Stream Visa (GWS)
- Post-Study Work Stream (PSWV)
These two visas have different eligibility requirements and offer different benefits to the holders. So, before you apply, make sure you decide the most suitable stream for you.
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Know the Australian study requirement that you should meet at the time of application
For the Graduate Visa 485, you should have successfully obtained a Diploma or a higher graduation degree. The Australian study requirements are as follows.
- The course you have completed was registered on the CRICOS (Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students).
- When you were in Australia, the course required at least 16 calendar months to complete.
- At least two years of academic study were required for the course. According to the CRICOS, two years of academic education equals 92 weeks.
- You had studied the course while having a valid student visa (the Student Visa 500).
- The mode of learning was in English.
Make sure you meet all the stream-specific requirements
For the two different streams, the eligibility criteria are different. So, to qualify for your Temporary Graduate Visa 485, meeting these requirements is mandatory.
Graduate Work Stream
- You should have obtained a Diploma or Certificate III Trade Qualification.
- You have to nominate a skilled occupation listed on the MLTSSL (Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List). To demonstrate you have the right skills for the occupation, a positive skills assessment is required. Your course should also have been related to the nominated occupation.
Post-Study Work Stream
- You should have completed a Bachelor’s, a Master’s, or a Doctorate from an Australian institute. Having a Diploma will not make you eligible.
- Make sure you have applied for your first Australian student visa after 20 November 2011.
Gather the complete set of documents that are required at the time of application
Remember that you have to attach all the documents when you submit your Subclass 485 Visa application. There are some documents that you need to submit on the date of lodgement. These documents are known as ‘time of application’ requirements and thus cannot be supplied later. If you miss uploading any of these documents, it can lead to an automatic rejection of your application. Make sure you have gathered all the following documents.
- You have to meet the English language requirement. You can either prove it by showing your passport (of a country like the UK, the USA, Canada, New Zealand, or Ireland) or by providing a valid result of an English language proficiency test like IELTS, TOEFL, OET, or PTE.
- If you apply for the GWS, you have to prove that you have applied for a skills assessment. Assessing authorities are different for different occupational skills. So, you must be very careful about that.
- According to the visa grant requirements, you must provide evidence that you have made sufficient arrangements for health insurance cover for all the applicants aged 16 or more.
- Meeting character requirements is another mandatory eligibility. You must provide evidence that you and your family members have at least applied for a check by the Australian Federal Police. The check should take place within 12 months of applying for your visa. At the time of application, you should provide a receipt number.
Apply by the deadline
Applying by the deadline is a necessity for any visa application. For your Visa 485, you must apply within 6 months of holding an eligible Australian student visa.
In addition, you should start with the application procedure within 6 months of completing your course. A confusion occurs regarding the day of this ‘completion of course.’ Many students assume that the date of course completion is Graduation day. But, by completion, we mean the day of the final publication of results. In reality, Graduation day takes place months after course completion.
To improve your chances of success with your visa application, you should be well aware of these dates.
Know the visa processing times
The 485 Visa processing time is usually 8 to 11 months for the Graduate Work Stream and 6 to 7 months for the Post-Study Work Stream.
What if you have lived and studied in a regional area of Australia?
By regional area, we refer to any low-population growth area outside the metropolitan area of three Category 1 Australian cities – Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane.
From 20 January 2021, students who have lived and studied in such an area can apply for a Second Post-Work Study Stream. It will allow them to live for one to two more years.
Have knowledge about COVID-19 concessions and changes in eligibility
Because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, several changes have been made to the eligibility requirements for a Subclass 485 Visa to Australia. The concessions include the following.
- If you have undertaken study online outside Australia because of COVID-19 restrictions, it can be counted towards the Australian study requirements.
- You will also be allowed to apply for your visa offshore.
- If you’re stuck outside Australia and 6 months have passed after your student visa expires, you can apply for your visa.
You should also keep in mind that these concessions are temporary and can end any day.
You may consider hiring a migration agent
Like any visa application, you will also need to make sure you have all the documents ready before you lodge your application. There are some mandatory documents that you should submit at the time of application. Missing any of these documents can result in direct refusal. To avoid any risk, it will be better to hire a professional migration agent in Adelaide.
Where Can You Find Help?
For deadlines and document-related information, you should visit the website of the Department of Home Affairs. If you want to contact any registered immigration agent in Adelaide, always look for the leading service providers who have years of experience in this sector.
