Visa Entitlements

This visa permits you along with any secondary applicants included in your application to remain in Australia for a period of up to 18 months and does not place upon you any restrictions regarding work or study. During this 18 month period you will be able without restriction to:

• work
• travel
• improve your English skills through study
• partake in additional professional studies

Main Applicant Eligibility

This visa has no points test but you must meet all the basic requirements.

Age

On the day that you lodge your visa application you must be under 50 years of age.

English Language

You are required to meet the English language threshold at the ‘competent’ level. 

You will meet this threshold automatically if you are a citizen of or posses a valid passport from:

• United States of America (USA)
• United Kingdom (UK)
• New Zealand
• Canada
• Republic of Ireland

Eligible Visa

You and all secondary applicants must hold an eligible visa.

You meet this requirement if one of the following applies to you:

• you hold an eligible Student visa
• you hold a Bridging visa A or Bridging visa B as a result of a visa application for a visa other than a non-eligible Student visa and that you also held an eligible Student visa in the last six (6) months
• you hold a substantive visa other than a non-eligible Student visa and have also held an eligible Student visa in the last six (6) months
• you held an eligible Student visa which was cancelled and in the last 28 days the Migration Review Tribunal notified you of a decision to set aside and substitute the cancellation or the Minister's decision not to revoke the cancellation

In addition, you and any accompanying secondary applicants must not:

• have had a visa application refused or cancelled since last entering Australia unless you hold a substantive visa
• have conditions 8503, 8534, 8535 on your current visa or any other conditions that prevent you from making a further application to remain in Australia.

Skills & Qualifications

You must possess qualifications and or/skills which meet the Australian standards for an occupation listed on the Skilled Occupations List (SOL).

You need to nominate an occupation listed on the Skilled Occupation List (SOL) that is appropriate to your particular skills and qualifications.

Please Note: You cannot apply for this visa if your nominated occupation is not listed on the SOL.

You will need to nominate your specific skilled occupation and undergo an evaluation of your qualifications to ensure that you are adequately qualified for your nominated occupation. You are required to obtain a positive skill assessment from an approved assessing authority.

Important: At the time you apply for this visa you must provide evidence that you have applied to the relevant assessing authority to have your skills assessed for your nominated occupation. You can lodge your application without a completed skills assessment, however this visa cannot be granted without a satisfactory skills assessment.

If your skills are assessed by an approved assessing authority as suitable for your nominated occupation based on a qualification acquired in Australia previously under a student visa, your qualification must result from studying a CRICOS registered course.

Australian Study Requirement

To satisfy this requirement, you need to have finished in a period of not less than 16 calendar months either:

• solitary qualification undertaken over a period of at least two (2) academic years of study
• multiple qualifications undertaken in a total period of at least two (2) academic years of study.

Additional Information

Health & Character

If you are neither an Australian citizen nor an Australian permanent resident, but you intend to live in or visit Australia, both you and all secondary applicants listed in your application will be required to undergo a health examination and pass specific health requirements before a visa can be issued.

You and all secondary applicants are also required to be ‘of good character’ in order to live in or visit Australia. This is determined by Australian authorities and you may be asked to provide evidence such as police certificates for every country you have resided in since turning 16 years of age for 12 months or longer over the previous ten (10) years.

Location

You and all secondary applicants included in your visa application must be in Australia at the time that you lodge your visa application and at the time that a decision is made on the visa application.