Temporary Graduate Visa subclass 485

This visa is for international students who have recently graduated from an Australian educational institution. The Temporary Graduate visa subclass 485 lets you live, study and work in Australia temporarily after you have finished your studies. Students are only able to access the Temporary Graduate visa subclass 485 once as a primary applicant.

Due Australia’s warm climate the lifestyle enjoyed is largely outdoor based and active. Australia is a multicultural nation that is friendly and welcoming to all regardless of race or religion. Australia enjoys a high standard of living with access to excellent education and healthcare, has a stable democratic political system and experiences economic growth. Australia is a great place to live and work, and to raise a family.

 

This visa has two streams:

 

Graduate Work stream– for international students with an eligible qualification who graduate with skills and qualifications that relate to an occupation on the Skilled Occupation List (SOL).

Stream specific requirements:

  • primary applicant nominates an occupation that is on the SOL
  • primary applicant satisfied the Australian study requirement in the six months immediately before the application was made
  • each qualification used to satisfy the Australian study requirement is closely related to the primary applicant’s nominated occupation
  • primary applicant has applied for an assessment of the applicant’s skills for the nominated skilled occupation by a relevant assessing authority
  • primary applicant applied for a skills assessment on the basis of a qualification obtained in Australia while the applicant held a student visa, the qualification must have been obtained as a result of studying a registered course

A visa in this stream is granted for 18 months from the date of grant, it allows you and your accompanying family to stay in Australia temporarily after the completion of your studies to work, travel, and study.

 

Post-study Work stream– for international students who graduate with a higher education degree from an Australian education provider, regardless of their field of study. This stream is only available to students who applied for, and were granted, their first student visa to Australia on or after 5 November 2011.

Stream specific requirements:

  • primary applicant applied for, and was granted, their first student visa to Australia on or after 5 November 2011
  • primary applicant’s eligible qualification must have been completed in Australia and be of a Bachelor level or higher
  • primary applicant’s study for the eligible qualification/s satisfy the Australian study requirement in the last six months

A visa in this stream can be granted for up to four years from the date the visa is granted, depending on the visa applicant’s qualification. Bachelor’s qualification receives a 2 year visa, a Doctorate qualification receives 4 years. This visa allows you and your accompanying family to stay in Australia temporarily after the completion of your studies to work, travel, and study.

Subclass 485 visa General Application Requirements

 

Supporting evidence must be provided at the time you lodge your application. Requirements for this visa include:

  • primary applicant has not previously held a 476 or 485 visa
  • primary applicant is younger than 50 years of age
  • evidence that primary applicant has met the English language requirement
  • all applicants must be in Australia when applying (exemption for subsequent secondary applicants only) and be in Australia when the visa is granted
  • all applicants hold an eligible ​visa (includes 572,573 & 574 visas)
  • all applicants meet health and character requirements
  • all applicants have held and hold current health insurance in Australia
  • all applicants over age 16 have applied for police checks
  • all applicants have arranged to undergo medical examinations
  • all applicants hold a valid passport, unless it would be unreasonable to require for them to do so

 

Eligible visas

You must hold an eligible visa to apply for this visa as the primary applicant. You could meet this requirement if any of the following applies to you:

  • You hold an eligible student visa (a subclass 572, 573 or 574, provided you are not
    • a family member of the main visa holder of one of these visa classes
    • the primary applicant who undertook a course funded by a government or multilateral agency, or course/training under a scholarship scheme or training program approved by the Foreign Minister or the Defence Minister on condition that you will leave Australia on the completion of the course.
  • You have held an eligible student visa at any time in the past six months and:
    • you now hold a Bridging visa A or Bridging visa B after applying for any visa other than an ineligible student visa, or
    • you now hold a substantive visa other than an ineligible student visa.
  • You held an eligible student visa that was cancelled, but in the past 28 days the Migration Review Tribunal has notified you of a decision to set aside and substitute the Minister’s decision.

The following are ineligible student visas:

  • student visas in subclasses 570, 571, 575 or 576
  • visas in subclasses 572, 573 or 574, which you applied for on the basis that you were intending to undertake:
    • a course funded by the Australian government, an Australian state or territory government, a foreign government or a multilateral agency
    • a course or training under a scholarship scheme or training program approved by the Foreign Minister or the Defence Minister.

In addition, you must not:

  • have had a visa application refused or cancelled since last entering Australia unless you hold a substantive visa
  • have any condition on your current visa that prevents you from applying to stay in Australia, such as ‘No further stay’ conditions (numbers 8503, 8534 or 8535). If you have condition 8503 or 8534 attached to your current visa, you should apply for the Temporary Graduate visa using paper Form 1409 (635KB PDF), which includes an application to have the condition waived.

 

English Language Requirements

Your visa application must include evidence that you have met the English language requirement. You can show this if you have either of the following:

  • You hold a valid passport issued by the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada, New Zealand or the Republic of Ireland and you are a citizen of that country.
  • You have achieved an overall score of at least 6 with a minimum a score of 5 in each of the four test components (speaking, reading, listening and writing) in an International English Language Testing System (IELTS) test that has been undertaken in the three years immediately prior to lodging the visa application.
  • You have achieved a score of at least ‘B’ in each of the four test components of an Occupational English Test (OET) that has been undertaken in the three years immediately prior to lodging the visa application.
  • You have achieved a total score of at least 64 with the following minimum test scores in each of the four test components: 4 for listening, 4 for reading, 14 for writing and 14 for speaking, in a Test of English as a Foreign Language internet-based test (TOEFL iBT) test that has been undertaken in the three years immediately prior to lodging the visa application.
  • You have achieved an overall test score of at least 50 with a minimum score of 36 in each of the four test components (speaking, reading, listening and writing) in a Pearson Test of English (PTE) Academic that has been undertaken in the three years immediately prior to lodging the visa application.
  • You have achieved an overall test score of at least 169 with a minimum score of at least 154 in each of the four test components (speaking, reading, listening and writing) in a Cambridge English: Advanced (CAE) test that has been undertaken on or after 1 January 2015 and prior to lodging the visa application.
  • You must have sat the English language test in the three years before you apply, and the results should be lodged with your application.

 

The Australian study requirement

In the six months before you apply, you must meet the Australian study requirement. You meet this requirement if you can satisfy us that you have completed one or more degrees, diplomas or trade qualifications for award by an Australian educational institution as a result of a course(s):

  • that is registered on the Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students (CRICOS).
  • for which all instruction was conducted in English
  • that were completed as a result of total of at least two academic years (92 weeks) study
  • that were completed in a total of at least 16 calendar months
  • that have been undertaken while you were in Australia as the holder of a visa authorising you to study.
  • English language proficiency courses or enabling programs cannot be used to meet the Australian study requirement.

 

Health requirement

You must meet certain health requirements. The health examinations required depend on your personal circumstances, including your country of citizenship, time spent in another country during the last five years and your intended activities in Australia. The results of your health examinations are generally valid for 12 months.

This applies to you and any dependent family members included in your application.

You can find out whether you need to undergo health examinations, and arrange them where required, by using our My Health Declarations service. ​

Character requirements ​

Australian Federal Police (AFP) certificate and overseas police clearance​.

When you apply for this visa you must provide evidence of having applied for an Australian Federal Police check in the 12 months before you apply.

This also applies to all dependent family members in the application who are 16 years of age or older.

The AFP National Police Check Application Form is available from the Australian Federal Police website – either an online form or paper form. Visa applicants should tick Code 33 in Section 8 of the form. Fingerprints are not required.

You will be issued with a ‘National Police Check’ certificate which will have a ‘Complete Disclosure’ in the heading if your AFP police check is successful.

When you application is assessed, we might ask you to provide a police certificate from each country you have lived in for 12 months or more during the past 10 years after you turned 16 years of age.

 

Additional Requirements

Additional requirements may apply depending upon which stream you nominate when applying. Applicants cannot change the stream they have selected after their application has been made.

Government Visa Fees (AUD)

$1,470 for the primary applicant

$735 for secondary applicant over age 18

$370 for each additional secondary applicant under age 18

Additional charge may apply depending on the application method used.

Our Processing Fees vary case to case and are subject to the complexity of the case and amount of work involved. We also provide initial consultations for those who want to better understand the visa process and their options. Initial consultations fees range from $100-$200 or more depending on the complexity of your case.

How BMS Global Can Help You

BMS Global can assist you in preparing and lodging your 485 visa application by providing the following immigration services:

  • We will liaise with the Department of Immigration and Border Protection on your behalf, managing all correspondence and requests they put to us
  • We will provide advice relating to the your migration goals for your selected visa category
  • We analyse current Immigration Law relating to your nominated visa category and keep you informed of any changes to Immigration Law that will affect your application as Australian Immigration laws are complex and frequently changing and should be constantly analysed
  • We assist in the completion and checking of the relevant application forms
  • Providing advice and assistance relating to documentation required to support the application Prepare any necessary supporting submissions to the Department of Immigration and Border Protection
  • Submit or lodge your application to the relevant Assessing Authority or Department for processing as soon as possible.
  • Wherever possible, supply any further documentation or information requested by the Department on receipt of documents from the applicant.
  • Wherever possible, assist you to comply with any request made by the Department
  • Successful obtainment of subclass 485 graduate visas can give you the option to later apply for a permanent residency visa for Australia, and we will provide you the best possible advise for your dream to become a permanent resident of Australia

 

Please feel free to contact us anytime suitable to you and we can discuss the process involved in applying for a Subclass 485 visa.