This morning and unexpectedly, student visa rates have been hiked again. No announcements from Ministers, no consultation, and those in the know are not happy; the Koala suspects the sentiment will be similar across the sector.
Phil Honeywood, CEO of the International Education Association of Australia, says “The sector would expect far more from a Labor government than zero consultation and treating it yet again as a cash cow for unrelated budgetary expenditure items.
As for the new ELICOS visa. It’s a total strawman rather than discounting this new visa to bring life back into an affordable ELICOS sector, it’s also cynically increased by 50 dollars from the previous standard visa rate.
We’ve been arguing for two years for a separate ELICOS visa fee; what’s now being delivered will continue to price Australia out of the global English language market.”
Ian Aird, CEO of English Australia, picks up on this sentiment.
He says “I think I speak for more than just the ELICOS sector when I say we are incensed by this set of visa fee increases. Our government is actively destroying jobs and making Australia highly unpopular on a global scale – treating the future business leaders of the world who might have come here, learned our language and culture and become lovers and promoters of Australia, as cash cows that this government can tax at will and in complete disproportion to what is acceptable or reasonable.
Our visa fees were already the most expensive in the world, this is absurd. A person wishing to study English in the USA is charged less than one third the fee of the Australian visa.
Yet again the damaging change to the student visa regime comes without discussion. It comes without care for the Australians who will lose their jobs or the Australian businesses it will destroy – and not just in the education sector. ELICOS students contribute significantly to international tourism, retail, hospitality. The damage done by past visa fee hikes has seen ELICOS numbers fall 60% to 20-year lows costing 1000s of Aussie’s their livelihoods. This new fee increase will drive that further.
It’s notable that ELICOS has been given a $50 fee increase, not the full $500 increase. It’s a small mercy when the $2,000 fee has already demonstrably decimated the sector. This also signals the government has no intention to lower the application charge for ELICOS despite acknowledging the massive damage done to the sector by the $1,600 cum $2,000 application charge. It also makes clear that, despite consistently claiming that a separate visa fee for ELICOS is impossible, it’s clearly not impossible but this government is comfortable with the number of jobs lost and the destruction of a once thriving sector that contributed so much to making Australia a loved destination for English language students and travellers who use to come for 4 or 5 months of student, a few months of tourism and adventure, and then back home to praise Australia and welcome Australian’s travelling in their countries.”
The new visa prices are as follows (sub class 500):
Student – from $2000 to $2500
ELICOS – From $2000 to $2050*
Non Award – From $2000 to $2050*
Foreign Affairs or defence – $0
Secondary Exchange – $0
*Previously, the ELICOS and Non-Award were standard student visa fees.
Graduate Visa (485) – From $4,600 to $5,750
In the space of two years, the student visa fee has risen from $710 to $2500, a 252 per cent increase. (1 July 2024 from $710 to $1600. 1 July 2025 to $2000 and today to $2500).
In a conversation with one learned reader this morning, the Kubler-Ross five stages of grief were mentioned: denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. The learned reader made the statement that perhaps there is a sixth stage – alcohol dependency.
The sector is dismayed today, and, as another learned reader asks, “What more can this government do to kill what was once, and not too long ago, a vibrant sector that was a national treasure?”
The new visa rates can be seen here.
