Temporary Graduate 485 Visa
Temporary Graduate 485 visa is introduced to provide opportunities for recent international graduates to stay in Australia after their graduations to seek work or other Australian employment opportunities for up to 4 years (depending on the streams) without the graduates first having to find any of the following:
an employer sponsor
an eligible Australian relative sponsor, living in a designated area
a nominating state/territory government.
+ What is Graduate 485 Visa Work stream?
This stream is available to recent graduates with an eligible qualification, who graduate with skills and qualifications that relate to an occupation that is listed on the Skilled Occupation list in Australia.
+ What is 485 Visa Post-Study Work stream?
The Post-Study Work stream is open only to recent overseas students from an eligible higher education degree from an Australian educational institution, regardless of their field of study. Please note this stream is only available to visa applicant whose first student visa was granted on the basis of that application was made on or after 5 November 2011.
What is the 485 Visa Application Process?
All 485 visa streams are required to satisfy the following requirements:
Study requirement:
Primary applicant must have satisfied the Australian study requirement in the period of 6 months immediately before and including the day the application was made (Please note: completion date is the critical date).
Unless the applicant is a passport holder of the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, the United States of America or the Republic of Ireland, the 485 visa applicant must provide evidence of competent English. The application must be accompanied by evidence the visa applicant have already achieved required English results.
Visa applicant must have made adequate arrangement for health insurance.
Must not have an outstanding debt to the Australian government.
All public interest criteria are met, particularly the health and character requirement
All persons included in the application will be required to undertake a medical examination prior to their visa being issued. When applying, all persons included in the application must:
declare whether they have a medical condition that is likely to require ongoing support from community or government services
declare whether they have been diagnosed with Tuberculosis or any other serious diseases that might be a threat to Australian Community
All persons included in the application will be required to obtain a police clearance certificate for all countries they have lived in for greater than twelve months in the last ten years.
When applying, all persons included in the application must provide all requested information, declare all criminal offences, truthfully answer all questions.
Particularly, the applicant must show that he or she had applied for an Australian Federal Police (AFP) National Police Check during the 12 months immediately before the day the application was made (along with any other secondary applicant who is at least 16 years old).
Additional criteria are for specific streams:
+ What is Stream 1: 485 Visa Graduate Work stream?
Study requirement:
primary applicant must have satisfied the Australian study requirement in the period of 6 months immediately before and including the day the application was made
Please note: completion date is the critical date
Primary applicants nominating for the Graduate Work stream must nominate in their application a skilled occupation specified, the study and nominated occupation must be closely related
The 485 visa applicant must have applied for a skills assessment for the purpose of this temporary visa at the time of application and must have obtained a positive result at the time of decision
+ What is 485 Visa Stream 2: Post-Study Work stream?
Study requirement:
primary applicant must have satisfied the Australian study requirement in the period of 6 months immediately before and including the day the application was made
Please note: completion date is the critical date
Eligible qualifications that are specified for the post-study work stream are:
Bachelor
Bachelor with Honours
Master by Coursework
Master (extended)
Master by Research and/or
Doctoral degree
What We Like About The 485 Visa
This Australian Visa provides any visa holders to:
live, work and study in Australia;
travel to and from Australia as many times as possible, while the visa is valid;
certain visa applicants may also apply for permanent residency and other temporary work visas, if eligible
there is also no sponsor or employer needed for this visa
Common Mistakes to avoid when applying for a 485 visa:
We have seen in the past that sometimes poorly prepared applications have the following mistakes:
the applicant sometimes misunderstood when does the period of 6 months finish
the applicant forgot to include the evidence of AFP checks at the time of application
the applicant has misunderstood what is an eligible qualification and therefore becomes ineligible for this visa