Student Living Costs Requirement Increased

From 1 January 2010, the basic rate of living costs under the Migration Regulations will increase from the previous rate of $12 000 per year. Under the new regulations prospective Student visa applicants and their family members must have access to the following funds to meet the living costs requirements:

• $18 000 per year for the main student
• $6300 per year for the student’s partner
• $3600 per year for the student’s first child
• $2700 per year for every other child; and where required
• demonstrate that the funds they are relying upon to meet the costs of studying in Australia will be genuinely available to them during their stay in Australia.

Officers of the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) assessing Student visa applications will have the discretion to consider a Student visa applicant’s circumstances to determine if the student genuinely holds the funds to which they claim to have access. This includes checking:

• a prospective student’s previous financial and immigration history
• the employment history of the student or the person providing the student with financial support
• the source of the income used (for example, cash assets or a bank loan).

Where there is doubt about the student’s ability to access their claimed funds in Australia, the prospective student may be requested to provide further information in support of their application. For example, students relying upon a bank loan may need to show that these funds have been deposited into a bank account to which they have unrestricted access, and that they have the financial capacity to service the loan both before they depart for Australia and once they arrive.