Australia travel gets tougher for Gujaratis?: Immigration rules changed; spouses barred from student visas, who gains, who loses? – Ahmedabad News

Australia travel gets tougher for Gujaratis?:Immigration rules changed; spouses barred from student visas, who gains, who loses?
Ahmedabad19 hours agoAuthor: Sagar Sarthi Mohanbhai

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Arth from Ahmedabad had been dreaming of settling in Australia with his wife, Anaya. He planned to go there on a student visa for a master’s degree and later bring his wife on a dependent visa. But those plans may now face a setback as the Australian government has announced several important changes to student, visitor and other visas

Australian Immigration Minister Tony Burke announced this on 17 September, though the detailed rules have not yet been framed. The changes are expected to be implemented shortly. The Australian Immigration Department wants to make student visas easier, but plans to impose restrictions on dependent visas

Divya Bhaskar spoke to Maulik Rawal, owner of Aspire Consultancy and an Australian immigration expert, and immigration expert Parthesh Thakkar about the upcoming changes and their impact on Gujarati students

Until now, students pursuing master’s degree programmes in Australia could take their dependants, spouses and children, with them. Under the new plan, however, only single students will be granted student visas. Last year, 3.37 lakh international student visas were approved, including 45,000 dependent visas. The Australian government has taken this decision to prevent dependent visas from reducing opportunities for genuine students. Around 50,000 Indian students typically receive Australian visas every year.

The move has both positive and negative effects. The quota for single students, which was reduced because of dependent visas, will no longer be reduced, increasing their chances of getting visas. However, married students applying for a visa will have to travel alone and will not be able to take their spouse or children with them

<img src="https://jiuniversity.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/australia-student-visa_1790006548.jpg” alt=””>

Immigration expert Parthesh Thakkar told Divya Bhaskar that married students will no longer be able to take their husband or wife to Australia on a student visa. Students already studying in Australia or living there with their spouse will not face any problems, but new applications are likely to face difficulties. Restrictions will also apply to students who change their courses during their studies.

What should students wanting to go with their spouse keep in mind? Advising students who currently want to apply with their spouse, Maulik Raval said

Benefit to students in finding jobs Dependants travel to Australia and work. If restrictions are now imposed on dependants, students’ chances of finding work will increase. They may be able to find good jobs based on the permitted working hours, so this is a welcome and beneficial announcement for students

Further study to be allowed, but not a lower-level course

Under the new rules, students who complete a bachelor’s degree in Australia will have to move on to a higher-level course, such as a master’s. They will no longer be allowed to enrol in diploma or lower-level courses to extend their stay, a practice some students followed when their chances of getting PR after graduation were low. Those pursuing a master’s may have a chance to extend their stay.

On visitor visas, Maulik Raval said they had been misused as people often entered Australia as visitors and then applied for student, work or other eligible visas to stay. To prevent this and support genuine visitors, the Australian Government has introduced a ‘No Further Stay’ condition

Australian Immigration Minister Tony Burke

Regarding the ‘No Further Stay’ condition, he said that after obtaining a visitor visa here and travelling there, you cannot apply for any other type of visa. Once your visa expires, you will have to return. The aim is to restrict such non-genuine applicants-people who wanted to use a visitor visa to apply for another temporary visa. There is no plan to restrict genuine visitors because the Australian Government wants genuine visitors to come to Australia, whether they are travelling on a tourist visa, a family visa or a business visa.

What is a bridging period? If you entered Australia on a visitor visa, your visa is about to expire, and you have applied for a student visa in the meantime, you will be granted a bridging visa until a decision is made on your student visa application. This bridging visa officially allows you to stay and work in Australia while you wait between the two visas – after your first visa has expired and before the second visa is granted.

“The current immigration quota is 2.95 lakh. The target is to reduce it to 2.45 lakh next year and then to 2.25 lakh the following year. This quota includes all types of visas, including skill-based, temporary, and family visas. We should not assume that this means the doors are closing on skill-based immigration. Skill-based immigration refers to people obtaining permanent residency directly based on their work experience, qualifications, and language ability. The annual quota for such visas is still around 1.10 lakh to 1.20 lakh, and if the overall quota is reduced, the cut may come from temporary visas.”

What should students, visitors or PR aspirants keep in mind at present? Australia has always welcomed genuine applicants. Their applications are being assessed genuinely. When applying for a student visa, applicants should choose courses that they will not need to change after going there. For example, if you want to pursue a bachelor’s degree, you should enrol in an appropriate bachelor’s course and go there. If you realise after arriving there that you do not want to pursue that course and want to do a diploma instead, you will have to return to your home country. Students are advised to conduct proper research in their own country. If they have a consultant, they should seek the consultant’s advice and go to Australia only after choosing a relevant course aligned with their career progression, so that they do not face any problems after arriving there.

Announcement has been made, but when will it be implemented? The Australian Immigration Department has already made this announcement. It will now become law and be implemented. There is a 100% chance that it will be implemented in the coming months

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Source: www.bhaskarenglish.in