Two changes to the Subclass 485 Temporary Graduate visa (the 485) have taken effect in 2026, and both are to the visa application charge. A third rule, which stops 485 holders applying for a Student visa in Australia, was remade on 2 October 2026. A fourth, restricting family members on 485 visas, has been announced but is not law.
The 485 is the visa that, in the Department of Home Affairs’ words, “allows international students to live, study and work after you have finished your studies”. If you are finishing a course, already on a 485, or planning around a partner or children, the difference between what is law and what is only announced matters. Here is where each of the new 485 visa rules for 2026 stands.
Status at 2 October 2026
- Application charge doubled for most applicants: in force since 1 March 2026.
- Further charge rise: in force since 1 July 2026.
- 485 holders cannot apply for a Student visa in Australia: in force since 1 July 2024, remade from 2 October 2026.
- Restriction on family members for 485 visas: announced on 17 September 2026, not yet law, no instrument and no start date.
1 March 2026: the application charge doubled
The first change came through the Migration Amendment (Temporary Graduate Visa Application Charge) Regulations 2026, which commenced on 1 March 2026. Their Explanatory Statement describes “a 100 per cent increase to the visa application charge (VAC)” for the 485 “for all applicants, with the exception of passport holders of certain countries”.
For a first 485, the base charge for most applicants went from AUD2,300 to AUD4,600. For a second 485 in the Post-Higher Education Work stream, it went to AUD1,810. Charges for family members, whether they apply with you or join later as subsequent entrants, rose in the same way.
The increase did not apply where the main applicant holds a passport from the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu or Vanuatu. Those applicants kept the previous charges.
The new amounts applied only to applications made on or after 1 March 2026. Anyone who had already lodged paid the old charge.
Why the charge went up
The government has treated it as a revenue measure. Budget Paper No. 2, released with the 12 May 2026 Budget, records it this way:
The Government increased the visa application charge for temporary graduate visa applicants by 100 per cent, excluding eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste applicants, with effect from 1 March 2026.
It estimated the measure would increase receipts by AUD1.2 billion over the five years from 2025-26, and noted it had already been provisioned for in the 2025-26 Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook. The measure description gives no other rationale.
1 July 2026: up again, to AUD5,750
On 1 July 2026 the charge rose a second time, as part of the visa application charge increase that took effect for most visas that day. The Home Affairs Legislation Amendment (2026 Measures No. 1) Regulations 2026 set the 485 charges that still apply:
| Application | Main applicant | Each additional applicant 18 or over | Each additional applicant under 18 |
|---|---|---|---|
| First 485, most applicants | AUD5,750 | AUD2,875 | AUD1,450 |
| Second Post-Higher Education Work stream, most applicants | AUD2,265 | AUD1,140 | AUD575 |
| First 485, main applicant holds a passport from one of the 13 countries above | AUD2,360 | AUD1,180 | AUD595 |
| Second Post-Higher Education Work stream, main applicant holds a passport from one of the 13 countries above | AUD930 | AUD465 | AUD235 |
For most first-time applicants, AUD5,750 is 25 per cent more than the March charge and two and a half times the base charge before 1 March. A graduate applying with a partner aged 18 or over now pays AUD8,625 in charges, before health checks, police certificates and other costs.
We covered the March rise when it happened in our article on the 485 fee increase.
485 holders have been barred from onshore Student visa applications since 1 July 2024
This rule is not new in 2026, but it was remade this year, so it is worth being clear about where it came from.
From 1 July 2024, an amending instrument known as LIN 24/051 added the whole of subclass 485 to the list of visas whose holders cannot make a valid Student visa application while in Australia. Its Explanatory Statement says holders of the listed visas “are prevented from making a valid application in Australia for a Student (Temporary) (Class TU) visa”, and that this applies “regardless of whether the non-citizen is the primary applicant or a member of the family unit of a primary applicant”.
So a partner on your 485 was caught by the rule as well as you.
The bar continues under the rules that started on 2 October 2026
The October student visa reforms carried that list into a new instrument, LIN 26/102, and expanded it. It now names 17 classes of visa holder, and item 10 is “Subclass 485 (Temporary Graduate)”, any stream, with no further conditions.
For 485 holders the position is the same as before: you need to be outside Australia to make a valid Student visa application. What has changed is the company. Working Holiday Maker (subclasses 417 and 462) and Skills in Demand (subclass 482) holders, among others, are now on the same list.
What this means if you hold a 485 and want to study again
The Department’s Student visa page, updated for the 2 October 2026 rules, is direct about it:
If you hold a visa as a primary or secondary holder on the list below you cannot apply for a student visa in Australia. There are no exemptions to this rule.
The 485 is on that list. The same page adds two consequences that can catch people out:
- Grant location. “If you applied from outside Australia, because you were not eligible to lodge your application in Australia, you must be outside Australia when the Student visa is granted.” The Department says it may ask you to leave Australia if you are here when the visa is ready to be granted.
- Invalid applications. An application lodged in Australia by someone who is not eligible is not accepted. The Department warns that “An invalid application outcome could affect your visa status” and that “Invalid decisions cannot be merits reviewed at the ART.”
If further study is part of your plan, the sequence of leaving Australia, lodging and grant is worth working out before your 485 ends. We explain the wider October changes in our guide to the new student visa rules.
Family members: what was announced on 17 September 2026
Status: announced only. Not law.
In his National Press Club speech on 17 September 2026, the Minister for Home Affairs and Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Tony Burke, said:
for international students, we will no longer be allowing the attaching of family members for international students or for graduate visas. Anyone who already has their family attached to a visa and is already here, we’re not going to be breaking up families onshore.
He went on to describe exceptions for the Pacific and ASEAN nations and for “certain courses, for example, PhD courses”. The speech did not say whether those exceptions would apply to graduate visas as well as student visas.
The 2 October 2026 statement: families already here protected
The Student visa family rules took effect on 2 October 2026. The 485 rules did not. Assistant Minister Julian Hill’s media release that day said:
Similar restrictions will apply to Temporary Graduate visas. The changes will not separate families already in Australia where family members hold Student or Temporary Graduate visas as secondary applicants.
Note the tense. “Will apply” is a statement of intention. As at 2 October 2026 we have found no amendment to the 485 rules on the Federal Register of Legislation, and the Student visa regulations that commenced that day amend Student visa provisions only. No start date has been given and no instrument has been published. In his keynote speech to the Migration Institute of Australia the same day, the Assistant Minister said “The same rules will apply to Temporary Graduate Visas”, straight after describing the Student visa exemptions and the end of subsequent entrant applications for students. That is still a statement of intention, and until the rules are written, exactly how the 485 change will work, including for partners and children who would otherwise join a 485 holder after grant, is not known.
The law on 485 family members today
Until the law changes, the current rules apply. The Department’s Post-Higher Education Work stream page, last updated on 24 September 2026, still lets family members who are in Australia apply with you, and says:
If you want to add your family member to your visa after we have granted it, they can apply as a subsequent entrant. They can apply from in or outside Australia.
A subsequent entrant is a family member who applies to join you after your visa has been granted. That option has now gone for Student visas, but as at 2 October 2026 it remains open for the 485. Family members still have to meet the health and character requirements, and a charge applies for each of them.
If your partner or children are on your Student visa now, the government’s statement that families already in Australia will not be separated is the part of the announcement to watch, because the detail has not been published. We look at the Student visa side in our article on student visa family members.
Frequently asked questions
What are the new rules for the 485 visa in 2026?
In force: two increases to the application charge this year, and a continuing bar on 485 holders applying for a Student visa in Australia, now under the October rules. Announced but not yet law: a restriction on family members for 485 visas.
How much does a 485 visa cost now?
As at 2 October 2026, the Department’s current visa pricing table lists a base charge of AUD5,750 for the Post-Higher Education Work and Post-Vocational Education Work streams, and AUD2,265 for the Second Post-Higher Education Work stream. Lower charges apply to eligible Pacific and Timor-Leste citizens.
Can I add a dependant to my 485 visa?
At present, yes. Family members who are in Australia can be included when you apply, and family members can apply later as subsequent entrants. The government has announced this will change, while protecting families already in Australia, but no law or start date has been published.
Can a 485 holder apply for a Student visa in Australia?
No. 485 holders, including family members who hold a 485 as secondary applicants, must be outside Australia to lodge a valid Student visa application. Where that rule is the reason you applied from outside Australia, you must also be outside Australia when the visa is granted.
Is the 485 visa once in a lifetime?
Generally, as a main applicant, yes. The Department says that if you previously held a 485 or 476 as a primary applicant, you cannot be granted the visa as a primary applicant again. The Second Post-Higher Education Work stream is the exception, for eligible holders of a Post-Higher Education Work (formerly Post-Study Work) stream visa.
Will families already in Australia be affected by the 485 family changes?
The government has said the changes will not separate families already in Australia where family members hold Student or Temporary Graduate visas as secondary applicants. How that protection will be written into the law is not yet known.
A realistic next step
If you are deciding when to lodge a 485, whether to bring a partner or children, or how further study fits after it, the order you do things in now carries real cost and real consequences. Our team advises on student and graduate visas, and you can speak to our team before lodging to map the timing against what is law today and what has only been announced.
About the author: Tina Nematian is the Principal Lawyer at One Planet Migration Law. She is an Australian Legal Practitioner and a Registered Migration Agent (MARN), and has guided clients through partner, skilled, employer-sponsored, student, and humanitarian visa applications across Australia.
This article is general information only and does not constitute legal or migration advice. Visa rules change frequently and outcomes depend on individual circumstances. Speak with a registered migration lawyer or agent before making any application. Figures were current as of October 2026; always check immi.homeaffairs.gov.au before lodging.
