Applying as Student Dependent Visa

International students studying on an accredited course for more than 12 months are able to bring immediate family members as dependents. Immediate family members include spouses, de facto partners and children under the age of 18 who are unmarried. These close family members will be eligible for dependent student visas.

Your family also needs to fulfill GTE requirement.

When applying for your student visa if you are married then your dependents must be included in the application process even if they are not intending to travel with you. If you do not include them then they will not be eligible for dependent visas once you are in Australia. An exception to this rule is if they become a part of your family after you have made your application for your student visa and after it has been granted to you.

ELIGIBILITY FOR AN AUSTRALIAN DEPENDENT STUDENT VISA

To qualify for an Australian dependent student visa the following criteria must be met:

DEPENDENT SPOUSE OR DE FACTO PARTNER

• You and your spouse must be married
• If the dependent is your de facto partner then you must have been living together for at least 12 months and share a genuine relationship, you will also need to present proof for this.

Dependent Child

• The child must be yours or your spouse/partners child
• The child must be under 18 years of age and still continuing his education
• The child must not be married or in a de facto relationship.

DOCUMENTS REQUIRED

• If you are intending for your dependent family members to travel with you then you must include them in your original Application form (student application visa).
• If you are applying for your dependent family members to join you and your course has already commenced and you are in Australia then you must supply the following documents.

1. Nomination of student dependents form
2. Application form for student visa
3. An original letter from your education provider detailing the course you are undertaking, its duration, expected date of completion and if you are satisfying course requirements.
4. Evidence of your financial ability to support yourself and your dependents.
5. Evidence of your relationship this may include your marriage certificate, birth certificate etc.
6. Evidence of enrollment at a school for your children, if the proposed period of stay is 3 months or longer.
7. Evidence of health insurance for each and every dependent.
8. Certified copies of all of the pages of your passport including your current student visa.
9. Relationship Summary and Evidence of living together.

WORKING RIGHTS FOR YOUR DEPENDENT STUDENT VISA

• Dependent partners are eligible to work while in Australia, the extent of these rights will vary depending on the course of study.
• A dependent partner can study in any course that is 3 months or less.
• If the student is studying a bachelor’s degree then the partner will be able to work up to 40 hours per fortnight.
• If the student is studying a masters or doctorate degree the dependent partner will have unlimited work rights.

STEPS TO FOLLOW

1. This will require a Nomination form to be filled out in which you will need to sign too.
2. Prepare all required documentation that you will need to submit for your application.
3. Send the completed nomination form along with all of the required documents to your dependent overseas.
4. Your spouse must complete the Application form for an Australian student dependent visa.
5. Your spouse will then have to send both the completed Application form and the Nomination form along with the supporting documents to an Australian consulate near him/her.
6. Full payment of fees is required at the time of lodging all of the documentation.
7. Once the information has been assessed the dependent visa will then be issued and your dependent will have to collect it within the time allocated.

Tags: Student Visa, Dependent Visa, Immigration, Australia, DIBP