Australia offers the ability to gain work experience and live in Australia once you have completed your studies. The visa for this is called the Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485).
There are currently two visa streams for post-study work rights - Graduate Work stream and the Post-Study Work stream.
For the latest and most up-to-date information about the Temporary Graduate visa, please visit the Department of Home Affairs.
With the Graduate Work stream, you can live and work for up to 18 months if you have graduated from an Australian institution. Hong Kong and British National Overseas passport holders may stay for 5 years.
Students that have graduated with a degree from an Australian institution can consider the Post-Study Work Stream which generally allows them to stay between 2 and 4 years, depending on the qualification.
Adelaide is a modern capital city with a population of 1.4 million people, however it is classified as a regional area for migration purposes. This provides added benefits for international students that choose to study a degree in Adelaide.
If you graduate with a degree from an institution in Adelaide, then you may be eligible for an adidtional 1 year of Post-Study Work Rights.
| Qualification | Stream | Australia1 | Adelaide |
|---|---|---|---|
| PhD | Post-Study Work | 4 years | 5 years |
| Masters degree | Post-Study Work | 3 years | 4 years |
| Bachelor degree | Post-Study Work | 2 years | 3 years |
| VET qualification | Graduate Work | 18 months | - |
1 Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane
Last updated: 27 March 2024
State nomination is when a state government (like the Government of South Australia where Adelaide is located), can nominate skilled migrants to meet South Australia's skills needs.
Prospective applicants who meet the requirements for their nomination stream can submit a Registration of Interest (ROI) to South Australia via the Skilled and Business Migration portal.
Please note to apply for state nomination, you must first submit an ROI, and then be invited to apply by South Australia.
There are three visa subclasses under the Australian General Skilled Migration program:
If you hold a Skilled Nominated visa, you’ll have permanent residency in Australia.
International student graduates are able to apply for state nomination in South Australia, and there are benefits for doing so:
Skilled + Business Migration SA provides detailed information about eligibility and the process involved to apply for state nomination under the South Australia Graduates stream.
There are several pitfalls and issues that can arise when trying to coordinate your migration on your own. A single mistake can significantly prolong your visa application process, or even jeopardise the validity of your application altogether. The good news is, many of these mistakes can be avoided with a bit of due diligence and some professional assistance.
Hiring a migration agent is an excellent way to mitigate some of these risks. These registered professionals have the most up-to-date information on current immigration laws and procedures. They use their expertise to guide you through your application, helping to prepare the relevant documentation and representing you at court proceedings if necessary.
Note that sometimes immigration agents are the same as migration agents.
You can find a migration agent by conducting your own online research or by consulting study abroad agencies, many of which have partnerships with migration agents. There are also some incoming changes to current regulations, which will allow you to seek migration advice from traditional law firms, so keep an eye out for updates.
If you are going to use a migration agent, they must be registered with the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority (MARA). Migration agents registered with MARA are the only people who can legally submit and/or process a visa application on your behalf. You can search for the name of your agent in the Register of Migration Agents to verify that they are registered.
Since a migration agent is going to be handling a lot of your personal information, you want to make sure you’re comfortable with whoever you choose. One of the best ways to ensure you find the right migration agent for you is to submit enquiries with a few different agents and see which one you feel most at ease with.
Consulting a few different agents is also a good way to make sure you are being fairly charged. MARA recommends contacting at least three agents to get a sense of how their fees and charges compare to one another.
Before you decide on your migration agent, see if you can find online reviews or testimonials from previous clients. If the agent has a great track record of helping people – particularly international students – successfully lodging their visa applications, this is a good sign that they will be able to help you as well.
Given that visa applications are time-sensitive, it’s extremely important that your migration agent responds to any enquiries you may have in a timely way. So, in your initial correspondence with an agent, pay attention to how quickly they reply to your messages and how thorough their answers are. This could be a sign of how responsive they will be when preparing and submitting your visa documents.
International students should not be unwilling to spend money on an initial consultation with a migration agent. Although the initial consult can be quite costly (roughly AU$300), this is a normal and necessary part of the process. This first appointment is a worthwhile investment as it provides a great deal of useful information and helps you understand the application fees, documents required, processing times, and the likelihood of visa approval.
If you have hired a migration agent and they are making promises to you that seem unrealistic or that they haven’t delivered on, this could be a bad sign.
For example, if a migration agent is charging you excess fees under the promise that your application will be approved, that could be indicative of fraudulent activity. Remember that no migration agent can influence the outcome of an application, fast-track the processing, or guarantee you a visa.
If you are not a native English speaker and would feel more comfortable handling your visa application in another language, it’s important that you find a migration agent who speaks that language, or who can arrange an interpreter for you. Legally, a migration agent must give you access to an interpreter if you request one.
Following your first meeting, it is standard for a migration agent to provide you with a written contract outlining their fees and services. If they are not readily offering this written agreement, it could be a sign of suspicious behaviour. Be sure to ask for a contract as well as any receipts for payments you make so you have a paper trail of your agreements with the agent.
The information contained in this article is general in nature only and does not constitute personal advice. The information has been prepared without taking into account your personal objectives, situation or needs. StudyAdelaide does not guarantee the accuracy of the information including information provided by third parties. Individuals must not rely on the information on this website to make decisions. Read the StudyAdelaide Disclaimer.
The information contained in this article is general in nature only and does not constitute personal advice. The information has been prepared without taking into account your personal objectives, situation or needs. StudyAdelaide does not guarantee the accuracy of the information including information provided by third parties. Individuals must not rely on the information on this website to make decisions. Read the StudyAdelaide Disclaimer.
