Decision to renew the visa must be thought out

Sunday, 6 of Jun 2016
By Jaqueline Zavoneli

From 1^st July, changes in the visa application process are going to happen

For the majority of students who come to Australia to make an exchange, one of the first and major decisions to be taken is about the renovation: stay or not stay more? For most South Americans, the options are limited, only people from Argentina, Uruguay and Chile can take the Working Holiday Visa.

Many factors might be considered the decision to stay, such as money, time away from home and projections for the career. Once decided, however, the step-by-step must be followed to ensure the approval of the new visa.

There are several classes of student visas for Australia - the one you need depends on the type of study you are planning to take, for example English language course, graduate degree, vocational training or higher education. According to Eduardo Bermudez, the Agency Manager from Information Planet Brisbane, the visa application process can be done by yourself or through an agency. “We have some cases of people applying alone, but it is not usual. We advise the students because there are so many schools and so many ways to apply, so the person must have time to sit and read. If you have this time, you can apply”, he said.

As explained by the manager, the first thing is to think about what do you want to do. “The whole idea is to help them not only avoid issues with the visa but to take them to the way to have the best education. Obviously depends on price, availability and other things”, stated.

To Paula Perrone, Education Consultant from 2be Study Group, the most difficult thing is to be sure about what course and for long stay in Australia. “A minority has problems also to prove financial support. But the decision about what to do is the one that takes time”, said.

In most cases, student visa is in the majority option that people choose because this is the way to get other options in the future. Despite this, the main concern is about being honest. In other words, you need to demonstrate that your studies are continuous and progressive and make sense in career building. “Every time you apply the visa, you need to think about the future because what happens is, for the Immigration, the student visa is not a permanent visa and they hope that at the end you take a plane and go back”, explained Bermudez.

Once decided where to study and for how long, you need to apply to the education provider. To apply direct, students can download the application form from the education provider's website. Most institutions are partners with a number of agents, which are going to ask for supporting documentation to send with the application.

If your application is successful, you will receive a ‘Letter of Offer’, that is a contract between the student and the institution. Do not accept the Letter of Offer if you are not happy with any of its terms. After your offer being accepted and the money deposit made, an ‘Electronic Confirmation of Enrolment’ (eCoE) will be received by email.

The next step is applying for the visa, which is going to be granted as long as you meet financial requirements and health insurance determined by the Australian Government Department of Immigration.

Changes from 1^st July

From 1st July, the Australian Government Department of Immigration, is going to do a lot of changes in the visa application process. “We have some expectations about this transition. We believe there will not be any sub class anymore. Probably all visas are going to be named ‘student visa subclass 500’, with no more difference. Another changed might be the introduction of a new Risk Frame Work”, said Bermudez. Nowadays, just the countries have a risk level. “Basically this change might be just to ensure the schools to be genuine as well as the students”.

Other expected changes are about the migration to an entire online system, the possibility to apply from the tourist visa to the student visa being in Australia and an established limit to the application procedure.