Australia to Hike International Student Visa Fees Again

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Australia’s ruling Labor Party has just announced a new plan to help fund some of its election promises — and it’s going to hit international students in the wallet.

If Labor wins re-election, the fee for a student visa will jump from $1,600 to $2,000 starting from July 1, 2025.

But it’s not just Labor making moves. The Coalition has its own plan to hike visa fees too, proposing a $5,000 application charge for students heading to the elite Group of Eight universities, and $2,500 for all other international students.

Both major parties are under pressure to explain how they’ll pay for their big election promises. Labor decided to go first, revealing the cost of everything they've announced since the March budget — even though the full official costings won’t be available until after the election.

At a joint press conference on Monday, Treasurer Jim Chalmers and Finance Minister Katy Gallagher showed they’d found another $1 billion in savings since the pre-election economic and fiscal outlook.

"We’ll finish this election campaign with the budget in a stronger position than when we started," Chalmers said.

So, where is Labor finding the extra cash?

One big chunk — around $760 million — will come from the visa fee hike. Importantly, students from Pacific Island nations and Timor-Leste won’t be affected by the changes.

Labor also plans to save $6.4 billion by cutting back on things like consultants, contractors, travel, hospitality, and other non-wage expenses. Gallagher stressed that these cuts won't mean slashing public service jobs or services — unlike the Coalition’s plan, which promises a massive cut of 41,000 public sector jobs.

As a result of these savings, Labor says the cumulative budget deficit will shrink slightly from $151.6 billion to $150.5 billion.

And what’s that money being spent on? It’ll help cover Labor’s big-ticket promise: a $1,000 instant tax deduction for work expenses, which is expected to cost around $2.4 billion.

Gallagher also took a swipe at previous Coalition budgets, saying Labor had managed to clean up a lot of "waste and rorts" and redirect that money into more meaningful investments — like boosting Medicare, expanding housing initiatives, cutting HECS debts, and of course, rolling out those income tax cuts.

“We returned that money to the budget, and it allowed us to deliver real help for Australians,” she said.

Would you like me to break down what this means if you're an international student thinking about studying in Australia?

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