The Australian government, led by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, has introduced changes to its immigration policy, offering special student visa fee concessions to eligible applicants from 23 countries.
 

Under the revised arrangements, students from selected nations will be able to apply for an Australian student visa at a reduced fee compared with the standard application charge.
 

The application fee for the primary applicant under Australia's Subclass 500 student visa programme was increased from AUD 2,000 to AUD 2,500 with effect from July 1, 2026. However, the government has decided to maintain lower fee rates for eligible students from 23 selected countries.
 

The countries covered under the concession include Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Timor-Leste.
 

The special fee arrangement also extends to eligible students from Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
 

Another important aspect of the revised policy is that eligible family members accompanying the primary student visa applicant can also benefit from the reduced fee arrangement, provided the main applicant meets the eligibility requirements.
 

However, India, Nepal and Pakistan have not been included in the list of countries covered by the special concession.
 

The revised arrangement provides financial relief to eligible international students from the selected countries seeking to pursue higher education in Australia.