Australian Immigration Daily News

The Migration (LIN 20/158: Class of Persons for Student (Temporary) (Class TU) Visa Applications) Amendment Instrument 2026 (LIN 26/087) commences on 2 October 2026.

The instrument amends LIN 20/158 to specify exemptions relevant to further onshore Subclass 500 applications and the inclusion of family members under the revised Student visa framework.

Further onshore Student visa applications

The instrument specifies four categories of eligible primary Student visa holders who may apply for a further Student visa in Australia, subject to the remaining application validity requirements:

1. Doctoral students

Students enrolled in a course leading to the award of a doctoral degree.

2. Students affected by provider default

Students who require a new Student visa to complete an alternative registered course or courses because of provider default. The application must be made within 12 months of the default.

Provider default includes circumstances where a course does not commence as agreed, ceases before completion or is not provided in full.

3. Students requiring additional time to complete their principal course

Students who have commenced the principal course for which their current visa was granted and require a further visa to complete their studies.

Specific course, provider and completion timeframe requirements apply. The Explanatory Statement indicates that students who have transferred to a principal course with a different provider are not eligible under this provision.

4. Students demonstrating course progression

Students who have completed their principal course and seek to undertake further studies that satisfy the prescribed progression requirements.

Where the completed course has an Australian Qualifications Framework (AQF) level, the new course must have a higher AQF level. Additional requirements apply where the completed course was a higher education course delivered by a higher education provider.

Separate provisions address progression from courses without an AQF level, including certain foundation and school studies.

Family member exemptions

The instrument also specifies classes of eligible secondary applicants who are members of the family unit of:

• A student whose studies will be fully funded by a foreign government.
• A student undertaking a doctoral degree.
• A qualifying student affected by provider default.
• A qualifying student requiring additional time to complete their principal course.

For the provider default and principal course completion categories, secondary applicants must already hold Student visas linked to the same primary applicant. Further conditions and limitations apply.

These family eligibility exemptions do not independently establish a right to lodge onshore. Applicants must satisfy the applicable location requirements and all other application validity criteria.

Eligible family members must apply at the same time and place as the primary applicant.

Visa application charge changes

The instrument repeals three classes associated with COVID-era nil visa application charge arrangements.

It also removes a separate nil-charge class relating to subsequent applicants, consequential to the requirement for combined applications.

Implications for practitioners

Registered migration agents and migration lawyers should assess the detailed requirements of each exemption, including enrolment, course progression, provider history, relevant timeframes and existing family visa arrangements.

LIN 26/087 should be read alongside the Migration Amendment (Student Visa Reform) Regulations 2026 and the other instruments implementing the revised Student visa framework.

Source: Migration-LIN-20158-Classs-of-Persons-for-Student-Temporary-Class-TU-visa-application-Amendment-Instrument-2026.pdf and

Migration-LIN-20158-Classs-of-Persons-for-Student-Temporary-Class-TU-visa-application-Amendment-Instrument-2026-explanatory-statement.pdf