Federal Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke announced on September 17 that most international students will no longer be able to bring their partners, or children, to Australia.

Burke told the National Press Club that the ban covers new student visa applicants and people applying for the Temporary Graduate visa, which allows students to work here after completing their studies. He said the new measures will protect the “integrity” of the visa system.

Labor’s family ban is the latest in a series of measures that make it harder and more expensive for international students to come to Australia and stay after their graduate.

The Senate rejected Labor’s attempt to cap international student numbers in 2024. It then introduced other measures to reduce student numbers, including slower visa processing and higher fees.

The student visa application fee was $710 in 2023, rising to $1600 in 2024, $2000 in 2025 and $2500 in July. Applicants lose the fee if their visa application is refused. They must also show that they have at least $29,710 for a year’s living costs, on top of tuition and travel costs. 

The Temporary Graduate visa has also become more expensive. The application fee rose from $2300 at the start of the year to $4600 in March and $5750 in July. 

The road to permanent residency is also narrowing. In 2024–25, 12,637 people moved from a student visa to permanent residency. That was more than one-third fewer than the previous year. The government has also increased its scrutiny of students from some countries.

Who gets in? Who is left out? 

Last year, more than 45,000 visas went to family members of international students, according to research by Victoria University’s Mitchell Institute. 

Students from the Pacific and member countries of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) are exempt from the family ban. PhD candidates are also exempt. Families already in Australia can stay.

In January, Home Affairs moved India, Nepal, Bangladesh........

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