Kathmandu. The Australian government has again drastically increased student visa fees.
According to the latest decision, the student visa application fee has been increased from AUD 2,000 to AUD 2,500. In addition, a separate fee structure of $2,050 has been set for the first time for students pursuing English language courses.
Earlier, such students were also paying fees like normal students. In view of the short duration of the language course and the declining enrollment rate, the businessmen demanded to reduce the fee, but the government instead increased the fee. However, some discounts have been arranged for students from the Pacific Ocean region and ASEAN countries.
Likewise, the fee for the ‘Temporary Graduate Visa’, which allows you to stay and work in Australia after completing your studies, has been increased by 25 percent to 5,750 Australian dollars. This visa fee, which was $2,300 at the beginning of this year, was doubled to $4,600 in March. With the recent increase, the fee has become 150 percent more expensive than at the beginning of the year.
However, Australia’s higher education and student organizations have expressed strong anger over this move by the government.