Student visa financial requirements for Australia

What you actually have to evidence

The requirement is not a single number. A case officer wants to see that you can meet three things for the first twelve months: the living-costs amount above, the tuition on your Confirmation of Enrolment, and travel costs. If a partner or child is coming with you, the living-costs figure rises for each of them, and school costs are added for a school-age child.

Evidence that is accepted

• Bank statements in your name or a close relative’s, showing the funds are genuinely available.
• An education loan approved by a recognised bank or financial institution — a common and well-accepted route for students from South Asia.
• A scholarship or sponsorship letter stating exactly what it covers and for how long.
• Government loan schemes where your home country runs one.
• Evidence of a parent or spouse’s annual income, which some applicants use in place of a lump sum.

Whose money counts

The funds do not have to be yours. Money held by a parent, spouse, grandparent or other close relative is accepted where you can evidence the relationship and their genuine willingness and ability to support you. What is not accepted is money that clearly belongs to someone with no connection to you, or a balance that appeared days before lodgement with no explanation of where it came from.

How this connects to the Genuine Student requirement

Financial capacity and the Genuine Student (GS) requirement are assessed together. A file where the funding story does not match the applicant’s circumstances — a modest family income alongside a suddenly-appearing large deposit, or a course far more expensive than the family could plausibly sustain — raises questions under both. Answer the GS questions in your own words and make the funding narrative consistent with them.

Mistakes that get applications refused

• Quoting an out-of-date figure. The living-costs amount has been raised more than once in recent years. Check the Home Affairs page the week you lodge.
• Evidencing exactly the minimum. Currency movements and fees can push you under it. Leave a margin.
• Unexplained deposits. A large, recent, unsourced credit is one of the most common reasons a file is questioned.
• Forgetting dependants. Each accompanying family member increases the amount you must show.
• Assuming part-time work covers the gap. The 48-hours-a-fortnight work right is not counted as funding — the visa is assessed as if you will not work.