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New student visa regulations were published by the Australian government, closing a loophole that foreign students, especially Nigerians, had been using to lower the cost of their studies there.
A student visa now requires more money in savings than before.
This will have an effect on foreign students who intend to study in Australia.
Additionally, there is an augmentation in the financial reserves required to secure a student visa.
These changes are going to have a big impact on overseas students who are thinking about studying in Australia.
Prior until recently, the “concurrent study” provision allowed international students to take additional courses in addition to their primary studies.
By enabling them to take short courses in addition to their main university courses, this rule was initially implemented to aid students in preparing for the labor market.
However, the government has observed that many students were abusing this regulation to drop out of their university courses and switch permanently to less expensive ones.
Australian Education Minister, Jason Clare, stated, “This change will work to stop predatory ‘second’ providers from enrolling students before they have studied for the required six months at their first provider.”
When compared to the same period in 2019 and 2022 combined, there was a considerable rise in the utilization of concurrent study, with 17,000 concurrent enrollments produced in the first half of 2023.
The Australian government is boosting the savings requirement for international students to acquire a student visa in addition to removing the “concurrent study” loophole.
International students will now be required to show proof of savings totaling A$24,505 (about N12.10 million) as of October 1, 2023, a 17% increase from the previous requirement of roughly N10 million.
The fourth-largest export industry for Australia is international education, according to the education minister, and preserving the sector’s integrity is essential for the economy of the nation.
This change comes as a blow to students from Nigeria and other countries who had been using the “concurrent study” provision to lower the cost of their studies in Australia.
According to a post by voiceofnigeria.org.ng, a Nigerian expatriate provided a thorough calculation of the cost of moving to the United Kingdom.
The study was intended to give advice to Nigerians traveling as singles, married couples, or families, even though it was stated that this was merely an estimate.
Nigerians are travelling to the UK in record numbers, mostly for academic reasons.
It will surely be harder for overseas students, especially Nigerians, to afford to study in Australia due to the country’s new student visa regulations, which include closing the “concurrent study” loophole and raising the savings requirement.
How this will affect the number of foreign students choosing Australia as their study destination and the implications it will have on the Australian educational system and the nation’s economy are still to be determined.
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