Temporary Graduate Visa – Subclass 485

If you’ve been studying in Australia and want to move towards Permanent Residence, the Temporary Graduate Visa– Subclass 485 is an excellent route. There are four streams for this visa type and we shall see them in detail- see which one suits your needs best and begin your application process. It is better to start exploring options while you’re still enrolled and studying in university because it leaves sufficient time for the 485 visa processing time and document process. When you finish reading this, you will be feeling much more hopeful about extending your stay in Australia.  

Overview of Temporary Graduate Visa – Subclass 485

The Temporary Graduate Visa subclass 485 provides four options for graduates to apply to. All of these have slightly different eligibility criterias but the common ones are listed below

-You should have held a student visa for the past six months 

-Be under the age of 50 

-Your occupation should be in the skilled occupation list and your degree should match with the occupation (not if you are applying before 30th June 2023). You will also be assessed by the authorities to test if you have the skills required for the occupation

–Health insurance for all applicants (you and any dependents applying with you) is required

-You and any family member above the age of 16 applying with you should have Australian Police clearance to fulfil character requirement 

-For the 485 visa English requirements, you should have the required English proficiency (exemption for passport holders of United Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada, New Zealand or the Republic of Ireland) proven by either IELTS, PTE, TOEFL iBT, OET or the Cambridge C1 Advanced Test) 

The four visa streams are 

• Graduate Work stream (processing time for 90% of the applications is 15 months) 

• Post-Study Work stream (processing time for 90% of the applications is 14 months)

• Second Post-Study Work stream (processing times can vary)

• Replacement stream (processing times can vary)

Eligibility requirements for Temporary Graduate Visa – Subclass 485

Besides the common 485 visa requirements for all four streams, let’s look at the eligibility criterias for all the four categories mentioned above: 

Graduate Work stream

• You must have been awarded one degree, diploma or trade qualification in a CRICOS registered course that you studied in English
• All your course requirements must be fulfilled and you must have completed the 92 weeks (2 academic years) of study 

Post-Study Work stream

• For this visa, you do not need to have a relevant field of study in a certain occupation list but it should be CRICOS registered 
• If you have earned a bachelor degree, bachelor (honours) degree, masters by coursework degree, masters (extended) degree, masters by research degree or doctoral degree during your studies in Australia, you are eligible for this visa 
• Your first student visa should have been granted on or after 5 November 2011

Second Post-Study Work stream

• If you held the Temporary Graduate visa in the post-study work stream or were granted the replacement stream visa on its basis, you are eligible for this type  
• You must have studied in an Australian education institute that was located in a specific regional area
• If you were living or working in one of the above mentioned areas under the Temporary Graduate visa post-study work or replacement stream, you have to provide proof  

Replacement stream

• Under the Post study work visa or Graduate Work stream visa, if you lost time due to COVID-19 travel restrictions, you can extend your stay time if you had applied for these visas before 15 December 2021
• You have to apply before 1 January 2027

Opportunities and benefits of Temporary Graduate Visa – Subclass 485

Each stream under the umbrella of the Temporary Graduate Visa subclass 485 offers a different set of privileges:

• Graduate work stream: You can stay in Australia for up to 18 months (5 years for residents of Hong Kong and British Overseas passport holders). Currently, for applications submitted after December 1 2021, this stay is extended to 24 months. With this visa, you can live, work and study in Australia and bring family members as well 

• Post-Study Work stream: With this visa, you will get all the privileges that you do with the Graduate work stream and there is an additional benefit of extending your stay from 2 to 4 years.  

• Second Post-Study Work stream: Live, work and study in Australia for 1 to 2 years, depending on the regional area that you stayed in 

• Replacement stream: Your stay will be any length between 18 months and 5 years, depending on your qualification or the type of Temporary Graduate visa you held before 

Conditions and restrictions for Temporary Graduate Visa – Subclass 485

• You can not apply for this visa if you already held the Temporary Graduate visa 485 or the visa subclass 476
• You should not have any visa cancelled or refused while you were in Australia. Check here for your specific stream  
• You should not owe any debt to the Australian government 

The application process for Temporary Graduate Visa – Subclass 485

To start your visa application process, make an account on the Australian immigration website and upload the following list of scanned documents (files should not exceed 5MB) according to the Australian Eastern Standard Time (AEST): 

• School records
• Proof of completed education
• Australian Federal Police (AFP) check for all the applicants that were taken within 12 months so you should attach receipt number and payment receipts as well 
• Health insurance of all the applicants 
• English proficiency test results (the test should not have been taken 3 years prior to application)
• For Graduate Work Stream, evidence of your application for skills assessment 
• Copies of your passport 

After this you might be called for an interview or submission of biometrics. 

The costs associated with Temporary Graduate Visa – Subclass 485

There will be costs associated with the documents mentioned above but the major cost would be the 485 visa fee: 

• Fee for Graduate Work stream,  Post study Work stream and Replacement stream starts from AUD 1,730 
• Fee for Second post study work stream starts from AUD 680

Frequently asked questions about Temporary Graduate Visa – Subclass 485

How do I check if my occupation is eligible for the visa? 

You can check against this list

Is 485 a migration visa? 

No this is just a temporary work visa to get on-shore work experience  

Do I have the right to work full time with this visa? 

Yes, absolutely. This visa allows you to work full-time