Financial Requirements for Australia Student Visa: Everything You Need to Know

06 Sep 2024
Financial Requirements for Australia Student Visa: Everything You Need to Know | Abroad Cube

Australia is a booming Study Destination for International Students worldwide due to its high-ranking Universities, Top-notch Education Systems and Work Opportunities. To get accepted by Universities and approved by Australian Immigration comes with certain steps and regulations to ensure that the student is genuine and has enough resources to achieve the final goal of graduating from Australian Universities. 

 

What is Proof of Funds for Australia Student Visa?

The Proof of Funds refers to the financial documents of the student and their sponsors proving the student's financial capacity to Study Abroad in Australia. The evidence is asked to ensure that student has enough funds to pay their University Fees, Living Expenses and other expenses that will arise during the process. 

 


 

Why do Australian Universities and Immigration require Proof of Funds?

To maintain integrity and university ranking standards, Australian Universities ask for Proof of Financials to validate that student have enough funds to pay the University Fees and maintain themselves during their study in Australia. This is also a part of the "Genuine Student" criteria. After verifying all the required documents and financials, they issue a Letter of Admission (LOA), which is required to start the Student Visa process.

 


 

How much funds are required for an Australia Student Visa?

International students who want to study in Australia must have ₹38-40 Lakhs, including one year's tuition fee, living expenses, travel expenses, health insurance and Visa fees.   

  • Tuition fee: The tuition fee of an Australian university varies from course to course. However, the average cost is ₹18-₹19 lakh per annum (~AUD 33,500).
  • Living expense: The cost of living depends on the lifestyle you adopt during the stay, but the minimum annual cost of living as per Australian Immigration is ₹17 Lakhs (AUD 29,710).
  • Travel expense: The cost of traveling depends upon your Airline or class of your airline, while the average cost of traveling is ₹1.25 Lacs (AUD 2500), covering various other costs.
  • Health insurance: The annual cost of OSHC is almost ₹42 thousand (AUD 750), which is mandatory to insure yourself during your study as you have to insure yourself in advance before traveling to Australia.
  • Visa fee: The application fee for Australia Student Visa is ₹91,000 (AUD 1600)
Expense AUD INR
Tuition Fees A$ 33,500 ₹18,50,000
Living Expenses A$ 29,710 ₹16,80,000
Traveling Expenses A$ 2500 ₹1,45,000
Health Insurance A$ 750 ₹42,000
Visa Fees A$ 1600 ₹91,000
Total ~A$ 68,000 ~₹38,00,000

The expenses vary from student to student, as some students choose expensive programs at Top universities which are expensive. The cost of living also depends upon the location in which you live. As some students like to live luxurious lives, their living expenses will be higher than the average cost. Additionally, the cost of visa fees and health insurance is fixed. However, the cost of traveling will fluctuate from time to time.

 


 

Acceptable Funding Proofs

There is more than one way to prove that you have enough funds to cover your Studies in Australia. We usually suggest students to provide multiple Funding Proofs for higher approval chances. The List of acceptable methods varies based on University and Application. There might be a possibility that a particular piece of evidence is asked from one applicant and waived in another.

Education Loans

Getting an education loan is the most acceptable proof of funds. As suggested by Australian Universities, the Education Loan must be secured and financed by the Government/Private Bank in India.

However, many students cannot provide Collateral or be eligible for an Education Loan from the Nationalized Bank. So, they move to NBFCs for Unsecured Loans. Unsecured education loans are equally accepted by certain Australian universities if they are sanctioned and disbursed to the student's bank account. However, it must be disbursed before the visa application in all situations, regardless of whether it is bank/NBFC or secured/unsecured. Also, the disbursed amount must cover the first semester fees and living expenses.

If the Education Loan is secured against a Collateral, you must provide a Valuation Report of the property or the fixed deposit receipt. The Security or the Collateral should belong to an immediate family member.

You must submit a Sanction Letter, Disbursement Letter, Balance Certificate and Bank Statement as proof of funds in case you choose an Education Loan.

Bank Balance

Having a good Bank Balance is also an option to provide Evidence of the availability of required funds. This is the most commonly used evidence proof of students from India. As per regulations, the funds must be 3 months old, but recent funds are accepted in certain conditions. Still, some universities are keen on knowing the source of funds in some applications, so they ask for the source of funds even if it is 3 months old.
Some Universities accept recent funds if they are received from genuine sources, as listed below.

  • Registered Sale Deed
  • Liquidating Fixed Deposits
  • Liquidating Shares, Investments and Mutual Funds
  • Funds transferred from PF Accounts
  • Funds transferred from Co-Operative Banks
  • Sale of Car and Other Equipment for smaller deposits

To prove the source of recent funds in your Bank Account, you must provide related documents such as receipts.

Please note that Australian Universities and Immigration Departments do NOT accept the following sources of recent funds due to the higher chances of non-genuine.

  • Sale of Gold Ornaments
  • Agreement to Sale of Property
  • Agreement of Repaying Loan
  • Funds transferred by third-party sponsors

Government, private, or regional rural banks must issue a balance certificate and bank statement. A concerned person at the Bank Branch should sign and stamp it. The Bank branch must be in your locality, or you must share valid evidence of recent relocation. The Australian Embassy in India bans certain bank branches due to the higher number of fake documents.

Fixed Deposits

In the case of fixed deposits with large amounts, the volume of funds deposited in fixed deposits must match the sponsors' annual income. If they are not in appropriate proportion, then sources of deposits might be asked. The other condition is that the maturity date should be more than the expected Course Starting date.

The fixed deposit certificates must be issued by government banks such as State Bank of India or Union Bank OR private banks like HDFC, ICICI and Axis, or regional rural banks. Certificates issued by Finance Companies are generally NOT considered.

Sponsorship

Having a financially earning sponsor for an Australia Student Visa is acceptable but has few restrictions. The acceptable sponsors are Father, Mother, Brother, Sister, Uncle, Aunt, and Grandparents. The relations such as Cousins, Family Friends and distant relatives are generally not considered. If the relationship with the sponsor is Uncle or Aunt, refrain from showing more than 25% of total expenditure.

Income Tax Returns

The least common method of proving Financial Capacity is to provide parents' or spouses' Income Tax Returns for the last 3 years. An annual minimum of AUD 87,856 (~Rs 50 Lacs) for a single applicant and AUD 102,500 (~Rs 58 Lacs) for the couple. This is the alternative way of proving Financial capacity if you do not have other evidence.

 


 

Non-Acceptable Funding Proofs

Some evidence is NOT accepted by Australian authorities due to liquidity issues, varying market value, and lack of proper verification methods. Here is the list

  • Funds in the Post Office
  • Funds in Co-operative Banks
  • Investment in Shares & Mutual Funds
  • Funds held in the Provident Fund account of GPF and EPF
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