Partner of a Subclass 500 Student Visa Holder
The rules for family members of student visa holders changed on 2 October 2026. A partner or dependent child can no longer be added after the student visa has been granted. Family members must now apply together with the student, at the same time and place, and only where the student or the family member falls within one of the circumstances set out in the Migration Regulations 1994. Families already in Australia on that date are treated separately.
Key facts
In force
Applications made on or after 2 October 2026
Application type
Combined with the student, same time and place
Subsequent entrants
No longer available
Health cover
OSHC required
Whose family can still be included
A family member means a member of the family unit of the student: a spouse or de facto partner, and dependent children. From 2 October 2026 a family member can apply for a student visa only where one of the following applies to the student.
Defence and Foreign Affairs students
Family members of a Defence student or a Foreign Affairs student can be included.
Pacific and ASEAN passport holders
Family can be included where the student holds a passport from a Pacific regional country, or from Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand or Vietnam.
Foreign government scholarship students
Family can be included where the student is enrolled in a course, or courses, that are all fully funded by a foreign government.
Doctoral students
Family can be included where the student is enrolled in a course leading to the award of a doctoral degree.
Provider default
Where the student needs a further visa because their education provider defaulted, a family member who already holds a student visa as that student's family member can be included.
Completing the principal course
Where the student needs a further visa to finish a principal course within 12 months of the end date on the confirmation of enrolment, a family member who already holds a student visa as that student's family member can be included.
A student who applies in Australia for a further visa to progress to a higher course is not on this list. That student's family can be included only on another basis, most often because the family member already held a student visa on 2 October 2026.
Families already in Australia on 2 October 2026
The Regulations protect existing family units. A family member who is in Australia and held a student visa as a family member on 2 October 2026 can be included in the student's further application. The same applies to a family member who had applied before that date and was granted the visa afterwards.
A child born in Australia on or after 2 October 2026 can also be included, where the parent held a student visa in their own right on that date or had applied for one that was later granted. Under section 78 of the Migration Act 1958, a child born in Australia to a visa holder is generally taken to hold the same visa as the parent from birth, so the question usually arises at the next application.
Both protections operate only where the application is made in Australia. They therefore depend on the student being permitted to apply in Australia, which from 2 October 2026 is itself limited. The student visa page sets out which students may still do so.
One application, same time and place
An eligible family member must apply at the same time and place as the student, in a combined application. Before 2 October 2026 this was optional. It is now a requirement for a valid application.
Two consequences follow. A family member cannot be added later, including a partner from a relationship that begins after the grant or a child born outside Australia. And where any one applicant is outside Australia, or is required to apply from outside Australia, the whole family must apply from outside Australia.
A subsequent entrant application made before 2 October 2026 is not affected. The changes apply only to applications made on or after that date.
Work rights
Work rights for a partner who holds a student visa as a family member depend on the course the student is undertaking. Partners of students enrolled in a masters by research, doctoral degree, or certain other postgraduate programs generally have full work rights from the start of the course. Partners of students enrolled in lower-level or undergraduate courses typically have work rights limited to 48 hours per fortnight during term, with unlimited work rights during scheduled course breaks.
This distinction matters when planning the family migration. Where the partner's work rights are capped, the family may face substantial practical limits on earning capacity, which in turn affects the financial assessment of the visa application.
Relationship evidence
Evidence that the relationship is genuine and continuing is required. Married couples submit the marriage certificate along with supporting four-aspect evidence. De facto couples submit evidence of cohabitation of 12 months or more or an equivalent qualifying basis, together with four-aspect evidence.
Applications involving recent relationships or limited physical cohabitation attract closer scrutiny. Because the family now applies together with the student, the evidence must be ready when the student's own application is lodged.
Financial capacity and living costs
The Department of Home Affairs requires evidence of funds sufficient to cover course fees for the student, living costs for the student and all accompanying family members, and travel costs. Published living-cost benchmarks are approximately $29,710 per year for the main applicant, $10,394 per year for a partner, and $3,670 per year for each dependent child (figures drawn from the student visa framework and updated periodically by the Department).
Evidence of funds typically includes bank statements, savings accounts, loan letters, sponsorship support from family members, and evidence of employment or ongoing income. Where financial capacity is provided by a third party, a formal statutory declaration of support and supporting financial evidence from the third party are required.
Overseas Student Health Cover
Family members who hold a student visa are generally required to maintain Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) for the entire duration of the visa. OSHC is purchased from an approved Australian health insurance provider and must cover the applicant and any included family members. Evidence of OSHC for the full visa period must be provided at the time of application.
The cost of OSHC for a family can be significant and should be factored into financial planning. OSHC is not optional and is a direct condition of the visa. Lapse of OSHC during the visa can have consequences for future visa applications.
Planning the family pathway
The decision about family now has to be made before the student's application is lodged, not afterwards. A student who intends to bring a partner or children should confirm, before applying, whether the family can be included at all and whether the whole family will need to apply from outside Australia.
Where a family member cannot be included, that person needs a visa in their own right to come to Australia. Which visa is suitable depends on that person's own circumstances, and a visitor visa holder cannot apply for a student visa while in Australia. The Subclass 500 typically leads to a Subclass 485 Temporary Graduate visa after the qualification is completed, and the family position should be reviewed again at that point.
Sources: Migration Amendment (Student Visa Reform) Regulations 2026 and LIN 26/087, amending LIN 20/158. Each circumstance has further conditions. This page is general information and not legal advice.
Advice on family members and the student visa
Whether a partner or child can be included, and where the family must be when applying, now has to be settled before the student's application is lodged. Visa Plan Lawyers advises families on student visa applications within the broader framework of their Australian migration pathway.