Student Guardian Visas

From the 1^st of January 2004, if you are under 18 years of age or have physical or cultural requirements for an adult companion to accompany you to Australia, your parent, legal custodian or relative may apply to accompany you as a student guardian.

Who can be a student guardian?

A student guardian must:

• be a relative of the applicant
• be over 21 years of age and of good character, and
• meet health and financial requirements.

Except in exceptional circumstances, your student guardian must be related to you (the applicant) in one or more of the following ways:

• spouse
• child
• adopted child
• parent
• brother or sister
• step-child
• step-parent
• step-brother or step-sister
• grandparent
• grandchild
• aunt or uncle
• niece or nephew
• step-grandparent
• step-grandchild
• step-aunt or step-uncle
• step-niece or step-nephew.

Student guardian requirements

Student guardians must meet the:

• general requirements for a Student visa,
  
  Exception: student guardians must arrange for overseas visitor health cover (OVHC), not overseas student health cover (OSHC).
  See: Cover for People from Overseas

• financial requirements related to the nominating student.
  See: Financial requirements

In addition:

• A person who has a dependent child under 6 years of age is only able to be granted a student guardian visa if:

  • the child under 6 would be subject to assessment level 1 or 2 for a Schools Sector visa
    See: Subclasses and Assessment Levels; and

  • there are compassionate and compelling reasons for granting the visa

• A student guardian may only include a child in their visa application in very limited circumstances. To be granted a student guardian visa as a family member, the child must be:

  • under 6 years of age; and

•  

  • hold a passport that would make them subject to assessment level 1 or 2 for a Schools Sector visa.

• There must also be compassionate and compelling reasons for granting the visa.
  Other family members cannot be granted a student guardian visa.

• If you intend to be the student guardian of more than one student while in Australia, you must notify the department (when you apply) which student you would like your visa linked to.

Student guardian visa conditions

The following list describes the conditions that will generally be attached to your Student Guardian visa.

• You must not work.
• You must not study for more than three months.
• You must maintain your approved overseas visitor health cover.
• You cannot apply for any other Australian visa while in Australia except for:
• an extension of your Student Guardian visa, or
• to engage Australia's obligations under the 1951 UN convention relating to the status of refugees.
• You must continue to meet the requirements for a Student Guardian visa.
• You must live with the student who has nominated you and, if the student is under 18 years of age, provide appropriate accommodation, welfare and general support.
• You must not leave Australia without either:
• taking the nominating student with you, or
• notifying the department before your departure that you have made appropriate arrangements for the student’s accommodation, welfare and general support in your absence and (if the student is under 18 years of age) obtaining written approval for the changed arrangements from the student’s education provider.

How to apply

The following table describes the four-step procedure for applying for a Student Guardian visa.

Important: If the student nominating you as their guardian is subject to assessment level 2, 3, 4 or 5
See: Subclasses and Assessment Levels
you should apply for your first Student Guardian visa outside Australia. If you make your application in Australia, you will be required to demonstrate exceptional reasons for granting the visa to you in Australia.

Special arrangements for citizens of the People's Republic of China

If you are a citizen of the People's Republic of China who does not hold a Hong Kong or Macau Special Administrative Region passport, and you intend to apply from China or New Zealand, you must send your completed application to the Adelaide Offshore Processing Centre by mail or courier. The addresses are:

Special arrangements for Temporary Protection and Temporary Humanitarian Visa Holders

On 27 August 2004 the Government made new regulations to introduce special arrangements for subclass 785 Temporary Protection visa (TPV), subclass 447 and 451 Temporary Humanitarian visa (THV) and subclass 695 Return Pending (RPV) holders who wish to apply for a Student Guardian visa.
See: New Measures for Temporary Protection and Temporary Humanitarian visa holders to determine whether you are affected by these changes

TPV, THV and RPV holders affected by these changes will need to meet most of the usual requirements for a Student Guardian visa. However, you can make an application in Australia and are not required to meet the usual financial requirements for this visa. Instead, you must provide evidence that you have access to sufficient funds to meet your, and your family members’, costs and expenses during your stay in Australia.

TPV, THV and RPV holders are also able to include any dependent children under 6 years of age in their Student Guardian visa application.