Australia's visa fees jumped across the board from July 1, with most application categories rising 25 percent and one visa type for New Zealanders climbing by nearly 200 percent.
A student visa, formally known as the Subclass 500, now costs 2,500 dollars, up from 2,000 dollars. Applicants for the Temporary Graduate visa, or Subclass 485, face a jump from 4,750 dollars to 5,750 dollars. Partner visa applicants now pay 11,710 dollars, reflecting the same general 25 percent increase applied across most categories.
New Zealanders face the steepest rise
The sharpest increase by far hit the New Zealand Family Relationship visa, which rose from 445 dollars to 1,330 dollars, a jump of 198 percent. The fee applies to New Zealand citizens seeking to bring family members to Australia and now sits well above the flat 25 percent increase applied to most other visa types.
Business groups push back
Andrew McKellar, chief executive of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said Australia already had the most expensive student visa fees in the world before this latest round of increases. He argued that lifting charges so sharply sends a poor signal internationally and makes the country "a harder sell for visitors," adding that the government had been "sneaking in major changes that carry drastic consequences" without enough public scrutiny.
