Temporary Graduate Visa 485 – Graduate Temporary Visa Post Study Work Stream

Are you an international student who has finished a bachelor’s or master’s degree? Are you planning to stay longer and work full time in Australia? Are you wondering which pathways you should take? A temporary graduate visa with the post-study work stream such as subclass 485 visa can be your solution.
Post-study work stream is made for international students who have already completed their bachelor, master, or doctoral degree for at least 2 academic years.
If the graduate stream needs the skill assessment with the specific occupation list, then this post-study work stream doesn’t need it.
What is Temporary Graduate Visa 485 – Post Study Work Stream?
Temporary Graduate Visa 485 – Post-Study Work Stream is for international students under the age of 50 who have completed a CRICOS registered course and recently graduated with a degree from an Australian institution. It lets you live, work and study in Australia, temporarily.
Post Study Work Stream – Temporary Graduate Visa 485 Requirements
There are some requirements that you have to be met for applying this Post Study Work stream, such as:
- Must be under 50 years old;
- Must hold the student visa after 5 November 2011;
- Must meet the Australian study requirement, e.g the course was a CRICOS registered course and has completed all course requirements;
- Must hold eligible qualifications, in this case, a bachelors, masters or doctoral degree;
- Must have eligible English skill language or have a passport from the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada, New Zealand or the Republic of Ireland;
- Must have adequate health insurance;
- Must provide the health and character requirement;
- Must not have any debt to the Australian government;
- Must not have had a visa cancelled or visa refusal.
More Details About Temporary Graduate Visa 485 – Post Study Work Stream
You may include your family, which in this case is your partner and your dependent child.
The applicant should be onshore while lodging this application, while the subsequent entrants can be in or out of Australia.
The visa fee for this Post Study Work stream application is $1,895 AUD for the main applicant.
The processing time for this Temporary Graduate Visa 485 – post study work stream starts from 6 days – 3 months.
If you are granted this Temporary Graduate Visa 485 – post study work stream, you may stay between 2 and 4 years, depending on your qualifications.
If you hold a bachelor’s or master’s by coursework degree, you will get 2 year visa.
If you hold master by research, you will get 3 years visa, then while you are holding the doctoral degree, you will get 4 years visa.
Within this timeframe, you have full work and study rights, and are also free to travel from and to Australia.
Can I Work Full Time on Temporary Graduate Visa 485 – Post Study Work Stream?
If you are holding Post Graduate Visa 485, you have full time work rights for the duration of your visa. If you want to continue to stay in Australia after your visa expires, you will need to apply for a new visa for a different subclass.
What Visa Can I Apply After Post Graduate Visa 485 – Post Graduate Work Stream?
485 visa is a once in a lifetime opportunity. It cannot be extended, unfortunately, in other words you can apply for a 485 visa in Australia only once.
You can apply for 485 visa only once as the main applicant if you have a partner and he or she will finish a school here and will be applying for an 485 visa as a primary applicant you can get it again as a secondary applicant.
If you don’t have a partner eligible for 485 – let’s explore the other options which might be available for you.
Apply for a skilled permanent visa
As a holder of 485 visa you have the same work rights as any Australian permanent resident, so it is giving you an opportunity to get Australian work experience. The permanent skilled visa system is points based. You’ll get points for your age, education, level of your English and so on. Whether you’d qualify for skilled visa such as 189, 190 or 491 visa (also called SWR visa) is another question. Give us a call and we’ll discuss if that would be your best option.
Apply for employer-sponsored visa
If you’ve been working for a while for some great employer I bet they’d be willing to keep you for longer. Ask them if they’d help you with your visa. Dependant on your occupation and work experience we might apply for 407 (training visa), 482 visa (also called TSS visa), 186 visa (also called ENS visa) or 494 visa visa (also called SESR visa).
Can we apply Post Graduate Visa 485 – Post Graduate Work Stream twice?
If your Post Graduate Visa 485 – Post-Study Work is about to expire not much you can do, it is a once in a lifetime opportunity and it cannot be extended. You have a 485 or 476 once in a lifetime, so use the time given wisely. Make sure to make the most of it to improve your chances for migration to Australia. You should consider:
- Work experience. You can work full time on a Post Graduate Visa 485 – Post-Study Work Stream. Find an employer, show them what you can and ask them to help you with getting a residency visa.
- Regional visas. You can work anywhere in Australia as a holder of 485 visa. Think about finding an employer in the regional area. This will improve your chances of obtaining a state nomination or may lead to RSMS visa.
- A professional year is available for Accountants, engineers, and IT professionals. It’s going to give you 5 points for skilled visa, will help with skills assessment and also will give you Australian work experience which will impress Australian employers.
Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Post Graduate Visa 485 – Post Study Work Stream
ONEderland Consulting managing director and also registered migration agent, Indah Melindasari, B.Com (MARN 0961 448) is here to answer your Post Graduate Visa questions!
- What is the difference of Graduate Work Stream and Post Study Stream?
- The difference is on the qualification requirement.
- The Graduate Work Stream is eligible for applicants who just finished their diploma or advanced diploma.
- While Post Study stream is for applicants who have finished their bachelor, master, or PhD degree.
- Is it mandatory to have a skill assessment when apply for the Graduate Work stream?
- Yes, it is. You need to have a positive outcome of skill assessment in order to be granted this visa application.
- If I am not meeting the criteria for IELTS requirement, what should I do?
- There are few options to be able to show your English capability. Apart from IELTS, you can try TOEFL iBT, PTE Academic, OET, or Cambridge C1 Advanced Test.
- I am holding an OSHC for my student visa. Can I use it for graduate visa application?
- Unfortunately, you can’t. You would need to obtain OVHC as a requirement for this visa application.
- What if my visa got refused? Can I appeal?
- You would need to have a look at the refusal letter given by the Department. If it stated the decision can be reviewed, therefore you can lodge an appeal within a specific timeframe.
- How long does it take for processing the visa application for Graduate Work Stream and Post Study Stream?
- Graduate Work Stream processing time is between 1 – 77 days while the Post-Study Work stream is between 6 days – 3 months.
- How much the visa fee for Graduate visa?
- The visa fee is AUD 1,895 for the main applicant. The additional applicant over 18 years old will be charged AUD 950 and the additional applicant under 18 will be charged AUD 475.
- Should I apply the visa onshore or offshore?
- You can be inside Australia when applying for this visa. Due to COVID 19, the Department will allow the graduates to apply offshore and may grant this visa while the applicant is offshore.
- Can I include my family members?
- Yes, you can include family members in your application when you apply. Family members who apply for the visa must meet our health and character requirements.
- Is there any time limit to apply graduate visa?
- Yes it is, you must apply within 6 months of completion of your Australian studies.
- You must either hold a student visa when you apply, or to have held a student visa within the last 6 months.
- You must also make sure that you apply prior to expiry of your student visa.
- Will I get the bridging visa after I apply the visa onshore?
- If you apply the onshore graduate visa, before your student visa cease, you will be granted the Bridging Visa A.
- This BVA will be your valid visa while waiting the decision of the graduate visa. Usually, this BVE will allow you to work in Australia.
Post Graduate Visa 485 – Post Graduate Work Stream Four Steps Process
First Step : Check your eligibility for the visa
Make sure you check your eligibility to see if you meet all the criteria and requirements for Temporary Graduate Subclass 485 Visa. The requirements depend on each visa stream.
Second Step : Skill Assessment – for Graduate Work Stream
You need to check with the assessing authority for your nominated occupation.
Then, apply for a skill assessment as one of the requirement for graduate visa.
Third Step : Visa Application
After you make sure that you have fulfilled the requirements, you can then gather all the required and additional documents to complete and support your application.
You can apply online through your IMMI account.
Fourth step: Visa Outcome
If successful, you can stay temporarily in Australia, depends on which stream you’ve applied for. If got refused, the DHA will inform you in writing.
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“Massive thanks to all the team specially Indah and Jamie. My visa conditions was very complicated but they did a great job. Definitely one of the best.”
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Bridging Visa E

Indah Melindasari, B.Com
Lead Migration Agent – MARN 0961 448
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