Australia: Fees Increase for Certain Visa Types and Citizenship Applications Effective July 1, 2026

The Australian government has increased Visa Application Charges for applications lodged on or after July 1, 2026. Most visa application fees have increased by approximately 25%, with higher targeted increases for selected visa categories.  

• • The Student visa (subclass 500) application charge for primary applicants has increased to AUD 2,500 (from AUD 2,000).  
  • Among employer-sponsored visa categories, the application charge for the Skills in Demand (subclass 482) visa has increased to AUD 4,015 (from AUD 3,210) for primary applicants, while the Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) and Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (subclass 494) visas have increased to AUD 6,140 (from AUD 4,910) for primary applicants. Fees have also risen for the Temporary Work (Short Stay Specialist) (subclass 400), Training (subclass 407) and National Innovation (subclass 858) visas.
  • Australian citizenship application fees have also been updated. The fee for citizenship by conferral under the general eligibility pathway has increased to AUD 595 (from AUD 575), while citizenship by descent applications have increased to AUD 380 (from AUD 370). The fee for evidence of Australian citizenship has increased to AUD 290 (from AUD 280).
  • The application fee for most Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) migration review applications has increased to AUD 3,727 (from AUD 3,580), affecting reviews of most non-protection visa decisions, including certain sponsorship and nomination decisions.
  • No changes have been announced to the Skilling Australians Fund (SAF) levy, nomination application fees or Standard Business Sponsorship application fees. 

Eligible applicants holding passports issued by Pacific-region countries will benefit from reduced application charges under the updated regulations. Applicants may use the visa pricing estimator to calculate their visa fees. 

This alert is for informational purposes only. If you have any questions, please contact the global immigration professional with whom you work at Fragomen.