The Gillard Government announced today that it will shortly implement a new visa fee system to ensure taxpayers are no longer subsidising visa applications. It says that currently, the application fees charged to people wanting to come to Australia do not cover the cost to the Commonwealth of processing the applications. The changes are projected to generate about $613 million over the next four years in revenue.
Student visa application fees will decrease by 5 per cent from 1 January 2012, increasing the competitiveness of Australia’s international education sector, while at the same time, fees for a range of Skills and Business visas will increase by between 5 per cent and 15 per cent.
The Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Chris Bowen MP said the changes would also include the introduction of a fee for dependants of visa applicants from July 2013.
‘If people are bringing family members with them to Australia, the fee will reflect the additional processing and checks for these family members,’ Mr Bowen said.
There will be no change to humanitarian visas as part of the new application fee structure.
In addition, some visa programs, such as the overwhelming majority of visitor visas, will be unaffected by the move to user-pays to ensure there is no impact on tourism.
From July 2012 a CPI increase will also apply to the majority of visa application fees and a surcharge will be introduced for optional services such as visa labels.
Mr Bowen said to encourage the use of online applications, the government also plans to introduce an additional charge for people making a paper-based application where there is an ‘e’ visa option.
Other changes to take effect from July 2013 will affect applications for longer-duration visas and for those seeking further visas onshore.
If you have any questions about Australian visas or immigration policy, McGrath Migration Lawyers can help. McGrath Migration Lawyers is Australia’s longest established immigration law firm and has made migration easier for thousands of clients since 1983.
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