Important information for International Students regarding visa requirements as at 1 July 2023.
For more information please see - Work Restrictions for Student Via Holders at the Department of Home Affairs.
International students holding a Student visa (subclass 500), who are not studying a masters by research or a doctorate degree, are permitted to work a maximum of 48 hours per fortnight when their course is in session and unlimited hours when their course is out of session in accordance with visa condition 8105.
The Department of Home Affairs considers a course to be in session:
Please check the ECU Academic Calendar for official semester dates.
Student visa holders who are studying a masters degree by research or doctorate degree, can work unlimited hours once they have started their degree.
The Department of Home Affairs has stated that work experience will be included in a student’s work restriction of 48 hours per fortnight irrespective of whether it is paid or unpaid.
There is an exception to visa condition 8105 where the work experience is a mandatory component of a student’s course of study and is included in the Commonwealth Register of Institutions and courses for Overseas Students (CRICOS) registration of that particular course. Work experience meeting this criteria will not be included in a student’s work restriction of 48 hours per fortnight.
Any work experience/work placement that is not a mandatory course requirement and registered as such on CRICOS (for example work placements in elective units), or that is in excess of the period specified in the CRICOS course registration, will count towards a student’s 48 hour per fortnight work restriction.
Student visa holders are ultimately responsible for ensuring they comply with the terms of their visa. If a student is unsure whether their enrolment in a unit containing a work placement is permitted by the terms of their visa, they should liaise with the Department of Home Affairs. The University cannot provide students with advice regarding the application of their visa conditions.
The Department of Home Affairs has a Visa Entitlement Verification Online system (VEVO) that allows visa holders to check the conditions attaching to their individual visa. This website also provides further guidance and information regarding visa condition 8105 and other visa conditions.
For the purposes to visa condition 8105, a fortnight “the period of 14-days commencing on a Monday”. An example that illustrates the effect of this is below.
If a student worked the following hours over a four week period:
then the student would have breached visa condition 8105 by working more than 48 hours during the second fortnight (weeks 2 and 3).