485 Visa Australia: Temporary Graduate Visa Guide
Many graduates treat the 485 visa as an automatic next step after their studies, or assume it leads somewhere permanent. It does neither automatically. The 485 — also called visa 485 or subclass 485 visa — is Australia’s Temporary Graduate visa. It buys you time to work and build a case for something else. It is not that something else. And a surprising number of refusals come down to one narrow, easy-to-miss requirement, not a fundamental eligibility problem.
Simon Mander — Registered Migration Agent (MARN 0318058) — 23+ years experience in Australian migration law.
What is the 485 visa?
The Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) has three streams, depending on what you studied and your circumstances:
- Post-Vocational Education Work (PVEW) stream — for graduates of an associate degree, diploma, or trade qualification linked to an occupation Australia needs.
- Post-Higher Education Work (PHEW) stream — for graduates of a Bachelor degree or higher from an Australian institution, regardless of field of study.
- Second Post-Higher Education Work stream — for people who already held a PHEW, Post-Study Work, or Replacement visa and completed a further degree at a regional Australian institution.
Most applicants fall into the PVEW or PHEW stream, covered in detail below.
Is the 485 the right move, or just the next box to tick?
A temporary visa does not automatically become permanent residency. The 485 doesn’t lead anywhere on its own — it’s a window to build the evidence, work experience, or further qualifications that might support a different visa later: a skilled visa, employer sponsorship, or another pathway entirely.
Many applicants get the 485 and then drift for a year or two without a clear next step, only realising as the visa approaches expiry — and it cannot be extended — that they don’t actually have a realistic plan B.
Before you apply, the real question isn’t just “do I qualify for the 485.” It’s “what does this visa actually buy me, and what am I going to do with that time.”
Post-Vocational Education Work (PVEW) stream
Who it’s for
This stream suits graduates of an associate degree, diploma, or trade qualification closely related to an occupation on the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL).
Key eligibility requirements
- Age: 35 or under when you apply. Hong Kong or British National Overseas (BNO) passport holders can apply up to age 50.
- Course completion: you must have completed your course within 6 months of applying.
- Occupation and skills assessment: you must nominate an occupation on the MLTSSL, hold a qualification closely related to it, and provide a valid skills assessment from the relevant assessing authority — or evidence you’ve applied for one. Skills assessments are valid for a maximum of 3 years unless a shorter date is specified. You cannot change your nominated occupation after lodgement.
- Visa status at application: generally, you need to be in Australia holding an eligible Student visa, or have held one within the past 6 months and now hold a qualifying Bridging Visa A/B or a substantive visa.
- Prior 485/476 visas: if you’ve already held a subclass 485 or 476 visa as a primary applicant, you can’t be granted this visa as a primary applicant again.
Stay period and cost
The PVEW stream grants 18 months, regardless of qualification level. Hong Kong/BNO passport holders may stay up to 5 years. The visa cannot be extended. Cost starts from AUD $4,600 for the main applicant, plus charges for any family members included.
Post-Higher Education Work (PHEW) stream
Who it’s for
This stream is for graduates of an eligible degree from an Australian institution — Bachelor (including honours), Masters (coursework, extended, or research), or Doctoral degree — regardless of field of study. A graduate diploma can also qualify if completed in the same or next academic year as the underlying degree and related to it.
Key eligibility requirements
- Age: 35 or under generally. You can apply up to age 50 if you’re using a Masters (research) or Doctoral degree to meet the study requirement, or if you hold a Hong Kong or BNO passport.
- Course completion: within 6 months of applying, same as PVEW.
- Institution: your course must have been with a CRICOS-registered Australian education provider offering degree-level programs.
- Visa status and prior 485/476 history: same requirements as the PVEW stream above.
Stay period — this varies significantly by qualification
Unlike the PVEW stream’s flat 18 months, PHEW stay periods depend on your qualification level:
| Qualification | Stay period |
|---|---|
| Bachelor degree (including honours) | 2 years |
| Masters (coursework or extended) | 2 years |
| Masters (research) | 3 years |
| Doctoral degree | 3 years |
| Graduate Diploma | 2 years (default; may be longer depending on the underlying study) |
Indian nationals get longer stays under the Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (AI-ECTA):
| Qualification (Indian nationals) | Stay period |
|---|---|
| Bachelor degree (including honours) | 2 years |
| Bachelor degree with first class honours in STEM (including ICT) | 3 years |
| Masters (coursework, extended, or research) | 3 years |
| Doctoral degree (PhD) | 4 years |
Hong Kong and BNO passport holders may stay up to 5 years regardless of qualification, and current and future 485 holders from Hong Kong may have a pathway to permanent residency after 5 years. The visa cannot be extended directly, but PHEW holders may later qualify for the Second Post-Higher Education Work stream. Cost is AUD $4,600 for the main applicant, plus family member charges. From 1 March 2026, a lower visa cost applies to eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste citizens.
Second Post-Higher Education Work stream
This stream is for people who already held a Post-Higher Education Work, Post-Study Work, or Replacement visa and have since completed a further degree at an Australian institution located in a regional area. It allows you to work in Australia and bring family with you. Stay periods depend on your qualification and regional classification — confirm the current periods directly with the Department or your migration agent, as these settings can change.
English language requirements — the trap that catches people out
This is where many otherwise-strong 485 applications run into trouble. The English requirement isn’t a one-time box you tick years ago and forget about — it’s tied to a specific window before you apply.
The 12-month rule
If you’re relying on a test result, it must have been scored in the 12 months immediately before the day you apply. A perfectly good test result from 18 months ago does not count, even though the test itself doesn’t “expire” in any everyday sense. The Department does not assess your application before you lodge it — a decision is made on the information actually provided, which means you cannot fix a missing or out-of-date English result after the fact. If you’re not confident your test result is still within that 12-month window on your planned lodgement date, this is worth checking carefully before you apply, not after.
Passport exemption
You don’t need to sit a test at all if you’re a citizen of, and hold a valid passport from, the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada, New Zealand, or the Republic of Ireland.
Current accepted test scores (tests taken on or after 7 August 2025)
| Skill | CELPIP General | IELTS Academic | IELTS General Training | LANGUAGECERT Academic | MET | OET | PTE Academic | TOEFL iBT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 8 | 6.5 | 6.5 | 67 | 58 | 1310 | 55 | 81 |
| Listening | 6 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 49 | 53 | 260 | 40 | 12 |
| Reading | 6 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 54 | 51 | 280 | 42 | 12 |
| Writing | 6 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 56 | 51 | 260 | 41 | 14 |
| Speaking | 6 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 62 | 43 | 310 | 39 | 17 |
Cambridge C1 Advanced is not accepted for the 485 visa, even though it’s accepted for some other Australian visa types — don’t assume acceptance carries across visa subclasses. OET no longer provides an overall score on its standard test report; you’ll need to contact OET directly for that figure. IELTS One Skill Retake (OSR) and MET Single Section Retake (SSR) results are accepted, provided the retake was completed before you lodge.
Lower thresholds for Hong Kong and BNO passport holders
| Skill | CELPIP General | IELTS Academic | IELTS General Training | LANGUAGECERT Academic | MET | OET | PTE Academic | TOEFL iBT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 7 | 6 | 6 | 61 | 53 | 1210 | 47 | 67 |
| Listening | 5 | 5 | 5 | 41 | 49 | 220 | 33 | 8 |
| Reading | 5 | 5 | 5 | 44 | 47 | 240 | 36 | 8 |
| Writing | 5 | 5 | 5 | 45 | 45 | 200 | 29 | 9 |
| Speaking | 5 | 5 | 5 | 54 | 38 | 270 | 24 | 14 |
If your test was taken on or before 6 August 2025, a different set of thresholds applied — but given the 12-month rule above, a test from that far back will no longer fall within the qualifying window for new applications, so this is largely historical at this point.
Other requirements for both main streams
- Health insurance: you and any family members must hold adequate health insurance for your stay, unless covered by a reciprocal healthcare agreement.
- Health and character requirements: standard requirements apply to you and family members aged 16 and over.
- Australian values statement: applicants aged 18+ must read (or have explained) the Life in Australia booklet and sign the values statement.
- No outstanding debt to the Australian Government.
- Immigration history: a prior visa cancellation or refusal will be considered and may affect your eligibility.
Why 485 applications actually fail
Most 485 refusals are not really about whether the applicant is a genuine graduate. They’re about timing and assumptions that turned out to be wrong.
- An English test that felt current is actually outside the 12-month window by the time of lodgement — and there is no fixing this after you’ve applied.
- An occupation that “sounds right” for the skills assessment but isn’t actually on the MLTSSL, or doesn’t closely match the qualification — and once lodged, it cannot be changed.
- The 6-month window since course completion quietly expiring while documents were still being gathered.
- Treating the visa as the end goal, when it was only ever meant to be the bridge — leaving no real plan for what happens when it expires, because it cannot be extended.
Related guides
- Skilled Visa Australia
- Visa Refused in Australia? Your Right to Appeal
- Further Assessment Australia Visa: Delay or Refusal Risk?
- Australia Visa for Americans
- Immigration Consultant Australia: Registered Migration Agent Services
- Australia Immigration Agency: Simon Mander Consulting
Frequently asked questions
Does the 485 visa lead to permanent residency?
Not on its own. The 485 is a temporary bridge, not a pathway in itself. Whether it leads anywhere depends entirely on what you do during it — building experience, qualifications, or evidence that supports a different visa, such as a skilled visa or employer sponsorship, before it expires.
What is the 485 visa?
The 485 visa, also called visa 485 or subclass 485 visa, is Australia’s Temporary Graduate visa. It allows recent international graduates to live, work, and study in Australia temporarily after finishing their studies. It has three streams depending on your qualification and circumstances.
How long does the 485 visa last?
It depends on the stream and qualification. The Post-Vocational Education Work stream grants 18 months. The Post-Higher Education Work stream grants 2 to 3 years depending on qualification level, with longer periods for Indian nationals under the AI-ECTA agreement and up to 5 years for Hong Kong or BNO passport holders.
Do I need to take an English test for the 485 visa?
Not if you’re a citizen of and hold a valid passport from the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, New Zealand, or the Republic of Ireland. Otherwise, yes — you’ll need to meet the minimum scores for an approved test.
What happens if my English test is more than 12 months old when I apply?
It won’t count. The test result must have been scored in the 12 months immediately before your application date. Since the Department assesses your application based only on what’s provided at lodgement, an out-of-date result can’t be fixed after you’ve applied.
Can I extend the 485 visa?
No, the 485 visa cannot be extended. Depending on your circumstances, you may be eligible for the Second Post-Higher Education Work stream, another skilled visa, or another pathway — this is worth assessing well before your visa expires.
How much does the 485 visa cost?
The visa application charge is AUD $4,600 for the main applicant, plus charges for any family members included, with additional costs for health checks, police certificates, and biometrics. A lower cost applies to eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste citizens from 1 March 2026.