Do I need to show all the money in a single bank account for a student visa application?

No. Home Affairs accepts financial evidence from multiple sources and multiple accounts. The total across all sources and accounts must add up to at least the required amount (course fees, annual living costs, and travel costs for all applicants). Provide statements for all accounts and a brief summary in your covering letter explaining the total and referencing each source.

Does expected Australian part-time work income count toward the student visa financial requirement?

Not for the initial visa grant. The financial evidence required at lodgement is intended to show that you can support yourself from the outset, before commencing employment in Australia. Future expected income from part-time work is not assessed as financial evidence. At the extension stage, evidence of earnings may be considered as part of the broader financial picture.

Student Visa Financial Requirements: Amounts and Evidence

Overview: The Financial Requirement for the Subclass 500 Student Visa

The Subclass 500 student visa requires applicants to demonstrate that they have sufficient funds to cover the cost of studying and living in Australia. This requirement exists to ensure that students can genuinely support themselves (and any accompanying family members) without needing to work unlawfully or become a burden on Australian public services.

The financial requirement is set by a legislative instrument and is reviewed periodically. The requirement has three components:

Course fees — the full cost of your course for the period you are applying to cover (or 12 months of fees, whichever is less)
Living costs — an annual amount per person, covering accommodation, food, transport, and other personal expenses
Travel costs — return airfare for the applicant and any secondary applicants (family members)

All three components must be covered by your evidence. Meeting only two of the three is insufficient.

Current Financial Threshold Amounts

The living cost amounts for the Subclass 500 student visa are set by the Minister’s instrument and updated periodically. As of 2025-2026, the minimum annual living cost amounts are:

Person	Annual Living Cost (AUD)
Primary applicant (student)	$29,710
Accompanying spouse or de facto partner	$10,400
Each accompanying child	$4,449

Important: These figures represent the annual living cost component only. They do not include course fees or travel costs. Your total financial evidence must cover all three components for the full intended duration of your course (up to 12 months at a time for most application purposes).

Always verify the current amounts directly on the Home Affairs website before lodging, as these figures are updated by instrument and may have changed since the date of this article. The relevant instrument is publicly available on the Federal Register of Legislation.

Calculating the Total Financial Requirement

To calculate the total amount of funds you need to demonstrate, add together:

Annual living cost for the student ($29,710) multiplied by the number of years of the course (or 1 if applying for the first 12 months only)
Annual living cost for each accompanying family member, multiplied by the duration
Total course fees for the relevant period (as stated on your Confirmation of Enrolment — CoE)
Return airfare estimate for all applicants (a reasonable estimate — you do not need to have purchased the tickets)

Example: A student applying for a 2-year Bachelor degree costing $35,000 per year, with an accompanying spouse:

Living costs: $29,710 x 2 = $59,420
Spouse living costs: $10,400 x 2 = $20,800
Course fees: $35,000 x 2 = $70,000
Return airfare (estimated): $3,000 x 2 people = $6,000
Total: approximately $156,220

This does not mean you need to have $156,220 sitting in a bank account at the time of application. It means you need to demonstrate that these funds are available to you from acceptable sources.

Acceptable Sources of Financial Evidence

1. Personal Bank Savings

Your own savings, or the savings of your sponsor (typically parents), in a bank account. The account should ideally show a stable balance maintained over at least 3 to 6 months before the application date. A large lump sum deposited shortly before the application — without a history of accumulating those savings — is a significant red flag for decision-makers and may result in a request for further information or a refusal on financial grounds.

Bank statements should be recent (usually within 28 days of the application or as specified in current processing guidance), in your name (or the sponsor’s name), and show the account holder’s full name, account number, the bank name, and a transaction history that gives confidence the funds are genuinely available.

2. Education Loan

An approved education loan from a recognised financial institution is an acceptable source. The loan approval letter or loan agreement should specify the loan amount, the approved purpose (education in Australia), and the repayment terms. The loan must be fully approved and available — a loan application in progress is not sufficient evidence of financial capacity.

3. Scholarship or Award

A scholarship or award that covers all or part of your financial requirements is acceptable evidence for the portion it covers. The scholarship letter should specify the dollar value, the duration, and what it covers (tuition only, or tuition plus living allowance). Where a scholarship covers tuition but not living costs, you still need to demonstrate separate evidence of living cost coverage.

4. Sponsor’s Funds (Parental Support)

Parents or other close relatives can sponsor a student visa applicant. The sponsor’s funds — their savings, salary, or other financial resources — are treated as available to the student provided the sponsor relationship is documented. Required evidence for a sponsored application includes:

The sponsor’s bank statements showing sufficient funds
The sponsor’s evidence of income (payslips, employment letter, tax return)
A statutory declaration from the sponsor confirming they will support the student financially and specifying the amount committed
Evidence of the relationship (birth certificates or other documentation confirming the student is a child or close relative of the sponsor)

5. Paid Tuition Fees

If you have already paid some or all of your course fees before lodging the visa application, receipts from the institution confirming the payment are evidence that part of the financial requirement has already been met. This can reduce the amount of liquid funds you need to demonstrate in bank statements.

6. Term Deposits and Investments

Term deposits, investment accounts, and managed funds can be used as financial evidence provided the funds are accessible — or will be accessible within a reasonable period of starting study. Term deposits that cannot be broken until after the course starts without severe penalty may be treated as unavailable. Provide the term deposit certificate showing maturity date and the amount.

Including a Spouse as a Secondary Applicant

A spouse or de facto partner can be included in the student visa application as a secondary applicant. This means they receive the same visa as the primary student applicant, with the same visa conditions — subject to the same health and character requirements, and subject to additional financial evidence being provided for their living costs.

Financial Evidence for Accompanying Spouse

The additional living cost for an accompanying spouse ($10,400 per year as of 2025-2026) must be included in your overall financial evidence. There is no requirement for the spouse to demonstrate their own independent financial capacity — their living costs can be covered by the same evidence package as the primary applicant’s.

Where the spouse has their own financial resources (savings, income, or their own scholarship), including evidence of those resources strengthens the application. It demonstrates that the financial need is genuinely covered from multiple sources rather than depending entirely on a single bank account or sponsor.

Work Rights for the Accompanying Spouse

An accompanying spouse included in a Subclass 500 student visa application will generally receive work rights consistent with the student’s own work rights, subject to the condition applied to the visa. Under current policy, the accompanying family members of a student enrolled in a Master’s degree or Doctoral degree (CRICOS registered) have no work hour restriction. Accompanying family members of students in other courses are subject to the same hourly limitations as the primary student.

Note: Student visa work rights, including restrictions on hours, are subject to legislative change. The temporary relaxation of work hour limits introduced during the COVID-19 period has been modified multiple times. Always verify the current work right conditions before advising applicants about their entitlements.

Common Financial Evidence Problems and How to Fix Them

Problem	Risk	Fix
Large unexplained deposit shortly before application	Officer suspects funds are borrowed or temporary — will query origin	Submit evidence of the deposit source (gift letter, sale of asset, loan agreement, inheritance documents)
Bank statements are not recent	Current financial position may have changed; officer cannot rely on outdated evidence	Obtain fresh statements within 28 days of lodgement; update financial evidence if processing takes longer than expected
Statements are in a foreign language	Decision-maker cannot assess the content	Obtain a NAATI-accredited translation of all non-English financial documents
Funds are held in multiple accounts	Total may not be obvious; accounts may not be linked to applicant	Provide a cover note summarising all accounts and totalling the available funds; ensure each account statement shows the account holder’s name matching the applicant
Course fee amount stated in CoE is different from financial calculation	Inconsistency raises questions about the accuracy of the application	Use the fees as stated in the CoE; if fees have changed, obtain an updated CoE before lodging
Sponsor’s funds look insufficient relative to their income	Officer is not satisfied sponsor can genuinely support the student	Provide tax returns showing consistent income over multiple years plus any additional asset evidence (property ownership, investment portfolio)

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to show all the money at once in a single account?

No. Home Affairs accepts financial evidence from multiple sources and multiple accounts. The total across all sources and accounts must add up to at least the required amount. Provide statements for all accounts and a brief summary in your covering letter explaining the total and referencing each source.

Does Australian part-time work income count toward the financial requirement?

Not for the initial visa grant — the financial evidence required at lodgement is intended to show that you can support yourself at the outset, before you have begun working in Australia. Future expected income from part-time work is not assessed as financial evidence. However, at the extension stage (if you apply to extend your student visa), evidence that you have been working and supplementing your finances may be considered as part of the overall financial picture.

My parents earn a good income but have low savings — will employment evidence alone be enough?

Employment income alone is generally insufficient. The decision-maker needs to be satisfied that the funds are available, not just that income could theoretically generate the required amount over time. High income with low savings raises the question of where the money will actually come from when tuition fees and living expenses fall due. Supplement income evidence with term deposits, property equity documentation, or a confirmed loan facility. The more liquid and accessible the funds, the more weight the evidence carries.

Can I include a GIC (Guaranteed Investment Certificate) or the OSHC cost in the financial calculation?

Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) is a requirement for student visa holders and is typically paid to the education provider before the visa is granted. The cost of OSHC should be added to your total financial calculation. Similarly, where your country of origin has a Genuine Investment Condition (GIC) requirement — for example, India has historically required a GIC deposit — that GIC deposit may be treated as evidence of financial capacity for the amount deposited. Check the current requirements for your nationality on the Home Affairs website, as country-specific requirements change.

Student Visa Financial Requirements: How Much Money You Need and How to Prove It