Nauru passport holders cut Student visa cost if they apply using their Nauru document

Travellers from 23 Pacific Island, Timor-Leste and ASEAN countries can pay less than the standard Student visa cost to study in Australia, according to the Department of Home Affairs. To get the reduced rate, applicants must meet one condition linked to the passport they hold and use when applying.

Key facts

• Visa: Student visa (subclass 500), issued by Australia's Department of Home Affairs
• Standard cost: from AUD 2,500 for the main applicant
• Eligible travellers: citizens of 13 Pacific Island and Timor-Leste countries plus 10 ASEAN countries
• Condition: hold a valid passport from one of the listed countries and use it when applying through ImmiAccount
• Family members: included in the same application can also get the lower cost

Who is affected?

The concession covers two groups. The Pacific Island and Timor-Leste group has 13 countries: the Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.

A further 10 countries are covered under the ASEAN group: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Timor-Leste appears on both lists, but its citizens are charged at the Pacific Island and Timor-Leste rate rather than the ASEAN rate.

What is the single condition?

Applicants must hold a valid passport issued by one of the specified countries and use that passport when lodging their application through ImmiAccount. The Department of Home Affairs treats this passport as the sole requirement for being charged at the reduced rate.

Family members added to the same application also qualify for the lower cost. The government assesses this based on the primary applicant's passport, rather than requiring each family member to meet the condition separately.

The source does not state the actual amount of the reduced fee, only that the standard Student visa costs from AUD 2,500 for the main applicant.

What does the Student visa allow?

Student visa holders can take an eligible course of study for up to six years, enter and leave Australia freely while the visa is valid, and work up to 48 hours per fortnight during study sessions. Students enrolled in a master's by research or doctoral degree, and their families, face no cap on work hours.

What changed on 2 October 2026?

New rules took effect on 2 October 2026 covering who may lodge a Student visa application while already in Australia and when family members can be added to an application. Most applicants must now apply from outside Australia unless they fall within a specific exemption category.

Applications submitted before that date are still assessed under the rules that were in place when they were lodged.

What this means for travellers

Citizens of the 23 listed countries who plan to study in Australia should check that they hold a valid passport from one of those countries and use it when applying through ImmiAccount. Those already in Australia, or planning to add family members, should review the rules that took effect on 2 October 2026 before lodging an application.