Australian visas for applicants from India

Student visa

The subclass 500 lets you study a full-time CRICOS-registered course in Australia. Financial and English evidence requirements depend on your passport country, education provider and any applicable exemption, and since 2 October 2026 most new applications cannot include a partner or children.

Skilled Independent visa

The subclass 189 is permanent residence on your own points, without a state or employer. You need a positive skills assessment, at least 65 points, and an invitation from SkillSelect, where recent invitation rounds have required far more than the minimum.

Skilled Nominated visa

The subclass 190 is permanent residence with a state or territory nomination that adds 5 points. Each state runs its own program with its own occupation list, and several accept applicants who are still in India.

Skilled Work Regional visa

The subclass 491 is a five-year provisional visa for regional Australia with 15 nomination points, leading to permanent residence through the subclass 191 after three years of living and earning in a regional area.

Visitor visa

The subclass 600 is the only visitor visa Indian passport holders can use for tourism, visiting family or business meetings in Australia, because India is not eligible for the ETA or eVisitor.

Partner visa (offshore)

The subclasses 309 and 100 are the two-stage partner visa for spouses and de facto partners who apply from outside Australia. The 309 is temporary; the 100 is permanent and is usually assessed about two years after the original application.

Contributory Parent visa

The subclass 143 is permanent residence for parents of settled Australians who pay a high contributory charge in exchange for a shorter queue than the non-contributory parent visa. Even so, published waiting times run well over a decade.

Sponsored Parent (Temporary) visa

The subclass 870 lets parents stay in Australia for three or five years at a time, up to ten years in total, without a path to permanent residence and without the decade-long queue. The child sponsor must be approved first and meet an income requirement.

MATES visa for Indian graduates

MATES, the Mobility Arrangement for Talented Early-professionals Scheme, is a stream of the subclass 403 for Indian graduates of top-100 NIRF institutions. Up to 3,000 primary applicants a year are selected by ballot to work in Australia for two years without an employer sponsor.

Work and Holiday visa

The subclass 462 gives Indians aged 18 to 30 a year in Australia to travel and work, with 1,000 places a year allocated by ballot. The 2026-27 ballot took registrations from 4 to 25 June 2026 and draws run until 30 April 2027; the next registration window is expected in mid-2027.

Temporary Graduate visa

The subclass 485 lets recent graduates of Australian institutions stay and work after their course. Since July 2024 the age limit is 35 and the English requirement is IELTS 6.5, with stay lengths tied to the level of qualification.

Skills in Demand visa

The subclass 482 Skills in Demand visa, which replaced the Temporary Skill Shortage visa in December 2024, lets an approved Australian employer sponsor a worker for up to four years in a core skills or specialist skills stream, with a pathway to permanent residence.

Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional visa

The subclass 494 is a five-year employer-sponsored visa for regional Australia with a pathway to permanent residence through the subclass 191 after three years.

Employer Nomination Scheme visa

The subclass 186 is permanent residence sponsored by an Australian employer, through direct entry or after two years on a 482 in the temporary residence transition stream.