Skilled Migration & Student Visas

Two routes to a life here.
Both run on the same clock.

Skilled migration and student visas are the two most common ways people start their life in Australia — and the two most commonly refused. One turns on a points score you can influence more than you think. The other turns on a case officer’s reading of why you’re really coming. We handle both, including the refusals that follow.

SUBCLASS 189SUBCLASS 190SUBCLASS 491SUBCLASS 500SUBCLASS 485
At a glance
Skilled & student, at a glance
Points floor
65 pointsThe minimum to submit an expression of interest. The score that actually gets invited is set by each invitation round, and is usually higher.
Age ceiling
Under 45For 189, 190 and 491, assessed at the date of invitation — not the date you lodge.
English minimum
CompetentIELTS 6 or equivalent for skilled. Moving to Proficient or Superior is the fastest points you can buy.
Student test
Genuine StudentThe GS requirement replaced GTE in March 2024. The question changed, and so did the evidence that answers it.
If refused
21 days (typical)Most onshore refusals carry a 21-day review window from the date you are taken to have been notified.
Choose your stream

The subclass numbers are the map, not the decoration

If you already know your subclass, start there. If you don’t, the difference between these streams is usually who nominates you and where you live — not how good your case is.

Not sure which stream you actually qualify for?

Most people arrive at a consultation assuming one pathway and leave on a different one. The points audit takes thirty minutes and costs less than a wrong skills assessment.

Principal Lawyer

Awrangajeb Habib Raj

Awrangajeb practises exclusively in immigration law and takes skilled and student matters from first assessment through to decision — including the tribunal appeals that follow a refusal. The person who scores your profile is the person who argues your case.

LL.B — Western Sydney UniversityGDLP — The College of LawLegal Practitioner No. 5513120
Client reviews

Skilled and student clients

5.0
★★★★★
Verified Google reviews
“I’d been stuck at 65 points for two years. They mapped out a state nomination route I didn’t know existed and I had my invitation within the year.”
AK
A. Kaur
Subclass 190 · NSW
“My student visa was cancelled and I had almost no time left. They filed the tribunal application within days and walked me through every step of the hearing.”
MT
M. Tran
Subclass 500 · ART review
“My skills assessment had been done against the wrong code by someone else. They caught it before I lodged and saved me from a refusal I would have paid for twice.”
RD
R. D’Souza
Subclass 189 · Sydney
MOCKUP PLACEHOLDER — swap this block for the live Google Reviews widget feed
Common questions

Skilled and student questions we answer most

Can’t see your question? A 30-minute consultation costs less than a wrong lodgement.

65 points is the minimum score to submit an expression of interest — it is not the score that gets invited. Actual cut-offs are set round by round and vary by occupation and by pathway, and for competitive occupations they sit well above the floor. The practical question is never “do I meet the minimum” but “which of the three pathways puts me in the shallowest queue”.
Not necessarily. Occupation lists differ between the independent, state-nominated, regional and employer-sponsored programs, and states publish their own nomination criteria that change through the year. An occupation that is closed on one pathway is frequently open on another, and employer sponsorship does not rely on a points score at all.
The Genuine Student requirement replaced the Genuine Temporary Entrant test for student visa applications from March 2024. The framing shifted away from proving you intend to leave and toward explaining why this course, at this provider, at this point in your life. Evidence that satisfied the old test does not automatically satisfy the new one, and statements written to the old formula read as exactly that.
Sometimes, and the answer depends on your visa conditions, how far into your course you are, and whether the new course sits at the same level. Some changes require a new visa application rather than a transfer. Changing first and asking afterwards is how condition breaches happen, and a breach is a cancellation risk.
Most onshore student refusals carry a right of review to the Administrative Review Tribunal, typically within 21 days of the date you are taken to have received the decision. These deadlines are set by legislation and generally cannot be extended. The Tribunal reconsiders the application afresh, so new evidence and a properly framed submission can genuinely change the outcome.
They can decide an invitation. Points for a skilled partner, for credentialled community language, for professional year completion and for regional study are all available and all commonly left on the table. In a queue where the cut-off moves by a point or two, these are the cheapest points on the board.
Book an appointment

Get your points scored before you spend on tests

If you need help with an immigration matter, do not wait. Book a free consultation and take the first step toward securing your future in Australia.

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