Question: How much do Australian visas cost?

There was a time in my early adult years where I viewesd everything as a cost. This was probably born out of the conditioned mindset I had developed in University where I learned the gift of “thrift” and pinching every penny to save up for a big night out of drinking, dancing, and testing the limits of brain cell degradation with my collegiate social circles.

Since then, I have had to unlearn the choke hold of incessant-thriftiness in order to make progress in life, because I quickly learned that in order to make progress, one must invest.

Just like any worthy endeavor, there is always an investment of a person’s behalf. Whether it is time, physical energy, mental effort or monetary resources, there is always a give and take when it comes to investing.

Take for example, going to the gym. You have to conjure the mental effort to get ready, muster the physical energy to actually have a good work out, and also commit to investing in a gym membership. Why did I use the word “invest”? Because “investing” pre-supposes that you will get a return on what you have paid for with your time, effort and money.

Now obviously if you don’t actually go to the gym, or you aren’t working out properly, then your return will be little to none. That’s why some people go the extra mile and also invest in a Personal Trainer to show them what to do, how to do it to yield positive results, and to hold them accountable (which is a joint responsibility when you also hire an outstanding trainer).

So now let’s answer your question in two parts. First would be the cost/investment, then the benefit, which is return on investment (ROI).

How much do Australian visas cost?

For temporary visas like tourist visas, student visas and non-work related business visas, the government fees range between $135 – $550 depending on what kind of visa you are applying for and if you have dependents (e.g. partner and children) the fees can double of triple depending on how big your family is.

For permanent visas, such as skilled visas, employer sponsored visas (including 457 visas that can route to Permanent Residency), and family sponsored visas, the government fees range between $1060 – $6865. Additional fees also apply for dependents (eg. partner and children) so be prepared for a significant investment if you have a decent sized family.

For all of the above visas, there are other costs too. This is your time, your mental & physical effort to comprehend the requirements and prepare an application that you intend on submitting to the Australian Government’s Department of Immigration to assess and decide on your application on whether to approve or refuse it.

Professional services are an additional cost, although it is more of a direct investment because there is an immediate benefit you will reap from engaging a migration agent, just like you would with a personal trainer in a gym, to short cut all the guess work and uncertainty. Migration agent fees range between $1000 – $5000 depending on what kind of service you need (full, partial or information only), what type of visa you are applying for, and also how complex your situation is.

Investing in your future – ROI

In my opinion any resources that you contribute towards a better future, is an investment. This is because you can benefit from what you are investing in. For Australia, the fact of the matter is, living and working in Australia is highly sought after by many prospective migrants and workers.

The main reasons why Australia is such as attractive destination to live and work in, is because of it’s social and economic stability in comparison to most other countries.

The following are some of the benefits of living and working in Australia:

• Equitable employment (check out www.fairwork.gov.au to see Australia’s policies of fair work)
• Attractive salaries across all occupations including professional and vocational trades (check out www.payscale.com/index/AU to find out what the average salary is for your occupation in Australia)
• Most livable cities (living standards) in the world (Note: Australia has 4 cities in the top 10 most livable cities in the world; see: https://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2015/08/daily-chart-5)
• World class health care for all Australian Citizens and Permanent Residents (see how Australia compares to the rest of the world with it’s health care: https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/2014/02/20/how-does-australias-medicare-compare; topping the UK, USA and Canada)
• One of the safest places to live in the world (see: https://www.visionofhumanity.org/#/page/indexes/global-peace-index; Australia ranks within the top 10 topping the USA and UK)
• Subsidized education for Australian Citizens and Permanent Residents for all levels of education

When you realize the benefits of your investments, it makes more sense to practice investing in all areas of your life. It is more rewarding that saving to spend, because the rewards are lasting.

Put hedonism aside and create a better future for yourself.

Contact us on [email protected] to take control of your future.

From the desk of Yuri Marshall | Changing Lives Everyday