Australia Tightens Student Visa Rules for Indians, Other Subcontinent Nations

• Australia implemented new student visa assessment levels for 2026 admissions, effective January 8, impacting students from India and other subcontinent countries.
• The changes aim to address document integrity issues and ensure genuine students come to Australia for education.
• Unofficial analysis suggests India, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Bhutan have moved to AL3 (higher scrutiny) from previous levels, while Sri Lanka moved to AL2.
• Phil Honeywood, CEO of IEAA, expressed concern over the timing and frequency of changes, causing uncertainty for education providers and agents.
• Australian authorities are tightening rules due to a rise in suspected fraud cases involving educational and financial documents from some South Asian countries.

Why It Matters: Australia has increased scrutiny on student visa applications from India and other subcontinent nations due to integrity concerns.