The changes will take effect on 7 December 2015.
The changes include an increase to application fees and the introduction of the immigration levy on applicants for temporary visas (work, student, visitor), limited visas and some resident visas (unless the applicant is exempt). The immigration levy will be charged upon application and will replace the current migrant levy, which is paid by applicants for residence after they have been approved in principle. In addition to the fee increases and the introduction of a levy, a number of other changes to clarify, align or streamline fees regulations will also be made, such as removing the $92 discount that applies to some applications and there will be different fees for applicants who use Immigration Online.
Generally, there will be a lower fee for applicants who use Immigration Online, rather than paper. There will be no cost increase for a visitor visa or student visa application made using Immigration Online. Certain work visa applications made using Immigration Online will also benefit from a lower fee. The total cost for paper-based visitor visa applications will not change from the current cost for an initial one year period. This gives tourism markets time to adjust to the move to online applications.
From year two, fees for paper-based visitor visa applications will increase but visitors that have moved to immigration online applications will experience no change in overall cost.
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