British Expat Says Visa Rule Change Forced Her Abroad and Cost $6,500

A British woman’s plans to build a new life in Australia have been thrown into uncertainty after a visa rule change forced her to leave the country and spend more than $6,500 in an effort to remain there.

Meg Green arrived in Australia on a Working Holiday visa in November 2023. She later left her hospitality job, hoping to secure a student visa and study on the Gold Coast.

Those plans changed when she learned that she would have to leave Australia before applying for the student visa.

“I’m taking one of the biggest risks I can by being on a visa in Australia,” she said on Instagram.

“My Working Holiday visa ends in about seven weeks, and I’ve just made the decision to leave my hospitality job, which was extremely difficult.”

Ms Green has seven years of experience in corporate banking, cyber security and technology. She was due to start an Advanced Diploma of IT at the Canterbury Technical Institute in February 2027 to build on her expertise.

However, her plans suffered a major setback after a visa crackdown introduced on October 2 required many Working Holiday visa holders to submit student visa applications from outside Australia.

“Australia has thrown a huge curveball at us, and the timing couldn’t be worse,” she said.

A British woman’s plans to build a life in Australia have been disrupted after she says a visa rule change forced her to leave the country and spend more than $6,500 in a bid to stay

“As of two days ago, I now have to leave the country for potentially four or five weeks and apply for my student visa offshore.”

Ms Green is now in Bali awaiting a decision on the student visa application she submitted on October 26. She told Yahoo the process had already cost her more than $6,500.

She said the bill included around $900 for flights, $1,500 a month for accommodation, a $2,500 student visa application fee, $1,300 for Overseas Student Health Cover and $250 in agent fees.

These expenses came in addition to her course fees and ordinary living costs.

Ms Green said she did not discover until October 4 that the new rule, introduced two days earlier, meant she would have to leave Australia to apply for the student visa.

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The policy, announced on September 17, was intended to curb “visa hopping” — the practice of temporary visa holders moving between visa categories to extend their stay in Australia.

While waiting in Bali for a decision, Ms Green said the lack of certainty was becoming increasingly difficult to manage.

“So far, I’ve only received the automatic acknowledgement from the Department of Home Affairs,” she said.

Ms Green had to leave Australia to apply for her student visa after a visa rule change introduced by the Albanese government on October 2

The policy, announced on September 17, was designed to crack down on “visa hopping”, in which temporary visa holders switch between visa types to remain in Australia longer

“There doesn’t appear to be any predictable pattern in these cases, which makes planning incredibly difficult,” she said.

“In some ways, it feels as though we’re the first group trying to navigate an entirely new process without knowing what to expect.”

Still, accounts from other recent applicants have offered her some encouragement.

“I still have no update, but two agents have told me that two of their clients were approved after 11 days and 15 days,” she said on Instagram.

“That’s really positive.”

“When processing times look like this, it doesn’t seem quite so frightening.”

Until she receives an answer, Ms Green said she was trying to preserve some semblance of normal life in Bali.

“Most of my days involve refreshing my emails, going to the gym and trying to maintain a routine while I wait for a decision,” she said.