AI agents for business finance: what they can and can't do
What AI agents can do in bookkeeping, close, collections and compliance today, where a person must stay in charge, and how to judge a product.
The short answer
As reported by migration agent Widen (reviewed August 2026), the Australian Student visa (subclass 500) costs AUD 2,500 for the main applicant, AUD 2,500 for a partner or other applicant aged 18 or over, and AUD 625 for each child under 18. The fee is non-refundable and set by the Department of Home Affairs, whose fee estimator shows the current figure before you lodge.
Australia's student visa is one of the more expensive to apply for, and the fee has risen in recent years. For a Nigerian applicant the charge is paid online in Australian dollars when the application is lodged in ImmiAccount. This page sets out the charge, who pays what in a family, and the other costs that come with the visa.
The charge as at 2026
Home Affairs' subclass 500 page (updated 12 October 2026) would not show its fee table when we checked, so the figures below come from Widen Migration's 2026 cost guide, which cites the Department. Confirm them on the Home Affairs pricing estimator before you lodge.
| Applicant | Charge (AUD) |
|---|---|
| Main applicant | 2,500 |
| Partner or other applicant aged 18 or over | 2,500 |
| Dependent child under 18 | 625 |
Widen also lists concession rates of AUD 2,050 for some ELICOS and eligible ASEAN students and AUD 745 for Pacific and Timor-Leste applicants. Nigerian applicants do not fall into the nationality-based concessions.
What else you pay alongside the visa
- Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC). Required for the whole visa period and arranged before the visa can be granted. See our guide to OSHC cost and providers.
- Health examinations and biometrics. Requested during processing where they apply, and paid separately to the clinic or collection point.
- Evidence of financial capacity. Money shown, not paid to the government. ApplyBoard's indicative 2026/27 figures, attributed to Home Affairs, are AUD 29,710 a year for the student, AUD 10,394 for a partner and AUD 4,449 for a child, plus AUD 13,502 a year in schooling for each school-age child.
- Tuition. Usually a deposit before the Confirmation of Enrolment is issued.
Worked example: a student with a partner and one child
Example only, using the figures above. Visa charges: AUD 2,500 + AUD 2,500 + AUD 625 = AUD 5,625, all paid at lodgement.
Living-cost evidence for the first year on ApplyBoard's indicative figures: AUD 29,710 + AUD 10,394 + AUD 4,449 = AUD 44,553. If the child is of school age, add AUD 13,502, giving AUD 58,055. Add travel and the first year's tuition on top. These are amounts you must show you can meet, not fees you pay to Home Affairs.
Paying from Nigeria
The charge is paid online when you lodge. If you pay by card, a naira card used for an AUD 5,625 charge will be converted at your bank's rate, and many Nigerian cards cannot spend that much abroad in one go. Check your limit, or arrange for a sponsor abroad to pay on your application. Keep the payment receipt; it shows the transaction reference Home Affairs will use.
Who to include, and what happens if you are refused
Each person included on the application attracts their own charge, so the decision to bring a partner and children at the start, or to add them later, changes the total. Adding family members to the original application means one set of decisions and one set of evidence; applying for them later means a separate application, its own charge and its own processing time. Either way, every person needs health cover and must be counted in the financial capacity figures.
Because the charge is non-refundable, a refusal costs you the full amount paid. Most refusals for Nigerian applicants turn on documents that could have been checked first, such as unexplained large deposits in bank statements, which ApplyBoard specifically warns about, or evidence that does not show where funds came from. A careful read of your own documents before you pay is the cheapest insurance against losing AUD 2,500 or more.
What to check first
- Use the Home Affairs visa pricing estimator to confirm the current charge for every person on the application.
- Confirm you have a Confirmation of Enrolment from your provider.
- Buy OSHC for the full visa period, covering everyone who will be in Australia.
- Gather six months of bank history and any loan or sponsor letters for financial capacity.
- Check your card's foreign-spend limit before you start the payment step.
Where Pryme fits
Pryme accounts hold NGN, USD, GBP and EUR, not Australian dollars, so an AUD charge will still be converted at the point of payment. What a Pryme account can do is keep money from abroad in USD or GBP until you need it, and produce verifiable statements through VerifyDoc.ai that a sponsor or adviser can check. Our wider visa fees table compares Australia with the UK, Canada and the US.
Questions people ask
How much is the Australian student visa fee in naira?
The charge is set in Australian dollars: AUD 2,500 for the main applicant as reported in 2026. The naira amount depends on your bank's rate on the day you pay.
Is the Australia student visa fee refundable if refused?
No. The visa application charge is non-refundable, so check every document before lodging.
How much do children pay on a subclass 500 application?
As reported in 2026, AUD 625 for each dependent child under 18 included in the application.
Does the visa fee include OSHC health cover?
No. OSHC is bought separately from an approved insurer and must cover the full visa period.
Sources
- Widen Migration: Student visa Australia cost 2026 (reviewed Aug 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
- Department of Home Affairs: Student visa (subclass 500) (updated 12 Oct 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
- ApplyBoard Assist: Australia student visa financial capacity (2 Sep 2026) · accessed Oct 2026
This article is general information, not financial, legal or tax advice. Products described are provided under the terms on this site and are subject to regulation and eligibility.