Applying for the 590 Student Guardian Visa Onshore in 2026: The Excluded Visa List

According to the Australian Department of Home Affairs' official Student Guardian visa (subclass 590) page (current as at August 2026), you may lodge a subclass 590 application while you are inside Australia if you hold a substantive visa that is not on the department's excluded list, or if you lodge within 28 days of holding a Student visa, a Special Purpose visa or a dependent Diplomatic (Temporary) visa, or of being notified by the Tribunal that your visa cancellation has been set aside. If you hold a Visitor visa (subclass 600), an Electronic Travel Authority (subclass 601), an eVisitor (subclass 651) or a Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485), among others, you cannot make a valid onshore application as the holder of that visa — which is why many families end up deciding whether to lodge offshore or to wait until their visa situation changes. This article is general information rather than personalised advice, so any decision about your own timing should be checked against the official page and the latest government publications.

Which visas stop you from lodging a 590 application inside Australia?

The "Have this visa if applying while in Australia" and "Step by Step" sections of the Department of Home Affairs page set out a closed list. Holding any of the following means you cannot apply for the Student Guardian visa while you remain the holder of that visa in Australia:

Visa	Scope of the restriction
Temporary Work (International Relations) visa (subclass 403)	Only in the Domestic Worker (Diplomatic or consular) stream
Domestic Worker (Temporary) Diplomatic and Consular visa (subclass 426)	All holders
Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485)	All holders
Visitor visa (subclass 600)	All holders
Electronic Travel Authority visa (subclass 601) (ETA)	All holders
Medical Treatment visa (subclass 602)	All holders
eVisitor visa (subclass 651)	All holders
Transit visa (subclass 771)	All holders
Maritime Crew visa (subclass 988)	All holders
Diplomatic (Temporary) visa (subclass 995)	Primary visa holder only — a family member of a subclass 995 holder can apply for a Student visa in Australia

Note the subclass 995 detail carefully: the bar applies to the primary visa holder, and the official page expressly says a family member of that primary holder may apply for a Student visa in Australia. The rest of the entries apply without that carve-out.

If almost every substantive visa works, why does this list exist?

The excluded categories share one practical feature: they are short-stay, transit, diplomatic-household or post-study work visas that the department does not treat as a suitable base for switching into a guardianship role onshore. The page does not publish a rationale, so treat the list itself as the operative rule rather than trying to infer why a particular category was included.

The useful consequence runs the other way. Because the list is finite and specific, any substantive visa not named above is capable of supporting an onshore application — subject to the other eligibility criteria discussed below.

What if I don't hold an eligible substantive visa? The 28-day routes

There are two narrow pathways for applicants who do not hold an eligible substantive visa at the moment they lodge. You may apply within 28 days of either:

holding a Student visa, a Special Purpose visa, or a dependent Diplomatic (Temporary) visa; or
being notified by the Tribunal that your visa cancellation has been set aside.

For a hypothetical applicant: if a parent held a Student visa that ceased three weeks ago and has been on a bridging visa since, the first limb may allow an onshore lodgement. If that same parent's Student visa ceased three months ago, the 28-day window has passed and the default position is that the application must be lodged from outside Australia.

Do we actually need to leave Australia to apply?

Working through the decision in order usually settles it:

Check the visa you hold now. If it is substantive and not on the excluded list above, you can apply onshore.
If it is on the excluded list, check whether one of the 28-day limbs applies to you. Note that holding a subclass 485 or 600 visa is not itself one of those limbs.
If neither applies, the option left on the table is to lodge from outside Australia: you can be in or outside Australia both when you apply and when the department decides your application, but being inside Australia without an eligible substantive visa (or a qualifying 28-day trigger) is the problem, not the location of the decision.
Consider who else in the family is eligible. A parent, a custodian, or a relative aged 21 or older nominated in writing by a parent or custodian may all be eligible as Student Guardian applicants, so the family is not locked into one candidate.

Timing matters here. Moving between these options takes planning rather than a last-minute switch, and the all-in cost of a short departure — fares, time away from the student, possible re-entry questions — is a household judgement call, not something the visa rules decide for you.

What happens after you lodge onshore?

If you were in Australia when you applied, you were granted a Bridging visa A (BVA). The BVA starts when your current visa expires and lets you remain lawful in Australia while the application is decided. It carries no right of return: the BVA cancels if you depart Australia.

That last point interacts with another rule. You can travel in and out of Australia on a granted subclass 590 visa, but you cannot leave Australia without the student visa holder unless alternative welfare arrangements have been made for that student. If you leave on a BVA instead, the bridging visa ends on departure and you need a valid visa to come back. Assume, hypothetically, that a guardian on a BVA needs to travel home for a family emergency — without the student, no welfare arrangements in place, and no return visa, that departure ends the onshore pathway.

Also note that the department does not refund the application fee if the visa is refused, and you must hold a valid visa throughout processing — letting your current visa be cancelled while waiting leaves you unlawful.

The other eligibility criteria apply wherever you lodge

Being able to lodge onshore does not reduce the substantive requirements. The official page requires that you:

be the student's parent, a person who has custody of the student, or a relative aged 21 or over nominated in writing by a parent or custodian — where "relative" covers a parent, step-parent, grandparent, step-grandparent, sibling, stepsibling, aunt or uncle (including step-relations), niece or nephew (including step-relations), partner, or child or stepchild;
provide care and support for a student visa holder who is under 18, or one who is 18 or older and needs care and support because of exceptional circumstances;
be able to provide accommodation, general welfare and support;
meet the health requirement (you and family members applying with you), and, if you are applying as a relative rather than as a parent or custodian, the character requirement;
have no debt to the Australian Government, or have repaid or arranged repayment;
sign the Australian Values Statement after reading, or having explained to you, the Life in Australia booklet;
intend to stay only temporarily and do what the visa allows, having substantially complied with the conditions of your last substantive or subsequent bridging visa;
have had your application considered against your immigration history, including any prior cancellation or refusal; and
satisfy the department that granting the visa is in the best interests of any applicant under 18.

Two household constraints catch families out. The department will not grant the visa if any member of the family unit is under 6 unless there are compelling and compassionate reasons, or granting it would significantly benefit the relationship between the Australian Government and another country's government — and this applies even if that child is not travelling with you. Children under 6 also cannot be added after you submit your application.

Money, insurance and documents: the figures published on the official page

The financial evidence requirements are specific. You need funds to cover travel costs for you and the student visa holder, 12 months of the student's course fees (pro rata for shorter courses), 12 months of living costs for you, the student and accompanying family members, and school fees for school-age accompanying children.

Declared 12-month living cost figures from the official page are AUD 29,710 for you and AUD 4,449 for a child coming with you. Schooling costs are listed as at least AUD 13,502 per year per child for children under 6 included in the application, with actual costs varying by state, territory and school. Travel is given as a guide of $2,000 per person. Instead of deposits, you may show that a spouse or de facto partner who is not travelling to Australia will support you, provided their annual income is at least AUD 102,500 in the 12 months immediately before you apply — evidenced by official government documents such as tax assessments less than 12 months old. Bank statements and employer letters are not accepted as evidence of that annual income.

Health insurance must be adequate for the first 12 months of your stay, whether through Overseas Visitors Health Cover or another product offering comparable cover, and must cover medically necessary treatment including transport. On documents, the completed Form 157N — Student guardianship arrangements is mandatory: without it, the application is not valid. Applications are made online through ImmiAccount, and you should apply at the same time as the student. Identity failures carry serious consequences: if you cannot prove your identity, the application will be refused and further visas may be withheld for 10 years for you and listed family members.

Cost

The visa pricing for the main applicant was not published as a fixed amount on the official page; the department points applicants to its Visa Pricing Estimator. Additional charges apply for each family member applying with you, plus possible separate costs for health checks, police certificates and biometrics. A lower application cost applies to eligible Pacific Island and Timor-Leste citizens holding a valid passport from a listed country, including Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tonga, Vanuatu and Timor-Leste.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I apply for a 590 visa onshore while holding a Visitor visa (subclass 600)?

No. A Visitor visa (subclass 600) is named on the Department of Home Affairs' excluded list, so you cannot lodge a Student Guardian application in Australia while you hold it. Your options are to lodge from outside Australia or to see whether a 28-day limb applies because you recently held a Student, Special Purpose or dependent Diplomatic (Temporary) visa.

Does a Temporary Graduate visa (subclass 485) holder have any onshore pathway to the 590?

Not as a 485 holder. The Temporary Graduate visa is explicitly excluded from the visas that permit an onshore subclass 590 application, and holding a 485 is not one of the 28-day triggers. A 485 holder would generally need to be outside Australia to lodge unless they separately hold another eligible substantive visa.

What exactly counts as the 28-day rule?

You may apply within 28 days of holding a Student visa, a Special Purpose visa, or a dependent Diplomatic (Temporary) visa, or within 28 days of being notified by the Tribunal that your visa cancellation has been set aside. Outside those windows, a person in Australia without an eligible substantive visa cannot apply onshore.

If I apply onshore, can I travel overseas while waiting for the decision?

You do not need to tell the department that you intend to travel, because a decision can be made while you are outside Australia. But the Bridging visa A granted with your onshore application has no right of return and cancels on departure, so you need a valid visa to come back, and you cannot leave without the student visa holder unless alternative welfare arrangements are in place.

Do the relationship and financial rules change if I apply from outside Australia?

No. Whether you are in or outside Australia at lodgement and decision, you must still be a parent, custodian or nominated relative aged 21 or over, care for an eligible student, show funds at the published levels, hold adequate health insurance, and meet the health, character and other criteria. The only criterion that turns on your location is the one about holding an eligible substantive visa.

Can I switch from another substantive visa to the 590 inside Australia, and can I work on it?

Yes, if the substantive visa you hold is not one of the ten excluded categories listed by the Department of Home Affairs. Once granted, the visa does not allow you to work; you may study ELICOS for less than 20 hours a week, or undertake other study or training for no more than three months.