Student Visa Work Hours in Australia: Limits and Rules Explained ?
The 48-hour rule isn't complicated, but it's strict. Know your visa conditions, track your hours and ask questions early. That way you can earn money, build experience and stay focused on what you came to Australia to do. If this guide helped, share it with a friend who's just arrived, and read our other Melbourne student guides on housing, tenant rights, transport and moving.
Melbourne Sphere editors · Editorial team
Updated 7 min read
In this article
It's one of the first questions every international student asks, usually in a group chat within days of landing: how many hours can I actually work?
The short answer is 48 hours per fortnight while your course is in session. But as soon as you start asking follow-up questions, the answers get less clear. What counts as a fortnight? What about holidays? Does volunteering count? And what's this talk of a 60-hour limit?
This guide explains the rules in plain language, so you can plan your work, protect your visa and know your rights.
This is general information, not migration or legal advice. Your own visa conditions are what count, and rules can change. Always check your visa grant notice and the Department of Home Affairs website, or speak to a registered migration agent or your university's international student advisers.
The core rule: 48 hours per fortnight
Most international students hold a Student visa (subclass 500) with a condition called 8105. It limits how much you can work. In summary:
During your course in session: up to 48 hours per fortnight.
During scheduled course breaks: no limit on the hours you can work.
Before your course starts: you generally can't work. Condition 8105 says you must not start work before your course begins, unless you hold another visa that lets you work.
The 48-hour limit has applied since 1 July 2023, when work restrictions were reintroduced after being relaxed during the pandemic. It increased from the earlier limit of 40 hours.
What does "in session" mean?
Your course is generally considered to be in session throughout your advertised semester or term, including exam periods. That's an important point: students often assume the cap stops when classes finish and exams begin, but exam periods usually still count as in session.
Scheduled breaks, such as the mid-year and end-of-year holidays between semesters, are different. During those, the 48-hour limit doesn't apply. Check your provider's official academic calendar to see exactly when your breaks start and end, and ask your international student office if you're unsure.
How does the fortnight work?
The limit covers 48 hours across a fortnight, not per week. A fortnight is a 14-day period, and Home Affairs guidance describes it as starting on a Monday. That means you could work 30 hours one week and 18 the next without breaking the rule, but not 30 hours in each.
The limit applies to all your work added together, not per job. If you have two part-time jobs, the hours from both count. Keep your own record of the hours you work, with dates and employers, in case you ever need to show compliance.
Example: tracking your fortnightly hours
Week 1
30 hours
Week 2
18 hours
Total
48 / 48 hours
Illustrative example only. Make sure your hours are counted within the applicable fortnight.
What counts as work?
This is where students get caught out. In general:
Paid work: counts, whether it's casual, part-time or cash-in-hand.
Unpaid work experience: can also count toward your limit, according to guidance from universities relaying Home Affairs advice, unless it meets an exception.
Work placements that are a formal, registered part of your course: generally don't count toward the 48 hours. Check with your provider.
Volunteering: genuinely voluntary, unpaid work that benefits the community is generally not counted, but arrangements that look like unpaid work for a business may be. Check before you start.
Self-employment and gig work: be careful. If you're doing deliveries or freelancing, you should assume those hours count, and check your conditions.
When in doubt, ask your international student adviser or Home Affairs before you start, not after.
Who has different rules?
Masters by research and doctoral students: after your course has started, you generally don't have the 48-hour limit.
Family members on your student visa: they're covered by condition 8104. In general, family members of most student visa holders can work up to 48 hours per fortnight. If the main student is studying a masters or doctorate, family members can usually work unrestricted hours. Confirm the details for your own situation, since conditions can differ.
After you finish your course: while you still hold a valid visa, the study-period limit may no longer apply, but check your conditions, because visa end dates and requirements differ.
What about the 60-hour proposal?
You might have seen social media posts claiming that the limit rose to 60 hours per fortnight from 1 July 2026. Here's what's actually happened:
A 60-hour limit was floated as a proposal, linked to an opposition policy idea and a Parliamentary Budget Office costing, with a proposed start date of 1 July 2026.
It was a proposal, not law. The Department of Home Affairs didn't change the rule, and published guidance on condition 8105 continues to say 48 hours per fortnight during study periods.
Until Home Affairs publishes a formal change, the limit that applies to you is the one written on your visa conditions. Don't change your working hours based on a TikTok clip or a migration agent's advertisement. Always check the official site first.
What happens if you work too much?
Breaking condition 8105 is a visa breach, and it's taken seriously. The Department of Home Affairs can cancel a student visa for a breach, which may affect your ability to stay in Australia and can create problems with future visa applications. The department also uses data from sources such as the Australian Taxation Office, so hours reported through payroll can come to its attention.
If you think you've gone over the limit by mistake, speak to your international student office or a registered migration agent as soon as possible, instead of hoping nobody notices.
Your rights at work
Your visa limits your hours, but it doesn't reduce your rights. As an international student in Australia, you're entitled to the same basic workplace protections as anyone else, including:
At least the minimum wage (or the correct award rate), plus casual loading if you're a casual
Superannuation, where it applies
Payslips and proper breaks
Protection from unfair treatment and exploitation
If you're being underpaid or pressured to work hours that would breach your visa, the Fair Work Ombudsman can help, and your employer can't lawfully force you to break your visa conditions. Your university's student support services can point you toward free help.
Tips for staying safe
Read your visa grant notice. Look for conditions 8105 or 8104 and confirm your own limits.
Know your academic calendar. Mark session and break dates, and add your exam periods.
Track your hours. Use a simple spreadsheet or app with dates, hours and employers.
Watch for overlapping jobs. Add up hours across everything.
Check before volunteering or interning. Ask whether it counts.
Be careful with roster changes. An unexpected extra shift can push you over the limit, so say no if it would.
Keep records. Payslips and rosters protect you if there's ever a question.
Ask early. Your provider's international student team deals with this every day.
Quick answers
How many hours can I work on a student visa in Australia?
Up to 48 hours per fortnight while your course is in session, and unlimited hours during scheduled course breaks, for most subclass 500 holders.
Can I work before my course starts?
Generally no. Condition 8105 says you can't start work before your course begins.
Do exam periods count?
Usually yes. They're generally treated as part of the session.
Is the limit 60 hours now?
The article's stated position is that a 60-hour limit was a proposal and the official limit remains 48 hours per fortnight unless Home Affairs publishes a change. Check current Home Affairs guidance before relying on this for 2026.
Do all my jobs count together?
Yes. The limit applies to your total work hours across all employers.
Can my partner work?
Family members are covered by their own condition, and the limit depends on your course level. Check the details for your family.
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