International students wishing to obtain an Australian visa must have at least AUD29,710 ($19,641) in savings. The previous requirement was AUD24,505 ($16,200). The decision came into effect from May 10.

“The financial capacity requirement has been updated to align with a proportion (75 per cent) of the national minimum wage,” the department said.

It added that the revision would better indicate the amount of money considered reasonable to provide a minimum standard of living while studying in Australia. This proportion considers that students are out of course session for 25 per cent of the year. During this time they may return home or have access to unrestricted work.

The minimum savings requirement has also increased for other categories. The minimum saving requirements for other groups of applicants will be as follows:

• Spouse or de facto partner of the student’s primary applicant: AUD10,394 ($6,871)
• Dependent child: AUD4,449 ($2,941)
• Annual school costs: AUD13,502 ($8,926)
• Personal annual income if there is no member of the family: AUD87,856 ($58,081)
• Personal annual income where there is a member of the family unit: AUD102,500 ($67,762)