Median wait (P50)2026-04-29
4days
Process guide max29 days
Live data· SUBCLASS 500 · STREAM 47
Student visa (subclass 500) — Foreign Affairs or Defence sector
Student visa for international students sponsored by Foreign Affairs or Defence to study in Australia. Foreign Affairs or Defence Sector stream.
Processing-time distributionof grants in trailing 3 months
25%
P25
1d
50%
P50
4d
75%
P75
7d
90%
P90
17d
Category
Student & graduate
Stream
Foreign Affairs or Defence Sector
Subclass code
500
How to read these numbers
Home Affairs publishes the actual processing-time distribution for each visa subclass. The 25th percentile shows how fast the quickest quarter of recent grants were finalised; the 90th shows the long tail. The median (50th) is the most useful single number — half of applications take less, half take more. Plan around the 75th or 90th if your travel or work plans cannot tolerate a delay.
Source · immi.homeaffairs.gov.auRefreshed daily