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Quick answer: Starting 13 November 2026 you can add a partner or child to a Temporary Graduate (subclass 485) visa application only if they are already your dependent on your Student visa (or 485) or if you meet an exception: a Pacific or ASEAN passport, a completed doctorate, a foreign-government-funded course or a child born after your last visa was granted. Family must apply at the time as you. They can’t be added later.
For years, the 485 visa allowed international graduates to bring a partner or children into the application or add them later as ” entrants.” That changed today. The Migration Amendment (Temporary Graduate Visa Reform) Regulations 2026 were registered on 12 November. Applies to every 485 application lodged on or after 13 November 2026.
If you’re finishing your studies in Australia and planning a 485 with family, this guide explains who you can still include under the exemptions, the newborn rule, and the timing mistakes that can’t be fixed later.
What changed for 485 visa family members on 13 November 2026?
The 485 visa new rules do three things:
Limit who can be included. A partner or child can join your 485 application in six listed situations (below).
End entrant applications. Family members can no longer apply to join you after your 485 is granted.
Require one combined application. Everyone must lodge together at the time.
The change follows Home Affairs Minister Tony Burkes 17 September 2026 announcement that family members would no longer be attached to student and graduate visas. The Student visa half started on 2 October 2026. The 485 half is now law as well.
Does the new rule affect my 485 visa?
No. The rules apply to applications made on or after 13 November 2026. If you lodged your 485 on or before 12 November 2026, it is decided under the rules. A family member already holding a 485 as your dependant keeps that visa.
Who can you include in your 485 visa application now?
There are two routes: family on your previous Student visa or an exemption that lets you include any family member.
Route 1: Family members included on your previous Student visa
You can include the same family members from your previous Student visa if they:
- Currently hold a Student visa as your dependent, or
- Held a Student visa as your dependent on 2 October 2026, or
- held a Student visa as your dependent at any time in the 6 months before you apply.
The regulations require that you held that Student visa as the applicant and the family member held it as your secondary applicant.
Example: You can’t include a spouse or partner in your 485 application if they were not on your Student visa. Marrying after your Student visa was granted or having a partner on a visa (a visitor or working holiday visa, say) does not meet this route.
A similar rule applies if you’re applying for a 485. A family member who holds or held, in the 6 months before you apply for a 485 visa, as your dependent can be included.
Route 2: Exemptions that let you include any family member
If one of these applies to you, you can include any eligible family member, even someone who was never on your Student visa:
| Exemption | What it means in practice |
|---|---|
| Pacific or ASEAN passport | You hold a passport from a Pacific-regional country or an ASEAN country: Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand or Vietnam |
| Doctorate (PhD) | Your most recent Student visa was granted for a doctoral degree, and you’ve completed it |
| Foreign-government funded study | Your most recent Student visa was for a course (or courses) fully funded by a foreign government |
Example: If one of these fits, you can include your spouse or partner in your 485 application even though they weren’t on your previous Student visa.
For Nepali, Indian, Sri Lankan, Bangladeshi, and Pakistani graduates: none of these countries are Pacific or ASEAN nations. Unless you completed a PhD or had a foreign-government scholarship, your only route is Route 1: your family must already be on your Student visa.
Can I include a newborn child in my 485 visa?
Yes, but only if you get the timing right. A child born outside Australia after your most recent Student visa was granted can go into your first 485 application. They have to be in that application when you lodge it. Once your 485 is granted, you can’t add a child born overseas.
Example: Your Student visa was granted in March 2025, and your daughter was born in Nepal in August 2026. She can be included in your first 485 application, as long as she’s on it from the day you lodge.
Babies born in Australia are a different case. They automatically hold the same visa as their parent, so this rule doesn’t apply to them. You still need to tell Home Affairs about the birth and sort out the child’s visa evidence.
If you’re expecting a baby overseas around the time you plan to lodge, talk to us first. A birth a few weeks after your 485 is granted leaves you without a way to add the child.
Where must you and your family members be when you apply?
| Who | When you lodge | When the visa is decided |
|---|---|---|
| You (main applicant) | In Australia, but not in immigration clearance | In or outside Australia |
| Family members | In or outside Australia, but not in immigration clearance | In or outside Australia |
Family members who are in Australia must hold a substantive visa or a Bridging visa A or B when you apply. Family overseas can still be included if they qualify. Say your partner held a Student visa as your dependent until four months ago, then went home: they can still go on your application.
When your family members must apply
This is the rule we expect to cause the most heartache. Your family must apply at the same time as you, even if you’re in Australia and they’re overseas.
You can’t add them later, not even while your own application is still being processed, and there’s no subsequent entrant option after your 485 is granted. If an application doesn’t meet the family rules, it’s invalid. Home Affairs won’t consider it, and the Administrative Review Tribunal can’t review it. Book a 485 visa consultation for a clearer approach.
Checklist before you lodge a 485 with family
- Confirm each family member fits Route 1 or one of the exemptions.
- Check the dates on your dependant’s Student visa. Do they hold it now, did they hold it on 2 October 2026, or within the last 6 months?
- Make sure anyone in Australia holds a substantive visa or a Bridging A or B visa.
- Gather relationship evidence, birth certificates, health checks, police certificates, and health insurance for everyone.
- Budget for the visa application charges (below).
- Lodge one combined application with every family member on it.
How much does it cost to include family in a 485 visa?
The reforms didn’t change the fees. These charges have applied since 1 July 2026:
| Applicant | Standard passport | Pacific or Timor-Leste passport |
|---|---|---|
| First 485, main applicant | AUD 5,750 | AUD 2,360 |
| Additional applicant 18+ | AUD 2,875 | AUD 1,180 |
| Additional applicant under 18 | AUD 1,450 | AUD 595 |
| Second 485, main applicant | AUD 2,265 | AUD 930 |
On a standard passport, a graduate applying with a partner and one child pays AUD 10,075 in visa charges. Health checks, police certificates, and insurance come on top of that.
What should you do now?
Already have family on your Student visa? Keep them on it. Lodge your 485 within the 6-month window with everyone in one application.
Planning to. Have a partner join you? Under these rules, they can’t be added to a 485 unless you meet an exemption. Talk to a registered migration agent about options, such as a partner visa.
Expecting a baby overseas? Plan your lodgement date carefully. The child must be in your 485 application.
Lodged before 13 November? The old rules apply to you.
FAQs
Can I add my spouse to my 485 visa after it is granted?
No. From 13 November 2026, there’s no subsequent entrant pathway. Your spouse must be included when you lodge and must fit one of the listed situations.
Can I include my partner if they were not on my Student visa?
Can I add my spouse to my 485 visa after it is granted?
No. From 13 November 2026, there’s no subsequent entrant pathway. Your spouse must be included when you lodge and must fit one of the listed situations.
Is Nepal or India covered by the 485 family exemption?
No. The passport exemption covers Pacific-regional countries and the 10 ASEAN countries. Nepali and Indian graduates can include family only if they’re already Student visa dependants, or if the PhD or foreign-government funding exemption applies.
Can my family be outside Australia when I apply for a 485?
Yes. You have to be in Australia, but your family members can be in or outside Australia when you apply and when the visa is decided, as long as they qualify.
Do the new 485 rules apply if I lodged before 13 November 2026?
No. Applications made on or before 12 November 2026 are decided under the previous rules.
Conclusion
For most graduates, the only family you can bring onto a 485 now is family who’s already on your Student visa (today, on 2 October 2026, or at some point in the last 6 months). Everyone applies together. Pacific and ASEAN nationals, PhD graduates, and foreign-government-funded students have more room, and there’s a narrow pathway for babies born overseas.
A missed family member or a wrong date can’t be fixed after you lodge. If your situation is anything other than straightforward, have it checked first.
Book a consultation with a Nepcoms registered migration agent to check your 485 family eligibility before you lodge.
This article is general information, not legal advice. It reflects the rules as at 13 November 2026.
