485 Visa Lodgement Deadline Calculator

No. This calculator provides a general, indicative estimate only, based on the information provided, and does not constitute legal advice. Your exact deadline depends on your institution's official results release date and how your specific qualifications meet the Australian Study Requirement. Speak with one of our migration lawyers to confirm your deadline and avoid missing your lodgement window.

If you have completed multiple qualifying courses, you can rely on any one of them that independently satisfies the Australian Study Requirement, meaning it is CRICOS-registered, took at least 16 calendar months to complete, spans at least 2 academic years, and was taught in English. Each qualifying course carries its own completion date and its own 6-month lodgement window, so your deadline is tied to whichever qualification you choose to rely on, not extended or reset by completing additional courses.

Age does not change your 6-month lodgement window, but it is assessed separately, at the date your application is received. If you are close to the applicable age limit for your circumstances, both your lodgement deadline and your age eligibility should be checked together, rather than assuming meeting one automatically means you meet the other.

You must be in Australia at the time you lodge your application. Being onshore at some point before your deadline does not satisfy this requirement, you specifically need to be in Australia on the day of lodgement itself.

If you lodge after the 6-month window has closed, you will no longer meet the study requirement for a Subclass 485 visa based on that qualification. This deadline does not have a standard extension or waiver process, so confirming your exact completion date well in advance is important.

Your course completion date is the date your final results were officially released or notified by your institution, not the date of your graduation ceremony, and not the date printed on your testamur or certificate. This is a common point of confusion: many applicants assume their certificate date starts the 6-month clock, when in fact results are often released earlier, which means the deadline can arrive sooner than expected. Confirming the exact results release date with your institution is essential.

You generally need to lodge your application within 6 months of your course completion date. This window applies regardless of which stream, Post-Vocational Education Work or Post-Higher Education Work, you are applying under.