How many hours can I work on an Australian student visa (subclass 500) in 2026?
If you hold a Student visa (subclass 500), the cap is 48 hours per fortnight during any fortnight in which your course of study or training is in session, and you cannot work at all before your course commences unless you fall into a narrow exception. That comes from visa condition 8105 in Schedule 8 of the Migration Regulations 1994, as published on the Federal Register of Legislation's page for the Migration Regulations 1994, checked as at September 2026.
The reason people comparing notes online end up with two different numbers is that both figures appear in the same clause. The base limit is written as 40 hours; a later subclause then swaps that number for 48 when the visa held is a subclass 500.
Is the limit 40 hours or 48 hours?
Subclause 8105(1) says the holder must not work in Australia for more than 40 hours a fortnight during any fortnight when the course of study or training is in session. Subclause 8105(2A) then provides that if the visa held is a Subclass 500 (Student) visa — or a bridging visa granted on the basis of a valid application for a Subclass 500 visa — the clause applies as if the reference to 40 hours were a reference to 48 hours.
So 40 hours is the figure in the base rule, and 48 hours is the figure that applies to you if your visa is a subclass 500 (or that kind of bridging visa). Both readings are "correct" — they just belong to different visas.
How is a fortnight counted?
Condition 8105 defines a fortnight as the period of 14 days commencing on a Monday. The cap is therefore measured over Monday-start 14-day blocks, not over a calendar month and not as a strict 24-hours-a-week average.
Take a hypothetical applicant: suppose a student works 30 hours in the first week of a fortnight and 18 hours in the second. That totals 48 hours and sits within the cap. If they worked 30 hours and then 20 hours, the total of 50 would exceed it, even though the weekly figures look unremarkable. The practical habit is to total your hours against each Monday-start block rather than checking one week at a time.
One detail worth noting: the cap is written to apply "during any fortnight when the holder's course of study or training is in session." The wording attaches the limit to those fortnights, and the clause itself does not set out a separate figure for other periods, so the current official wording is what should guide your reading.
Can I work before my course starts?
Generally no. Subclause 8105(1A) states that the holder must not engage in any work in Australia before the holder's course of study commences.
Subclause 8105(1B) creates an exception, and it has two limbs that must both be met:
- at the time of applying for the visa, the holder held a substantive visa or a bridging visa (the "previous visa"); and
- the holder was permitted to work in Australia during the period that the previous visa was in effect.
If you applied from outside Australia with no previous Australian visa that allowed work, the starting position is that work begins when your course commences, not on the day your visa is granted.
When does the cap not apply once classes have started?
Subclause 8105(2) disapplies the hourly cap in two situations. The first is work that was specified as a requirement of the course when the course particulars were entered in the Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students (CRICOS) — in other words, work built into the registered course itself, such as a required placement.
The second applies to a student visa granted in relation to a masters degree by research or a doctoral degree, once the holder has commenced that degree. Note how these two rules interact: the masters-by-research and doctoral exception turns on commencement, and the separate pre-commencement prohibition in subclause (1A) still stands before that point.
| Situation | Does the 48-hour cap apply? |
|---|---|
| Subclass 500, course in session | Yes — 48 hours per fortnight |
| Another visa type carrying condition 8105 | The base figure of 40 hours per fortnight applies |
| Before the course commences | No work at all, unless the previous-visa exception applies |
| Work registered as a course requirement in CRICOS | No — the cap is disapplied |
| Master by research or doctoral degree, once commenced | No — the cap is disapplied |
What happens if I work more than the limit?
The note attached to condition 8105 says that whether a visa of a particular class may be made subject to the condition depends on the relevant provision in Schedule 2 of the Migration Regulations 1994, and that for cancellation for breaches of conditions, see sections 41 and 116 to 119 of the Migration Act 1958. In plain terms, the hourly cap is a visa condition rather than a guideline, and conditions are enforced through the cancellation framework in the Act.
This article is general information about how the rule is written and is not personalised advice about your own visa, so for a situation that turns on your specific course dates or visa history, rely on the current official wording or on a registered migration professional.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I work 30 hours one week and 20 the next?
The cap is set per fortnight, and a fortnight is 14 days starting on a Monday, so what matters is the total inside each Monday-start block — 50 hours in one block would be over the limit even if the weekly figures look balanced.
Does the cap apply during semester breaks?
The clause attaches the cap to any fortnight when the course of study or training is in session and does not set out a separate figure for other periods, so the current official wording is the reference point.
I'm starting a Master by Research — does the limit apply to me?
Once you have commenced the masters degree by research, subclause 8105(2)(b) disapplies the hourly cap; before commencement, the rule against working at all still applies unless the previous-visa exception covers you.
Can I start work as soon as my visa is granted?
Not on the strength of the grant alone. The default rule is no work before the course commences; the exception requires that you held a substantive or bridging visa when you applied and were permitted to work while it was in effect.
Does a required internship count toward my hours?
Work that was specified as a course requirement when the course particulars were entered in CRICOS falls under subclause 8105(2)(a), so the hourly cap is disapplied for it.
My friend says the limit is 40 hours — which is right?
Both numbers come from condition 8105: 40 hours is the base figure in subclause (1), and 48 hours is substituted for subclass 500 holders — and for bridging visas granted on the basis of a valid subclass 500 application — by subclause (2A).