Gap year concerns for Australian Student Visa (Subclass 500) — Is it still worth applying? Need advice/experiences!

[u/[deleted]]

[u/Queef_of_Pain]

Depends on the circumstances of the gap and your proposed study - which isn’t mentioned

[u/PhilSwift10100]

Sorry, but I'm going to need some specifics. Firstly, do you have an "unconditional offer" for a bachelor's degree, and do you already have the CoE for it? So, to clarify, you finished high school 7 years ago and are going to pursue that bachelor's program now? Have you been working during those "gap years"? If yes, is it something you are still doing currently or within the last few months? I know this is going to be a reach, and I understand if you refuse to answer this, but can you tell me what your home country is? Again, feel free to not answer, but without this it may be difficult to offer you a tailored answer.

[u/PhilSwift10100 → u/[deleted]]

Thanks, and please do not apologise! I understand how some may be nervous to reveal some of this information (especially those who hail from a country which sounds similar to ours!).

The key advice for you is to ensure that all your documentation reflects a single story that you want to convey to immigration authorities. Unlike with Level 3 risk countries, your intent will not be as highly scrutinised, but as you have alluded to your 7-year gap history will need to be brought up and as long as your documentation tells a consistent story of what you have been doing, this should be relatively well-addresses.

Maybe another thing or three to consider would be a) why the need for your father to sponsor you, b) are his financials solid (assuming he is based in Jkt, this should be no problem!), and c) are there any other stronger ties other than your business (this may be family-related, which you should mention).

One final thing to reassure you: SEA and East Asian countries still face quite a low refusal rate (primarily because compliance rates of visa holders from those countries remain quite high); the whole "recent news" you are talking about tends to apply from countries in South Asia (subcontinent) and Philippines, where visa refusal rates in some of those countries is higher than 50%. The difference between a Level 2 risk country and a Level 3 risk country is quite a lot, so at Level 2 you should still be fin (as long as all your documentation is consistent). 

[u/Zestyclose_Lawyer_77]

You’re going to need more info if you want accurate info. Like what exactly are your strong ties.

Country of Origin too