Data source: Department of Home Affairs, Study visa statistics, ingested into SVH's production dataset. Figures for the rolling three month window of March to May 2026. Offshore applications only.
This is data reporting only, not migration advice.
The Department of Home Affairs granted 34.6% of 6,298 decided offshore student visa applications from Nepal in the three-month window of March to May 2026.
Nepal was the third-highest-volume offshore market by lodgements in the period, behind India at 7,774 decided applications and Bangladesh at 3,393 decided applications. Despite its volume, Nepal's 34.6% offshore grant rate was the second lowest among the 20 highest-volume nationalities in the window. Only Kenya returned a lower rate: 30.6% of 1,808 decided applications in the same period.
For comparison, India's offshore grant rate was 49.1% of 7,774 decided applications, and Bangladesh's was 48.8% of 3,393 decided applications, both in the March to May 2026 window. Nepal's rate sat 14.5 points below India's and 14.2 points below Bangladesh's, despite all three nationalities sharing the same evidentiary classification at the time.
What the figures cover
The statistics cover offshore applications only: those lodged while the applicant was outside Australia and decided during the window. Onshore applications from Nepal are not included in this dataset. A decided application is one that received a grant or refusal in the March to May 2026 window; applications still pending at the end of May 2026 are excluded from the grant rate calculation.
No prior-window offshore grant rate for Nepal is available from the published data for this article. Nepal did not appear on the Department of Home Affairs published list of the top-10 nationalities with the largest rate movement in either direction for this window, so no point change is reported here.
Evidentiary framework
The Department of Home Affairs reclassified India, Nepal, Bangladesh and Bhutan to Evidence Level 3 effective 8 January 2026, as reported by VisaHQ on 10 January 2026 citing the Department's Web Evidentiary Tool. Evidence Level 3 represents the highest tier of evidentiary requirement under the student visa framework. This reclassification is noted here as a published fact about the evidentiary requirements applied to this group of applicants. This article does not present it as an explanation for the grant rate recorded in the window.
What the data does not show
The published statistics do not include individual application outcomes, grounds for refusal, median processing times by nationality, or onshore decision data for Nepal in this window. Volume and grant rate are the measures published by the Department. Nepal's position as the third-largest offshore market by lodgements, combined with a rate of 34.6%, means the absolute count of applications not granted in the window was substantial. The Department's published tables do not identify individual applicants or the reasons for individual outcomes.
Individual circumstances vary. This article is general information, not migration or legal advice. For guidance on a specific application, consult a MARA registered migration agent.
Pro shows the same breakdown across all 20 highest-volume nationalities in a single side-by-side table, with trailing rate movement for each window.
Sources
- Department of Home Affairs, Study visa statistics: https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/research-and-statistics/statistics/visa-statistics/study. Rolling three month window, March to May 2026.
StudyVisaHub is not a registered migration agent and does not provide immigration assistance. This article reports published Australian Government information and is general information only.