Steep rise in student visa rejections ‘scaring applicants away’

Temporary migrants are engaging in the equivalent of panic buying as student visa applications from people already in the country increased to an all-time high in March, but rejection rates meant less than one in five were granted.

At the same time, news of the government’s clampdown on student visas and high rejection rates is dampening dreams of study in Australia, with potential students who are still overseas choosing not to stump up the $710 application fee.