Australia has introduced a program for Indian nationals to live and work in Australia for up to 2 years. The program is called MATES-Mobility Arrangement for Talented Early-professionals Scheme.
From December 2024, graduates and early career professionals from India’s top universities can register in the pre-application ballot for a Temporary Work (International Relations) (Subclass 403) visa. With this visa, you can travel to and from Australia as many times as you want while your visa is valid.
There will be 3,000 temporary visa places each year through the visa pre-application ballot process, providing an equitable, streamlined and transparent way to select applicants. Primary applicants may bring members of the family unit, who will not be counted towards the 3,000 places.
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Eligible fields of study include:
renewable energy
mining
engineering
information and communications technology
artificial intelligence
financial technology
agricultural technology.
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Australia will grant up to 3,000 Subclass 403 MATES stream visas each year. Indian nationals interested in applying will be selected through a pre-application ballot.
You must first register in the pre-application ballot. Those selected in the ballot will then be invited to apply for the visa. You won’t be able to apply for the visa without an invitation.
The first ballot for this visa stream opens for registrations from December 2024.
To be able to apply for the Subclass 403 MATES stream visa, you must first register in the MATES ballot. If you are randomly selected in the MATES ballot, you can then apply for the visa. To find out if you can register in the ballot, you need to check if you qualify for Ballot eligibility.
There is a ballot registration fee of AUD25. Registrations for the first MATES ballot will open in December 2024.
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To be eligible to register in the MATES ballot, you must:
create an ImmiAccount
hold a valid Indian passport
hold a valid permanent account number (PAN card) issued by the Indian Government
be aged between 18 – 30 years (inclusive) at the beginning of the ballot registration open period for that process
not already be registered in the MATES ballot
have a valid email address
agree to registration form declarations
pay the ballot registration fee (AUD25).
If selected in the ballot, you will be required to meet additional criteria for the grant of a Subclass 403 MATES stream visa.
