The 48-hour fortnight rule for student visa holders, explained
On an Australian Student visa you can work up to 48 hours per fortnight while your course is in session. The part most people get wrong is what a “fortnight” is: a new one starts every Monday, so they overlap. This guide explains the rule in plain language, with an example and a free calculator.
By Diego Auguin, founder of ShiftSafe · Last reviewed:
Your fortnights right now
Today sits inside two fortnights: the one that started last week and the one that started this Monday. Both have to stay at 48 hours or less.
The rule in one sentence
While your course is in session, you must not work more than 48 hours in any fortnight. This comes from visa condition 8105, which is attached to most Student visas (subclass 500).
“In session” means the advertised terms and semesters, including exam periods. During scheduled course breaks there is no hourly limit.
What counts as a fortnight
A fortnight is any period of 14 days that starts on a Monday and ends on the second Sunday after it. It is not your pay cycle and it is not a fixed calendar block.
Because a new fortnight starts every Monday, fortnights overlap by one week. Weeks 1+2 are a fortnight, weeks 2+3 are a fortnight, weeks 3+4 are a fortnight, and each of them has to be 48 hours or less.
Example: fine on payslips, over the limit
A student with two casual jobs works 15, 25, 25 and 10 hours over four weeks and is paid fortnightly.
The pay cycles show 40 and 35 hours, both under 48. But the fortnight made of weeks 2 and 3 adds up to 50 hours, which is over the limit.
Check your own weeks
Enter your weekly hours from all jobs and the free calculator checks every Monday-start fortnight. No sign-up.
Open the free calculator →What counts as work
The limit covers all the work you do, added together. That includes:
- Every employer at the same time: two casual jobs plus an agency are one total, not three limits.
- Agency shifts, cash-in-hand work and ABN or contractor work, such as delivery apps.
- Unpaid work, unless it is genuine volunteering for a non-profit organisation.
When the limit does not apply
There are three common situations where you can work more than 48 hours in a fortnight:
- Scheduled course breaks, such as the holidays between semesters.
- Work that is a registered part of your course, such as a formal work placement.
- Masters by research and doctoral (PhD) students, once the course has started.
What happens if you go over 48 hours
Working more than 48 hours in a fortnight while your course is in session breaches condition 8105. A breach can lead to your visa being cancelled, and a cancelled visa can make future applications harder.
Cancellation is not automatic, but it is a real risk. If you think you have already gone over, speak to a registered migration agent or an immigration lawyer before you do anything else.
Or let ShiftSafe keep count for you
Log shifts from every job and ShiftSafe warns you before any fortnight reaches 48 hours. Free forever, installable on your phone.
Most students have never heard that fortnights overlap. Send them the free check.
Frequently asked questions
Can I work more than 48 hours a fortnight on a student visa?
Only when the limit does not apply: during scheduled course breaks, for work that is a registered part of your course, or if you are a masters by research or doctoral student whose course has started. Otherwise every Monday-start fortnight must stay at 48 hours or less.
Is the 48-hour limit per week or per fortnight?
Per fortnight. You can work more than 24 hours in one week as long as that week plus the week before it, and that week plus the week after it, each stay at 48 hours or less.
Can I work before my course starts?
Generally no. Condition 8105 lets you work once your course has started, so a job that begins before your first day of class can put you in breach. Check your own conditions in VEVO, and if your start date has moved, ask a registered migration agent before you take shifts.
Does volunteer or unpaid work count?
Unpaid work counts towards the limit unless it is genuine volunteering for a non-profit organisation and remains secondary to your studies.
Do I need to tell my employer about the limit?
You are not required to, but it helps: an employer who rosters you without knowing your limit has no way of seeing the hours you work elsewhere. The limit is your responsibility, not theirs, and no employer can authorise you to go over it.
What should I do if I already worked more than 48 hours?
Stop adding hours in the affected fortnights and get advice from a registered migration agent or an immigration lawyer. Keep your payslips and rosters so you can show exactly what you worked.
Official sources
- Department of Home Affairs — Student visa (subclass 500)
- Study Australia — Student visa (subclass 500)
- VEVO — check your own visa conditions
General information only, not legal or migration advice. Check your own conditions in VEVO. ShiftSafe is not affiliated with the Department of Home Affairs.