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Mates visa: which Indian graduates qualify for two years of work in Australia

Visa guide · 2026-10-11 · 7 min read

The MATES stream of Australia's Temporary Work (International Relations) visa, subclass 403, lets eligible Indian graduates and early career professionals live and work in Australia for up to two years. It is not a standard application: you first register for a ballot, and only those selected can go on to apply. Eligibility is specific, covering your age, your degree's ranking, your field of study and your English score, so it is worth checking each rule on the Home Affairs MATES page before you register.

What the MATES visa actually lets you do

Once granted, a MATES visa lets you do any kind of work and study in Australia, not just work tied to one employer or occupation. The visa itself costs from AUD470.00. That flexibility is one reason the scheme is attractive to recent graduates who are not yet locked into a single sponsoring employer: you are not restricted to one job, one employer or one region the way a sponsored visa holder usually is, so you can try more than one city or industry within your two years.

Who is eligible

To register for the MATES ballot, you need a valid Indian passport and must be between 18 and 30 years old, inclusive. You also need a bachelor degree or higher from an institution ranked in the Top 100 of the NIRF India Rankings Overall 2024 List, and that degree must have been obtained within two years of the start of the ballot registration period. Missing any one of these rules out, no matter how strong the rest of your application is.

Qualifying fields of study

Your qualification has to relate to one of a specific set of fields: renewable energy, mining, engineering, information communications technology, artificial intelligence, financial technology or agricultural technology. A strong degree outside these fields, however good the NIRF ranking, does not qualify for MATES. This matters most for graduates whose degree sits between categories, such as a management degree with a technology major, or an applied science degree that leans closer to agriculture than to agricultural technology specifically: read the exact field list carefully rather than assuming your course title is close enough.

If your degree is in engineering and you are weighing MATES against a sponsored role, our guide to engineering jobs in Australia for Indian engineers compares the routes and the skills assessment each one needs.

If your degree is in information communications technology or artificial intelligence, our guide to IT jobs in Australia for Indians compares MATES with employer sponsorship on the 482 visa.

The English requirement

For MATES, you need an IELTS result with an overall band score of at least 6.0, and at least 5 in each individual test component (listening, reading, writing and speaking). A high overall score with one weak component below 5 will not meet the requirement, so check every band, not just the average.

How the ballot works

Australia allocates up to 3,000 places for primary applicants per program year through the MATES ballot; family members who later join you are not counted against that cap. Registering for the ballot costs AUD25, and registration alone is a separate step from being granted a place. Only those selected in the ballot can go on to lodge a full visa application and pay the visa application charge. Because the ballot caps the number of primary applicants rather than simply approving every eligible registrant, two graduates with identical qualifications, ages and IELTS scores can get different outcomes in the same program year.

Ready to plan the year itself? Our Mates ballot registration timeline covers what to prepare before the window opens and what happens after selection.

1. Check every eligibility rule above against your own passport, age, degree, field and IELTS score before you pay anything.
2. Register for the MATES ballot during its open registration period and pay the AUD25 registration fee.
3. Wait for the ballot result; selection is a separate step from eligibility, even if you are fully eligible, since places are capped at up to 3,000 primary applicants a year.
4. If selected, lodge your subclass 403 MATES visa application and pay the visa application charge, which starts from AUD470.00.
5. Once granted, you can work in any job and study in Australia for up to two years under the visa.

Building the application that gets you there

An IELTS band of 6.0 overall with at least 5 in every component is the floor, not a comfortable margin; test preparation matters here, and our partner PractiseNow focuses specifically on IELTS and PTE preparation. Engineering and mining graduates who qualify under MATES can also start looking at what is already advertised, such as an undergraduate civil/structural engineer role in Sydney or a mining engineer position in Brisbane. If you are weighing MATES against a sponsored visa path, our guide on building a resilient Australian career plan and our 30-day plan for new arrivals are useful next reads.

Common mistakes applicants make

Registering for the ballot with a degree that is close to, but not confirmed as being from, a NIRF Top 100 Overall 2024 institution. Assuming any engineering or IT-adjacent degree qualifies, when MATES lists specific fields and excludes others. Checking only the overall IELTS band and missing that one component scored below 5. Treating ballot registration as equivalent to visa approval, when selection is separate from eligibility and places are capped. Paying for visa or application help from anyone outside the official Home Affairs process, when the ballot registration and the visa application charge are the only payments the process requires.

Frequently asked questions

How long can I work in Australia on a MATES visa?

The MATES stream of the subclass 403 visa lets eligible Indian graduates and early career professionals live and work in Australia for up to two years.

What age do I need to be for MATES?

You must be between 18 and 30 years old, inclusive, at the time you register for the ballot.

Does my degree have to be from a specific list of universities?

Yes. It must be a bachelor degree or higher from an institution ranked in the Top 100 of the NIRF India Rankings Overall 2024 List, completed within two years of the ballot registration period opening.

Which fields of study qualify for MATES?

Your qualification must relate to renewable energy, mining, engineering, information communications technology, artificial intelligence, financial technology or agricultural technology; other fields do not qualify, whatever your university ranking.

What IELTS score do I need?

An overall band score of at least 6.0, with at least 5 in each individual component.

How many people get a MATES visa each year?

Australia allocates up to 3,000 places for primary applicants per program year through the ballot; being eligible is a separate step from being granted a place in that allocation.

Key takeaways

• MATES is a subclass 403 stream giving eligible Indian graduates up to two years of work and study in Australia.
• You must be 18 to 30, hold a bachelor's or higher from a NIRF Top 100 Overall 2024 institution gained within the last two years, and have IELTS 6.0 overall with 5 in every component.
• Your field must be renewable energy, mining, engineering, ICT, AI, fintech or agtech.
• Up to 3,000 primary applicant places are allocated a year through a ballot; registration costs AUD25 and is a separate step from selection.
• The visa application charge starts from AUD470.00 once you are selected and apply.

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