Overseas students

The Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students (CRICOS) is a government-approved list of education providers and courses.

The courses registered on CRICOS are available to secondary students that:

study in Australia on subclass 500 student visas
pay full fees.

In Victoria, we approve independent schools, Catholic schools and non-school providers to register on CRICOS to ensure compliance with the:

Education Services for Overseas Students Act 2000
National Code of Practice for Providers of Education and Training to Overseas Students
standards and guidelines for CRICOS providers.

Until a provider is registered on CRICOS, it cannot:

advertise or offer to provide a course to student visa holders
enrol a student visa holder.

Standards and guidelines for CRICOS providers

To be registered on CRICOS, you first need to get approval from the VRQA.

CRICOS providers are responsible for the accommodation, support, and welfare of unaccompanied student visa holders under 18 and our guidelines are tailored to protect the interests of overseas students.

Our guidelines include all the minimum standards for registering on CRICOS.

Guidelines for the enrolment of overseas students aged under 18 years

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CRICOS providers must also meet the:

How to apply for CRICOS registration

Your CRICOS registration application must specify:

courses
delivery sites
maximum number of overseas students.

If we approve your application, we will then recommend that the Australian Government Department of Education add you as a provider on CRICOS.

We can approve a CRICOS provider for up to 5 years.

Make sure your application is clear and well-organised. Answer all the required questions and include all supporting evidence.
We will only assess complete and good-quality applications.

CRICOS application - initial registration form
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You must also complete a CRICOS fit and proper person declaration.

CRICOS fit and proper person declaration
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Email your application as a zip file to vrqa.schools@education.vic.gov.au
You can also upload your application to a cloud service and email the link to us.
A non-refundable fee applies to all applications.
We will email you an invoice to acknowledge that we have received your complete application.
View our fees.
The Australian Government Department of Education charges additional fees for CRICOS registration.

How is my application assessed?

It can take between 6 and 9 months for us to assess your application.

We may conduct a site visit to ensure your organisation has the relevant systems and resources to provide education services to overseas students.
During a site visit, we check:
- The accuracy and reliability of your marketing material and the information you provide students. This includes information about transfers between providers, complaints, and appeals.
- Your processes for monitoring students' progress and attendance to ensure that they complete their course within the expected timeframe.
- Your compliance with Victoria's Child Safe Standards and how you have included international students.
- The suitability of your staff, facilities, and equipment for delivering courses to international students.
To make a decision about your application, we consider:
- evidence from the assessment
- any rectifications you made
- the site visit
- your registration history.
If we approve your application, we will recommend that the Australian Government Department of Education register your school or organisation and courses on CRICOS.
You can only start offering courses to overseas students once CRICOS registration is complete.

Update CRICOS registration

Complete the CRICOS application - amending registration form to apply to:

change approved capacity on CRICOS
add a delivery site
add a course
add a senior secondary qualification.

CRICOS application - amending registration form

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Email vrqa.schools@education.vic.gov.au to notify us of the following:

change of organisation or trading name
change of principal executive officer or high managerial agent
other changes resulting in an update to the Provider Registration and International Student Management System (PRISMS).

Change of ownership

You must also email us to notify us of a change in ownership. You must include a completed CRICOS fit and proper person declaration.

CRICOS fit and proper person declaration

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Withdrawals

Complete the withdrawal form to inform us of your intention to withdraw your registration, course of study or a location from CRICOS.

CRICOS application - withdrawal of registration or a course or a location

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Renew registration

You can apply to renew your CRICOS registration at the end of the 5-year registration period.

Complete the CRICOS application - renewal of registration form.

CRICOS application - renewal of registration form

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Email your application as a zip file to vrqa.schools@education.vic.gov.au

You can also upload your application to a cloud service and email the link to us.

A non-refundable fee applies to all applications.

We will email you an invoice to acknowledge that we have received your complete application.

View our fees.

Offer the Victorian Certificate of Education Vocational Major

Overseas students can enrol the Victorian Certificate of Education Vocational Major (VCE VM). The VCE VM is a 2-year applied learning program that is part of the VCE.

Students completing the VCE VM:

receive the VCE with 'Vocational Major' on their certificate
do not receive an Australian Tertiary Admission Rank (ATAR).

Overseas students can also enrol in vocational education and training (VET) units as part of their VCE, without enrolling in VCE VM.

Pre-enrolment checks

CRICOS providers must conduct pre-enrolment checks before enrolling overseas students in the VCE VM.

Before enrolment, CRICOS providers must ensure each student and their parent or guardian:

understand the impact on their post-VCE study and Australian visa options
provide informed consent for a VCE enrolment that does not receive an ATAR.

All CRICOS providers who enrol overseas students in VCE VM must keep records of providing this advice and evidence of informed consent by the student and their parent or guardian.

Pathways and VCE VM

Overseas students enrolled in the VCE VM are ineligible for the following pathways:

entry to higher education courses that need an ATAR
apprenticeships
traineeships
full-time employment.

Pathways may be available for overseas students to enrol in higher education courses that do not need an ATAR.

Providers should ask overseas students and their parents or guardians:

what is the student's intended post-VCE pathway?
is the student’s intended pathway available to student visa holders?
is the student's intended pathway affected by not receiving an ATAR?