by DIRK MULDER

Deakin and Wollongong universities opening campuses in India will be a huge up. But the level of non-genuine students and fraud in applications from India is already a big downer

A number of Australian institutions have announced they are either imposing extra criteria or cutting out applications all together from areas of northern India.

This is a response to the increased risk when participating in the Simplified Student Visa Framework, which is designed to make the system easier for genuine students to navigate and reduce red tape for businesses

The Association of Australian Education Representatives believes extra care with applications from northern India disadvantages genuine students but that the visa framework allows institutions little room to move.

What’s happening on the fraud front

Enrolment fraud is not uncommon in India, past examples include fraudulent academic records, fraudulent English test records and even marriage scams. The international education community is across these common cons.

However CMM understands there’s a new approach, using fraudulent documents pertaining to the justification of living expenses.

To obtain a visa, all student nationals from countries with a Department of Home Affairs level three or four risk rating must demonstrate they can access funds to support their studies.

And so in northern India, unscrupulous education agents are working with bank employees to create fake documentation – falsifying accounts, or changing names on records used for visa applications.

Risk ratings and the simplified student visa framework

Australian education institutions are also risk-rated, as Home Affairs explains:

“twice a year, an education provider’s evidence level will be used to update the combined country and education provider evidence level that is used to guide financial and English evidence requirements for student visa applicants.

The evidence level of the education provider for the 12-month period (ending December 31) will be used to determine the education provider’s evidence level in the following March. Similarly, the evidence level for the 12-month period (ending 30 June) will determine the education provider’s evidence level in the following September.

While not explicit on the website, the number of visa rejections (those rejected for fraud are separated from the other rejections and attract a higher weight), student movements and other performance measures are assessed and evaluated to determine an individual institution’s performance or lack thereof. A new institutional risk rating is then determined.

Post covid performance

The Education Visa Consultative Committee (EVCC) met last week and sources close to the group indicate the Department of Home Affairs will soon announce updated performance ratings. The committee heard that:

universities

ten universities will receive an alternate risk rating, eight revised down and returned to a pre covid assessment.

across the programme

69 will receive a better risk rating level

81 will see a worse Level

Observers suggest Indian caseload management will likely have a widespread impact across downgraded provider assessment level changes.

Dirk Mulder advises education and business clients on trends in international education. He writes regularly for CMM