⚖️🛡️Your legal protections and rights as an International Students
Legal rights for international students in Australia are crucial to ensure your safety, dignity, and fair treatment. Without these legal protections, students risk exploitation in key areas such as education, housing and the workplace.
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Legal rights for international students in Australia are crucial to ensure your safety, dignity, and fair treatment. Without these legal protections, students risk exploitation in key areas such as education, housing and the workplace.
The following are key legal rights and protections that you have as an international student studying, working and living in Australia:
Quality-assured education
Overseas students studying in Australia on a student visa can only study government-registered courses that meet national quality standards. Visit Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses Overseas Students (CRICOS) for a list of these courses.
The Education Services for Overseas Students (ESOS) Act 2000 and National Code of Practice for Providers of Education and Training to Overseas Students 2018 require all CRICOS registered education providers to follow strict rules about student support, information and processes, including access to the Tuition Protection Scheme (TPS).
Students can notify the National Student Ombudsman (NSO) if they have issues with their higher education provider, and the NSO will help the students resolve their issues in an accessibly, safely and confidentially.
Workplace rights
Whenever anyone, including international students, engages in employment in Australia, you are protected under the The Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (The "Cth" means it applies to the entirety of Australia, not just a state). This is a set of laws that provide for terms and conditions of employment in Australia, and also sets out the rights and responsibilities of everyone involved in employment.
The Fair Work Commission, established in 2009 by The Fair Work Act 2009, is a government agency that sets minimum wages in Australia, helps with issues in the workplace and regulates any organisation registered to operate in Australia (including small, medium and large businesses, non-for-profit organisations and government entities). If you need legal help in relation to your work, you can find it on this Fair Work Commission web page.
Protection from race, sex and other unlawful discrimination
If you think you've been discriminated against on the basis of race/ethnicity, sex, age or many other factors that are considered unlawful, the Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is available to help you resolve any issues you have encountered. The areas they cover include race, sex, age, disability, LTBTIQ+ and many other forms of discrimination.
Tenancy rights and consumer rights
For issues relating to tenants or consumers, NSW Fair Trading is a government department in NSW that can help support you in resolving any issues you may encounter. Similar entities exist in other states, which can be found here. All of these entities act according to the Competition and Consumer Act 2010, which is a national law that regulates fair trading in Australia and governs how all businesses in Australia must deal with their customers, competitors and suppliers.
For legal advice, assistance and information specifically relating to renting and tenancy, Tenants' Union of NSW is a great resource for international students and is funded by NSW Fair Trading and Legal Aid NSW. There is also an independent legal centre near the city called Redfern Legal Centre. This is within a short distance from the city and UTS, USyd and UNSW.
Finally, here is a handy one-pager on consumer rights and tenancy rights information for international students provided by the NSW government.
