The Australian Department of Education has issued a PRISMS notification regarding updated Assessment Levels for several South Asian countries, effective January 8, 2026.
Assessment Level Adjustments
These changes are intended to manage emerging integrity issues while continuing to facilitate genuine students seeking education in Australia. The specific adjustments are as follows:
- Bangladesh: Moved from Assessment Level (AL) 1 to AL 3.
- Bhutan: Moved from AL 2 to AL 3.
- India: Moved from AL 2 to AL 3.
- Nepal: Moved from AL 2 to AL 3.
- Sri Lanka: Moved from AL 1 to AL 2.
The previous update to Assessment Levels occurred on September 30, 2025.
Industry Response
Phil Honeywood, CEO of the International Education Association of Australia (IEAA), stated that discussions with Minister Hill highlighted industry concerns. These concerns centered on the frequency of the changes and the perceived uncertainty regarding target recruitment countries. Honeywood reported Minister Hill's view that Australia is positioned as the 'least worst' option among major study destinations (USA, UK, Canada). The Minister reportedly cited evidence of an increase in fraudulent financial and academic aspects of applications from South Asia, leading to an emphasis on prioritizing documentary evidence for student filtering.
Ravi Lochan Singh, CEO of Global Reach, an agency recruiting students from South Asia, indicated that a decline in India's evidence level was anticipated due to recent visa rejection rates and identified fraudulent cases. He noted attrition as an ongoing concern. However, he described the changes for Nepal and Bangladesh as unexpected by some, given their high visa success rates in recent months. Singh suggested that students from these countries might be seeking protection visas or other visa types amidst political instability. He added that these changes necessitate students demonstrating compliance with English language and financial requirements unless institutions are classified as low risk, a status he anticipates may also change.
Fraud Detection Challenges
Singh also detailed two types of fraud observed in the application process:
- Financial Document Fraud: Involves apparently genuine financial documents, sometimes facilitated by bank officials, that pass initial verification by agents and universities.
- "Search Funds" Fraud: A more sophisticated method where students obtain funds held by unrelated individuals with similar names, making it difficult to detect that the funds do not belong to the student's family.
He stated that Home Affairs and agencies are aware of these evolving fraudulent practices and their contribution to increased risk levels. Singh further anticipated a potential increase in risk levels for educational institutions, attributing this to the widespread use of aggregators and uncontracted subagents, some of whom have reportedly targeted universities with fraudulent applications.