Which Countries Offer Work Visas After Graduation For Abroad Students?
Interest and passion to study in a foreign land have been increasing among Indian students from all corners of the country, gradually the applicants for foreign universities are increasing year to year.
The leading countries in international education are the USA, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, Germany, known for providing world-class education and research.
Few abroad countries are offering temporary work visas for students who have completed their degrees, post-study work permits are also attracting the students as they can gain valuable work experience in abroad countries, which adds extra value to their qualification and amplifies their career.
The well-developed countries such as the United States of America, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the UK are offering such visas for international students.
United States of America
Optional Practical Training (OPT) is the temporary work permit offered by the USA for abroad graduates who are on an F-1 visa.
The OPT allows eligible international students to work in the US for up to one year, while STEM graduates get additional two years, which means they can work legally in the US for 3 years.
This work permit allows international graduates to stay in the USA after completing the degree; they are allowed to work in the permitted period.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom offers a 2-year post-study work visa for international students, they are eligible to work in the UK up to two years post-graduation. This visa is also called the “graduate route”. Ph.D. graduates will get eligibility to stay in UK for three years
After completing the two years, the respective student is eligible to apply for a skilled work visa if he/she got a job offer that meets the skill requirement of the route
To favour distance learning foreign pupils due to pandemic, the UK government announced that students who are doing online studies online due to Covid-19 in the 2020-21 academic year are still eligible to apply for the Graduate Route,
Canada
Canada's government is offering temporary work permits called “Post-Graduation Work Permit (PGWP)” for international students who have completed their graduation successfully in Canadian universities. Graduates are permitted to stay in Canada up to three years. The duration of the work permit is equal to the length of the course.
Canadian government altered the PGWP rules to support international pupils who have begun their studies online due to the Pandemic.
As per the earlier PGWP rule, the time spent outside Canada will be terminated from the length of the work permit.
The amended Post-Graduation Work Permit rule says “The total length of the duration spent by students outside Canada for distance learning will be counted towards the length of post-graduation work permit”
Australia
Two types of temporary work visas are offered by Australia for graduates, Graduate Work and Post-Study Work, under the temporary graduate visa (subclass 485), which allows a graduate to remain in Australia to live, study or work post studies.
Temporary graduate visa (subclass 485) has two divisions Graduate Work, Post-Study Work.
Graduate Work Visa: This visa is granted for international students who have graduated with the qualifications and skills that match the list of specific occupations that Australia is willing to fulfill the shortage at a rapid pace. A student is eligible to stay in Australia for up to 0ne and a half years (18 months).
Post-Study Work Visa: This visa is granted for recent graduates from Australian institutions. As per the qualification, students are allowed to stay for two to four years.
New Zealand
An abroad student who has completed his student program from New Zealand’s educational institutions is eligible for a post-study work visa. Depending on the qualification type, a successful graduate is able to stay in New Zealand for up to three years.
The post-study work visa holder is allowed to work in any occupation/profession; there is no need to match his/her qualification
Students who have completed their study outside Auckland prior to the end of 2021 are allowed for two or three years.