Visa condition 8104: work limits for family members on a student visa

What condition 8104 requires

Condition 8104 applies to people who hold a student visa as a secondary applicant — that is, as a family member of the student rather than as the student themselves. It limits the holder to no more than 48 hours of work per fortnight.

A fortnight for this purpose is the 14-day period beginning on a Monday and ending on the second following Sunday, the same rolling definition used for the primary student's condition. Hours are counted across all employment, not per employer, and every rolling 14-day window must stay within the cap.

There is also a start-date rule: a secondary holder cannot begin working until the primary visa holder's course has commenced. Arriving in Australia ahead of semester and picking up work before the student's course starts is a breach, even though the visa itself is in effect. As with all conditions, the authoritative record of what applies to you is your own grant notice and VEVO, since conditions attach to the individual grant.

How 8104 differs from the primary student's condition 8105

The two conditions look similar — both carry a 48-hour fortnightly cap — but they diverge in an important way. The primary student under 8105 can work unlimited hours during scheduled course breaks and after the course ends. The secondary holder under 8104 generally has no such exemption: the 48-hour fortnightly cap applies year-round, including during the student's semester breaks.

This catches many families out. It feels intuitive that when the student is on holidays and working full-time hours, their partner should be able to do the same. Under the current settings, that is not how the conditions work — the partner's cap continues through the break.

The difference reflects the design of the visa: the primary holder's work rights are tied to their study calendar, while the secondary holder's rights are set at a flat rate for the life of the visa. Families planning their income around both partners' work should build their plans on the two different rule sets, not on the assumption that they match.

The masters and doctorate exception

The most significant exception under condition 8104 concerns the primary student's course level. Where the primary visa holder is studying a masters or doctoral degree and that course has commenced, the secondary holder's work is not capped — they can work unrestricted hours.

Published guidance describes this exception as covering family members of students in masters courses (including by coursework) and doctorates, which makes the secondary holder's position in this scenario more generous than that of many primary students, since masters by coursework students themselves remain capped under 8105.

The exception turns on facts that can be verified: what course the primary student is enrolled in, at what level, and whether it has commenced. If the primary student changes course — for example, dropping from a masters to a bachelor-level program — the family member's work rights can change with it. Anyone relying on this exception should confirm the current settings on the Home Affairs website and keep evidence of the enrolment, and a MARA-registered agent can review how a planned course change would affect each family member's conditions.

Breaches, employer checks and where to get help

Exceeding the 48-hour cap, or starting work before the primary student's course commences, is a breach of condition 8104. As with other conditions, a breach can be grounds for visa cancellation under the Migration Act, and because a secondary visa depends on the primary visa, problems in a family's visa situation can compound — cancellation of the primary student's visa affects the dependants too.

Employers checking work rights through VEVO will see the work condition on a secondary holder's visa, and careful employers track the fortnightly cap for staff on capped visas. Keeping your own record of hours by date, across all jobs, remains the practical safeguard, since the rolling fortnight windows are easy to miscount.

If you are unsure whether your visa makes you a primary or secondary holder, which condition applies, or how a course change in the family affects your work rights, a MARA-registered migration agent can check your grant details and explain how the current rules apply to your household's specific situation.

Can a student's partner work full-time during semester breaks?

Generally no. Unlike the primary student's condition 8105, condition 8104 has no unlimited-hours break exemption — the 48-hour fortnightly cap continues during course breaks, unless the primary student has commenced a masters or doctoral course, in which case the cap does not apply.

When can a secondary student visa holder start working?

Not until the primary visa holder's course has commenced. Working before that point breaches condition 8104 even though the visa itself has already been granted and is in effect.

My partner is doing a masters degree — am I still capped at 48 hours?

Under current settings, family members of a student who has commenced a masters or doctoral course are not subject to the fortnightly cap. Confirm the current position on the Home Affairs website, and note that the primary student's own cap depends on their course type. A MARA-registered agent can confirm how the rules apply to your family's visas.

What happens if I go over 48 hours in a fortnight?

That is a breach of your visa condition and can be grounds for cancellation, with knock-on consequences for the whole family's visas and future applications. If you think a breach may have occurred, a MARA-registered agent can review the facts and explain the processes that apply before you decide on next steps.