Cost of Moving to Australia from Hong Kong (2026): Visa & Fees

The one fixed, dated cost of moving from Hong Kong to Australia is the visa charge — this covers it by pathway, plus skills assessment fees, why BN(O) holders still need an English test, the CNCC police clearance, and the apostille fee. Everything else needs its own quote. Figures as at September 2026.

Read the full guide, with official sources →

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Chapters

  1. 0:00 Moving from Hong Kong?
  2. 0:12 Visa charges:
  3. 0:29 Partner visa: $11,710.
  4. 0:44 BN(O) holders don't get
  5. 0:57 IELTS: HK$2,900 ($547).
  6. 1:14 PTE fee: shown on
  7. 1:26 Skills assessment:
  8. 1:42 VETASSESS: $1,146 offshore,
  9. 2:02 CNCC: HK$311, rising to
  10. 2:18 Apostille: HK$125 each.
  11. 2:38 Flights & freight:
  12. 2:52 Rent: cheaper than
  13. 3:07 Agent fees vary widely.
  14. 3:20 No single total — add up
  15. 3:40 Where to read more

Transcript

Hong Kong has no government limit on how much money you can send overseas — unlike mainland China's cap of $50,000 US a year.

The one fixed, dated cost is the visa charge: $6,135 for a subclass 189, $6,140 for a 190, and $4,015 for the 482 — as at 1 July 2026.

A partner visa runs $11,710. Adding an adult costs $3,070 more on a skilled visa, and a child under 18 costs $1,535 to $1,540.

BN(O) passport holders don't get the automatic English exemption that UK, US, Irish, Canadian, and New Zealand passport holders receive — budget for the test regardless.

IELTS in Hong Kong costs HK$2,900, about $547 Australian. Most skilled visas need IELTS 6.0 per band — score 7.0 and you add 10 points, score 8.0 and it's 20.

Pearson doesn't publish one fixed PTE fee for Hong Kong — it's shown on their own booking site and changes over time. Budget for two attempts in case your first score falls short.

Skills assessment fees depend on your occupation: $514 through CPA Australia, $1,034 through Engineers Australia, and $1,498 through ACS for IT — processing takes 6 to 16 weeks.

VETASSESS charges $1,146 offshore for trade and non-trade roles, or $1,260.60 if you lodge from inside Australia. Engineers Australia runs from $346.50 for the accord pathway up to $1,815 for a combined assessment.

A police clearance certificate, the CNCC, costs HK$311 per person, rising to HK$340 from 12 October — about $59, rising to $64 Australian. Processing takes about 15 days.

Hong Kong documents need an apostille from the High Court — HK$125 each, about $24 Australian. A typical application needs 3 to 5 documents, so the total runs HK$375 to HK$625, about $71 to $118.

Airfares and freight are priced by individual airlines and shipping companies and change constantly — get a current quote rather than budgeting from a remembered figure. Personal effects owned for 12 months or more are generally exempt from customs duty.

Australian rent is generally cheaper than Hong Kong for equivalent space. A bond of about four weeks' rent, plus two weeks in advance, is typical. Hong Kong has no Medicare agreement, so private cover is priced by the insurer.

If you use a MARA-registered agent, fees vary widely by visa complexity — there's no regulated schedule, so confirm in writing before engaging one, and compare quotes through Migratio's agent directory.

There's no single reliable total. A single applicant on a skilled visa with no agent generally spends several tens of thousands of Hong Kong dollars once the visa charge, assessment, tests, checks, a flight, and first month are added — and there's no refund on a skills assessment if your occupation isn't on the list, so check that first.

The full guide, with the official sources, is on migratio.com.au. The link is in the description. And if you'd like to talk it through, you can compare registered migration agents there, and see their fees before you book anything.

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