Australia's arrival admin is refreshingly digital, most of it happens online in your first fortnight. Here is the order that works.
SIM at the airport or supermarket
Optus, Vodafone and budget brands like amaysim or Boost activate with your passport. AUD 20-35 a month prepaid covers a student's needs. Australian numbers are needed for everything else, so this is genuinely step one.
Apply for your Tax File Number
Free, online at the ATO website, once you are in Australia. You need it before your first payday, without it your wages are taxed at the top rate. It arrives by post in about two weeks, so apply before you job-hunt.
Open a bank account
CommBank, NAB, ANZ and Westpac all offer no-fee student accounts, often openable online before you even arrive, then verified in-branch with your passport. Get the app and PayID set up, Australia splits bills through it.
Activate and actually understand your OSHC
You bought Overseas Student Health Cover for your whole visa length, now register on the insurer's app (Medibank, Allianz Care, Bupa and others). Learn two things: which GPs bulk bill or direct bill your insurer, meaning no out-of-pocket cost, and that emergencies are covered but ambulances sometimes need an extra add-on depending on state and policy. A GP visit without direct billing means paying AUD 80-110 and claiming back the schedule fee.
Transport card and student discounts
Opal (Sydney), myki (Melbourne), go card (SE Queensland) and equivalents. Check your state's student concession rules, some states give international students full concessions, others (looking at you, historically, Victoria on trains) have been stingier, your university's page has the current facts.
Know your work rules from day one
Student visa holders can work up to the fortnightly cap (48 hours per fortnight during study periods in 2026, unlimited in scheduled breaks). Casual jobs pay AUD 25-35 an hour with weekend loadings. Underpayment of international students is a real problem, know the minimum wage, keep payslips, and use the Fair Work Ombudsman if exploited, reporting does not harm your visa.
Housing strategy is in the Australian housing guide, budgets in costs and funding, and for suburb-level advice, ask a mentor on the ground.
