- Phases
- Before you fly, first few days, first month, ongoing
- Each step
- Time needed, instructions, official link, scam warning
- Progress
- Saved to your account, on any phone
- Cost
- Free. Readable on this website without an account.
What you can do.
- Four phases, in order
- Before you fly: what you can bring through the border, and OSHC health cover. Your first few days: a SIM, a bank account, your TFN and a transport card. Your first month: finding a room, your work rights and pay, super and myGov. Ongoing: keeping your address up to date.
- What each step gives you
- How long it takes, plain instructions, a link to the official source, and a warning about the trap on that step.
- Step titles in Nepali too
- Each step's title is also given in Nepali, the one place in the app with Nepali-language content. The rest of the app is in English.
- Progress that follows you
- Tick a step and it stays ticked. Ticks are saved to your Chaana account, so they carry across phones.
- Share it
- A button to share the checklist with a friend who has just arrived.
- Also on the website
- The Just arrived page on this website shows the same live steps, so family can read them before you fly.
- Before you arrive
- Sign up on the website as "Still in Nepal" with your arrival date. After that date, the app asks "Have you arrived in Australia?" so you can switch to your Australian suburb.
All 11 steps, as they appear in the app.
Each step has the time it takes, the warning that belongs to it and a link to the official source.
Before you fly
Step 1: What you can bring into Australia
10 minutes, before you pack
On the plane you get a form. It is called the Incoming Passenger Card. On this form you must tick YES if you carry any food, any plant, any wood, or anything made from an animal.
Ticking YES is free. Ticking YES is never a problem. An officer will look in your bag. If the item is allowed, you keep it. If it is not allowed, the officer takes it and you walk out. No fine.
Ticking NO when you do carry these things is the problem. That is when you get a fine.
Usually allowed
It must be shop bought, still sealed, and for you.
- Chocolate and lollies
- Breakfast cereal and muesli bars
- Coffee, black tea, green tea
- Instant noodles
- Bread and potato chips
- Peanut butter, Vegemite, jam, syrup
- Sealed juice and soft drink
Tick YES, then an officer decides
- Spices and dried herbs
- Rice, dal, beans
- Nuts and seeds you eat
- Dried fruit
- Ayurvedic or herbal medicine
- Any food you cooked at home
Not allowed. The officer will take it
- Meat of any kind: fresh, frozen, dried or tinned
- Fresh fruit and vegetables
- Milk, cheese, yoghurt, butter
- Eggs, and food made with egg such as egg noodles
- Dried chilli
- Plants, flowers, and seeds for planting
- Soil, and anything with soil on it
Also tick YES for these
Shoes, hiking and camping gear, wooden or bamboo items, and pillows or quilts with feathers. They can carry soil or seeds. Wash them and dry them before you pack.
Money
If you carry AUD $10,000 or more, in any currency, you must declare it.
The simple rule
If you are not sure, tick YES. Or leave the item at home.
Official sourceCheck your item on the official BICON website(opens in a new tab)Watch out for this
If you do not tick YES and you are carrying a risky item, you can get a fine straight away at the airport. If you are on a visa, your visa can be cancelled. You may then not be allowed to come back to Australia for up to three years.
These rules change. This page is a guide only. Before you pack, check your exact item on BICON. BICON is the official Australian Government website. If BICON says something different from this page, follow BICON.
Step 2: Buy your health cover (OSHC) before you fly
30 minutes, before you fly
If you are on a student visa, health insurance is not optional. It is visa condition 8501. You must have Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) before you arrive, and you must keep it for the whole time you study.
Official sourceCompare approved OSHC providers(opens in a new tab)Watch out for this
Do not let your OSHC lapse, and do not cancel it to save money. Gaps in cover breach condition 8501 and can put your visa at risk. If your course is extended, extend your cover on the same day.
Your first week
Step 3: Get an Australian SIM card
30 minutes
You need an Australian mobile number for job applications, bank verification, and government services. Buy a prepaid SIM from Lebara, Amaysim, or Dodo — you don't need an expensive plan.
Official sourceLebara prepaid plans(opens in a new tab)Watch out for this
Many students buy phones on expensive plans — be careful, you can end up paying unnecessary high fees with long lock-in contracts. Worse: some friends may ask you to use your name, your visa, and their own bank account to get a phone plan. If that person stops paying, you are legally liable — the contract is in your name with your identity documents. This has already happened to several students. Never do this.
Step 4: Open an Australian bank account
30 minutes
Your employer cannot pay wages into a Nepali bank account. Popular banks: Commonwealth Bank, ANZ, NAB, Westpac.
Official sourceCommonwealth Bank Smart Access(opens in a new tab)Watch out for this
Never let anyone else use your bank account, or use a friend's account for your wages. You have no legal protection and the other person can access your money.
Step 5: Apply for your Tax File Number (TFN)
15 minutes
Your TFN is a unique 9-digit number you keep for life in Australia. You need it before starting any job. Applying is free and takes 15 minutes online. Your TFN arrives by post within 28 days.
Official sourceApply at ATO(opens in a new tab)Watch out for this
Never share your TFN in a WhatsApp group, Facebook post, or with anyone who calls you asking for it. Only give it to your employer on the official Tax File Number declaration form.
Step 6: Get a public transport card for your state
20 minutes
Every Australian state has a tap-on smartcard for public transport. Buying single tickets costs more than tapping on with the card, and many networks cap the daily and weekly fare so once you have travelled a certain amount all further trips that period are free.
Official sourceCompare cards by state on Transport in Australia (Wikipedia)(opens in a new tab)Watch out for this
In most states, being caught without a tapped-on card is treated as fare evasion and carries a fine of at least $200. On some networks the inspectors are plain-clothed, so tap on every single time even for one stop.
Settling in
Step 7: Your first room, and getting the bond back
1 hour
Most newcomers lose money on their first room, not their first job. These are the rules that stop it.
Official sourceRead the government guide to renting as a student(opens in a new tab)Watch out for this
Overcrowding is the quiet danger. A room advertised for four people in a garage or a lounge is often illegal, uninsured and unsafe, and you will be the one who has to leave with no notice. If a price looks impossible, something is being hidden.
Step 8: Know what you must legally be paid
20 minutes
Australian minimum pay rates apply to everyone who works here. Your visa does not change them. Being new does not change them. Agreeing to less does not change them - an agreement to be underpaid is not legally valid.
Official sourceCheck your real pay rate with Fair Work(opens in a new tab)Watch out for this
Reporting underpayment does not put your visa at risk. Under the Assurance Protocol, the Department of Home Affairs will not cancel a visa over work-condition breaches for someone who comes forward about exploitation and keeps meeting their other visa conditions. Fear of this is exactly what underpaying employers rely on.
Step 9: Choose your superannuation fund
10 minutes
Super is Australia's retirement savings system. Your employer pays 12% of your gross wages into a super fund — on top of your wages, not instead of them. You must choose a fund or your employer will choose one for you. AustralianSuper is Australia's largest fund and a popular default choice. When you leave Australia permanently, you can claim this money back (called DASP — Departing Australia Superannuation Payment).
Official sourceJoin AustralianSuper(opens in a new tab)Watch out for this
If your employer deducts super from your wages instead of paying it on top, that is illegal. Your take-home pay should be your full wage — super is an additional cost to the employer.
Step 10: Set up myGov and link the ATO
20 minutes
myGov is the Australian government's online portal. You use it to lodge your tax return, check your super balance, view your income statements, and access government services. You'll first need the myID app (formerly myGovID) on your phone to verify your identity — a passport is enough to get started, though your identity strength (and what you can do) improves once you have an Australian ID document too. Then create your myGov account and link the ATO — you will need your TFN to complete the link. Do this as soon as your TFN arrives.
Every time you move
Step 11: Update your address within 7 days of any move
10 minutes
As a student visa holder, you must notify your education provider of any change of address within 7 days — this is a specific visa condition, not just good practice. It's also wise to update your address with the ATO (via myGov), your bank, your super fund, and Medicare if you have it, so you don't miss important mail — but only the education provider notification carries a strict legal deadline.
Official sourceCheck your visa conditions(opens in a new tab)Watch out for this
Notifying your education provider within 7 days is a legal requirement and a condition of your student visa. Missing this step can lead to visa compliance issues. Set a reminder every time you move — even temporarily.
How it works.
How to use the Arrival Checklist
- Open Guide from the quick-access row on the app's Home screen.
- Start with Before you fly, even if you have already landed.
- Open a step, read what to do and the warning, and follow the official link.
- Tick the step when it is done.
- Come back any time. Your ticks are saved to your account.
What you get.
The right order
Health cover before you fly, a TFN and bank account in your first few days, super and myGov in your first month.
Official links, not guesses
Each step points to the government or official source for that step.
The warning that belongs to each step
The scam that catches newcomers at exactly that point.
How you are protected.
The safety rules and limits, stated plainly.
Every step has its own scam warning. The TFN is free to apply for; nobody should charge you to get one.
If anyone asks for a fee to do a step for you that you can do yourself on the official site, treat it as a warning sign.
The checklist ends with keeping your address up to date, and My Details reminds visa holders to tell Immigration within 7 days of moving.
Questions people ask.
What do I need to do when I first arrive in Australia?
The Chaana Arrival Checklist puts it in order: before you fly, what you can bring and OSHC health cover; in your first few days, a SIM, bank account, TFN and transport card; in your first month, a room, your work rights and pay, super and myGov; and after that, keeping your address up to date.
Is the Arrival Checklist free?
Yes. The checklist is free in the Chaana app, and you can read the steps on the Chaana website without an account.
I am still in Nepal. Is Chaana useful before I arrive?
Yes. The checklist starts with "Before you fly". On the website sign-up you can choose "Still in Nepal" and give your arrival date; after that date, the app asks "Have you arrived in Australia?" so you can switch to your Australian location.
Is the Arrival Checklist in Nepali?
The app's menus are in English. The Arrival Checklist shows each step's title in Nepali too.
Does my checklist progress save?
Yes. Your ticks are saved to your Chaana account, so they carry across phones.
Start with the first step.
Read every step on the website now, then tick them off in the app.
Keep exploring.
- RoomsRooms for rent, lease transfers and people looking for a room, posted by the community.
- JobsNepali jobs across Australia, and people in the community looking for work.
- ABN or TFN explainerA calculator that shows what ABN pay costs you, and a six-question contractor check.
- Profile and accountA free account, your details, your listings, Views & Contacts and account deletion.
- Browse Nepali businesses in the directoryRestaurants, grocers, beauty, mechanics, accountants and more, open to everyone.
- Everything Chaana doesAll 15 features, grouped by what you need.