If you are eligible for a Working Holiday Visa, you can come and work in Australia for up to 12 months – a great way to save for when you travel! You may wish to find a job in a city, or you might want to try something new that you would never do at home. The visa allows you to work full-time in any job (though you need to change employers after a max of 6 months) and you may also be entitled to benefits such as Medicare (public health care system) and tax refunds once you’ve finished working.
Australia has reciprocal visa agreements with a number of countries. Depending on your nationality you can either get a working holiday visa subclass 417 or 462. If you plan to stay longer than 12 months (it’s easy to get stuck in Oz), you may be eligible for a second year working holiday.
The Australian 417 Working Holiday Visa is available to 18-30 year olds who hold valid passports from the following countries:
BELGIUM, CYPRUS, DENMARK, FINLAND, GERMANY, HONG KONG, JAPAN, KOREA, TAIWAN, MALTA, THE NETHERLANDS, NORWAY & SWEDEN.
And available to 18-35 year olds who hold valid passports from the following countries:
UNITED KINGDOM & REPUBLIC OF IRELAND, CANADA, DENMARK, FRANCE & ITALY.
- Your Australian Working Holiday Visa allows you to live, work & travel in Australia for 12-months
- You have the ability to extend your stay by another 12-months on a 2nd Year Visa extension, then a 3rd visa extension
- To be eligible for an Australian Working Holiday Visa you must be outside Australia when you apply and when your visa is granted.
- You must not have entered Australia on a Working Holiday Visa before
- You must be applying no more than 12 months before you intend to travel to Australia.
- Those from the UK no-longer are obliged to complete 88 days of specified work in order to obtain 2nd and 3rd year working holiday visas.
Once you have your visa, you can…
- Enter Australia within 12 months of your visa being granted
- Stay for up to 12 months
- Leave and re-enter Australia any number of times while the visa is valid
- Work in Australia for up to 6 months with each employer
- Study for up to 4 months
- Extend your stay by another 12-months by working 3 months (88 days) in a Specified Role, e.g fruit picking / farm work. If you gain a 2nd Year Visa extension, you may return to work for a further 6 months for an employer with whom you worked on your first Working Holiday Visa.
The Australian 462 Work & Travel Visa is available to 18-30 year olds who hold valid passports from the following countries:
USA, ARGENTINA, CHILE, MALAYSIA, TURKEY
Your visa is valid up to 12 months and enables you to live, work and travel in Australia for up to 12-months. You may enter Australia at any time within 12-months of the visa grant date, stay for up to 12 months and re–enter Australia any number of times within that period. A second year visa extension is possible to apply for if you have completed 3 months of specified subclass 462 work while holding your first year visa.
USA: You must have graduated from High School. Argentina: You must hold tertiary qualifications or have completed/been approved to undertake a third year of undergraduate university study. Chile: You must hold tertiary qualifications or have completed/been approved to undertake a third year of undergraduate university study.
Malaysia: You must hold tertiary qualifications, or have successfully completed at least two (2) years of undergraduate university study. Thailand: You must hold a degree or post high school diploma from an accredited institution. Turkey: You must hold tertiary qualifications, or have successfully completed at least two (2) years of undergraduate university study.
Finding work in Australia can be super easy & quick, especially if you are flexible and willing to make a bit of an effort. Australia has been one of the most popular destinations for backpackers for several decades. Most employers are happy to employ travellers on a casual or even full-time basis. Oz is the place to try out new things and do work you would never even consider back home. Most popular jobs are still hospitality positions such as waiting, bar work, chefs or even just kitchen hands. How about some sheep shearing, tractor driving or flipping street signs. Less common jobs often pay a lot more and let you acquire a whole new set of skills. Other popular backpacker jobs are office or retail positions, manual labour in a warehouse, on construction sites or in the mines & fruit picking jobs.
Working holiday makers are generally only allowed to stick with one employer for a maximum of 6 months. Many positions don’t require a lot of previous experience or qualifications. Though, if you’re planning to follow a certain career path experience is definitely a benefit. Moving to Australia for a year without knowing what jobs you’re going to get is definitely a daunting prospect, but let us tell you: if you really want a job, you will get a job!
