Australian Work Visa or

Australian Working Holiday Visa

This visa is also known as the Australian Work Visa and there are two different varieties. These are based on where you currently reside and the type of passport that you hold. The visas are:

The Australian Working Holiday Visa (417)

is applicable for visitors from Belgium, Canada, Republic of Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Republic of Ireland, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Taiwan and the United Kingdom.

The Australian Work and Holiday Visa (462)

is applicable for visitors from Bangladesh, Chile, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Thailand, Turkey and the USA.

Both forms of Australian Work Visa have been designed to encourage younger people to visit and travel over an extended period, while working to subsidise their travel expenses.

The information below applies specifically to the Australian Working Holiday Visa (417) unless specified. The Australian Work and Holiday Visa (462) has many variations of the information contained below depending on which country you are from. For more information on the Australian Work and Holiday Visa (462), visit the Department of Immigration.

Australian Working Holiday Visa (417)

Your Australian Working Holiday Visa will allow you to enter Australia within 12 months from the date granted and you can stay up to 12 months, including leaving and re-entering Australia.

Note: that your visa will become valid as soon as you arrive in Australia, this is regardless of other visas that you may hold. For example if you applied for a Short-Stay ETA Visa and have an Australian Working Holiday Visa, both will become active when you arrive. The duration you can stay would be 12 months from your arrival date.

In this example you would be better served to travel to Australia on your Short-Stay ETA Visa and then apply for your Australian Working Holiday Visa at least 30 days prior to its expiry.

Are You Eligible?

At the time you make your work visa application you must be 18 years or older, but have not yet turned 31.

In addition you must:

not have previously entered Australia on either an Australian Working Holiday (417) visa or a Australian Work and Holiday Visa (462).
be applying within 12 months of your desired travel date and only be applying for a period of up to 12 months duration.
submit to a medical examination and supply the results of this to the Department of Immigration as required.
meet character requirements such as being able to provide police statements from any country in which you have lived.
show that you are able to meet the costs of your stay, an amount of $5.000 AUD is generally sufficient but if may vary.
provide evidence that you have made plans for leaving Australia (return ticket or additional funds for a ticket).
complete an Australian Values Statement, declaring that you will obey the laws of Australia.
not be travelling or accompanied by a dependant child.

Extending Your Australian Work Visa

Many people want to travel around Australia for a period greater than 12 months and although the Australian Working Holiday Visa is limited to 12 months the Department of Immigration will allow you to apply for a second Australian Working Holiday Visa.

You can do this from Australia after at least three months of your first Working Holiday Visa has passed. On issue of the second visa, the total duration of your visit will be 24 months from the date the first visa was granted. It is important to note that if you leave Australia during this period and come back your duration is not extended by the time that you were absent. Also there is set of strict eligibility criteria that you will need to supply evidence of meeting. You must:

have spent at least three months working in ‘specified work’ in ‘regional Australia’ on your first visa. For more information on what constitutes ‘specified work’ and what areas of Australia are considered regional, click here**.
not have entered Australia on an Australian Work Visa (subclass 462).
still meet the age eligibility criteria stated above (at the date of your second application) AND all the additional requirements with the exception of the first bullet point in the eligibility section, including provision of updated evidence.

Alternatively you can at the conclusion of your first working holiday apply again from your home country and be issued with a second Australian Working Holiday Visa to enable you to return to Australia for a further 12 months.

Working and Studying

On your visa you are able to work in Australia with one employer for a period up to six months in duration. This means that after this time you will need to find another employer. Working part time, on a casual basis or in any other way, will not extend the six-month period.

If you are keen to work only with one employer for the whole period you will need to seek out a different form of visa. There are visas available which will allow you to be sponsored by an employer.

Should you extend your stay in Australia by applying for a second working holiday visa then you may return to work at one of those employers who provided you with up to six months of employment during the period of your first visa. You are still limited however to a period of six months and then you will need to find another employer. Note however that there is no requirement under this second Australian Working Holiday Visa (417) to work in ‘specified work’ in ‘regional Australia’.
You are also permitted to study within Australia, however this is restricted to a period of four months. If you are hoping to study in Australia for a longer period, then it is recommended that you look into getting an Australian Student Visa.

Costs

The cost of your Australian Work Visa is $235** AUD. A second Australian Working Holiday Visa will also cost a further $235** AUD. These costs are not refundable if your application is unsuccessful and any other costs associated with your application also must be borne by you. These include any required health examinations and other costs which may be applicable to supply the evidence required to apply for your visa.

** All prices and links have been confirmed as correct at the time of this article’s publication (Dec 2010). We value accuracy, so if you notice a broken link or a fee change, we’d really appreciate you letting us know.