Working Holiday Programme (WHP) in Australia

How to obtain a Working Holiday Visa for Australia

To get a Working Holiday Visa for Australia, you must:

• be aged between 18 and 30 on the day you apply to join the WHP,

• be outside Australia when applying for the Working Holiday Visa,

• be a citizen of a country which has signed an agreement with Australia,

• hold a passport from an eligible country which is valid for the duration of the stay,

• not have already entered Australia on a WHV,

• not be accompanied by a dependent child,

• have sufficient funding to cover expenses at the beginning of the stay and the cost of a return or onward ticket.

Having WHV insurance (health and repatriation cover) for the duration of the stay is also highly recommended. Do wait until your application has been approved before taking out insurance.

Your working holiday might be so much fun you won’t want to go back to your home country when it ends… If you have completed at least three months of specified work such as fruit picking in regional Australia, you may be eligible for a second Working Holiday Visa.

Applying for a Working Holiday Visa for Australia

Australia hasn’t set up any annual quotas for the Working Holiday Visa. You may apply anytime on the Australian immigration website.

What you need to do:

• fill in the online or paper Working Holiday Visa application form,

• pay a non-refundable visa application charge,

• provide the requested supported documents: certified copy of the identification pages of your passport, proof of specified work in regional Australia if second WHV application.

Processing times vary between 6 and 21 days. If you applied online, you may use your Transaction Reference Number (TRN) to check the progress of your application. You will receive a Notification of Grant letter if your application is approved.

What can you do with the Working Holiday Visa?

The WHV for Australia allows you to:

• enter Australia within 12 months after the date of issue,

• stay in Australia for up to 12 months,

• leave and re-enter Australia as many times as you wish while the visa is valid,

• work for each employer for up to six months (an extension may be granted in some specific cases),

• study for up to four months.

To find out more about the WHP in Australia:

Check and see if your country takes part in the WHP with Autralia: visit the Australian Government Department of Immigration and Citizenship website.