Specified Work

Specified work* is work that is undertaken in a 'specified' field or industry in a designated regional area.
See: Regional Australia Postcode List

* Work that is eligible for a second Working Holiday visa was changed on 1 July 2008. Eligible work is now referred to as 'specified work' not 'seasonal work'. The specified work definition below applies to:

• visa applications lodged on or after 1 July 2008
  and
• work undertaken at any time while holding a first Working Holiday visa.

If you were refused a second Working Holiday visa for not meeting the seasonal work requirement, but now meet the specified work requirement you may be able to apply again. However, you would need to pay another visa application charge.
See: Working Holiday and Work and Holiday Visas

Definition of specified work

Specified work is any type of work described in the list below:

• plant and animal cultivation
  • cultivating or propagating plants, fungi or their products or parts
  • general maintenance crop work
  • harvesting and/or packing fruit and vegetable crops
  • immediate processing of animal products including shearing, butchery in an abattoir, packing and tanning
    Note: Secondary processing of animal products, such as small goods processing and retail butchery is not eligible
  • immediate processing of plant products
  • maintaining animals for the purpose of selling them or their bodily produce, including natural increase
  • manufacturing dairy produce from raw material
  • pruning and trimming vines and trees.
• fishing and pearling
  • conducting operations relating directly to taking or catching fish and other aquatic species
  • conducting operations relating directly to taking or culturing pearls or pearl shell.
• tree farming and felling
  • felling trees in a plantation or forest
  • planting or tending trees in a plantation or forest that are intended to be felled
  • transporting trees or parts of trees that were felled in a plantation or forest to the place where they are first to be milled or processed or from which they are to be transported to the place where they are to be milled or processed.
• mining
  • coal mining
  • oil and gas extraction
  • metal ore mining
  • non-metallic mineral mining and quarrying
  • exploration and other mining support services
• construction
  • building construction
  • heavy and civil enginerring construction
  • construction services

Work undertaken in the areas of plant and animal cultivation, fishing and pearling, and tree farming and felling must be described in the list above to meet the specified work requirement.

The Australian New Zealand Standard Industrial Classification (ANZSIC) provides further detail about eligible work in mining and construction. Work undertaken in the mining and construction sectors must appear in the ANZSIC division for these sectors to meet the specified work requirement.
See:
ANZSIC - Mining Division
ANZSIC - Construction Division

Supporting work, such as book-keeping, in any industry described in the list above does not meet the definition of specified work.

Specified work:

• does not need to be paid work
  Example: Work undertaken as a volunteer or through the Willing Workers on Organic Farms (WWOOF) scheme may qualify if the work falls within the specified work definition listed above.
• does not need to be undertaken as a direct employee
  Example: Work undertaken as a contractor is eligible if it falls within the specified work definition listed above.
• must be described in the list above
  

Examples of eligible specified work:

• picking fruits on a farm or orchard
• feeding and herding cattle which are kept for commercial purposes
• constructing a house
• extracting ore on a mine site.

Examples of ineligible specified work:

• working at a cellar door providing wine tastings
• undertaking an archaeological survey
• working as a caterer or cook on a mine site
• working as an architect or town planner
• working as a cook or cleaner while volunteering through the WWOOF scheme
• helping to construct ships or boats.

How to find specified work

You can find specified work vacancies in the same way as you would find other job vacancies, such as through employment pages in newspapers, the Internet and job placement service providers. Vacancies specifically for plant and animal cultivation can be found on the Harvest Trail website.
Note: Not all vacancies advertised on the Harvest Trail website will qualify you for a second Working Holiday visa.
See: Harvest trail

You should ensure that the vacancy meets the definition of specified work listed above and that the work will take place in an eligible postcode of regional Australia.
See: Regional Australia

How to calculate specified work

'Three months' means three 'calendar' months or 88 days. Work can be:

• in one block with one business
  or
• in separate blocks with one business or a number of businesses. Blocks of work may be in different kinds of specified work.

Full time workers may include weekends in calculating the number of days worked.

Applicants who work part time or on a casual basis can only count the full days actually worked. The shortest period that can be counted is one day of full time work (for any given industry).

Full time workers can count sick days only during periods where they were in paid employment and entitled to sick leave or covered by a workers compensation scheme. In these situations, supporting evidence must be provided by the employer.

Applicants who were prevented from obtaining employment because of injury or seasonal circumstances cannot count any time they were unable to work towards the three month period.
Example: Cyclones interrupting harvest activities.

Some possible examples to help clarify the definition of three months of specified work are outlined below.

Examples of three (3) months

Examples that meet the three month requirement

• Working week
  You work on a farm for three months for five days each week, where the farmer considers five days a week to be full time work.
• Shift work
  You are employed as a miner for three months and under the employment contract you are only required to work every second week, which is the standard full time contract for the industry.
• Blocks of work
  You complete 60 days of harvest work, followed by a period of travel for two months. Then you complete another 28 days in construction, bringing the total days worked to 88 days.
• Sick days
  You are employed for a three month period but take several days of sick leave during the period.

Examples that do not meet the three month requirement

• Working week
  Four days a week is considered full time work by the farm, but you only work three days a week for three months.
• Work done on another visa type
  You complete three months of specified work during your summer break while on a Student visa.
• Seasonal circumstances
  You pick bananas for 80 days on a casual basis, but cannot find more work as there is a cyclone and your first Working Holiday visa ceases.

Evidence of specified work

The department may contact you to confirm you meet the specified work requirement, and may request evidence that the actual work was undertaken in regional Australia.
Acceptable evidence of specified work (completed while on your first Working Holiday visa) includes either:

• original or certified copies of payslips, group certificates, payment summaries, tax returns or employer references
  or
• a completed employment verification form.

See: Form 1263 Working Holiday visa: Employment verification (92KB PDF file)