How this Visa Works
The purpose of this visa is for you to holiday and travel in Australia. Any work should be temporary to supplement your funds. Periods of work should be broken up by periods of holiday and travel.
If you are referred by an agency or labour supplier to a business, you can work 6 months for that business. The same agency or labour supplier can later refer you to another business where you can work for another 6 months.
Working beyond 6 months with the same employer may result in your visa being cancelled and you may be required to leave Australia.
Applicants
You can apply for a Work and Holiday visa if you:
- are aged between 18 and 30 years (inclusive) on the date you apply
- hold a passport from a country that has a Work and Holiday arrangement with Australia
- meet health and character requirements
- have approval from your government (not required for applicants from the USA)
- have relevant education qualifications
- are able to speak English at a functional level
Accompanying family
You cannot include family members in your application for this visa. If a family member or partner wants to come with you to Australia, they must apply for their own visa to Australia.
Employers
For this visa, the department regards the employer as the organisation or business for which you are working directly.
Working
You can undertake any type of work on a temporary basis. If you intend to work in your own occupation you should check if registration or licensing is required.
See:
Australian Skills Recognition Information (ASRI)
National Office of Overseas Skills Recognition
Trades Recognition
Working beyond the 6 months with the same employer, without the required permission, may result in your visa being cancelled and you may be required to leave Australia.
This means that you cannot work for longer than 6 months in the same position, in the same location, doing the same work.
If your main reason for coming to Australia is work, you should consider applying for a business visa.
See: Employer Sponsored Workers
Visa validity period
If granted a Work and Holiday visa, you have 3 months from the grant date to enter Australia. The visa is valid for 12 months from the date you first enter Australia.
Note: If you leave Australia during your 12 month stay, you cannot recover the period of time spent outside Australia.
Studying
While in Australia as the holder of a Work and Holiday visa you must not study or train for more than 4 months. If you want to study for longer than 4 months, you should apply for a student visa from outside Australia.