Work and Holiday Visa (462)

The Work and Holiday visa allows certain tourists aged between 18 and 30 years old to have an extended holiday in Australia, while supplementing their funds with short-term work. The visa is valid for 12 months, and allows multiple entries into and exits from Australia. Visa holders can work for up to six months with each employer, and can study for up to four months.

The Working Holiday visa allows certain tourists aged between 18 and 30 years old to have an extended holiday in Australia, while supplementing their funds with short-term work.

The visa is valid for 12 months, it allows for multiple entries into and departures from Australia. Visa holders can work up to 6 months with each employer, and can study for a maximum of 4 months.

The Work and Holiday visa (subclass 462) program is very similar to the Working Holiday visa program (subclass 417), however it applies to tourists holding passports from a different set of countries:

• Argentina*
• Austria*
• Chile*
• China, People’s Republic of*
• Czech Republic
• Ecuador
• Greece
• Hungary
• Indonesia
• Israel*
• Luxembourg
• Malaysia
• Peru
• Poland
• Portugal*
• San Marino
• Singapore*
• Slovak Republic
• Slovenia
• Spain*
• Thailand
• Turkey
• Uruguay
• United States of America*
• Vietnam
• Greece (from July 2019)

* countries not required to provide evidence of government support

Minimum Requirements

As the visa applicant, you must:

• be aged between 18 and 30 years old at the time of application
• have a valid passport from one of the countries listed above
• meet the relevant health and character requirements, provide evidence of health and/or travel insurance if necessary
• have access to sufficient funds to support yourself during the initial stages of your holiday in Australia (approximately AUD 5000)
• be outside Australia at the time your application is lodged and at the time that your visa is granted (if applying for the first time)

Additional requirements include:

• have Functional English
• meet the relevant health and character requirements, and provide evidence of health and/or travel insurance if necessary
• include a letter of support from your home government agreeing for you to stay in Australia (Israel, China, Untied States are exempt)
• meet the educational requirements (the nature of these requirements depend upon the country of passport that the applicant holds)
• have functional English

Work and Holiday arrangements establish a reciprocal Work and Holiday visa arrangement between two countries and come into effect when start dates have been agreed. Annual visa limits apply to the Work & Holiday visa (462) restricting how many visas can be granted in each program year (the number will depend on the agreement in place).  The United States has no annual limit.

You must enter Australia within 12 months of the date that your visa is granted.

You are entitled to work for any employer in any location in Australia, as long as you work for no more than 6 months with one employer.

You must not study for more than 4 months in Australia.

Second Working Holiday visa (462)

You must not have yet turned 31 years of age and have completed three months of specified work in regional Australia while on your visa Working Holiday visa. ‘Specified work’ includes certain types of work carried out in the plant and animal cultivation, fishing and pearling, tree farming and felling, mining and construction industries. If you have worked in Northern Australia it also includes work carried out in tourism and hospitality.

Third Working Holiday visa (462)

From 1 July 2019, Working Holiday visa holders who carry out 6 months of specified work in regional areas while on their second Working Holiday visa may be eligible to apply for a third visa. Applications cannot be lodged until January 2020.

Extending your Working Holiday visa

There are two possible extensions available for Subclass 462 Work & Holiday visa for those who complete set periods of ‘specified work’ in regional Australia.

Working holiday makers on their first visa are required to complete at least 3 months of specified regional work in order to obtain a second visa. For those looking to apply for a third visa, a further 6 months must be completed while holding a second Subclass 462 Work & Holiday visa. 

Specified Subclass 462 Work

The work you have done in northern Australia or in a specified regional area must be “specified work”. This includes the following activities:

If undertaken in northern Australia (all areas north of the tropic of Capricorn):

• fishing and pearling
• tree farming and felling
• tourism and hospitality

If undertaken in northern Australia and/or other specified area of regional Australia

• plant and animal cultivation