The subclass 462 visa allows certain tourists aged between 18 and 30 (inclusive) 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 generally work for up to six months with any one employer and can study for up to four months. Work up to 12 months for some types of specified work and regional areas may be possible. There is an annual limit on the number of first Work and Holiday visas granted to each country. The annual limit resets on 1 July each visa program year.

COVID-19 update for 417 Working Holiday Visa holders.

Related:

• Changes to Working Holiday Maker Visas Affected by COVID-19
• Industries We Work With: Agriculture and Horticulture

REQUIREMENTS

Note: These are the minimum requirements for an application for this type of visa. Depending upon your particular circumstances, you may need to meet additional requirements.

You must:

• be 18 to 30 years old (inclusive)
• apply from outside Australia
• not be accompanied by dependent children
• not have previously entered Australia on a subclass 462 or 417 visa. If you previously entered Australia on a subclass 462 visa, see the second Work and Holiday visa.

• hold a passport for one of the countries or regions listed in the table below:

• • 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
  • Switzerland
  • Thailand
  • Turkey
  • Uruguay
  • United States of America
  • Vietnam

Depending upon your country of origin, you will also need to meet other specific requirements, which may include:

• completion of a certain level of education (e.g. secondary school, tertiary study/qualification)
• English language competence (e.g. IELTS overall band score of 4.5)
• home government support (e.g. letter of support from your home government)

If you are applying for your second Work and Holiday visa, you must also:

• have completed three calendar months of specified work in regional Australia while on your first Work and Holiday visa

From 1 July 2019, to be eligible for a third Work and Holiday visa, you must:

• on or after 1 July 2019, have completed six calendar months of specified work in regional Australia while on your second Work and Holiday visa

THE SPECIFIED WORK REQUIREMENT FOR A SECOND OR THIRD VISA

The following industries and regions are approved for specified work:

• plant and animal cultivation in northern Australia and other specified areas of regional Australia
• fishing and pearling in northern Australia only
• tree farming and felling in northern Australia only
• tourism and hospitality in northern Australia only

Specified work is any type of work described below which must be the primary role, function or activity performed during your employment.

The period of specified work (either three months for a second Work and Holiday visa, or six months for a third Work and Holiday visa) means an evidenced period of paid, full-time equivalent work over a minimum period of 88 calendar days (for three months) or 176 calendar days (for six months) in regional Australia. ‘Regional Australia’ is defined by post code. One day of full-time work is taken to be the normal number of hours per day (or shift) that is considered standard for that particular industry and the role in which you are employed. You can complete the work in a variety of ways.

For example, to be eligible for a second Work and Holiday visa, an applicant must evidence:

• working full time, 5 days per week for a continuous 3 calendar month period, including on a piecework rate agreement OR
• working less than 5 days per week in any combination of full-time, part-time or piecework rate work which adds up to the equivalent of five days a week over 3 calendar months OR
• working less than five days a week over a longer period than 3 calendar months, including on a piece work rate agreement.

The work can be with one employer, or several, and can be spread over the period of your stay in Australia. You can also work longer than the required period in regional Australia in specified work. Paid public holiday leave and sick days are counted as a day of specified work. Unpaid leave or holidays, and unpaid days due to severe or seasonal weather, are not counted.

Updates for Subclass 417 and 462 Visa

Subclass 417 Working Holiday Visa and Subclass 462 Work and Holiday Visa allow young adults of certain countries to work in Australia to help them pay for their holiday. This visa is usually valid for 12 months. However, in some circumstances, visa holders can apply for a second or third working holiday visa.

Specified work

UPDATE 22 April 2022

The Government has made amendments to the type and locations of specified work for working holiday maker visas – subclass 417 and 462. The amendments include:

• FLOOD RECOVERY WORK – work that is paid or unpaid after 31 December 2021 in flood-affected areas in NSW and QLD
• BUSHFIRE RECOVERY WORK – work undertaken that is paid or unpaid after 31 July 2019 in bushfire affected areas
• TOURISM AND HOSPITALITY – four new postcodes have been added:
  • 4406, 4416, 4498 – QLD
  • 7215 – TAS

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Usually, visa holders must work for at least 3 months in ‘specified work’ to apply for the second working holiday visa. In addition, if the applicant intends to apply for a third working holiday visa, he/she must work at least 6 months in the ‘specified work’.

Generally, specified work for Subclass 417 must be taken in regional Australia. The areas of work include:

• plant and animal cultivation in regional Australia
• fishing and pearling in regional Australia
• tree farming and felling in regional Australia
• mining in regional Australia
• construction in regional Australia

For Subclass 462 the areas of work considered to be ‘specified work’ include:

• plant and animal cultivation in northern Australia and other specified areas of regional Australia
• fishing and pearling in Northern Australia only
• tree farming and felling in Northern Australia only
• tourism and hospitality in Northern Australia only
• construction in Northern Australia and other specified areas of regional Australia

However, as part of the Government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, ‘specified work’ has been extended to include working holiday makers who work in the healthcare and medical sector. This work can be done anywhere in Australia. It is not restricted to regional Australia.

Healthcare and medical sector work does not include general administration work or selling personal protective equipment. The applicant work should involve medical treatment, nursing, contact tracing, testing, and research. The applicant can also provide support services, including cleaning medical and health care facilities.

The new definition will apply to application from 19 August 2020 onwards.

APPLICATION PROCESS

The visa application is lodged with the Department of Home Affairs (the ‘DOHA’), along with any supporting documents. The main criterion is that you satisfy the requirements listed above. You must also have access to sufficient funds to support yourself during the initial stages of your holiday. In addition, you must meet certain health and character requirements, and may be asked to provide evidence of health and/or travel insurance.

You must enter Australia within 12 months of the date that your visa is granted. You may then work in any job in any location in Australia, provided that you do not work for more than six months with any one employer unless an exemption applies. You must also not study for more than four months.

Note: Your subclass 462 visa may be subject to a ‘No Further Stay’ condition, meaning that you will not be able to apply for any further visas while you are in Australia. Even if your visa is not subject to this condition, you will only be able to apply for a limited range of visas while you are in Australia.

The time that it takes the DOHA to process your application is dependent upon its processing time service standards, and may also vary due to a number of other factors, including the complexity of your case, perceived risk factors and processing priorities. Please contact us for current information regarding likely processing timeframes for this type of application.