The Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs has made the decision to continue the previous exemption process relating to visa condition 8547, from 1 January 2024, while consultation on the Working Holiday program settings and reform process is underway in line with the recently released Migration Strategy.
This change allows Working Holiday Makers (WHMs) to work with any one employer for the duration of their visa without requesting permission.
This applies to anyone in Australia who either holds any kind of WHM visa, regardless of when they arrive, or holds a Bridging visa with condition 8547 imposed.
The following arrangements will apply from 1 January 2024 until further government decisions are made as part of the WHM reform work. Working Holiday Makers can work for the same employer in Australia for more than 6 months without asking permission if the work is:
- in different locations and work in any one location does not exceed 6 months
- in plant and animal cultivation anywhere in Australia
- in certain industries, including aged care and disability services, fishing and pearling, tree farming and felling, construction and mining, in northern Australia only (see website for a definition of Northern Australia)
- from 17 February 2020, natural disaster recovery work
- from 4 April 2020, in critical sectors, including agriculture, food processing, health, aged and disability care and childcare, anywhere in Australia
- from 8 May 2021, in the critical sector of tourism and hospitality anywhere in Australia
- For any other situations not covered above, Working Holiday Makers will need to ask for our permission to work longer than 6 months with one employer.
Request to extend the employment period may be approved if the Working Holiday Maker:
- is an au pair
- has applied for another visa in Australia that would let them continue to work for their employer full time and are waiting for our decision
- have exceptional circumstances, for example, their work is critical to their employer
Exceptional circumstances must:- relate to an Australian permanent resident, citizen or business
- be out of the ordinary
- be unforeseeable
To apply for permission you will need to complete a web form that will be available soon.
For those who have already submitted a request for approval to work for longer than 6 months for the same employer, they can continue working for the same employer until they receive a written outcome of their request.
Working Holiday (subclass 417) and Work and Holiday (subclass 462) visas allow visa holders to have an extended holiday in Australia and to supplement their funds with short term employment. These visas are granted with condition 8547, which limits work with each employer to 6 months. Condition 8547 states ‘The holder must not be employed by any one employer for more than 6 months, without the prior permission in writing of the Secretary’.
Related: Changes to Working Holiday Maker Visas Affected by COVID-19
If you want to work longer than six months with one employer in any other circumstance you need to request permission.
Meaning of ‘one employer’
The ’employer’ is the business or organisation for which you are working directly.
If you are referred by an agency or labour supplier to a business, you can work for six months for that business. The same agency or labour supplier can refer you to another business where you can work for another six months. You cannot stay in the same position in the same location with one employer for more than six months by using different employment agencies, business affiliates or sub-contracting arrangements.
Workplace-based training is considered to be work. You are able to undertake workplace-based training with the same employer for up to six months.
Calculating 6 months
The 6 months starts from the day you start work. It includes full-time, part-time, casual, shift and voluntary work. It is based on the length of time that has passed since you started working, not how many hours or days you have worked.
The condition applies separately to each visa, including bridging visas. This means that the 6 month period starts again when you are granted a new WHM visa and/or when a bridging visa comes into effect while you are waiting for your application to be processed.
6 month work limitation Condition 8547 – Work in different locations
You do not need to ask DHA permission to work with the same employer for up to 12 months if you work in different locations and work in any one location does not exceed six months.
For example you can:
- work for two hotels in the same chain at different premises
- work for independently-owned franchises in different workplaces
- work for State and Territory schools and health care facilities at different addresses
- work at two different orchards owned by the same business with the one ABN (Australian Business Number)
- work for a subsidiary company (owned by the same parent company) but the ABN on your payslip is different
- work for different businesses (separate legal entities with different ABNs) owned by the same employer
- be self-employed and provide services to the same business for more than six months as long as that business is not the only business you provide services to during that time
- work for independently-owned franchises, even though they operate under the same business name
- work from home or work remotely, during COVID-19
Plant and animal cultivation work anywhere in Australia
You do not need to ask our permission to work with the same employer for up to 12 months if you work in plant and animal cultivation anywhere in Australia.
For example:
- the harvesting and/or packing of fruit and vegetable crops
- pruning and trimming vines and trees
Note: This must be your primary employment task and directly associated with the cultivation and commercial sale of plant produce, such as fruit and nut crops (commercial horticultural activities). General garden maintenance is not eligible. - general maintenance crop work
- cultivating or propagating plants, fungi or their products or parts
- immediate processing of plant products
- maintaining animals for the purpose of selling them or their bodily produce, including natural increase
Note: Maintaining animals for tourism or recreational purposes is not eligible. - immediate processing of animal products including shearing, butchery, packing and tanning
Note: Secondary processing of animal products, such as small goods processing and retail butchery, is not eligible. - manufacturing dairy produce from raw material.
Work in certain industries in northern Australia only
You do not need to ask our permission to work longer than six months with one employer in Northern Australia if you work in the following industries:
- Aged Care and Disability Services
- Fishing and pearling
- Tree farming and felling
- Construction
- Mining.
Aged Care and Disability Services
- disabilities services
- aged care services
- aged or disabled carer.
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
- planting or tending trees in a plantation or forest that are intended to be felled
- felling trees in a plantation or forest
- 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.
Construction
- residential building construction
- non-residential building construction
- heavy and civil engineering construction
- land development and site preparation services
- building structure services
- building installation services
- building completion services
- other construction services.
Mining
- coal mining
- oil and gas extraction
- metal ore mining
- construction material mining
- non-metallic mineral mining and quarrying exploration
- mining support services.
Tourism and hospitality work
Tourism and hospitality
- positions where the primary purpose is to directly provide a service to tourists, including tourist guides and operators, outdoor adventure or activity instructors, tourist transport services
- gallery or museum managers, curators or guides
- hospitality workers, including a range of positions in hotels or other accommodation facilities, restaurants, cafes, bars and casinos
- conference and event organisers.
For the purposes of the six-month work limitation, Northern Australia is defined in the following table.
|
Eligible areas of Northern Australia |
Postcodes inclusive |
|
Northern Territory |
Entire Territory |
|
Queensland (all areas north of the Tropic of Capricorn) |
4472 |
|
Western Australia (all areas north of the Tropic of Capricorn) |
0872 |
Natural disaster recovery work
This includes:
- construction, farming, or any other work in association with recovery or restitution of land, property, farm animals or wildlife
- providing support services or assistance to people living, working or volunteering in the affected areas
- clean-up, construction or any other work in association with restitution or restoration of services, land, waterways, property or infrastructure
- providing support services or assistance to people living, working or volunteering in the affected areas.
Bushfire recovery work
- construction, farming, or any other work in association with recovery or restitution of land, property, farm animals or wildlife
- providing support services or assistance to people living, working or volunteering in the affected areas
Eligibility for second or third Working Holiday (subclass 417) and Work and Holiday (subclass 462) visas
While some industries also provide eligibility for a second or third Working Holiday or Work and Holiday visa as well as employment extensions, not all do. For example:
- work as an au pair, and in aged and disability care does not count as ‘specified work’ for either subclass 417 or subclass 462
See Specified subclass 417 work and Specified subclass 462 work for more detailed information.
excluded employment: SC 417 and SC 462 visa holders are prevented from using work carried out for an ‘excluded employer’ from being used to satisfy the conditions to apply for a second or third working holiday visa.
Excluded employers are those specified by legislative instrument who the Minister is satisfied pose a risk to the safety and welfare of a person performing work for, or under the supervision of that employer.
Change this condition on my bridging visa
To change this condition on your bridging visa:
- complete Form 1005 Application for a bridging visa – To replace a ceased bridging visa, to change bridging visa conditions or to provide lawful status during judicial review (327KB PDF).
- Send the form to the area processing your visa application. See the last contact we sent you for the address.
Book an appointment for a commitment free briefing with a Registered Migration Agent in Melbourne to find more about your visa options.
VisaEnvoy assists Working Holiday visa holders in application to work beyond 6 months for their employers , ensuring that all criteria are met, and sufficient documentary evidence is provided to DHA. VisaEnvoy policy is to only lodge ‘decision ready’ applications , so that the your application is finalised as quickly as possible.
