Work and holiday visa 462
First Work and Holiday Visa
This visa lets people 18 to 30 years old (inclusive) have an extended holiday in Australia and work here to help fund their trip.
Stay
12 months
Cost
AUD485
Processing times
- 75% of applications in 80 days
- 90% of applications in 3 months
With this visa you can
- do short-term work in Australia to help pay for your holiday
- study for up to 4 months
- travel to and from Australia as many times as you want
- do 3 months of specified subclass 462 work to become eligible for a second Work and Holiday visa
You must
- have a passport from an eligible country
- 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.
With this visa you can
- do short-term work in Australia to help pay for your holiday
- study for up to 4 months
- travel to and from Australia as many times as you want
- do 3 months of specified subclass 462 work to become eligible for a second Work and Holiday visa
Work
You can do any kind of work on this visa.
Usually, you can only work for the same employer for 6 months.
If the main purpose of your stay is to work, consider a work visa. Explore visa options.
Study
You can study for up to 4 months (17 weeks).
If the main purpose of your stay is to study, consider a Student visa.
How long you can stay
This is a temporary visa. You must enter Australia within 12 months of the date we grant it. We will not extend or defer this timeframe.
The visa becomes active on the date you enter Australia. Once you have entered and the visa is activated, you can:
- stay in Australia for up to 12 months
- leave and re-enter Australia as many times as you like in that 12 months
You have another visa
This visa starts on the date you enter or transit through Australia even if you hold any other temporary visa including:
- a Special Purpose visa
- an Electronic Travel Authority
- a Crew Travel Authority
- a Maritime Crew visa
Ask us to cancel your Work and Holiday visa before you travel to Australia if:
- you want to enter Australia on another visa, or
- you do not want your Work and Holiday visa to start
Complete Form 1194 – Certification of Immigration Status and/or request to cancel a Temporary Resident visa (205KB PDF).
We will not refund your application fee if you ask us to cancel your visa.
Stay longer
You can’t stay in Australia longer by extending this visa.
Explore your visa options to stay longer in Australia.
You could apply for a second Work and Holiday visa if you are eligible.
Stay longer on a visitor visa
The total time we let you stay in Australia on your first Work and Holiday visa and then a visitor visa is 12 months.
We might grant you longer on a Visitor visa if:
- you apply for a visitor visa from outside Australia or
- there are exceptional circumstances
For this visa, exceptional circumstances might be that a close family member in Australia has died or is seriously ill and you need to stay.
If you have another visa
The Work and Holiday visa starts on the date you enter Australia even if you are transiting through Australia or also have a valid:
- Electronic Travel Authority
- Crew Travel Authority
- Maritime Crew visa
Ask us to cancel your Work and Holiday visa before you travel to Australia if:
- you want to enter Australia on another visa, or
- you do not want your Work and Holiday visa to start
Complete Form 1194 – Certification of Immigration Status and/or request to cancel a Temporary Resident visa (205KB PDF).
Include family
You can’t include family members in your application.
You can’t be accompanied by dependent children while you are in Australia on this visa.
Cost
AUD485
You might also have to pay for health checks, police certificates and biometrics.
Apply from
You must be outside Australia when you apply for this visa and when we decide your application.
Processing times
- 75% of applications in 80 days
- 90% of applications in 3 months
Your application might take longer to process if:
- you don’t fill it in correctly
- you don’t include all the documents we need or we need more information from you
- it takes us time to verify your information
Annual visa limit
Every program year we grant a limited number of first Work and Holiday visas to applicants from each eligible country except the United States of America. The program year begins on 1 July and ends on 30 June.
Once this annual limit or ‘cap’ is reached, we will not grant any more visas. You should wait until the new program year commences on the following 1 July to submit an application.
To find out if applications are open, suspended or closed from your country of passport see Status of country caps.
Your obligations
You must comply with all visa conditions and Australian laws.
Tax
You must pay taxes when you work in Australia on this visa.
Superannuation
Australia has compulsory superannuation – a retirement savings scheme. Your employer must pay superannuation into your superannuation fund if you earn more than a certain amount.
You can access your superannuation when you leave Australia.
Health insurance
We recommend you take out health insurance to cover any unforeseen medical treatment you might need in Australia. You are personally liable for all your healthcare costs while you are in Australia. Insurance can help limit your financial liability.
See what we consider adequate health insurance.
Learn more about health insurance for overseas visitors.
Reciprocal healthcare agreements
Some countries have a reciprocal healthcare agreement with Australia. Find out more from the Department of Human Services about reciprocal healthcare agreements.
Travel
You can travel outside Australia and return as many times as you want while the visa is valid.
Time you spend outside Australia after your first entry does not extend the visa’s 12-month validity period.
Visa record
We will digitally link your visa to your passport. You will not get a label in your passport.
Hold this passport
You must be a citizen of and hold a valid passport from one of these 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
Be this age
You must be aged 18 to 30 years old (inclusive) when you apply.
If you apply for the visa while you are 30, but turn 31 before we have made a decision, we can still grant you the visa.
Previous visas
You must not have previously entered Australia on a:
- Work and Holiday visa (subclass 462)
- Working Holiday visa (subclass 417)
Meet our education requirement
You must meet our education requirement.
This table presents our education requirements for this visa by country.
Check the visa pages of the Australian embassy in your country for more detail on our education requirement.
| Country of passport | Education requirements |
|---|---|
| You must:
These are acceptable tertiary qualifications:
These qualifications are not acceptable tertiary qualifications:
|
| Chile | You must:
These are acceptable tertiary qualifications:
These are not acceptable tertiary qualifications:
|
| Israel | You must hold a Senior Secondary Certificate of Education and have either:
|
| Malaysia | You must:
These are acceptable tertiary qualifications:
These are not acceptable tertiary qualifications:
|
| Thailand | You must have either:
|
| United States of America | You must have a Senior Secondary Certificate of Education or equivalent. |
Have this level of English language
You must have at least Functional English.
You have Functional English if you meet one of the following:
- you are a citizen of and hold a valid passport issued by the United Kingdom, the United States of America, Canada, New Zealand or the Republic of Ireland
- you are a citizen of and hold a valid passport issued by Israel and have successfully completed an English Bagrut exam in the level of 3 study units
- you have completed a relevant approved English language test or assessment
- you have undertaken relevant education
Have a letter of support
You must give us a letter of support from your government (or alternative as stated below) if you are from:
- Czech Republic (letter of introduction from your tertiary institution)
- Ecuador
- Greece
- Hungary
- Indonesia
- Luxembourg
- Malaysia (Good Conduct Certificate)
- Peru
- Poland
- San Marino
- Slovak Republic
- Slovenia
- Thailand
- Turkey
- Uruguay
- Vietnam
You don’t need to provide a letter of support if you are from:
- Argentina
- Austria
- Chile
- Israel
- China, People’s Republic of
- Portugal
- Spain
- Singapore
- the United States of America
Have enough money
You must have enough money to:
- support yourself while you are in Australia
- leave Australia at the end of your stay
This is usually about AUD5,000 for your initial stay, plus the fare to where you are going after leaving Australia.
Meet the health requirement
You must meet our health requirement.
Meet the character requirement
You must meet our character requirement.
Pay your debts to the Australian Government
If you or any family members (including those who don’t apply for the visa with you) owe the Australian government money, you or they must have paid it back or arranged to pay it back.
Not have had a visa cancelled or a previous application refused
You might not be eligible for this visa if you have had a visa cancelled or refused while you were in Australia.
Sign the Australian values statement
You must acknowledge the Australian Values Statement that confirms you will respect the Australian way of life and obey Australian laws when you apply for the visa.
We offer Professional Guidance From A Registered Migration Agent
Here at Settlers Migration our team of migration agents can provide you with the appropriate guidance and advice so you can put forth the best application possible for any Visa you are going for.
