In this article, I’ll answer the question of how many times you can apply for a Working Holiday Visa in Australia. I’ll show you some examples of people who have tried more than once, and explain why it’s better to plan your application right the first time around.If you are Australian and want to go overseas for a working holiday, you’ll need to know how many times you can apply for a working holiday visa in Australia. Our article will help you find out how many times you can apply for a holiday visa as well as the eligibility requirements.
How Many Times Can You Apply For A Working Holiday Visa In Australia
The first step to determine how many times you can apply for a working holiday visa in Australia is to understand your options. Whether you’re planning to work for 6 months or 12, you do have a number of choices to make about applying for this visa.Working Holiday Visa usually allows young people between 18-30 years old to stay in Australia and travel in the country for one year. It must be applied before your 31st birthday, so you have more than 1 year to apply this kind of visa. The main purpose is to travel and work in Australia for about 6 months, you will get 2 or 3 month to travel after arrive Australia.
The Working Holiday visa Australia (WHVA)
The so-called Working Holiday visa and Work And Holiday visa are popular among young adventurers (18 to 30 years) who want to visit Australia for a longer period of time. These visas are valid for stays of up to one year and can be applied for up to three times.
A year in Australia: an extraordinary experience
Spending a year working abroad is a life-changing experience that helps to broaden your view of the world. The Australian government is convinced of this, which in 1975 resulted in a special type of visa: the Working Holiday Visa Australia. The purpose of this visa is to encourage young people to come and discover the country. By now, more than a million young people from more than 40 countries have made use of a Working Holiday visa.
The Working Holiday Maker programme
Currently, Australiaʼs Working Holiday Maker programme consists of six different visa types. These are divided into two sub-classes, each of which can be applied for three times.
Working Holiday or Work And Holiday
There is a “Working Holiday visa” (subclass 417) and a “Work And Holiday visa” (subclass 462). Which of these two subclasses can be applied for depends solely on the nationality of the traveller. See in the tables below which subclass you can apply for if you have a European nationality.
| Nationalities with which a Working Holiday visa (subclass 417) can be applied for: | ||
|---|---|---|
| Belgium | Cyprus | Denmark |
| Germany | Estonia | Finland |
| France* | Ireland* | Italy |
| Malta | Netherlands | Norway |
| United Kingdom** | Sweden | Switzerland |
| * Travellers with French or Irish nationality can apply for a Working Holiday visa until their 36th birthday. | ||
| ** UK citizens including British overseas passports |
| Nationalities with which a Work and Holiday visa (subclass 462) can be applied for: | ||
|---|---|---|
| Greece | Hungary | Luxembourg |
| Austria | Poland | Portugal |
| San Marino | Slovenia | Slovakia |
| Spain | Czech Republic | Turkey |
The first, second and third visa
There are three variants available of the Work And Holiday visa and the Working Holiday visa namely the first, second and third visa that can be applied for within each subclass. Each type is suitable for a stay in Australia of up to one year, but the requirements and permitted activities in Australia are slightly different in each case.
Be sure to take a road trip during your year in Australia
Activities in Australia with a Working Holiday visa
Working in Australia
Working is never the only or the most important goal during your adventure in Australia, but it is an ideal opportunity to be immersed in Australian life and to earn some extra money at the same time. What kind of work can be done depends on the subclass (Working Holiday or Work And Holiday), but it also matters whether the first, second or third visa is used to travel within this subclass.
The first type allows you to work anywhere in Australia. If at least three months is spent working in certain sectors, including agriculture, cattle breeding, forestry, construction and fishing, a second visa be applied for (later). To apply for the third visa, a total of at least six months must have been spent working in these sectors. When choosing work in Australia, carefully check whether it falls within the specific sectors according to the official criteria, which can vary from region to region and from year to year.
Holidaying
The year in Australia should be above all a fun year. Therefore, reserve enough time to discover all the corners of the country. A visit to Melbourne and Sydney is almost always on the agenda. But also take a look at the southern island of Tasmania, go in search of Uluru in the Australian outback, or visit one of the many other national parks in Australia. Had enough of the dry desert? Then there is also the breathtaking underwater world, for example around the famous Great Barrier Reef.
Studying in Australia
With a Working Holiday visa, it is also possible to study in Australia for a maximum of four months. This is one month longer than the maximum allowed with an eVisitor visa. If you want to study in Australia for a longer period, you can apply for a special study visa.
Requirements of the Working Holiday Visa Australia
Age limit
You must be between 18 and 30 years old to qualify for this visa. It is usually possible to apply for a Working Holiday visa until just before your 31st birthday. The only exception applies to travellers with French or Irish nationality; they qualify from ages 18-35, so they can apply until just before their 36th birthday. The age criterion must only be met at the time when the application is submitted, so not during the stay in Australia. If you turn 31 (or 36 in some cases) during the granting process, you may still be granted the visa. Work And Holiday visas can always be applied for up to the 31st birthday, regardless of nationality.
Sufficient savings
If you want to make use of a Working Holiday visa, you must be able to prove that you have sufficient financial resources to pay for your stay and return trip. Despite the possibility of working in Australia and thereby generating income, a minimum of AUD 5000 (or converted into other currencies) must be available to be able to complete the trip.
Health, character and travel history in Australia
As with all visa for Australia, a number of basic requirements must be met. These include not being in debt to the Australian government, being in good health and having a good character. Read below on the e-visa requirements page what this means. Finally, no previous application for an Australia visa should ever have been rejected.
High cost and lengthy processing time
Working Holiday visas have a rather lengthy processing time. Usually it takes at least several weeks before an application is approved. The costs are also quite high, namely AUD 485, the equivalent of approximately £268,00 per person.
If you do not wish to stay in Australia for longer than three months and do not wish to work there, it is better to apply for a tourist visa for Australia. This can be done via this website and only costs £14.95. The tourist e-visa can be approved within an hour.
Apply for the Australia tourist visa now
Warning: the tourist visa is not a bridging visa
Did you apply for a Working Holiday visa, are you still waiting for it to be approved and do you want to travel to Australia in the meantime? Do not apply for a tourist visa to be able to travel already. By doing so, you will overwrite the application for your Working Holiday visa, which will cost you a lot of time and money. It is also not possible to apply for a Working Holiday visa while you are in Australia on the basis of a tourist visa.