Australia working holiday visa Information and facts

The Australian Working Holiday Program (Programme) was established back in 1975. Its initial purpose was to "promote international understanding by enabling young people to experience the culture of another country." The program is intended as a way to encourage cultural exchange, and build up good relations between countries participating in the Working Holiday Scheme.

Working holiday makers have a positive effect on Australia's economy, by filling a major number of the vacant non-skilled occupations. Australia has an ever-growing need on such workforce, so it welcomes more and more people aged between 18 and 30 years.

• Hold a passport issued in one of the following countries: Belgium, Canada, Chile, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, South Korea, Sweden, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States.
• Be at least 18 and not over 30 (inclusive) years old at the time applying for an Australian visa.
• Meet health requirements. You might need to undergo a medical exam, including a chest x-ray, HIV, Hepatitis B and/or Hepatitis C test. A decision on your visa won't be made until all your exams are complete. If you need such exam you will have to pay for it.The fee is not included in the visa application charge.

• There is a high chance you might not be covered by Australia's national health scheme, due to your tourist status. Since medical expenses are very high you are advised to take out health insurance for the time you spent in Australia. For more information you might want to visit www.medicareaustralia.gov.au.
• Not previously entered Australia with an Australian working holiday visa (unless you are applying for a Second Working Holiday Visa).
• You must be outside of Australia while applying for your visa. If you are applying for a second WHV there is no such limitation.
• Apply within 1 year before your travel to Australia.

You are probably wondering what you can do with if you are an eligible visa holder? Well, this is probably one of the best visas for young people. You are allowed to:

• Stay in Australia up to 12 months, counting from the day you entered the country.
• Leave and enter the country as many times as you want. As long as your visa hasn't expired you can travel around. Many decide to jump over to New Zealand for a few weeks, or even months.
• You can work for up to 6 month per employer. Remember that your occupation must incidental and only to aid your journey. If you have decided to migrate to Australia, there is a completely different visa scheme, stressing on this manner.
• You can studying Australia for up to 4 months. You might think that this is not enough, but remember - this is not a student visa. Generally 4 months is enough for you to take a training course of interest.
• You can apply for a visa extension a.k.a. "Second Working Holiday Visa". You will be able to stay in Australia for another 12 months. Remember that there is no need for you to leave Australia in order to apply for a visa extension.

There are 2 was to apply for an Australian Working Holiday Visa:

• By yourself - If you choose to go trough the proces yourself, you will save some money. You can apply online, by going to the Australia's Department of Immigration and Citezinship site www.immi.gov.au. Doing it yourself does not mean - free. You will still be charged 190AUD*for your application and you will have to go trough the process yourself. If you are sure you can't go wrong with your visa application this is probably the best choice for you.

• With an agent - A lot of people choose an agent to do the job for them. If you have decided to travel to Australia, you will spend a certain amount of money before you get there. The fee you pay for a visa application is only a small part of it. If you choose to trust an agent you will have to spend about 50AUD more. Some of you will say "Why give them these money, when I can do it myself?" And of course they would be right. However, since it is not the simplest procedure out there, a lot of people trust agents, who have experience and know their way around with authorities. The processing fees do not differ a lot and it is only up to you to choose you agent.

*From the 1st of July the official price is 195AUD. There is a slight increase of 5 Australian dollars. Ammendments in the prices of agents will follow. Accodring to a visafirst.com representative, they are already adjusting their prices.