Subclass 462 visa: Work and Holiday

Streams

Home Affairs splits the Work and Holiday visa into three visas. Each one lasts up to 12 months, and a holder can't get a fourth.

First Work and Holiday visa (462)

For people who have never entered Australia on a 462 or 417 visa. It must be applied for from outside Australia. Annual caps apply, and China, India and Vietnam passport holders must first be selected in a ballot. See the first Work and Holiday visa page.

Second Work and Holiday visa (462)

For people who have held one 462 visa, entered Australia on it and complied with its conditions. Applicants must have completed 3 months of specified subclass 462 work. See the second Work and Holiday visa page.

Third Work and Holiday visa (462)

For people who have held a second 462 visa in Australia (or a bridging visa that started when it expired). Applicants must have completed 6 months of specified subclass 462 work. See the third Work and Holiday visa page.

462 visa requirements

Home Affairs lists these on the Eligibility tab of the first Work and Holiday visa page:

• Passport. Be a citizen of, and hold a valid passport from, an eligible country (listed below).
• Age. 18 to 30 years old (inclusive) when applying.
• Previous visas. For a first visa, never have entered Australia on a 462 or 417 visa.
• Education. Meet the education requirement for the passport country (summarised below).
• English. At least functional English.
• Letter of support. A letter of support from the applicant's government, for some countries (listed below).
• Money. Enough to support the stay and to leave Australia. Home Affairs says this is usually about AUD 5,000 for the initial stay, plus the fare onward.
• No dependent children. Holders can't be accompanied by dependent children at any time in Australia.
• Health. Meet the health requirement.
• Character. Meet the character requirement.
• Debts. Any debt to the Australian Government has been paid back, or there is an arrangement to pay it.
• Immigration history. A past visa cancellation or refusal may affect eligibility.
• Australian values. Acknowledge the Australian Values Statement.

For a second or third visa, applicants in Australia must hold a substantive visa, or their last substantive visa must have expired less than 28 days ago. They must also meet the specified work requirement and have complied with the conditions of their previous Work and Holiday visa.

Home Affairs says the application must be lodged before midnight AEST/AEDST on the day before the 31st birthday. It can still grant the visa if the applicant turns 31 before the decision.

Eligible countries

Home Affairs lists these 30 countries: Argentina, Austria, Brazil, Chile, China (People's Republic of), Czech Republic, Ecuador, Greece, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Israel, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mongolia, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, Singapore, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, Türkiye, Uruguay, United States of America and Vietnam.

Requirements by country (summary)

This summarises the education and letter of support rules on the first Work and Holiday visa page. Home Affairs points to the Australian embassy in each country for more detail.

Certificate I to IV qualifications and a Senior Secondary Certificate do not count as tertiary qualifications where one is needed.

A government letter of support is needed from Ecuador, Greece, Indonesia, Malaysia (a Good Conduct Certificate), Mongolia, Peru, Poland, San Marino, Slovenia, Thailand and Türkiye.

Functional English is met by citizens holding a UK, USA, Canadian, New Zealand or Irish passport, Israeli passport holders with an English Bagrut exam at 3 study units, people with set study fully in English, or an approved English test taken within 12 months of applying.

Annual caps and ballot. Home Affairs grants a limited number of first 462 visas each program year (1 July to 30 June) to applicants from each eligible country except the USA. Once a cap is reached, no more are granted until the next program year. China, India and Vietnam passport holders must be randomly selected in a pre-application ballot before they can apply.

Specified work for a second or third visa

Specified work is work in an approved industry, in an eligible area of Australia, paid under the relevant Australian laws and awards (some volunteer disaster recovery work also counts). Details are on Home Affairs' specified 462 work page.

Approved industries and areas for the 462:

• tourism and hospitality in Northern Australia or Remote and Very Remote Australia (work from 22 June 2021)
• 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
• construction in Northern Australia and other specified areas of regional Australia
• bushfire recovery work in declared areas, done after 31 July 2019
• recovery work in flood, cyclone or other severe weather areas, done after 31 December 2021
• critical COVID-19 work in healthcare and medical sectors anywhere in Australia, after 31 January 2020

Unlike the 417, mining is not on the 462 list. Home Affairs says it is temporarily giving more weight to the industry, so work that supports a specified industry, such as administrative or cleaning support, in an eligible postcode may be accepted.

88 days regional work: how Home Affairs counts 3 months

For a second visa, Home Affairs treats "3 months" as the 3 shortest calendar months: a minimum of 88 calendar days, including weekends or rest days. For a third visa, "6 months" means a minimum of 179 calendar days, and the work must be on or after 1 July 2019.

• Applicants must work the same number of normal days or shifts as a full-time employee in that role and industry would work in that period.
• The work can be spread out, and done with more than one employer.
• The requirement can't be met in less than 3 (or 6) calendar months in total.
• One calendar day counts as one day, however many hours are worked.
• Paid public holidays and paid sick days count. Unpaid days lost to bad weather do not.
• Work for a second visa is generally done while holding the first visa, and work for a third visa while holding the second.

What the visa lets you do

According to Home Affairs' Work and Holiday visa pages, the visa lets holders:

• do short-term work in Australia to help pay for their holiday
• do any kind of work, usually for up to 6 months with the same employer
• study for up to 4 months (17 weeks)
• travel to and from Australia as many times as they want while the visa is in effect
• do specified work to become eligible for a second or third Work and Holiday visa

Home Affairs' 6-month work limitation page says holders can work up to 12 months with one employer without asking permission if the work is in plant and animal cultivation anywhere in Australia, or in different locations with no more than 6 months in any one location.

Holders must pay tax on their earnings. Employers must pay superannuation above a certain income, and holders can access it when they leave Australia. Holders are liable for their own healthcare costs, and Home Affairs advises taking out health insurance.

Family members and cost

Home Affairs says family members cannot be included in a Work and Holiday visa application, and holders cannot be accompanied by dependent children at any time while in Australia on the visa.

Home Affairs' Current visa pricing data lists these charges:

From 1 July 2026, a lower charge applies to eligible Papua New Guinea passport holders, applied automatically in ImmiAccount. Health checks, police certificates and biometrics can cost extra.

Step by step

This follows the Step by step tab of the first Work and Holiday visa page.

Before you apply

1. Check that applications are open for the passport country. China, India and Vietnam passport holders must be selected in the ballot first.
2. Health exams can be done before applying, or when Home Affairs asks. Anyone giving immigration assistance must be a registered migration agent, a legal practitioner or an exempt person.

Apply

1. Gather documents: passport pages, evidence of education, English and money for the stay, and a government letter of support if the country needs one. Home Affairs may ask for police certificates.
2. Have non-English documents translated into English.
3. Apply online in ImmiAccount, attach documents and pay the charge.

After you apply

1. Home Affairs may ask for biometrics, health exams or more information.
2. Report mistakes on Form 1023 and tell Home Affairs about changes, such as a new passport.
3. Home Affairs tells the applicant its decision in writing. It says not to arrange travel until the visa is granted.

The visa is linked to the passport digitally. There is no visa label.

Applying in or outside Australia

The first Work and Holiday visa must be applied for from outside Australia, and the applicant must be outside Australia when it is decided. Home Affairs can't grant it if the applicant comes to Australia on another visa, such as a Visitor visa.

A second or third visa can be applied for in or outside Australia. Applicants in Australia must be in Australia when it is granted, and applicants outside Australia must be outside Australia. Only applicants who were in Australia when they applied can get an associated bridging visa (second Work and Holiday visa page).

462 visa processing time

Home Affairs publishes current processing times in its visa processing times guide.

Compare: 462 and 417