Age limit increased from 30 to 35 years (for 417 & 462 Visas)!
Young backpackers have been travelling and working their way around Australia on working holiday visas for years, and constitute an essential part of Australia’s temporary work force – especially in the tourism, hospitality and agricultural industries.
The Australian government recognizes the value of these visa holders to our economy, and this has resulted in:
- The number of nationalities who can seek these visas has steadily been increasing over the last decade (the eligible countries are listed below).
- On the 29th of June 2017, the immigration department (the DIBP) announced that they will be increasing the age limit to from 30 to 35 for people applying for working holiday visas.
- The DIBP have already foreshadowed extending the length of the visa from 2 to 4 years (this has not yet been implemented).
The Key Differences between 417 Working Holiday Visas & 462 Work and Holiday Visas
- 417 visas are easier to get, can be extended from 1 to 2 years, and DO NOT require the visa applicant to have any English ability, or education. They are generally for people from Europe (with some exceptions – see below) although Hong Kong and Taiwanese citizens are also eligible.
The exact countries are Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Republic of Ireland, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom. - 462 visas are more difficult to get, CANNOT be extended beyond one year, and require functional English ability, a minimum education standard, and a letter of support from your government of origin.
This visa is for people with passports from Argentina, Bangladesh, China, Indonesia, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Thailand, Turkey, Uruguay, Chile, Israel, USA, Malaysia.
If you have any queries or questions then please contact one of our experienced migration lawyers at The Migration Place.
We expect more information about the changes to be released by DIBP regarding 417 and 462 visa changes, so watch this space!