Ways to find work and earn while you travel and tour Australia

As we prepare to put the Covid-19 pandemic behind us, it’s time to look to the future. Most people hope 2022 will be the year we can reclaim our lives. If you’re young and you’re looking for an adventure, you can start dreaming about your visit to Australia.

Actually, forget about the dreaming part. If you want to get to Australia by next year you’d better start preparing as getting a visa is a long and complex process.

How can you find work while you tour Australia

The biggest problem young people looking for an adventure are faced with is money. Or lack of money, to be exact. Australia is such a big country you’d need months, if not years to do a complete tour and understand the local culture. How are you going to pay for that?

That’s easy, as the Australian law allows you to find legal employment while you travel around the country.

For that, you will need to get a Working Holiday Visa. There are two types of WH visas, subclass 417 and subclass 462. Both of them allow you to stay in Australia for up to 2 years and work to earn some money for your immediate needs.

What you must know about Working Holiday visas is that they are available for young people aged 18 – 30, or 35 if you have a passport from one of these countries – Ireland, France, and Canada.

What documents do you need to get a visa for Australia?

To apply for a WH visa you must have a valid passport from an eligible country. And, of course, you’ll have to deal with a lot of paperwork, but fortunately it’s all online.

Among other things you’ll have to submit to a character assessment test, during which you will be asked to present a background check. If you’re a 20-year old who has lived all his life in one place, you’ll only have to get a police check from your country.

However, if you’re more of a wanderer and have lived in several countries, you need to get a background check from each of them. This does not refer to taking a short holiday to another country, but to stays of more than 12 consecutive months in one place.

If you’ve been staying in Australia before, you must get a criminal history check. The criminal record check for your visa purposes must be obtained via the Australian Federal Police (AFP). If you are seeking the criminal history check for work purposes only (e.g. employment) then you can get it online from an approved service provider like the one here: go now. Generally, you get your document in 2-3 days via email.

Process to obtain the Visa to Australia

The whole process of obtaining a visa might take a few months, enough time to secure the money you need to have in your account when you land in Australia. The visa allows you to work during your visit, but it is required that you have at least AUD $5,000 to your name when you arrive in the country, plus reservation for your return ticket.

When you get to Australia, it is advisable that you find reasonable accommodations, preferably not a hotel as this would be too expensive for a long term stay. You should also open an account with a local bank before you apply for a job.