With the right skills and experience, you can earn a living in Australia while enjoying the lifestyle and wonders it offers—all possible by applying for a working visa in Australia!
Explore the available work visa options and learn how to apply in this blog
Temporary Work (Short Say Specialist) Visa (Subclass 400)
Australia Work Visa Types
Temporary Skill Shortage Visa (Subclass 482)
The 482 visa (TSS visa) is for skilled workers outside Australia who are offered a job by an Australian employer to fill positions that cannot be filled by the local workforce.
Visa status: Temporary, valid from 2 to 4 years (depending on the visa stream)
Benefits:
- Work anywhere in Australia
- Pursue studies
- Bring eligible family members with you
- Travel to and from Australia as long as the visa is valid
General eligibility criteria:
- Be nominated by an approved Australian employer to work in an occupation specified on the skilled occupations list.
- Work only for your sponsoring employer
- Undergo and achieve a positive skills assessment
- Have at least 2 years of relevant work experience in your nominated field
- Meet English language proficiency requirements
- Must have adequate health insurance
Visa cost/fee:
- Short-term stream: AUD 1,455
- Medium-term stream: AUD 3,035
- Labor agreement stream: AUD 3,035
Note that the above fees don’t include other expenses like health checks, biometrics, and accompanying family members.
Processing times: From 3 to 16 weeks (depending on the visa stream)
Employer Nomination Scheme Visa (Subclass 186)
The employer nomination 186 visa is for skilled workers who have been nominated by an Australian employer to fill a permanent position.
Visa status: Permanent
Benefits:
- Live, work and study in Australia indefinitely
- Enroll in Medicare
- Bring eligible family members to Australia
- Travel to and from Australia for 5 years
- Opportunity to apply for Australian citizenship
General eligibility criteria:
- Have a nomination from an approved Australian employer
- Possess the necessary skills and work experience (2 to 3 years, depending on the category) in your nominated field
- Have at least competent English skills
- Have a positive skills assessment (for the Entry stream)
Visa cost/fee:
- Direct entry stream: AUD 4,640
- Labor agreement stream: AUD 4,640
- Temporary residence transition stream: AUD 4,640
Note that the above fees don’t include other expenses like health checks, biometrics and accompanying family members.
Processing times: From 6 to 17 months (depending on the visa stream)
Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) Visa (Subclass 494)
The 494 visa is for skilled workers who are nominated and sponsored by an Australian employer in a designated regional area.
Visa status: Temporary, up to 5 years
Benefits:
- Live, work and study in designated regional areas
- Include family members in your application
- Travel to and from Australia for 5 years
- Opportunity to apply for permanent residency after 3 years
General eligibility criteria:
- Have a nomination from an approved Australian employer
- Possess the necessary skills, qualifications and work experience in your nominated occupation
- Have a positive skills assessment
- Demonstrate competent English
Visa cost/fee:
- Employer sponsored stream: AUD 4,640
- Labor agreement stream: AUD 4,640
Note that the above fees don’t include other expenses like health checks, biometrics, and accompanying family members.
Processing times: From 2 to 6 months (depending on the visa stream)
Working Holiday Visa (Subclass 417)
The Working Holiday Visa 417 is for young individuals, aged 18 to 30 years old (or 35 years old for some countries), planning to work and earn money in Australia to fund their travel and leisure experiences.
Visa status: Temporary, up to 12 months
Benefits:
- Extend your visa for an additional 24 months, if eligible
- Work in Australia
- Study for up to 4 months
- Travel to and from Australia within the visa validity period
General eligibility criteria:
- Must be outside Australia from the time of visa application until date of grant
- Be a citizen and hold a passport from one of these countries:
- Belgium (18 to 30 years old)
- Canada (18 to 35 years old)
- Republic of Cyprus (18 to 30 years old)
- Denmark (18 to 35 years old)
- Estonia (18 to 30 years old)
- Finland (18 to 30 years old)
- France (18 to 35 years old)
- Germany (18 to 30 years old)
- Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China (18 to 30 years old)
- Republic of Ireland (18 to 35 years old)
- Italy (18 to 35 years old)
- Japan (18 to 30 years old)
- Republic of Korea (18 to 30 years old)
- Malta (18 to 30 years old)
- Netherlands (18 to 30 years old)
- Norway (18 to 30 years old)
- Sweden (18 to 30 years old)
- Taiwan (18 to 30 years old)
- UK (18 to 35 years old)
- Not have held a 417 visa or 462 Work and Holiday visa previously
- Show that you have enough money (about AUD 5,000 plus fare for when you leave Australia)
Visa cost/fee:
AUD 635 (doesn’t include other expenses like health checks, biometrics and police certificates)
Processing times: From 1 to 20 days
Training Visa (Subclass 407)
The 407 training visa is for individuals planning to take part in workplace-based training to improve their occupational skills for a job, a field of expertise, an area of tertiary study, or professional development.
Visa status: Temporary, up to 2 years
Benefits:
- Enhance career prospects by learning from Australian industry experts
- Work up to 40 hours per fortnight while you complete the training program
- Bring family members with you
- Travel to and from Australia while the visa is valid
General eligibility criteria:
- Have an approved sponsor and be nominated by the sponsor to participate in an occupational training program
- Have adequate health insurance, covering the entire duration of your stay in Australia
- Demonstrate functional English
Visa cost/fee: AUD 405 (doesn’t include other expenses like health checks, biometrics, police certificates and accompanying family members)
Processing times: From 21 to 78 days
Work and Holiday Visa (Subclass 462)
The 462 Work and Holiday visa is for young individuals (aged 18 to 30 years old) who want an extended holiday in Australia and engage in short-term work to fund it.
It is somehow similar to the 417 visa, except for some nuances like the applicant’s country of origin and specific documents (see general eligibility criteria).
Visa status: Temporary, up to 12 months
Benefits:
- Do any type of work (and in different locations) while the visa is valid
- Extend your holiday further for a total of 24 months, if eligible
- Study up to 4 months
- Travel to and from Australia while the visa is valid
General eligibility criteria:
- Must be outside Australia from the time of visa application until date of grant
- Be a citizen and hold a passport from one of these countries:
- Argentina
- Austria
- Brazil
- Chile
- China, People’s Republic of
- Czech Republic
- Ecuador
- Greece
- Hungary
- Indonesia
- Israel
- Luxembourg
- Malaysia
- Mongolia
- Papua New Guinea (PNG)
- Peru
- Poland
- Portugal
- San Marino
- Singapore
- Slovak Republic
- Slovenia
- Spain
- Switzerland
- Thailand
- Türkiye
- Uruguay
- United States of America
- Vietnam
- Have not held a 462 visa or a 417 Working Holiday visa previously
- Must meet the education requirements, which may involve completing at least two years of tertiary education or two years of undergraduate study.
Check with your country’s Australian embassy for specific education requirements that apply to you.
- Have a letter of support from your government
This applies to applicants from the following countries: Ecuador, Greece, Indonesia, Luxembourg, Malaysia (Good Conduct Certificate), Mongolia, Peru, Poland, San Marino, Slovenia, Thailand and Türkiye
- Possess Functional English
- Show that you have enough money for your living expenses in Australia (about AUD 5,000 plus fare for when you leave Australia)
Visa cost/fee: AUD 635 (doesn’t include other expenses like health checks, biometrics and police certificates)
Processing times: From 18 to 45 days
Temporary Work (Short Stay Specialist) Visa (Subclass 400)
The 400 visa is for individuals who need to work in Australia for a short duration, often for specialised projects, events, or tasks.
Visa status: Temporary, from 3 to 6 months
Benefits:
- No business sponsorship required
- Bring family members with you (although they are not allowed to work or study)
- May allow you to travel to and from Australia within the visa period
General eligibility criteria:
- Have highly specialised skills, knowledge or experience that can’t reasonably be found in Australia’s labour market
- Provide evidence that you have work and that work is outside Australia’s entertainment sector
- Must be outside of Australia from the application date until the date of grant
- You must only do the work or activities for which your visa was granted
- Have adequate health insurance that covers your entire stay
- Have enough funds to support your stay in Australia
Visa cost/fee: AUD 405 (doesn’t include other expenses like health checks, biometrics, police certificates and accompanying family members)
Processing times: From 9 to 25 days
Temporary Graduate Visa (Subclass 485)
The 485 visa is for international students who recently graduated from an Australian education institution and want to work to gain experience in their field of study.
Visa status: Temporary
- Graduate Work stream: from 3 to 6 months
- Post-study Work stream: from 2 to 4 years (depending on the level of your qualification), with possibility of extension for another 2 years
Benefits:
- Pursue further studies
- Bring family member to stay with you
- Travel to and from Australia within the visa period
General eligibility criteria:
- Held a Student visa in the last 6 months prior to your application
- Completed your course within the last 6 months before the day you applied
- Meet the Australian study requirements
- Must:
- For Graduate Work stream: possess qualification related to an occupation on the medium- and long-term skilled occupation list
- For Post-Study Work stream: Hold an eligible qualification at degree level or higher
- You applied for a skills assessment in your nominated occupation on the skilled occupation list
- Achieve minimum required English language test scores required for this visa
- Show adequate health insurance
Visa cost/fee:
- Graduate work stream: AUD 1,895
- Post-study work stream: AUD 1,895
Note that the fees above don’t include other expenses like health checks, biometrics, police certificates, and accompanying family members.
Processing times:
- Graduate work stream: 4 to 5 months
- Post-study work stream: 20 days to 3 months
Skilled-Recognized Graduate Visa (Subclass 476)
The subclass 476 visa is for recent engineering graduates who have completed their studies at an institution recognised by the Washington Accord or one of the listed universities in Australia or other countries in Australia and who demonstrate great skills in their field of study.
Visa status: Temporary, up to 18 months
Benefits:
- Work and study in Australia
- Bring family member to stay with you
- Travel to and from Australia within the visa period
General eligibility criteria:
- Completed a degree (or higher level qualification) in an engineering discipline in the last 2 years.
- Completed the degree (or higher level qualification) at an institution accredited under the Washington Accord
- Must not have previously held either a 476 visa or a 485 Temporary Graduate visa
- Achieve minimum required English language test scores required for this visa
- Show adequate health insurance
Visa cost/fee: 465 AUD (doesn’t include other expenses and accompanying family members)
Processing times: From 19 to 28 months
How to Apply for Working Visa in Australia
To apply for an Australian work visa, follow the steps below:
- Identify your needs.
What type of work do you want to do, and how long do you want to stay in Australia? This will help you narrow down your visa options.
- Check your eligibility
Review the conditions for eligibility above, as well as the Department of Home Affairs website, to see if you meet the criteria for your chosen visa.
- Gather required documents
Have all the necessary paperwork ready. This typically includes your identity documents, passport, proof of adequate funds, skills assessments, character references, and health checks.
Note that specific requirements vary depending on your visa pathway.
This is an online portal where you can complete, manage, and submit your visa application. Make sure to do it thoroughly and accurately.
- Upload and attach supporting documents.
- Pay the corresponding application fee.
- Attend medical examinations and/or biometric appointments, if applicable.
- Await a decision on your visa.
Note that processing times for Australian visas can range from weeks to months.
Working Visa Australia Requirements
Here’s a general checklist of documents to prepare when getting a working visa for Australia:
- Identify documents, including national IDs and a copy of your passport
- License(s) and/or certificates required for your nominated occupation
- Proof of sufficient and relevant skills and qualifications
- Nomination and job offer from an approved employer (if applicable)
- Positive skills assessment
- Proof of adequate English language skills (e.g. IELTS)
- Medical examinations
- Health insurance for you and family members accompanying you
- Proof of adequate funds
- Police certificate
- Biometrics (if applicable)
- Family documents (if applicable), such as marriage certificates, birth certificates of dependents, etc.
Get Started On Your Australian Working Visa Today
Wondering which of the working visas suits your skills and qualifications and circumstance the best?
Get professional advice from our experienced migration agents at KBA Global. With over 10+ years in the industry, we’ve helped clients from all over the world obtain their work visas and pursue their Australian dream…
Your success starts with a free consultation today!
Working Visa Australia FAQs
Is there an age limit for applying for an Australian work visa?
There is an age limit, but not for all working visas. See the specifics below:
- No age limit:
- TSS 482 visa
- Employer Nomination Scheme 186 visa
- Training 407 visa
- 400 visa
- Under 45 years old:
- Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (Provisional) 494 visa
- 30 years old and below
- Working Holiday 417 visa (35 years old and below for some countries)
- Work and Holiday 462 visa
- Under 50 years old
- Temporary Graduate 485 visa
Do I need to be nominated to apply for a work visa?
For some work visa types, you may need to have a nomination from an approved Australian employer. These visas include the 482 visa, 186 visa and 494 visa.
Can I apply for a Working Holiday 417 visa more than once?
If you’ve previously entered Australia on a subclass 417 visa, you won’t be eligible to reapply for the same visa. This rule also applies for 462 Work and Holiday visa applications.
Will I receive a salary while on a subclass 407 Training visa?
It’s possible to receive compensation while on a 407 Training visa. Although there’s no minimum salary requirement for this visa, many Australian employers/sponsors pay their trainees at least the Award pay wage.
Can I get a permanent residency with a work visa?
Yes, it’s possible to get permanent residency through a working visa Australia. The 186 visa, for instance, grants you permanent residency once you’re granted the visa.
While majority of working visas granted are temporary, there are visa pathways available to get permanent residency in Australia. For instance, if you hold a TSS 482 visa, you can seek permanent residency by applying for the 186 visa or the Regional Sponsored Migration Scheme 187 visa.
Disclaimer: The above information is a general guide and not professional immigration advice. Be aware that immigration laws and regulations can change swiftly, potentially rendering some or all of the information outdated. Thus, before using the information above, we recommend checking the current laws with assistance from a migration agent or the Department of Home Affairs website.