• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Macrodyl

Macrodyl

Australian Backpacking Adventures

  • Home
  • Travel
    • Australia
    • Europe
  • Guides
    • Travel Guides
    • Photography Guides
  • Random Musings
  • About Macrodyl
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

Which Visa Do I Need to Travel to Australia?


Before you can go backpacking around Australia, you’re going to need to apply for a visa. This can be quite a daunting task, there are a crazy number of options and for the most part they’re all numbered in a nonsensical manner. It isn’t as bad as it seems though, and here they are in layman’s terms.

Due to the nature of visas and the way the Aussie immigration department works, information can become outdated rather quickly. As far as I’m aware this is all currently correct. Either way, the first place you’ll want to look, and probably the best resource you’ll find on the whole visa issue, is the Australian Department of Immigration’s own website.

From this page you can simply fill out the “Find Visa” box on the top right side of your screen. Select your country, nationality and purpose and the search will return a number of suggestions based on what you entered.

If you’re looking to emigrate to Australia permanently, or live and study in Australia, then you’ll need to find the correct information regarding these streams. As the purpose of this guide is for backpacking around Australia, I’m going to assume you’re not Australian and you’re looking to take some time out to travel around. If you’re Australian, you don’t need a visa, so I don’t know why you’re reading this 🙂

The two most common options for international backpackers are:

  • Working Holiday Visa (Subclass 417)
  • Work and Holiday Visa (Subclass 462)

Some nationalities aren’t eligible for either of these visas though, and will require a Visitor Visa (Subclass 600). A couple of other options are available but 99.9% of the time one of these three options is what you’re looking for.

This can be confusing, you now have to make a choice from three different visa classifications, but which one is right for YOU? Let’s have a look at what each individual visa requires and grants.

Working Holiday Visa (Subclass 417)

In explaining the subclass 417, you should first take a look at this document.This is a paper form for the visa application, although you can also apply online using this link. The pdf document outlines a few requirements for the subclass 417 visa. A working holiday visa (subclass 417) is a visa for young people and allows you to stay in Australia and enter employment for up to one year.

You must be outside Australia when you first apply for a working holiday visa.

While visiting on this visa you may work in Australia, but you can only remain with each employer for up to 6 months. You may also study in Australia for up to 4 months. This visa allows you to leave and enter Australia as many times as you require in the 12 month period which commences when you first enter Australia.

Visa Requirements

  • You must be at least 18 years old, but not over 31 years old.
  • You will not have a dependant child with you at any point during your stay in Australia
  • You hold a passport from an eligible country.
  • You have not previously held a working holiday visa (subclass 417).
  • You have enough money to support yourself (about 5000 AUD).
  • You can purchase a flight home at the end of your stay.

Which nationalities are eligible for a working holiday visa?

You’ll need to have a passport from one of these countries to be eligible to apply for a working holiday visa (subclass 417).

  • Belgium
  • Canada
  • Republic of Cyprus
  • Denmark
  • Estonia
  • Finland
  • France
  • Germany
  • Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China (including British National Overseas passport holders)
  • Republic of Ireland
  • Italy
  • Japan
  • Republic of Korea
  • Malta
  • Netherlands
  • Norway
  • Sweden
  • Taiwan
  • United Kingdom.

How much will the visa cost?

The subclass 417 visa has a standard visa cost of 420 Australian Dollars (AUD), with a non-internet application fee of an extra 80 AUD. This brings a paper application cost up to $500 or $420 for an online application.

The same cost applies for your 2nd working holiday visa (subclass 417) which is an extension of your original visa, and can only be obtained under specific circumstances.

Work and Holiday Visa (Subclass 462)

As with a working holiday visa, it would be advisable to read this document first.The biggest difference between a working holiday visa and a work and holiday visa is the eligible countries. In addition to the different countries being eligible, there are also other visa requirements, similar to the subclass 417.

Visa Requirements

  • You must be at least 18 years old, but not over 31 years old.
  • You will not have a dependent child with you at any point during your stay in Australia.
  • You hold a passport from an eligible country.
  • You have not previously held a working holiday visa (subclass 417).
  • You have enough money to support yourself (about 5000 AUD).
  • You can purchase a flight home at the end of your stay.
  • You must have a supporting letter from your government
  • You must meet educational and linguistic requirements

The points in bold are additional to those required for a working holiday visa (subclass 417), and proof must be provided. Required proof based on each individual country can be found in the application form on the immigration website.

The countries which are eligible to apply for a work and holiday (subclass 462) visa are:

Eligible Countries

  • Argentina
  • Bangladesh
  • Chile
  • Indonesia
  • Malaysia
  • Poland
  • Thailand
  • Turkey
  • the USA
  • Uruguay

Visitor Visa (Subclass 600)

Unlike the working holiday and work and holiday visas, a Visitor Visa (Subclass 600) does not enable you to work whilst you travel around Australia. This means that you’ll need to bring anything you intend to spend, with you. The visa period can vary between 3, 6 and 12 months.

Visa Requirements

  • No age limit
  • Must be travelling to Australia as a visitor
  • For business visitor activities, or
  • To visit family and friends
  • The cost of a Visitor Visa (Subclass 600) ranges between 130 and 335 AUD.

There are numerous other ways to acquire a visitor visa. These are:

Electronic Travel Authority (Subclass 601)

This visa will allow you

  • to visit Australia
  • Enter Australia for business visitor purposes
  • as many times as you want, for up to a year
  • and stay up to three months for each visit

The visa carries a service cost of 20 AUD for online applications.

The link above details which passport holders are eligible for this visa.

eVisitor (Subclass 651)

This visa will allow you

  • to visit Australia
  • Enter Australia for business visitor purposes
  • for up to three months at a time within a 12-month period.

This is a free visa.

The link above details which passport holders are eligible for this visa.

Hopefully this guide has helped clear up any questions you might’ve had about which visa you needed to travel to Australia. If not, you can always leave a comment or get in touch with me via social media and I’ll see if I can help you out that way 🙂

If you’ve settled on your visa, you should check out this post on how to apply for your visa, and then go and enjoy your year (or 2) backpacking!

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. malika says

    07/03/2018 at 10:01 am

    Thanks for the information. What is the fees of Australia tourist visa for 6 months?

    Reply
    • Marc says

      16/04/2018 at 6:07 pm

      Good question. I’ve done a quick write up looking at the various fees, but the new Home Affairs site has a useful visa finder tool which includes a cost calculator.

      Reply
  2. Sailee Kale says

    17/06/2018 at 6:29 pm

    Hey Marc, Thanks for sharing such an informational post it was very useful for me glad that you shared.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Check out my top 30 travel accessories

Looking at the useful, the luxury and the downright necessary accessories for solo travel. From easy ways to make new friends, to the best ways to entertain yourself during that super long stopover.



About me

I'm Marc, and I'd like to welcome you to Macrodyl. I'm an avid traveller with an odd bunch of interests. Many of my stories involve my time backpacking Australia, which I've done on multiple occasions. I often visit other countries too, with a bucket list longer than I can count.

Feel free to get in touch with me via comments, or on social media.

Social

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

Recent Posts

  • The Best Travel Essentials for Safe Travel During COVID-19 Pandemic
  • 5 ways your technology can make a holiday better
  • Featherdale Wildlife Park’s Furry Citizens
  • Quick Things to do in Leura
  • My Blue Mountains Day Trip
Uluru Ayers Rock

Want to collaborate with us?

Get in touch using the button opposite, or drop an email to marc@macrodyl.com

Get in Touch

Footer

Amazon Associates Disclosure

macrodyl.com is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com

Recent Posts

  • The Best Travel Essentials for Safe Travel During COVID-19 Pandemic
  • 5 ways your technology can make a holiday better
  • Featherdale Wildlife Park’s Furry Citizens

Useful links

  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy

Social

Follow along on social media.

  • Facebook
  • Twitter

macrodyl.com uses cookies to help improve your experience. If you're not okay with that, you won't be able to enjoy all the fun stuff on this site.
Accept Reject Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT