Living abroad and making bank? Yes, please! We’ve already talked on the pod about a few ways to make money in other countries, including teaching ESL. But this week we’re tackling one of the most popular so that you can be all ready to go post-pandemic!
In this episode, I sit down with my friend Katie who did a working holiday visa in Australia, and trust me, you’re going to want to hear her stories! But for a basic intro of what a working holiday visa entails, read on. You may also want to revisit my conversation with Rachel from Trail of the Wanderlust who also talked a little bit about her experience with the process.
Basically, you can stay in a foreign country for a year (or more, depending on the country and your nationality) and you’re allowed to work. Unfortunately, they’re not available everywhere or open to every nationality, but if you meet the crieteria, they’re an awesome deal!
If you’re American, you can do working holiday visas in Australia, New Zealand, South Korea, Ireland, and Singapore.
Brits can go to Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, South Korea, Singapore, Slovakia, Spain, and Sweden.
If you’re wondering why people from the UK have so many more options, it’s generally because visa laws are reciprocal: countries will offer visas to countries that offer them in return. So if you’re American, don’t go hating on other countries for limiting out options–let’s get our own nation to offer more opportunities and we’ll probably get them right back!
Many working holiday visas are also available to Australians and New Zealanders (in fact, more than to British citizens!), and many other nationalities have options as well, including Canadians.
Each country has their own requirements, but most have an age limit (usually 30, but sometimes up to 32 or 35). Often the application includes things like proving you don’t have a criminal record or outstanding debts to that country or that you’ve never been kicked out of that country before. And remember to listen to the episode–in it, Katie talks about how incredibly easy her application process was!
What kind of jobs can you get?
There’s no limit! Technically, you have a work visa, so you’re allowed to work any job that you can get. Often people will get jobs in the hospitality industry (waiting tables, bartending, working at hostels, etc), and temp jobs are also popular (think festivals and events, seasonal farm labor, tour guiding, and more). Some of the countries that allow you to stay for two years rather than just one will limit the jobs you can have in the second year (for example, in Australia, if you’re eligible for a second year, you’ll be doing farm work).
For more information and wild stories, listen to the episode! And information on working holiday visas is everywhere online–all you have to do is search. And if any fingers or toes have yet to be crossed in anticipation of a speedy end to the pandemic, get ’em crossed now so that we can all take advantage of amazing international opportunities like the working holiday visa!
And make sure you follow @goingoutyourdoor on Instagram and Facebook for more travel tips and tricks.
Going Out Your Door 