If you hold a WHM visa and applied for a COVID-19 Pandemic event visa and your application remains undecided, but you no longer wish to be granted this visa, you must withdraw your application as soon as possible. If your COVID-19 Pandemic event visa is granted, it will replace your WHM visa.
You can withdraw your application by submitting Form 1446 Withdrawal of a visa application via ImmiAccount.
Overview
To be eligible to apply for a second or third Working Holiday (subclass 417) visa, you must have already completed a prescribed minimum period of “specified subclass 417 work” in certain circumstances.
Specified work is work that is undertaken in a ‘specified’ industry and area of Australia. Information on eligible industries and areas of Australia is provided below.
All specified subclass 417 work must be paid in accordance with the relevant Australian legislation and awards.
Voluntary work can only be included as specified work for the purpose of applying for a second or third Working Holiday visa where it is related to bushfire recovery work undertaken in declared bushfire-affected areas or to flood recovery work undertaken in declared flood affected areas only.
Approved industries and areas for specified work
The following industries and areas are approved for specified work:
- tourism and hospitality in northern or remote and very remote Australia, from 22 June 2021
- plant and animal cultivation in regional Australia
- fishing and pearling in regional Australia
- tree farming and felling in regional Australia
- mining in regional Australia
- construction in regional Australia
- bushfire recovery work in declared bushfire affected areas only, after 31 July 2019
- flood recovery work in declared flood recovery areas only, undertaken on or after 1 January 2022, for applications lodged on or after 1 July 2022
- critical COVID-19 work in the healthcare and medical sectors anywhere in Australia, after 31 January 2020
In support of the Government’s continuing initiatives to address the current labour shortages in Australia, the Department is temporarily applying flexibility to the specified work requirement, giving greater weight to the specified work industry. This means that work which supports the ongoing operations of a specified industry in an eligible postcode may be accepted.
Tourism and hospitality in northern or remote and very remote Australia
Tourism and hospitality work carried out from 22 June 2021 in northern or remote and very remote Australia will be considered eligible specified work for the purpose of a second or third Working Holiday (subclass 417) visa application lodged from 5 March 2022.
Work in a range of occupations that directly provide a service to tourists, including:
- tourist guides and operators
- outdoor adventure or activity instructors
- tourist transport services
- gallery or museum managers, curators or guides
- hospitality workers, such as in hotels or other accommodation facilities, restaurants, cafes, bars and casinos
- conference and event organisers
Examples of eligible specified subclass 417 work in tourism or hospitality
- a chef in a restaurant
- a dive instructor
- a tour bus driver
Examples of ineligible specified subclass 417 work in tourism or hospitality
- cleaning work in a restaurant
- driving a school bus
- working as a sales assistant in a souvenir shop
Plant and animal cultivation
- the harvesting and/or packing of fruit and vegetable crops
- pruning and trimming vines and trees directly associated with the cultivation and commercial sale of plant produce, such as fruit and nut crops (commercial horticultural activities).
Note: This must be your primary employment task and general garden maintenance is not eligible. - general maintenance crop work
- cultivating or propagating plants, fungi or their products or parts
- immediate processing of plant products
- maintaining animals for the purpose of selling them or their bodily produce, including natural increase
Note: Maintaining animals for tourism or recreational purposes is not eligible. - immediate processing of animal products including shearing, butchery, packing and tanning
- manufacturing dairy produce from raw material
Examples of eligible specified work in plant and animal cultivation:
- picking fruits on an orchard
- feeding and herding cattle on a farm
- horse breeding and stud farming
- conservation and environmental reforestation work
- zoo work involving plant or animal cultivation
Examples of ineligible specified work in plant and animal cultivation:
- working as a nanny on a farm
- secondary processing or provision of plant and animal products, such as:
- wine-making, brewing and distillation
- milling
- manufacturing of smallgoods
- retail of dairy or butchery products
- giving wine tastings at a vineyard
Fishing and pearling
- conducting operations relating directly to taking or catching fish and other aquatic species
- conducting operations relating directly to taking or culturing pearls or pearl shell
Tree farming and felling
- planting or tending trees in a plantation or forest that are intended to be felled
- felling trees in a plantation or forest
- transporting trees or parts of trees that were felled in a plantation or forest to the place where they are first to be milled or processed or from which they are to be transported to the place where they are to be milled or processed
Work undertaken in the areas of plant and animal cultivation, fishing and pearling, and tree farming and felling must be described in the list above to meet the specified work requirement.
Mining
- coal mining
- oil and gas extraction
- metal ore mining
- construction material mining
- non-metallic mineral mining and quarrying
- exploration
- mining support services
Examples of ineligible specified work in mining:
- performing specialised social science services (such as anthropological and archaeological assessments) for mining companies
- cooking/catering on a mine site
- cleaning the interior of mine complexes or buildings.
Construction
- residential building construction
- non-residential building construction
- heavy and civil engineering construction
- land development and site preparation services
- building structure services
- building installation services
- building completion services
- other construction services
Examples of eligible specified work in construction:
- landscaping the grounds of a construction/house site
- painting the interior/exterior of new buildings
- erecting fences on a construction site
- scaffolding
Examples of ineligible specified work in construction:
- ship/boat building
- manufacturing materials used on a construction site (such as concrete or steel)
- town planning or architecture
Bushfire recovery work
- construction, farming, or any other work in association with recovery or restitution of land, property, farm animals or wildlife
- support services or assistance to people living, working or volunteering in the affected areas
Examples of eligible paid or volunteer specified work in bushfire recovery:
- re-building fences destroyed in a bushfire affected community
- caring for wildlife in a bushfire affected community
- support work for volunteer organisations assisting victims of bushfires
- demolition of buildings, trench digging, land clearing and earth moving
- residential and non-residential construction or renovation/repair, including of roads, footpaths, bridges, parking lots, fencing, railways, dams, irrigation systems, sewage and storm water drainage systems
Examples of ineligible specified work in bushfire recovery:
- hospitality, cleaning or administrative work in a business that was not damaged by bushfire
- construction or renovation work in an area that is not a declared bushfire affected area
- work carried out on or before 31 July 2019
Flood recovery work
- clean-up, construction or any other work in association with restitution or restoration of services, land, waterways, property or infrastructure
- providing support services or assistance to people living, working or volunteering in the affected areas
Examples of eligible paid or volunteer specified work in flood recovery:
- general cleaning up, including wiping down items, moving and cleaning furniture and appliances, hosing out properties and outdoor areas or mopping floors and transportation of rubbish
- demolition of buildings, trench digging, land clearing and earth moving
- residential and non-residential construction or renovation/repair, including of roads, footpaths, bridges, parking lots, fencing, railways, dams, irrigation systems, sewage and storm water drainage systems
- work for charitable organisations assisting flood affected communities, including administrative, technical, and coordination support
- administrative support, including customer service and working in call centres providing flood recovery support
- coordination support, including services for insurance companies and local, state and federal government organisations and community and evacuation centres
- transport support, including delivering food, medications or other essential items to flood victims
- caring for, transporting and managing affected animals and related equipment
Examples of ineligible specified work in flood recovery:
- hospitality, re-building, cleaning or administrative work in a business that was not damaged by floods
- employment in a business not involved in flood recovery work
- clean-up, construction or any other work in an area that is not a declared flood affected area
- work carried out on or before 31 December 2021
Critical COVID-19 work in the healthcare and medical sectors
Specified work in this industry must be critical to Australia’s response to COVID-19 including:
- medical treatment, nursing, contact tracing, testing and research
- support services including cleaning of medical, health care and quarantine facilities and equipment directly involved in the response to COVID-19
- must have been carried out after 31 January 2020, anywhere in Australia
Applicants should include evidence to demonstrate how the work supports Australia’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Examples of eligible specified work:
- nursing care for COVID-19 cases in a hospital or quarantine facility
- mental health support work for COVID-19 cases in a hospital or quarantine facility
- research relating to COVID-19 vaccine or treatment
- contact tracing for public health departments
- cleaning at a COVID-19 testing centre or quarantine facility
Examples of ineligible work:
- general administration or cleaning work with no connection to COVID-19
- occupational therapy or physiotherapy for non-COVID-19 cases
- financial and administrative services at a hospital, health or aged care facility
- mental health support work not directly in response to COVID-19
- work as a laboratory technician on vaccines other than for COVID-19
- medical research other than for COVID-19
- manufacturing or selling personal protective equipment or personal hygiene products
How to count specified work
This section applies equally to both Working Holiday (subclass 417) and Work and Holiday (subclass 462) visas and uses the collective term ‘Working Holiday Maker’ (WHM) visas.
Minimum period
To be eligible for a second WHM visa, you must have carried out at least 3 months of specified work. ‘3 months’ is taken to mean a period equivalent to the 3 shortest ‘calendar’ months of the year, that is, a minimum period of 88 calendar days, including weekends or equivalent rest days during your period of employment.
To be eligible for a third WHM visa, you must have carried out at least 6 months of specified work on or after 1 July 2019. ‘6 months’ is taken to mean a period equivalent to the 6 shortest ‘calendar’ months of the year, that is, a minimum period of 179 calendar days, including weekends or equivalent rest days during your period of employment.
To meet the requirement for a minimum period of specified work you must complete the same number of normal work days or shifts as a full-time employee in that role and industry would normally work in a 3 month (88 calendar day) or 6 month (179 calendar day) period. You can do this in a variety of ways, for example:
- working 5 days a week for a continuous period of 3 or 6 calendar months, including on a piecework rate agreement
- working less than 5 days a week over a period longer than 3 or 6 calendar months, including on a piecework rate agreement
- working multiple short periods of work in any combination of full time, part time or on a piecework rate, which add up to the equivalent of 5 days a week over 3 or 6 calendar months
You do not need to do your 3 or 6 months of specified work all in one go, or all with one employer. You are free to spread the work over the stay period of your current visa. You can also undertake specified work for longer than the required minimum period.
You cannot complete the specified work requirement in a total period shorter than 3 or 6 calendar months.
Example – Karsten – full time continuous work
Karsten works full-time for a construction company in rural Victoria as a builder from 1 December to 26 February, a total of 88 calendar days. Karsten works 5 days a week (Monday to Friday) for this whole period of time and is paid the correct legal wage. Karsten has met the 3 month specified work requirement.
Example – Kim – Does not meet 3 months of specified work
While on her first visa, Kim works 2 days a week at a vineyard maintaining vines and picking grapes from 1 February to 30 April. The vineyard work is eligible specified work and she is paid the correct lawful wage. The work has occurred over a 3 month period; however, she has not worked the equivalent number of days that would be worked by a full-time worker in a 3 month period. She will need to work a proportionately longer period of part time work to meet the specified work requirement.
Kim has not worked the equivalent of 3 months’ specified work and does not meet the requirement.
Example – Karla – separate periods of full time and part time work
First job – While on her second visa, Karla works 5 days a week in a fruit orchard picking and packing fruit under a signed piecework rate agreement from 1 January to 30 April. This period counts as 4 calendar months (in this case 120 calendar days) towards the specified work requirement.
Second job – Later, Karla does casual work picking vegetables at a market garden for 5 days a fortnight from 1 August to 30 November. During this period of 4 calendar months (in this case 122 calendar days) she has worked half of the usual full time work hours for this employer. This period can therefore count as a total of 2 months (or 61 days) towards the specified work requirement.
Karla adds these 2 work periods together, counting:
4 months (120 calendar days) for the period of full time work
+
2 months (61 calendar days) for the period of part time work of 2 months
=
6 months (which in this case is more than 179 calendar days) of specified work
Karla has therefore worked the equivalent of 6 months of full time work and has met the 6 month specified work requirement.
Circumstances in which specified work must have been undertaken
As a general rule, you must have undertaken all your specified work while holding your previous WHM visa. This means that applicants for a second WHM visa must have undertaken all specified work while holding their first WHM visa, and applicants for a third WHM visa must have undertaken all specified work while holding their second WHM visa, on or after 1 July 2019. This is how most applicants meet the specified work requirement.
A small number of applicants may also be able to count specified work carried out in the circumstances described below.
Bridging visas
This rule ensures that, in certain circumstances, specified work you undertake while waiting for your visa application to be processed can still be counted towards a subsequent WHM visa application.
If:
- you applied for a second WHM visa while your first WHM visa was still valid, and
- while we were still processing your second WHM visa application, your first WHM visa ceased and a bridging visa came into effect
then you can count specified work carried out on this bridging visa towards eligibility for a third WHM visa, whether you apply in or outside Australia.
Subclass 408 COVID-19 Pandemic event visas
For applications lodged on or after 14 November 2020, former WHMs can count critical COVID-19 work in the healthcare and medical sectors undertaken on a subclass 408 COVID-19 Pandemic event visa towards eligibility for a second or third WHM visa. This special arrangement recognises the contribution of WHMs doing critical COVID-19 work in the healthcare and medical sectors and ensures they can still access subsequent WHM visa options.
- If you:
- transitioned in Australia from a WHM visa directly to a subclass 408 COVID-19 Pandemic event visa (or an unbroken series of subclass 408 COVID-19 Pandemic event visas), and
- carried out some critical COVID-19 work in the healthcare and medical sectors while holding one of these subclass 408 COVID-19 Pandemic event visas
- Then you can count:
- that work, and
- any other specified work you carried out while holding a subclass 408 COVID-19 Pandemic event visa
- towards eligibility for a second or third WHM visa, whether you apply in or outside Australia.
- And the previous bridging visas rule also applies if you held, or applied for, a subclass 408 COVID-19 Pandemic event visa.
For the avoidance of doubt, the following work can’t be counted as specified work:
- work undertaken while you held a subclass 408 COVID-19 Pandemic event visa if you did NOT carry out any critical COVID-19 work in the healthcare and medical sectors
- work undertaken while you held any other kind of visa, for example a Student visa
- work undertaken while you held a subclass 408 visa that was not in the ‘AGEE COVID-19 Pandemic event’ stream
- work undertaken while you held a bridging visa other than in the circumstances described above
- for third WHM visa applications, work undertaken while you held your first WHM visa
- for third WHM visa applications, work undertaken before 1 July 2019
Example – Akio – specified work while on a bridging visa is eligible
While Akio was in Australia on his first Working Holiday (subclass 417) visa, he applied for a second Working Holiday visa. During the processing of his application, his first Working Holiday visa expired, his bridging visa came into effect and he commenced specified work. His second Working Holiday visa was then granted.
The specified work Akio undertook after his first Working Holiday visa expired and while he held the bridging visa is eligible.
Example – Ingrid – specified work while on a bridging visa is not eligible
Ingrid left Australia when her first Working Holiday (subclass 417) visa expired and returned to Australia on a student visa. At the completion of her studies, she applied in Australia for a second Working Holiday visa. After submitting her application, she commenced specified work. During the processing of her application, Ingrid’s student visa expired and her bridging visa came into effect. Her second Working Holiday visa was then granted and she continued her specified work.
The specified work Ingrid undertook after she submitted her application and before her second Working Holiday visa was granted (that is, while her student visa was still valid or while she held the bridging visa) is not eligible. (However, specified work undertaken after the grant of her second Working Holiday visa will be eligible.)
Example – Bernadette – critical COVID-19 work in the healthcare and medical sectors on a subclass 408 COVID-19 Pandemic event visa is eligible
During Bernadette’s first WHM visa, the COVID-19 pandemic was declared and she decided to work as a contact tracer in Melbourne rather than relocate to a regional area to do specified work. This meant that she was not eligible to apply for a second WHM visa, but was also unable to depart Australia due to travel restrictions when her first WHM visa expired. On the basis of her critical work, she was granted a subclass 408 COVID-19 Pandemic event visa. She then continued to work as a contact tracer for 3 months. If she chooses to apply for a second WHM visa in the future, she will meet the specified work requirement.
Example – Sam – critical COVID-19 work in the healthcare and medical sectors and other specified work on a subclass 408 COVID-19 Pandemic event visa is eligible
One month before Sam’s second WHM visa expired, he started working as a nurse in a COVID-19 testing centre. He was then granted a subclass 408 COVID-19 Pandemic event visa and continued his critical COVID-19 work in the healthcare and medical sectors for 4 months, until the testing centre closed. He then worked for 1 month picking fruit in regional Australia. If Sam chooses to apply for a third WHM visa in the future, he will be able to count all this work to meet the 6 month specified work requirement.
Normal work days or shifts
You should agree with your employer the number of working hours, before you start work.
One single day of work is considered to be the normal number of hours per day or shift that is considered standard practice in the industry and role in which you are employed.
If you are working on a piecework rate the number of hours can depend on the weather and ripening of crops.
If you are working on an Award you should check your conditions of employment, including rostering, overtime, and penalty rates.
You cannot count work carried out on any one calendar day as more than one day of specified work. For example, if the industry’s standard day is 5 hours long, working 10 hours on one day – in a single or separate shifts for one or more employers – does not count as 2 days of specified work.
For volunteer bushfire or flood recovery work, any day on which you worked can be counted as one day.
Example: While on her second visa, Maria works on a dairy farm milking and other duties. Maria makes an agreement with her employer to work 5 days a week (Wednesday to Sunday) from 4am to 7am and 1pm to 4pm each working day (a total of 6 working hours per day) for 6 months. These hours are considered normal for this role and Maria is paid the correct legal wage. Maria can count every day of work towards the 6 month specified work requirement, which she meets.
Example: While on his first visa, Jian works on a fruit orchard picking and packing mangoes. Jian is working on a piecework rate and works 5 or 6 days a week for 3 months. Depending on the weather and ripening of crops he works between 5 to eight hours each working day. Jian can count all of these days of work towards the 3 month specified work requirement, which he meets.
Example: While on her first visa, Sophia works on a cattle station as a jillaroo and farm hand. Sophia works 5 or 6 days a week for 3 months. She works between 5 to nine hours each working day (including meal breaks). These hours are considered normal in this industry and role and she has been paid the correct legal wage. Sophia has met the 3 month specified work requirement.
Example: While on his first visa, Luigi works as a nurse at a hospital caring for COVID-19 patients and conducting COVID-19 screening. Luigi works three 12-hour shifts per week for three months. As these hours are considered normal in this industry, Luigi has met the 3 month specified work requirement.
Australian public holidays and sick days
Australian public holidays and sick days (or equivalent workers compensation leave days) can be counted as a day of specified work if you are paid for that day. Public Holiday or leave days which are not paid cannot be included in your total period of specified work.
If you are working on an Award you should check your conditions of employment including leave and public holiday entitlements.
Severe or seasonal weather
You cannot include any unpaid days where you did not work due to severe or seasonal weather towards your total period of specified work.
You should plan to complete your specified work early in your stay, as no exception will be made for failure to complete the required minimum period of specified work because of severe weather – or any other reason.
Example: While on her first visa, Petra was contracted to work 5 days a week under a piecework rate agreement on a sugar-cane farm doing harvest work from 1 June to 27 August – a period of 88 calendar days. However, she could not work for a total of 5 scheduled working days due to severe weather, and she was not paid for these 5 days. Petra later completed an additional 5 working days with another employer from 1 to 5 September, also under a piecework rate agreement. She has now completed the equivalent of 3 months (88 calendar days) of full time work and has met the 3 month specified work requirement.
Shift work
Variable shift work arrangements which are standard practice in the industry can be counted towards specified work. For example, if your full time paid employment contract involves 2 weeks rostered on for every day and then 2 weeks rostered off as rest days, provided this is standard practice in the industry, and you are paid for this whole period, then all 4 weeks (28 days) can be counted towards your total period of specified work. Be sure to keep a copy of your employment contract.
How to find specified work
You can find specified work vacancies in the same way you would find other job vacancies, such as through employment pages in newspapers, the Internet and job placement service providers. Vacancies specifically for plant and animal cultivation can be found on Harvest Trail.
Not all vacancies advertised on Harvest Trail will qualify as specified work or give you eligibility for a second or third Working Holiday visa.
You should ensure that the vacancy meets the definition of specified work listed above and that the work will take place in an eligible postcode of regional Australia. To check the postcode list of designated regional areas see Regional Australia.
You should not leave it until the end of your stay to arrange your specified work, to allow for unforeseen circumstances which may prevent completion of the required period of specified work, such as bad weather, illness or not finding enough work.
