spyriadon

hello this is my first post on the Expats forum and i just have a few general
questions.
Me and a friend are planning a years working holiday in November this year until November next year.
My biggest worry is the money as ive heard people saying you need around $5000 dollars to be allowed entrance to the country.
is this true? as this is a large sum of money for me as an 18 year old to gather.

Bello

from memory (back in 2003 when i did the whv) you only need proof of $5000 if you've not got a return ticket. how much are you coming with?

spyriadon

looks like $5000 then but i can always get a return ticket and place it on hold for the year?

as for proof would a bank statement do?

Dorothy

Yes a bank statement would do. You just need to have access to the funds if you need it.

quoll

I venture to say that if you are coming for a year you would do well to come with quite a bit more than $5k. If you read some threads on here you will find that getting work isnt quite as easy as it once was and so you may need a bigger buffer than that to be able to get about and see a lot. I dont know about putting a return ticket "on hold" just get the return date for 12 months hence.

Dorothy

Just to add to Quoll's (as always) excellent advice...Get a ticket that can be changed if needed. You may want to go home early if things don't work out.

oz miller man

when i did the whv some years ago you needed to show a bank statement with £2000
what i did was borrow the money from family place in my account get the statement then pay them back
i came with £1000 and had to be working by the end of my first month here

you could save half the $5000 along with your friend and swap between bank accounts to get your visa

i recomend sydney as your first stop try to get work as soon as.
3-6 months work there should set you up to bus it around the country taking in all the sights

i think it will be tougher now than when i did it as less jobs and things more expensive
but even 10 years ago i found myself down to my last $20 stuck in perth and had to hitch hike back accross the nullabor to adelaide to get my dish washing job back...not recomended
concentrate on sydney to earn your travel funds, stop in hostels as great for finding work meeting other travelers and use public transport

quoll

And http://sydney.gumtree.com.au/ is a website which might get you started.

I dont know how generous your folks are but what I did with one of mine at one stage was to get a credit card for him on my account. The deal was that it was for emergencies and he would pay me back for what he spent. That way I felt that he had a fall back position and he felt a bit more secure. However, when I did it myself of course many decades ago there were no such things and I survived but I know how close to the wire it got!

msn81

I did a WHV in 2007-8 so the same rules applied. I remember them saying on the web they need evidence of the funds (which I had) but never actually being asked to prove it. When I arrived in Darwin in the early hours of the morning, the immigration officer was tired and just passed me through without any questions on funds or return tickets etc.

I wouldn't recommend that you rely on the same happening and its best to be safe than sorry. I knew many people that just transferred the cash to their bank account temporarily to get a statement as evidence - which never failed.

If you plan not to spend a huge chunk of the cash straight away (i.e. on a car or booking expensive tour packages) you could get by frugally on $3,000 until you find work.

Bear in mind, the tourist season starts around Sept / Oct, where there are more 'traveller jobs' like car washing, dish washing, fruit picking etc at this time, but also more backpackers looking for them. Be prepared - have a general CV photocopied x 20+ times and approach the likely employers direct. I went to Avis / Budget / Hertz etc car rentals and they paid loads better than the smaller ones which allowed me to save / enjoy my time in Oz. Plus these job were quite fun with the right crowd. Airports were a good starting place for these employers, but a bit tricky getting to them in the bigger cities. Plus you need a Oz drivers license after 3 months - about $60.

Hope this helps!

Becky723359

Hi,

Thought I'd add onto this thread as well.

I have some friends out here at moment on WHV's, 1 has already gone home as couldn't find any work and ran out of funds, the others still looking and giving it until Sept then may go home. They've been here since mid May.

The job market is tough - it took me 4 weeks to get a part time job just in a fast food place and I'm on a PR Visa. You defo need some funds in reserves.

Good Luck

Becky

Phumfeinz

I came over here on a working holiday visa 4 months ago, didn't get asked a single question by immigration, didn't need to show any proof of funds, they just scanned my passport and let me through.

As has been mentioned above though, work is really hard to come by, I've still yet to find a job after 4 months of continuous applications and it's really starting to get to me. I am seriously considering going back home at the moment as there's little point in being here with no money to spend.

Amazulu

Don't sweat it too much. Do the bank statement/parent loan thing but don't worry about not having money. Just wing it when you get here, you are young enough to sort yourself out.

You'll be fine.

man_called_Horse

I agree with most posts in that I never got asked to prove that I had the funds .......but just remember that $5000 is only about £2500, and even though you are on a 'working' holiday you might not get employed straight away especially in November/December which are the start of the summer Holidays in Australia and the peak time when many other backpackers arrive seeking casual work. As already mentioned it could take many weeks to find employment and you will require the money to live.