Working Holiday Visa for Australian Citizens

The Governments of Japan and Australia commenced the Japan-Australia Working Holiday Arrangements as of 1 December 1980. The arrangement is intended to promote personal exchange between young people of Japan and Australia. It provides the opportunity for both Japanese visiting Australia and Australians visiting Japan to undertake casual employment in order to supplement their holiday expenses while travelling for an extended period.


IMPORTANT:
 

This programme is NOT designed for persons who mainly intend to work or study in Japan. This is a visa for the MAIN PURPOSE of holiday and travel around Japan. For those who wish to mainly work or study, please see here. 

ELIGIBLITY
To be eligible to participate in the Working Holiday Arrangement, one must satisfy the following requirements:
(A) Be an Australian citizen and currently reside in Australia. Accordingly, Australian citizens who are travelling or living abroad will not be eligible. In the case when a married couple wish to enter Japan under the Working Holiday Arrangement and one of the spouses is not an Australian citizen, that spouse will not be eligible
(B) Intend primarily to holiday in Japan for an extended period. It is considered inappropriate for people such as professional sports persons, models and entertainers to engage in their professional activities during their stay in Japan
(C) Be aged between 18-30 (both inclusive) at the time of application for visa and never previously obtained a Working Holiday Visa
(D) Not be accompanied by children
(E) Possess a valid passport
(F) Possess a reasonable amount of funds for one’s maintenance during the initial period of the stay in Japan. The minimum amount for a single person is $2500 and for a married couple $3500. Please note in addition to the $2500, further funds must be available to pay for the airline ticket to and from Japan.
(G) Be in good physical and mental health and be of good character.


WORK CONDITIONS
The following special conditions must be abided by if you wish to work in Japan on a Working Holiday. (1) To fully appreciate the many different aspects of Japan it is required that the working holiday applicant moves to different areas within Japan at approximately 3-month intervals.
(2) Work in nightclubs, bars and cabarets, dance halls, pachinko bars etc., is not allowed. The Act Controlling Business Affecting Public Morals (Fueiho), Article 2; section 1 and 4, specifies these prohibited areas of work.

• *PLEASE DO NOT STAPLE ANY DOCUMENTS TOGETHER.
  *ALL DOCUMENTS MUST BE PRINTED PRIOR TO VISITING OUR OFFICE. WE CANNOT PRINT ANY MISSING DOCUMENTS FOR YOU.
   
   
  1. CURRENT AUSTRALIAN ORIGINAL VALID PASSPORT
  
  
  2. COMPLETED VISA APPLICATION FORM
• (All sections must be filled out, the "criminal record if any" in particular must be answered. If a question does not apply to you please write "N/A".)
  
  
  3. RECENT PASSPORT PHOTOGRAPH (taken within the last 6 months) 
• Australian standard-sized passport photo (4.5cm x 3.5cm) of good quality.
• If it is not a recent photo, please take a NEW photo and ensure it is printed on photo paper, NOT generic printing paper.
  
  
  4. RESUME
• Include your educational background, work experience, hobbies and other relevant information.
  
  
  5. PURPOSE OF VISIT (MINIMUM A4 in length) 
• This statement should include the following:
• - Your past interests and how it relates to this trip
• - Why you are interested in a Japanese working holiday visa
• - Intended activities whilst in Japan
• - How this trip relates to your future plans
  
  
  6. PROPOSED SCHEDULE (second page)
• Intended schedule for the first 6 months must be completed without writing “as above” or “unknown”. Only listing a few activities for each month is not accepted. Please fill up the schedule with as many intended holiday activities in Japan as possible for each month (minimum 10 acitvities or places to visit per month).
• Please note you cannot stay in one region for more than 3 months as this visa is intended to travel around Japan with the main purpose being to holiday.
  
  
  7. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
• Bank account details of your savings account covering the most recent 3 months of transaction records up to the day of your application, including the current balance, current address and your full name.
  The current balance must show sufficient funds for the trip to Japan (minimum $2500 if you have provided a paid return ticket, if only a one way ticket is purchased or no flights are purchased, additional funds showing capability to also purchase the return flight is required).
  * Any large amounts of deposits must be verified with extra documents
  * Constant transfers from your other account into savings will require you to also bring 3 months of the other account transaction records
  
  **For spouses or minors whose names are not on the bank records, proof of relationship (marriage certificate for spouse or birth certificate for children), copy of their passport and a letter of guarantee is required.** The above is also required for those whose parents transfer large sums of money. 
  
  
  8. DECLARATION OF INTENT (first page)
  You must include two points of contact for while you are in Japan. The points of contact may be friends or family in Australia or in Japan (please provide people who reside at a different address).
  
  
  9. FLIGHT DETAILS - BOTH INTO AND OUT OF JAPAN (flights do NOT have to be purchased).
  If flights are already purchased, a copy of all flight tickets. If not, please PRINT OFF screenshots of the intended flights. Flight must start from Brisbane or Gold Coast and return to Brisbane or Gold Coast showing ALL intended transit destinations. 
  
  
  10. Copy of Passport
• A PRINTED copy of your current, valid passport (passport information page). 
  
  
  11. WORK CONTRACT or LANGUAGE COURSE ENROLMENT DETAILS (only if you already have one)
• A copy of your employment contract or documents provided from your employer in Japan. The document should include: the duration of work, the number of days per week, number of hours per day, job description, company details and the salary. If you will be attending a casual language course, details about the language school such as company name, address, contact details as well as general details such as duration of the course, cost of the course, whether the course has been paid for already or not, confirmation of enrollment etc. are required.

• We cannot renew your Working Holiday Visa in our office. This can only be done at the immigration office in Japan.
  The above documents and your passport must be submitted to this office in person between 9:00am-11:00am or 1:30pm - 3:00pm Monday to Friday (except for public holidays).
  All documents submitted must be originals unless indicated otherwise. Documents submitted with the application WILL NOT be returned. Please ensure that you have personal copies for your reference.
  The working holiday visa is valid for twelve months so please apply with ample time for processing. Applicants must enter Japan within twelve months from the date of issue of the visa.
  A period of stay of up to six months will be initially granted at the port of entry. This may be extended up to an additional six months by the Immigration Authorities in Japan.
  Further information may be required and some applicants may require an interview, however we will contact you if this is necessary.
  Once the visa has been issued, it will not be reissued under ANY circumstances. (For example: lost/stolen passport)
  There is no fee for the working holiday visa application.
  
  EXTENSION OF VISA
  If deemed appropriate by the relevant authorities, this visa can be extended at your nearest Department of Immigration Office in Japan. Please attend to the extension prior to the expiration of your visa.