Applying for a Working Holiday Visa (Subclass 417) to Australia – The ultimate step-by-step guide with screenshots

Attaching your supporting documents

The Department of Home Affairs requires several supporting documents you must attach to your online WHV application.

Two documents are required:

• Your passport information.
• Evidence of funds for stay in Australia and departure.

If your documents aren’t in English, you must attach a translation. You aren’t required to provide a certified translation.

Document 1 – Your passport

You have to scan the page(s) of your passport that shows your name and date of birth, passport number, issue and expiry date, and photograph. This step should be straightforward, as passports are usually printed in the language of your country of citizenship and in English.

Document 2 – Evidence of funds

This step may be trickier. The Department of Home Affairs states that you must: “Provide evidence that you have sufficient funds for personal support during your stay in Australia (approximately AU$5000) and evidence that you have sufficient funds to purchase a return or onward ticket for a fare to depart Australia at the conclusion of your stay (in addition to your funds for personal support while in Australia).”

So you basically have to:

• show you have AU$5000
• show you will have enough money to leave Australia at the end of your stay.

“Alright, let me just go buy my return ticket…”

No, wait a second! We strongly recommend you wait until the WHV is granted to buy a plane ticket. First of all, even if WHVs are rarely denied, it’s hard to get a refund on a plane ticket. Second, application processing times are guestimated—what if you’re still waiting for your WHV the day you’re supposed to leave? Finally, it’s often hard to book a return date more than 12 months after a departure date, unless you buy your ticket through a travel agency.

This is exactly why the Department of Home Affairs doesn’t require you to have a return ticket. To make things easier, you just have to show you can afford to leave Australia when your WHV expires.

We strongly recommend offering additional funds as evidence you will leave Australia instead of buying a return ticket too early. But if you do have your return ticket already, it’s acceptable proof—you still have to show you have AU$5000, though.

What constitutes “evidence of funds”?

A recent bank statement or screenshot of your bank account is acceptable evidence; it’s one of the two options in the drop-down menu. Remember your proof of funds must be translated if not already in English.

The other option is “Other—specify.” This could be a letter from your bank representative. The letter should be in English (or with a translation) on bank letterhead. It should state that as of [a recent date] [you] do have [amount of money] available. The letter should be signed and stamped.

How do I get a translation of my documents when they’re not in English?

If you don’t live in an English-speaking country, getting evidence of funds in English may be tricky. In that case, you’ll need to contact a translator. Note that the translation doesn’t have to be certified.

You will still need to provide the original document, plus the translation in the same file (e.g. a merged PDF document).

The translation must be endorsed by the translator with:

• their full name
• address
• telephone number
• details of their qualifications and experience in the language being translated (even if not working as a professional translator)

Attaching the documents

1 document = 1 file

You need to have one file for your passport and one file for the proof of funds. If you had your bank statement translated, the translation must be merged into the same file as the original bank statement.

PDF documents are accepted, as long as they are not encrypted or password-protected.

Several free online tools can merge multiple PDF files into one document; we recommend using Sejda.

Accepted document extensions

The following document extensions are accepted: .bmp, .dcm, .doc, .docx, .dot, .els, .gif, .jpg, .jpeg, .jpe, .png, .pdf*, .ppt / .pptx, .rft, .txt, and .xlsx.

You can attach files up to 5 MB in size.

Uploading the documents

Ready? Now that you have the documents, the technical aspect is straightforward.

Select “Travel Document” to upload your passport information. Click on “Choose Files,” select the correct document on your computer and you will see a blue bar as it is being uploaded. Don’t forget to click “Attach” after!

Repeat the process for the proof of funds.

Once you’re done, you should see “1 Received” below “Travel Document” and “Evidence of funds” as shown below:

Now, click “Next.”

You’re invited to submit your application. Note that it won’t be fully accepted until you pay the fee.

Click “Submit Now” to proceed with the last step—paying the WHV application fee online. You’ll find more info on the next page.