Visa snapshot
Verified on 20 June 2026- Funds required
- AUD 2,500 single, AUD 3,500 couple. A three-month bank statement no older than one month; credit-card balances are not accepted.
- Work rights
- Paid work is allowed to support your holiday. Work in bars, cabarets, nightclubs, gambling venues and other businesses that affect public morals (the Entertainment Business Act) is not allowed. The visa is single entry, so you need a re-entry permit to leave and come back.
- Study rights
- Study and short courses are allowed alongside the working holiday.
- Extensions
- No extension
- Reciprocal healthcare
- No
- Private health insurance needed
- Quota / ballot
- Not capped (no limit)
- No ballot
- Health & insurance
- Must meet Japanese health requirements
Eligibility & conditions
Open to Australian citizens aged 18 to 30. You are advised to move area roughly every three months; prohibited work includes bars, nightclubs and pachinko parlours.
The visa is free of charge and single entry. Annual caps, the length of stay and repeat-participation rules vary by nationality (see each route).
Initial stay is 6 months, then an extension is applied for in Japan, not a flat 12 months.
Once in a lifetime only: the working holiday visa is issued just once, unlike the UK, Ireland, New Zealand and Canada which now allow twice.
Uncapped, unlike the UK (6,000), Ireland (800) and Canada (6,283).
Advised to move area roughly every three months; prohibited work under the Entertainment Business Act.
How to apply
Applications are submitted through the Japanese Government's official visa portal. Processing typically takes 2-4 weeks.
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