Working Holiday Visa in Austria

About this visa

6 Simple Steps to Apply for a Working Holiday Visa in Austria

This visa gives young travelers the chance to work up in the snowy mountains during Winter and enjoy the amazing hikes and lakes during the Summer.

COVID-19 UPDATE:

EU countries are starting to reopen their borders to international travelers. However, before heading off to Europe be sure to double check with the country's Embassy or Consulate in your home country as the EU countries are not legally bound to follow this new EU recommendation.


Participating countries

Austria has made Working Holiday visa agreements with the following 9 participating countries:

If you are a Citizen of Austria and are considering a Working Holiday experience in one of the participating countries above, contact the Embassy of the country in question for more information.


With this visa you can

This visa allows you to:

  • live in Austria for up to one year (6 months if you are a resident of New Zealand or Israel)
  • work in Austria while travelling
  • study/participate in a course
  • leave and re-enter Austria any number of times while the visa is valid

Things to note

  • You must remember to apply for a registration certificate (Anmeldebescheinigung) at the local council office (Magistratische Bezirksamt) before applying for your Working Holiday visa. A map of local council offices in Austria can be found within the Resources section below.

Conditions

 

  1. be at least 18 and not more than 30 years old, both inclusive at the time of application
  2. complete application form for a National Visa (visa D)
  3. attach one biometric passport photograph according to ICAO regulations
  4. hold a return ticket or show sufficient funds to purchase such a ticket
  5. provide proof of sufficient financial
  6. have health insurance for the entire period of your stay

For Australians

  • A “Letter of Australian government support” must be obtained from the Department of Home Affairs. There is no charge for this service.

Note: The visa conditions outlined above are subject to change without notice.


How to apply

  • Normal processing time: 2-3 weeks
  • Visa fee: 100 EUR (No visa fees if you are from Japan)

Applying from your home country

Young travelers aged between 18 and 30 years of age (at the time of application) may generally submit their application for an Austrian Working Holiday visa to the Austrian Embassy in their respective countries. Some countries have different criteria.

For Australians

Australians must apply via VFS Australia who accept visa applications on behalf of the Austrian immigration department.

Go to: VFS Australia

Applying from Europe

If you are currently in the EU Schengen region (including Switzerland) as part of your lawful stay you can apply for your Working Holiday visa in the following Consulates and Embassies:


Additional resources

Here are additional links and resources related to the Working Holiday visa in Austria. All resources are in English unless otherwise stated.

Local council offices in Austria (Magistratische Bezirksamt)

Link to Google Maps

COVID-19 Update: The Guardian – https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2020/may/18/europe-holidays-which-european-countries-are-easing-coronavirus-travel-restrictions-lockdown-measures


Need more help?

If you are seeking advice about Working Holiday visa's drop a comment below and we will be happy to answer any Working Holiday & Youth Mobility visa question you have! We are travellers too! 🙂

Ask a question below

22 thoughts on “Working Holiday Visa in Austria”

  1. Hi – quick question I’m confused about having to apply for a registration certificate (Anmeldebescheinigung) at the local council office (Magistratische Bezirksamt) before applying for my Working Holiday visa?

    I’m applying from Slovenia so does that mean I have to go to Austria prior to apply for the registration or can I do this online?

    Thanks!

  2. I am currently in London studying on exchange (6 month visitor visa) and am an Australian citizen. I am wanting to apply for an Austrian Working Holiday Visa here at the London embassy but wanted to know if that is posssible?

  3. I am a New Zealand citizen, with Canadian permanent residency, but not a Canadian passport or Canadian citizenship. Can I apply for the Austrian WH visa, from within Canada?

  4. Hi
    I am 18, live in the UK and would like to work in bars and travel around Austria on a young persons working visa- not sure this exists for UK citizens since Brexit. So how can I do this now please?

  5. Hello.
    I’m an Australian citizen currently residing in Canada. I wont be going back to Australia to go to the embassy, can I obtain the right forms from here?

  6. Hi I would like to apply for a working holiday visa I am a New Zealand resident but currently just finished working summer camp in the USA –
    Do I need to have a job first . As I have been told that holiday visas have been suspended by the Austrian Embassy in Los Angeles,.

  7. Hi there! Do you have an update as of May 2021 if WHV applications are still being accepted?

  8. Hi there,

    I am a New Zealander currently living in the UK working on a tier 2 sponsorship visa, wanting to work remotely for my uk company from Austria for 30-60 days.

    Can I apply for this visa and work for my UK company from Austria? Or, do you have any recommendations for the right visa to get (if at all?)

    Kind regards

  9. Hello there,

    I am a 27 year old Canadian currently in Germany. With COVID cases picking up everywhere I really don’t want to move and want to secure a way to stay in Europe long term. I’ve been looking into applying for the Austrian working holiday visa from Munich.

    Can you explain a bit more what you mean by “You must remember to apply for a registration certificate (Anmeldebescheinigung) at the local council office (Magistratische Bezirksamt) before applying for your Working Holiday visa.” Can you link anything related to this? Am I meant to secure housing BEFORE I ever enter Austria?

    I also wanted to ask (for planning purposes), once you have gone to your appointment at the consulate do they keep your passport during the processing time? Do you have to make another visit to the consulate to pick up your passport?

    Thank you,
    A

  10. EMBASSY EMAIL

    Hi and thanks for your time!

    I am an Australian Citizen that had really hoped to complete a season snowboarding and traveling towards the end of this year or a mountain biking season towards the beginning of next year but COVID has unfortunately wrecked havoc with everyone’s plans.

    I am currently 30 years old and will be 31 next May meaning that my window of eligibility for the WHV is fast closing plus the Australian government seems to be indicating that our borders will not be opening until around July next year. Thus, I may not be able to enter another country before I turn 31.

    So my first question is, are you currently processing Working Holiday visas for Australians? And if so, is the country planning to encourage tourism and expecting a need for seasonal employees or are there different predictions and expectations for the coming year?

    I must not be the only person in this predicament and considering the extenuating circumstances, is there any wiggle room or policy in place to help accommodate people like me wishing to complete a WHV while eligible but who may encounter difficulty being able to enter due to flight and travel restrictions?

    Any answers or relevant information you can provide would be much appreciated!

    Thanks again and best regards!

  11. Hello,
    I would like to apply for a working holiday visa as I am planning to move to Vienna in May/June this year. I hold an Australian passport but I am currently residing in Mauritius (where I am originally from) and won’t be returning to Australia before Europe. Could I potentially apply through the Austrian embassy here? I would very much appreciate your help. Thanks in advance.
    Kind regards, Ludovic

    1. Hi Ludovic,

      You cannot apply for the working holiday visa while you are in Mauritius, instead we recommend you to first apply for the tourist visa (Schengen visa) for you to be able to enter EU.
      After your arrival in Europe you can apply for the Austrian working holiday visa in the following consulates and embassies;

      Germany: Austrian Consulate General in Munich
      Slovenia: Austrian Embassy in Ljubljana
      Bratislava: Austrian Embassy in Pressburg
      United Kingdom: Austrian Embassy in London

      Hopes this answers your question.

  12. Hi I’m a 19yr old Aussie guy who is currently in Austria but wanting to get a working holiday visa. I know that I can go to Munich and apply for one but I’m just wondering if I need to have studied at University for at least two years?
    Thanks

  13. Hi Michael,
    I’m currently travelling through multiple Schengen countries and would like to apply for the work holiday visa in Austria.
    I am on a short time frame as I have around 20 days left on my Schengen limit. I am wondering if I go to Austria or a consulate/embassy in Germany and apply for the visa, will I get a temporary visa to stay in Austria while I wait for the work visa results to come back? As I think I will run out of my legal limit if I stay in Austria to wait for the visa to be processed. I read online you may be able to purchase a temporary visa for 100 euros when you’re at the interview/apply for the visa, do you know if this is correct? I haven’t been able to find anything else to back this information up but would love it to be true!

    Thanks heaps 🙂

  14. Hi! I am planning to get a working holiday visa from Japan. Approximately, how much should “sufficient fund” be?

    Thank you!

    1. Hi Nonaki, thanks for asking. Good question! I couldn’t track down an online answer for this and also tried calling my nearby Australian Embassy without success so let’s look at neighboring Germany’s Working Holiday/Youth Mobility visa requirements.

      Germany requires proof of sufficient funds in the form of a bank statement – no less than 3 months old and with your full name printed on it – showing at least $5,000 USD or where you are staying with relatives or friends $1,250 USD as well as an invitation letter and passport copy from the inviting person.

    2. hi! I’m from israel and i am planning to get a working holiday visa. there are some things i need to do before i go to the embassy? or i just need to make an appointment and the rest is done there?

  15. Hey Im from New Zealand and have just finished a season in Austria, Im planning to stay in Europe for the summer and go back to Austria for a season in the winter again. Do we have a limit of how many season work visas we can get in a life time.

    1. Hi Dominic, you’re best asking your nearest Czech Republic Consulate or Embassy as this site is dedicated to Working Holiday/Youth Mobility visa’s. Feel free to let us know here in the comments incase others find this page looking for the same answer. 🙂

  16. Hi I’m wanting to get a working holiday visa for Austria (I’m from new zealand). I’m not living at home in new zealand to go to the Austrian consulate. Is there a way to apply online or from a different country?

    1. Hi Jordan, thanks for asking. Since you’re not currently in New Zealand I would contact the Austrian Embassy or Consulate here in Australia as they will be able to make alternate arrangements to support you. 🙂

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