Working in Australia

You should be able to get a Working Holiday Visa, which will allow you to work in Australia for up to 2 years. Until now, it has only been possible to get a 1 year WH visa, but new rules mean that if you spend 3 months of your first year doing agricultural work you could apply for a second 1 year WH visa.

Find out more about the Working Holiday visa.

To be eligible, you need to meet the following criteria:

• Be aged 18-30
• Hold a passport from one of their accepted countries that is valid for 1 year from date of entry.
• Have enough money to support yourself for a few months (about £2,400)
• Not have any dependents (eg. children)
• Not have held a WH visa before
• Meet certain Health & Character requirements
• Apply for your visa before entering Australia

You can enter and leave Australia as many times as you like, but your visa will only be valid for 12 months and you can’t reclaim time spent outside the country back.

Before working in Australia

Before you are able to take a job that involves serving alcohol, food or is related to the gaming (gambling) industry, you will be required to obtain either a Responsible Service of Alcohol (RSA) qualification, Food Hygiene certificate or Responsible Service of Gambling qualification.

RSA certificate for working in pubs, clubs and bars

Australian legislation states that the onus of responsibility around the drinking of alcohol is shared by both the person serving and the person drinking the alcohol. When someone has been drinking they may no longer be able to make responsible decisions about their drinking. Before you are able to work in a pub, club or bar in Australia, you will need to do the RSA course, which covers the legalities and responsibilities of serving alcohol. All states in Australia recognise this RSA course , which can be done online – except NSW, which has a NSW specific certificate which can only be done in an NSW classroom.

You can now get this qualification online before you leave for Australia – several websites offer this service with the cost around £55. This will mean you won’t miss out on 3-4 weeks work by having to do it in Australia and can start work as soon as you arrive.

• Alcohol and the law
• Legal responsibilities
• Underage drinking
• Alcohol effects & concerns
• Alcohol facts
• Fines and signs
• Refusing service
• Duty of care

Food Hygiene certificate for working with food products

If you want to work with food products in a cafe, restaurant, hostel, hotel, fast food joint, shop, supermarket or factory you will need this certificate to help you deal with food safely and responsibly, reducing the risk of food poisoning to customers. This certificate is recognised nationally and costs around £55.

There are different codes that can be achieved on your certificate – depending on the type of work you will be looking for. Hospitality industry code includes restaurants, cafes, hotels, retail outlets, school canteens. Community Service and Health Industries includes childcare centre, nursing home, hostel, hospital. If you are unsure which you need, contact the Environmental Health Office for advice.

• Food handling and the law
• Basic hygiene principles
• Personal hygiene
• Cleaning food areas
• Pest control
• Assessing hazards
• Food storage

Responsible Service of Gambling or Gaming

You will need this qualification to work in a casino or gaming area. This course will develop your skills and knowledge to help you detect and, if necessary, take steps in the professional treatment of gaming addictions to assist a problem gambler.

• Problem gamblers
• Formal procedures
• State and territory legislation
• Social impacts
• Counselling techniques
• Procedures in relation to barring customers

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