Working Holidaymakers Scheme
Eligibility you need to apply

This section explains the requirements you must meet if you wish to enter the United Kingdom as a working holidaymaker.

To qualify to enter the United Kingdom as a working holidaymaker you must:

  • Be a national of one of the Commonwealth countries;
  • Be between 17 and 30 years old;
  • Intend to come to the United Kingdom mainly for an extended holiday, working for no more than a total of 12 months during your stay;
  • Not intend to establish any type of business or to provide services as a professional sportsperson during your stay;
  • Be unmarried or not in a civil partnership, or married to or in a civil partnership with a person who also qualifies as a working holidaymaker and who intends to take the working holiday with you;
  • Not have any dependent children who are aged five years or over, or who will turn five before you complete your working holiday;
  • Be able to support and accommodate yourself in the United Kingdom without recourse to public funds;
  • Not have spent time in the United Kingdom on a previous working holidaymaker visa; and
  • Plan to leave the United Kingdom at the end of your working holiday.
Extending your stay under Working Holiday Maker Scheme

This section explains the restrictions on extending your working holidaymaker visa and how you may be able to extend your stay in the United Kingdom under other categories.

The working holidaymaker visa is a short-term immigration category. If you come to the United Kingdom on a working holidaymaker visa, you will be allowed to stay for a maximum of two years. When your visa expires, you will be expected to return to your home country. You will not be allowed to extend your visa as a working holidaymaker.

However, once you have been in the United Kingdom for 12 months on a working holidaymaker visa, you may be able to stay longer by switching to a different category.

You may be able to stay here by switching to work permit employment, but only if the occupation involved is on UKBA's list of shortage occupations. The employer will need to apply for a work permit for you. If the occupation is not on UKBA's list of shortage occupations, you will not be able to switch to work permit employment while you are still in the United Kingdom. This will apply until work permits are replaced later this year by Tier 2 of UK's points-based system for managing applications to work, train or study in the United Kingdom.

You may also be able to stay by switching to a visa for innovators if you meet the requirements.

UK has now closed the Highly Skilled Migrant Programme to applications from people who are already in the United Kingdom, so it is no longer possible to stay in this country by switching into this category. The Highly Skilled Migrant Programme has been replaced by Tier 1 (General) of the points-based system. It is not possible to switch into this category if you are here as a working holidaymaker.

Applications for permission to come to the United Kingdom, or to extend a stay here, are normally decided according to the immigration rules in place at the time We make their decision on the application. You should bear in mind that the rules may change and many of UK's rules about working in the United Kingdom will change as new tiers of the points-based system are introduced this year.

Need More Assistances & Supports?

Write us at immigration@biniaminindustries.com or call us at our international hotline +88-(0)-1713-114660