Canada to Australia
Available nowCanadian passport holders are in the 417 programme with an age-35 cap. Repeat years still need specified-work handling, while health cover and visitor-entry rules differ from Ireland and the UK.
Australian Working Holiday Maker rules depend on the passport used for the application. Start here so you use the checklist that matches your passport.
General information only. This page links official sources, but it is not migration advice and it cannot promise a visa outcome.
Key facts
These are the country-specific facts this page uses. The official pages are linked below so you can check the current requirements.
Subclass 417, first application, age 18-35, no specified-work requirement for this stage.
Subclass 417, second application, age 18-35, 88 days of specified work.
A Canadian passport does not create reciprocal Medicare access. Check the agreement for the country you lived in before Australia; if Canada is your only qualifying residence, plan private cover.
Routes for Canada
Each route shows the safest next step. If the checklist you need is not available yet, you can leave a note and ask to be contacted when it is available.
Check your first Canadian 417 answers and see the next documents to prepare.
What you can do now
Check age, passport, prior Working Holiday Maker history, funds, and health or character flags before you start the document checklist.
Canadian repeat-year users still need specified-work evidence. The UK no-specified-work rule does not apply.
What you can do now
Use the specified-work notes to avoid applying the UK no-specified-work rule to a Canadian passport.
Check before you continue: If you are preparing repeat-year evidence, request a Canada specified-work checklist.
Canada needs separate health-cover and visitor-entry guidance. Visitor entry is not work rights.
What you can do now
Check health cover separately from Ireland and the UK, then return to your work-route profile.
Check before you continue: Check travel insurance and health cover before you leave.
Guides for Canada
Long-form guides written for Canada passport holders, with the government or regulator page behind every figure.
Process
The arrival admin every working holiday maker and migrant needs in week one: a tax file number, an Australian bank account, a superannuation fund, and where to check your workplace rights.
Pathway
The four routes Canadians use to live and work in Australia: the 417 Working Holiday visa (repeat years still need specified work), the 482 Skills in Demand visa, skilled permanent residence, and AHPRA or trades registration. Plus the health-cover difference that catches Canadians out.
Pathway
What the 417 looks like for Canadian passport holders in 2026: age 18 to 35, the funds rule, fees, specified work for second and third years, the six-month employer limit, and why health cover needs its own plan.
Money
Canada is not on Australia's reciprocal health care list, so a Canadian passport or 417 does not create Medicare access. How pre-arrival residence affects the position, what an uninsured hospital visit can cost, and how to plan cover.
Official sources
Use the official pages for the final requirements before you apply. Paper Trail links the official pages behind this country page.
Limits
Route not listed?
If the checklist you need is not available yet, leave a short note. Do not include passport numbers, application IDs, health details, or criminal history.
Do not include passport numbers, application IDs, health details, or criminal history. A short note is enough.
General information, not migration advice. Paper Trail Visas organises information, reminders, document notes and preparation tasks. It is software and general education under s.276 of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth), not migration advice. For advice about a specific application (refusal history, health conditions, character disclosures, unusual work history), speak with a MARA-registered migration agent or an Australian legal practitioner with an unrestricted practising certificate.
