On 17 September 2026, in a speech to the National Press Club, the Minister for Home Affairs announced that second and third Working Holiday years will move to a ballot. This page separates what was said from what is law. When we checked on 2026-09-29, no legislation, start date or Home Affairs guidance for the ballot had been published, and the Home Affairs Working Holiday Maker news page did not mention it. Until that changes, the current rules apply.
What was announced
- A ballot for second-year Working Holiday visas, limited to 45,000 places. The Minister said 57,000 people qualified last year.
- A ballot for third-year visas, limited to 5,000 places. The Minister said 31,000 people were in this group last year.
- Regional work stays as the entry test: 88 days for the second-year ballot and six months for the third.
- A return to the previous, faster processing pace for Working Holiday Maker applications from countries with a regional-work requirement. UK applications stay on the slower pace.
In the Minister's words: "To qualify for your second year you have to do 88 days in the regions. To qualify for your third year, you have to do six months. That won't change. But what you will be qualifying for is a ballot."
What is not confirmed yet
- The start date, and whether people already in Australia on a first or second visa will be covered by transitional rules.
- How the ballot will run: registration, timing, any fee, and how selection is notified.
- Whether the ballot covers the Work and Holiday (subclass 462) visa as well as the 417. The speech referred to working holiday makers generally and did not separate the two programs.
- How the legislation will treat UK passport holders, and dual nationals who can choose between a UK passport and another one.
What it means by passport
- Passport
- United Kingdom (417)
- Repeat-year rule today
- No specified work for a second or third 417 lodged on a UK passport on or after 1 July 2024
- As announced
- The Minister said there is no regional requirement for the UK under the free trade agreement, and UK applications stay on slower processing. Legal detail not yet published.
- Passport
- Ireland (417)
- Repeat-year rule today
- 88 days of specified work for a second visa, six months for a third
- As announced
- Specified work would qualify you for the ballot rather than the visa
- Passport
- Canada (417)
- Repeat-year rule today
- 88 days of specified work for a second visa, six months for a third
- As announced
- Specified work would qualify you for the ballot rather than the visa
- Passport
- United States (462)
- Repeat-year rule today
- Specified subclass 462 work: 88 days for a second visa, 179 days for a third
- As announced
- Not addressed separately in the speech. Details unpublished.
The Minister also gave the scale of UK growth: about 17,000 UK Working Holiday Makers were in Australia when the free trade agreement was signed, and just under 80,000 now. He said UK applications will "continue to be processed slowly" while ministers discuss the arrangement with the UK.
Dual Irish and UK nationals
Today, a UK citizen who entered Australia on a 417 granted on another passport, such as an Irish one, can apply for a second or third 417 without specified work by lodging with the UK passport on or after 1 July 2024 (Department of Home Affairs). The three-visa lifetime maximum applies whichever passport is used. How the ballot legislation treats someone who can lodge on either passport is one of the open questions. The UK repeat-year guide and the dual-passport guide set out the current rules.
What to do now
- Plan on the current rules. The announcement is not law, and the current second- and third-year criteria apply until Home Affairs publishes new ones.
- If you are on the specified-work path, keep evidence for every day you claim: payslips, employer details and the work location. It is required today and would be the entry test for the ballot.
- Keep your dates in view. Second-year specified work is normally done while your first 417 is in effect, and third-year work while your second is in effect.
- Do not book flights or make commitments until a visa is granted. Home Affairs expects most Working Holiday Maker applications to take around 3 months on average.
The Irish second-year specified-work guide covers the counting rules and evidence, and the 417 vs 462 guide covers which program your passport uses.
Frequently asked questions
Is the working holiday visa ballot in effect?
No. It was announced on 17 September 2026. When we checked on 2026-09-29, no legislation, start date or Home Affairs guidance had been published, so the current second- and third-year rules still apply.
How many second-year working holiday visas will there be under the ballot?
The Minister said the second-year ballot will be limited to 45,000 places. He said 57,000 people qualified for a second year last year.
How many third-year working holiday visas will there be?
The Minister said the third-year ballot will be limited to 5,000 places, compared with 31,000 people in that group last year.
Do I still need to do 88 days of regional work?
For Irish, Canadian and other 417 passports with a specified-work requirement, yes: 88 days for a second visa and six months for a third. Under the announced ballot, that work would qualify you for the ballot rather than the visa. UK passport holders have not needed specified work for repeat 417s lodged since 1 July 2024.
Are UK passport holders included in the ballot?
The Minister said the ballot uses regional work as its entry test and that there is no regional requirement for the UK under the free trade agreement. He also said UK applications will keep being processed slowly. The legislation that settles this had not been published when we checked on 2026-09-29.
Does the ballot apply to the 462 visa?
Not confirmed. The speech referred to working holiday makers generally and did not separate the Working Holiday (417) and Work and Holiday (462) programs. Second and third 462 visas also require specified work today.
