How to Complete Your 88 Days for a Second Working Holiday Visa
Updated • Hari Yellina
People often call it “doing your 88 days”, but the official requirement is at least three months of eligible specified work.
It is not simply any 88 work shifts, any farm job or any work performed outside a capital city. Your visa subclass, actual duties, workplace location, dates, payment arrangements and normal working pattern can all affect whether the Department of Home Affairs accepts the work.
The rules for a Working Holiday visa (subclass 417) and a Work and Holiday visa (subclass 462) are not identical. Check the rules for your own subclass before relying on a job.
Important: Completing specified work does not guarantee another visa. Home Affairs assesses each application against all applicable eligibility requirements.
Do you need specified work for a second Working Holiday Maker visa?
For most applicants, the general work requirement is:
| Your visa | General specified-work requirement for a second visa |
|---|---|
| Working Holiday visa — subclass 417 | At least three months of specified subclass 417 work |
| Work and Holiday visa — subclass 462 | At least three months of specified subclass 462 work |
Home Affairs treats three months as a minimum period equivalent to the three shortest calendar months of the year: 88 calendar days.
Specified work is only one part of visa eligibility. Passport, age, visa history, location when applying, compliance with previous visa conditions and other requirements may also apply. Review the current eligibility page for a second subclass 417 visa or second subclass 462 visa.
Exception for eligible UK passport holders
A person who lodges a subclass 417 application using a passport issued by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland on or after 1 July 2024 does not have to meet the specified-work requirement for a second or third subclass 417 visa.
This includes eligible British National (Overseas) passports. The exception depends on the passport used for the application, so dual nationals should read the Home Affairs arrangements for UK passport holders. The exception does not remove the other eligibility requirements for the visa.
What work can count for subclass 417 and subclass 462?
Home Affairs maintains separate specified-work definitions and postcode tables for the two subclasses:
The following table is a summary only. Always use the current Home Affairs industry definitions and postcode tables before accepting a role.
Temporary Home Affairs flexibility: Home Affairs currently says it is giving greater weight to the specified industry. Work that supports the ongoing operations of a specified industry in an eligible postcode may be accepted. This is not automatic approval, and specific exclusions still apply. Check the current page for your subclass and keep evidence of the industry, duties and work location.
| Work category | Subclass 417 location rule | Subclass 462 location rule |
|---|---|---|
| Plant and animal cultivation | Regional Australia | Northern Australia and other specified regional areas |
| Construction | Regional Australia | Northern Australia and other specified regional areas |
| Fishing and pearling | Regional Australia | Northern Australia only |
| Tree farming and felling | Regional Australia | Northern Australia only |
| Mining | Regional Australia | Not listed as subclass 462 specified work |
| Tourism and hospitality | Northern Australia or Remote and Very Remote Australia, subject to the applicable dates and postcode tables | Northern Australia or Remote and Very Remote Australia, subject to the applicable dates and postcode tables |
| Bushfire recovery | Declared bushfire-affected areas, subject to the official dates and definitions | Declared bushfire-affected areas, subject to the official dates and definitions |
| Flood, cyclone or other severe-weather recovery | Declared affected areas, subject to the official dates and application rules | Declared affected areas, subject to the official dates and application rules |
| Critical COVID-19 healthcare or medical work | Work meeting the official definition and date rules, anywhere in Australia | Work meeting the official definition and date rules, anywhere in Australia |
What agricultural work may qualify?
Home Affairs currently gives examples including:
- Picking fruit in an orchard
- Harvesting or packing fruit and vegetable crops
- Cultivating or propagating plants, fungi or their products
- Immediate processing of plant products
- Pruning or trimming vines and trees where the work is directly associated with growing produce for commercial sale
- Feeding or herding cattle on a farm
- Certain immediate processing of animal products
The actual tasks matter. A job title such as “farm worker”, “packer” or “maintenance worker” does not by itself prove that the work qualifies.
General garden maintenance is not listed as eligible plant-cultivation work. Home Affairs also excludes secondary processing or provision activities such as winemaking, brewing, distilling, milling, manufacturing smallgoods and retailing dairy or butchery products from its plant-and-animal-cultivation definition.
Do not assume that all meat-processing, packing, maintenance or warehouse work qualifies. Compare the actual duties with the definition for your subclass.
How do you check whether a location is eligible?
“Regional Australia” has a specific meaning for these visa rules. It does not automatically mean every rural town or every place outside a capital city.
Before relying on a role:
- Confirm whether you hold subclass 417 or subclass 462.
- Identify the work category that accurately describes your primary duties.
- Obtain the exact postcode where the work will be performed.
- Check that postcode in the correct Home Affairs table for that industry and subclass.
- Check whether any commencement date, declared-area rule or application-date condition applies.
A postcode may be eligible for one type of work but not another. Subclass 417 and subclass 462 also have different industry and location combinations. Because the postcode tables and declared areas can change, use the live Home Affairs page rather than relying on a copied list or an employer’s general description.
How are the 88 days counted?
The requirement is based on the equivalent of a normal full-time working pattern over three calendar months. It is not a simple count of every calendar day between the start and end of any casual job.
Home Affairs explains that:
- A second visa generally requires at least three months, equivalent to 88 calendar days.
- You must complete the number of normal workdays or shifts a full-time worker in that role and industry would ordinarily complete during that period.
- Full-time work performed five days a week over a continuous three-month period can include weekends or equivalent rest days within that period.
- Part-time or irregular work can count, but it usually needs to continue for longer until it reaches the full-time equivalent.
- Work can be completed through more than one employer and in separate periods.
- The requirement cannot be completed in less than three calendar months.
- Work performed on one calendar day cannot be counted as more than one day, even if you work unusually long hours or work for more than one employer that day.
Read the official minimum-period and day-counting explanation before calculating your own period.
Continuous full-time work
Someone working the normal full-time pattern of five days per week from 1 December to 26 February may reach the three-month requirement. Weekends within that continuous employment period can be included as normal rest days. This does not mean that every weekend automatically counts for every worker.
Part-time or casual work
Someone working only two days per week for three calendar months has not completed the same number of workdays as a normal full-time worker. That person would generally need to continue working for a proportionately longer period.
Long shifts
Work on one calendar day cannot be counted as more than one day of specified work. A ten-hour day does not become two specified-work days merely because a normal shift is five hours.
Paid leave, public holidays and bad weather
A public holiday, paid sick day or equivalent paid workers-compensation leave day may count where the person is paid for that day as part of the employment period. An unpaid public holiday or unpaid leave day cannot be included.
An unpaid day on which no work was performed because of severe or seasonal weather cannot be included. Arrange specified work early enough to allow for weather, illness, interrupted harvests and periods when work is unavailable.
Rostered time off
A standard industry shift arrangement may count where it forms part of genuine full-time paid employment. Home Affairs gives the example of an employee working two weeks on and two weeks off where this is normal for the industry and the worker is paid for the whole period. Keep the employment contract and roster if relying on this type of arrangement.
When must the work be completed?
For a second WHM visa, specified work is generally undertaken while holding the first WHM visa.
For a third WHM visa, the six-month specified-work requirement is generally undertaken while holding the second WHM visa and on or after 1 July 2019.
Home Affairs describes limited circumstances involving certain bridging visas and former subclass 408 COVID-19 Pandemic event visas. If your work was performed while holding another visa or during a transition between visas, read the official circumstances in which specified work must have been undertaken and obtain authorised assistance if necessary.
What evidence should you keep?
Home Affairs says the evidence should cover every period of specified work claimed. Keep clear copies of:
- Payslips
- Australian bank statements showing wage payments
- A signed piece-rate agreement if you were paid by piece rate, including the rate and how output was measured
- Group certificates or payment summaries
- Tax returns
- Employer references
- Any written and signed agreement covering lawful deductions
- Employment contracts and rosters where they help demonstrate the normal working pattern or a shift arrangement
Make sure the documents consistently identify the employing entity, relevant dates, workplace location and postcode, actual duties, hours or roster, and how and when you were paid. Home Affairs may contact an employer to verify a work claim.
For eligible volunteer bushfire or natural-disaster recovery work, Home Affairs requests a signed letter from the coordinator or host containing the worker’s identifying details, duties, location and postcodes, and number of volunteer days.
No single document or collection of documents guarantees that Home Affairs will accept the work.
Does using a licensed labour-hire provider guarantee that work will count?
No. Labour-hire licensing and compliance with workplace law are important, but they are separate from the immigration definition of specified work.
Whether a period qualifies depends on the Home Affairs rules, including the visa subclass, actual duties, location, timing, normal working pattern and evidence. A labour-hire provider, host business or employer cannot guarantee how Home Affairs will assess a future visa application.
Check your visa conditions separately
Specified-work eligibility and your current visa conditions are separate questions.
Working Holiday Makers are generally limited to six months of work with one employer unless an exemption applies or Home Affairs grants permission. Check the current six-month work limitation and use VEVO to review your own visa details and conditions.
Do not assume that work qualifying as specified work automatically removes another visa condition.
Your checklist before accepting a job
- Check your current visa subclass and conditions.
- Read the specified-work page for that subclass.
- Obtain the actual workplace postcode.
- Obtain a written description of your primary duties.
- Confirm the expected roster, employment type and pay basis.
- Check the applicable industry and location combination.
- Make sure you receive lawful pay and payslips.
- Retain evidence throughout the placement.
- Allow extra time for weather, interruptions and irregular hours.
- Obtain authorised immigration assistance if your circumstances are unclear.
Your workplace rights still apply
Visa holders have workplace rights under Australian law. Except for the limited volunteer disaster-recovery categories described by Home Affairs, specified work must be paid in accordance with applicable Australian legislation and awards.
Read Home Affairs’ information for migrant workers if you are concerned about pay, deductions, records, unsafe conditions or workplace exploitation.
Looking for work?
To ask whether Orchard Tech currently has a vacancy, contact Orchard Tech. Request written details of the duties, workplace location and postcode, employing entity, pay basis and expected roster.
Before relying on any role for specified-work purposes, compare those details with the current Home Affairs page for your subclass. Orchard Tech cannot decide whether work will be accepted by Home Affairs and does not guarantee visa eligibility or a visa outcome.
Need individual immigration help?
This article provides general information only and does not consider your individual circumstances.
Home Affairs says that a person providing immigration assistance must be a registered migration agent, an Australian legal practitioner or a person who qualifies as an exempt person. Read Who can help with your application before asking someone to advise on your application.
Sources and review
Primary authority: Australian Government Department of Home Affairs
Sources last checked: 29 August 2026
Review schedule: Review every three months and immediately after any change to WHM eligibility, specified-work definitions, postcode tables, UK arrangements, visa conditions or evidence requirements.
This is general information, not personal immigration advice. It does not assess your eligibility and does not guarantee that work will be accepted or that a visa will be granted. Check the current Home Affairs rules and your own visa conditions before making employment, travel or application decisions.