European Working Holiday Visas

Backpacking Europe » Before You Go

The absolute best way to turn that 90-day Schengen visa into a year and sometimes more of continental goodtimes.

OK so look, maybe 90 days isn’t quite enough time to really give Europe a good once over, and imagine if you got both legally stay for longer and maybe make a little money to make said staying for longer more economically viable. Well imagine no more, our little intrepid crusty backpack carriers, because you’re about to get (information on) your first European working holiday visa.

How does the program work?

Working holiday visas are a way for young people for around the world to experience each other’s cultures, bodies, menial jobs and partying habits. They allow us to stay overseas for longer amounts of time and to enter foreign labour markets to further fund travel. Generally the visas are reciprocal, so if your country of origin is generous – and other nations are interested in doing business with it – you could be eligible for multiple visas of this type all over the world.

Working holiday visas in Europe

The EU is one of the world’s regions that people want to visit and accept visitors from. This means that across the continent there are a number of working holiday visas available to travellers, dependent on the traveller’s reciprocal agreements made by the traveller’s country of origin. An Australian, for example, can apply for working holiday visas in Europe from:

Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, San Marino, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom – a very decent amount of destinations.

This list varies from country to country and we recommend that you do some research with your country’s department of borders and immigration to see where you are eligible.

How to apply for a working holiday visa

The application process and requirements vary from country to country, but generally the applicant must be:

• Between 18-30 years of age at the time of applying,
• Have a valid passport,
• Pass health and character requirements,
• Have a return ticket, or sufficient funds for onward travel,
• Have sufficient funds to get settled and start work.

Some countries, like Spain and Portugal, also require that you speak a sufficient amount of the language, while others might ask that you’ve completed tertiary education.

Generally the application for working holiday visas must be done in the applicant’s home country, at the consulate or embassy of the country you intend to travel to, but in certain cases, as in the Netherlands, that is not necessary, and the application can be made when already in Europe.  

For more information

On working holiday visas available for:

• Australians
• Kiwis
• Canadians
• Americans
• And for everybody else, get to Googlin’.