Do you need a visa to work a ski season in Australia?

Most people working an Australian ski season are there on a Working Holiday visa. There are two of them, they are not interchangeable, and which one you need depends entirely on your passport.

Which visa are we talking about?

Australia runs two working holiday programmes:

• Subclass 417, Working Holiday — for passport holders of a set list of countries including the UK, Ireland, Canada, Germany, France, Japan and South Korea.
• Subclass 462, Work and Holiday — a separate list, including the USA, China, Spain, Argentina and Indonesia, usually with extra requirements such as education level, English, or a letter of support from your government.

They look similar from the outside. They have different eligible-country lists, different conditions, and different rules for extending. Check which one applies to your passport before you plan anything else, on the Department of Home Affairs website — it is the only source that is current, and the conditions change.

A ski season fits inside either one comfortably. An Australian season runs roughly June to early October, so a single winter uses about four months of a twelve-month visa.

Does a ski season count as "specified work"?

This is the question that costs people a second year, and the answer is: it depends on where the resort is and what you do there.

Australia's second-year extension requires a set period of specified work in a designated regional area. Tourism and hospitality count only in northern, remote or very remote Australia — and Australia's ski fields are all in the southeast, in New South Wales, Victoria and Tasmania. So the northern route does not apply to them, and whether a particular resort qualifies turns on how its own postcode is classified. The designated postcodes and eligible industries are set by the government and have been revised more than once.

Two things follow from that:

1. Do not assume your resort counts. Ask the employer directly whether the role and the postcode qualify, and check the postcode yourself against the official list.
2. Keep evidence from day one. Payslips, your employment contract, and your employer's ABN. People lose extensions because they cannot prove work they genuinely did.

What a ski employer will actually ask you

In practice, the visa question an employer cares about is narrow: can you legally work for me, for the dates I need, and when does that right end?

Have ready:

• Which visa you hold or have applied for, and its expiry
• Your availability dates, including the end of the season
• Whether you have worked a season before

Mountain Connects records work eligibility as a status per country — the visa programme and when it expires — and nothing more. We never ask for a visa number, a passport scan or any document. Proving your right to work is something you do with the employer at hire, not with a job board.

Of the 355 roles open on our board right now, 193 are in Canada and 158 in Japan.

Counted live from our open listings, last read 10 October 2026. These are figures from job adverts, not a survey.

We currently have no Australian listings. The board is Canada, Japan and France. If you are specifically after an Australian season, this guide is here because the visa question is the same wherever you read it — but you will find the jobs elsewhere.

If a northern winter would do instead, our open roles are in Canada and Japan.

When should you apply for the visa, and for jobs?

Australian resorts hire from roughly February to April for a June start. The visa is the slowest step: grant times vary and are published by Home Affairs, so start there and work backwards.

A workable order:

1. Confirm which subclass your passport qualifies for
2. Apply for the visa
3. Start applying for jobs while it is processing — most employers will take "applied, awaiting grant"
4. Do not book flights until the visa is granted

Common questions

Do I need a visa to work a ski season in Australia?

Yes, unless you are an Australian citizen or permanent resident. Most seasonal workers use a Working Holiday visa — subclass 417 or subclass 462, depending on your passport. A tourist visa does not permit work of any kind.

Does a ski season count toward a second-year visa?

Sometimes. The second-year extension requires specified work in a designated regional area, and whether a particular resort job qualifies depends on the postcode and the type of work. Check the postcode against the official list and confirm with the employer before you rely on it.

Is there an age limit?

Both working holiday subclasses have an upper age limit, and for some nationalities it is higher than for others under bilateral agreements. The current limits are published by the Department of Home Affairs — check there rather than relying on what a friend did two seasons ago.

Can I apply for jobs before my visa is granted?

Yes, and most seasonal employers expect it. Be straightforward about where the application is up to. What they need is confidence you will be legally able to work by the start date.

Does Mountain Connects have Australian jobs?

Not at the moment. Our open listings are in Canada, Japan and France. We would rather tell you that than have you search an empty board.