Moving to Melbourne on a Working Holiday Visa: Everything You Need To Do

I have put together everything you need to know about how to move to Melbourne on a Working Holiday Visa. These are the exact steps you need to take when arriving on this type of visa and intending to live down under for a year and work and travel Melbourne. So read this Working Holiday Australia blog for your step-by-step guide for your first week on the Melbourne Working Holiday Visa.

Updated: September 2022

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Contents

How to Move to Melbourne Australia

Apply for a Working Holiday Visa (WHV)

First things first, you need to make sure you apply for the correct visa to allow you to live and work in Australia for a year. The type of visa varies depending on a few factors such as your passport, medical history, age and if you have dependents. Ensure you have these then continue with the checklist for moving to Melbourne.

I was on a 417 Working Holiday Visa which allows me to work and live in Australia for 1 year. There are factors and rules to follow on the visa as well as the Australian working holiday visa cost which you can read more about here.

For the purpose of this Australian Working Holiday blog post, the WHV meaning is Working Holiday Visa. Start your Melbourne slang early by abbreviating everything!

If you are from the UK and have not yet applied, firstly read this guide about how to apply for your Australia Working Visa before moving to Melbourne from UK.

Note: This is not for those who are just going on a holiday to Melbourne Australia.

What to Pack for Melbourne: Australia Working Holiday Checklist

This is a tricky one and depends whether you head straight for Australia or plan to travel first. I went to Thailand, Malaysia and Borneo before I arrived in Australia so I didn’t come with everything I needed! Read on for what to pack for working holiday Australia.

The basic list for what to pack for Melbourne would be:

• The correct plug adaptor. I use the universal adaptor by Bez which has multiple adaptors for around the world!
• Flip-flops (thongs as they are known in Oz). Havaianas are the best brand. I buy a new pair every 6 months and usually get a Rose Gold pair. 
• Black Trainers (handy for work, travel, fitness and everyday use)
• Enough underwear, tees, jeans, shorts and dressy clothes (don’t overdo it because that’s where finding a good laundrette or place with own washing machine comes in handy)
• Headphones (for travel, loud nights in hostels, commuting and farm work)
• Ear plugs/blockers (for loud nights in hostels, noisy transportation or loud tram rides). Get a bulk-load because they get lost so easily!
• Copies of passport, granted visa email, and enough resumes to hand out
• Don’t forget travel insurance! I use Coverwise.

Everything else can be found in supermarkets or shops around Melbourne. Read the rest of this working holiday Melbourne blog for what you need to do.

Checklist for moving to Melbourne on a Working Holiday Visa

Here is a full Working Holiday Visa Australia checklist of things to do when arriving in Australia on a Working Holiday Visa.

1. Visa granted
2. Flights booked
3. Transfer from Melbourne Airport to Melbourne 
4. Book first few nights accommodation 
5. Deciding where to live
6. Get a bank account 
7. Set up a Super-Annuation account
8. Get a Tax File Number
9. Find a good SIM card
10. Attend necessary courses for jobs
11. Finding WHV Jobs Melbourne
12. Apply for a Medicare Card
13. Buy a Myki Card

Visa Granted

I know the feeling you have, dreaming about starting your life down under with sunsets on the beach and coffee on the balcony with koalas hanging in the trees above. Well don’t even think about this until you’ve applied for your visa.

How to Apply for an Australian Working Holiday Visa

P.s. When you come to Australia, it’s not all sunsets, coffee and Koalas. This place is expensive and you need to work!

Book Flights for moving to Melbourne Australia!

Okay now you’ve got your visa granted, time to book that long flight to the other side of the world! Yay.

Book your flights direct with airlines to head for Melbourne or use Sky Scanner to compare flight prices.

There are two airports near Melbourne: Tullamarine Airport and Avalon Airport.

Get from Melbourne Airports to Melbourne

As I mentioned above, there are two airports near Melbourne: Tullamarine Airport and Avalon Airport.

From both of these airports, you can catch the Sky Bus for $24 one-way on arrival.

To book ahead, I suggest using a trusted company such as Get Your Guide and you can book your transfer here.

Booking First Few Nights Accommodation

When you arrive in Melbourne, I highly suggest booking a hostel for your first few nights and here are a few reasons why:

1. You must give an address when you arrive at an Australian airport.
2. It’s easy to head somewhere when you’ve just landed and need to shower/drop off bags.
3. It will give you a chance to relax or get exploring straight away.
4. Having an address is essential for setting up a bank account and getting your Tax File Number (more on that below).

When I first arrived, I stayed at United Backpackers on Flinders Street which was ideally in the middle of the city and close to drop-off points, library and other useful places when moving to Melbourne. Click here to book at United Backpackers.

Alternatively, find your own place to stay when arriving on booking.com.

Deciding Where to Live in Melbourne

Once you’re a bit more settled and explored the surrounding areas, it’s ideal (and cheaper) to find a suitable area to stay put. Melbourne holds a variety of neighbourhoods to suit all types of travellers. If you’re a student or like the student life, head to Carlton but if you’re looking to stay nearer to the centre, head to South Melbourne. You might see words flying about like working hostel Melbourne but I would avoid these as there are much easier ways to find accommodation. One of the best ways is to sign up to Facebook groups and look out for listings from fellow travellers.

Other suburbs include: Fitzroy, South Yarra, Port Melbourne, Kensington, Southbank, Balaclava, Collingwood, Richmond, Northcote, Elwood and my favourite, St Kilda.

Read Next: 4 Things You Should Know About Melbourne

Get a Working Holiday Australia Bank Account

I am extremely happy with my choice of which bank account to join in Australia. There are numerous banks to join such as Commonwealth, ANZ and Westpac. I chose Westpac and I got an account before I even arrived in Australia.

My advice for how to get a bank account in Australia is to apply for Westpac before your arrival. Use their website to open yours (note: you must arrive in Australia within 12 months of opening an account). It’s quick, easy and there’s lots of information on their website to help you.

Once you arrive in Australia, you need to go to the nearest branch to show ID, give them your address and they will send your debit card to that address or you can collect from the branch.

Get a Super Annuation Account Set Up

In Australia, it’s the law that your employer must pay into your super annuation account every time they pay you. Super annuation is similar to a pension we have in the UK. A lot of travellers who move to Melbourne on a Working Holiday Visa either don’t know about this or end up having several super accounts and never claiming back their money at the end of the visa. (The reason they have several is because if you don’t give your employer your super account details, they create one for you).

I highly advise you to open up one super account and give that account information to every employer you have which means all of your super contributions will be in one place and much easier to claim at the end of your working visa Melbourne.

Another positive thing about Westpac WHV was that they helped me set up a super account with them in branch and it only took about 10 minutes. This means I had super contributions that I could view via the online banking app!

Note: After leaving Australia, I applied for a return on my Super contributions and because I had it all in BT Super For Life, I had the cheque to my UK address within 6 weeks.

Tax File Number (TFN)

This is a very important step when you’re looking for jobs in Melbourne for Working Holiday Visa. Your tax file number is similar to your National Insurance number in the UK. When you come to Australia, you need to get one of these before you can work anywhere. As soon as you get a job, this is the first thing they will ask for.

Make sure you learn how to get your TFN Melbourne by reading on!

How to Get a Tax File Number in Australia

You must apply for your tax file number Australia Working Holiday Visa through the Australia Government Official Website – https://www.ato.gov.au/individuals/tax-file-number/apply-for-a-tfn/foreign-passport-holders,-permanent-migrants-and-temporary-visitors—tfn-application/.

Here, you can enter your information including an address where they send you your TFN via letter. Once you have your TFN number, save it, memorise it, tattoo it because it’s important!

If you need your number sooner than the letter for a job or you’ve moved place, you can always ring them to change your address or kindly ask over the phone by confirming some details.

SIM cards in Australia

To be honest, there are much better deals you can get for SIM cards/contracts in Australia than I had. I signed a 12 month sim-only contract for $39 a month. Silly, I think.

If you go to an Optus store, they are going to tell you this is the best option when you can apply online for your own or go into a supermarket and pick one up from the front which will be far cheaper. Also, make sure your phone is unlocked.

Numbers in Melbourne start with 04 or +61 for international.

Alternatively, get a Melbourne airport international sim card.

You May Like: How To Move to Canada On A Working Holiday Visa

Do Courses Suitable for Jobs

There are lots of working holiday visa jobs available for foreigners but for some specific fields there are things you need to do. For example, if you want to get into hospitality, there are certain certificates that are essential for Melbourne working holiday jobs.

If you work anywhere that sells alcohol in Victoria, you must get a Responsible Service of Alcohol certificate aka RSA. It costs $60 and takes about 3-4 hours to complete. At the end you have an exam and then you can collect your certificate the following day. This is the website I used to book the course. Note: they have RSA certificates across Australia but in Melbourne, you must do the specific Victoria course.

There are courses available if you want to become a Barista to work in a cafe and trust me, you’ll need this course because coffee is taken extremely seriously in Melbourne!

If you want to get into traffic control or do trade work, some places require you to obtain a white card and you’ll need to do a course and pay for this.

Working Holiday Visa Jobs Melbourne

Now for how to make money on a WHV. If you’re still deciding ‘should I do a working holiday in Australia’, I’m going to be honest about Working Holiday jobs Melbourne. You may be able to a cheap holiday in Melbourne but the cost of living is expensive and you need to work.

Some of us are lucky and land a job within the first week but I’ve known of others taking over a month to find work. It’s a mix of luck and knowing people or knowing where is hiring. Once you get a job though, it’s worth it because of the people you meet, the experience of working in a foreign country and of course, making good money!

Your Modified Working Holiday Resume

Firstly, you need to ensure your CV (it’s called Resume in Australia) is modified for the type of job you’re looking for as well as vital information about your situation on your work visa Melbourne. I suggest the following:

• Update your CV to include your new Aussie phone number, your type of visa and when your visa expires.
• Include relevant work experience and skills only, e.g. if you have obtained an RSA.
• Make sure you have about 20 resumes printed out.

Handing Out Resumes

Getting a job in Melbourne means walking the streets to find places that are hiring, speaking to a member of staff and handing out resumes. You can always apply for jobs online for data entry / office work.

I found hospitality work in my first week through going to places and personally giving them my CV.

If they like you / your resume / both, they will ring you or ask you there and then to do a trial. Most places work on a trial-first basis which lasts about 2 or 3 hours. You go in to do your trial and they’ll let you know if you got the job. I love skipping past the interview-nerves and showing them what you can do instead.

When you get a job, ensure they are paying you on the books and not cash in hand otherwise you won’t be paying tax, getting benefits of working public holidays (double time) or receiving super contributions.

Working Holiday Visa Medicare

As a British Citizen, you can apply for Medicare in Australia if you’re on a Working Holiday Visa. Medicare allows you health care access at certain doctors within Australia. Read the full guide about how to get a medicare card when moving to Melbourne on the website here.

Note: You still need to get your own travel insurance! I used Coverwise on my Melbourne Australia holiday year before Covid sent me home.

Buy a Myki Card

Last on the checklist for your move to Melbourne Australia is getting a little travel buddy called a Myki Card. You cannot use public transport in Melbourne without a Myki card.

Buy a Myki at any 7/11 store for $6 and add funds to your card either at 7/11, stations, stops or online. One-way costs around Melbourne are about $4.40 per ride and you just tap your Myki when you get on the transport (bus, train, tram).

Note: in Melbourne CBD, trams are part of the free-zone meaning you don’t have to tap on.

Phew. That’s it. If you follow the steps from this Melbourne WHV travel blog, you’ll find yourself well set up for your year down under.

Thanks for reading my working holiday visa Australia blog! I had the best time working in Melbourne and hope you do too! 🙂

My Melbourne Visa and Melbourne Blogs:

• How to Apply for WHV Australia
• Top Quirky Restaurants in Melbourne
• Asian Food Market in Melbourne for $30
• South Yarra Neighbourhood
• St Kilda Neighbourhood
• Great Ocean Road Trip
• My First Thoughts of Melbourne
• What is Melbourne Culture?
• Bottomless Brunch Review in Melbourne
• Melbourne Street Art

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