Department of Home Affairs relaxes 417 and 462 visa rules to assist in bushfire recovery in specified areas.
The Department of Home Affairs has decided to relax and broaden the conditions for holders of Subclass 417 and 462 Working Holiday and Work and Holiday Maker visas to allow visa holders to assist in the bushfire recovery without breaching visa conditions.
The Department has released the following information:
- The time that a holder of the above visas can now work with the same employer has been extended from six months to 12 months for those assisting with bushfire recovery efforts, as a result of a change in policy. This is consistent with arrangements put in place for recovery efforts following Cyclone Debbie in 2017.
- The definition of “specified work” will be revised for the Work and Holiday Maker (subclass 462) visa, to ensure construction work in a disaster declared area is permitted within the definition of specified work.
- Paid and volunteer disaster recovery work in declared areas affected by the recent bushfires will count towards the “specified work” needed to apply for a second or third year 417 or 462 visa.