Living & Working in Australia

When I first decided to go travelling I really wanted to do it without having to work in between visiting all of the new places I wanted to go.  Australia was somewhere that was top of my list, I wanted to be able to travel as extensively  as possible, and maybe settle somewhere for a few months.


I had quite a few things that needed paying for before I left the UK that I hadn't factored enough money into my budget for (vaccinations, malaria tablets, visas,car breaking down).  Therefore leaving my savings pot dwindling before I had even left the country!

 Obviously things do change over time, and it ended up that my sister was living and working in Sydney as a Nurse before I left. It was really helpful that she could set up somewhere that we could live together without the worry of having bond money to put down.  (Which I definitely didn't have)  I know that moving to another country is daunting and exciting all at the same time.  There were certain things that had I not had my sister already out there, that I would have never know to do, or how to do!

So I've compiled a list of things that I think are really important if you are thinking like myself to move to Australia to live and work.

1) Have a job set up before you go out there - This is so important as I found it so hard to find work.  I was competing with thousands of other travellers who happened to be more qualified that me in most jobs that were available.  My photography degree wasn't much help to me when most jobs that were open to us backpacker sort were call centre/bar/waitress work.  All which I had no experience in.  I was living in Sydney so farm work wasn't much of an option for me with rent to pay.  My savings were fast running out! If you do have a trade then it is much easier to find work, but if I could have done something differently it would have been this, there were many times that I thought I would have to go back home.

Do your homework. Jobs wont just find you. Ask people who they worked for, good reputable companies, or farms.  I can't emphasise this enough.  This will prove to be invaluable.

Make sure your qualifications are recognised in Australia.  I was a trained support worker for years in the UK but in Australia you need to have certain certificates.

Don't rely on agencies to find you work, I went to my first call centre interview, wasn't successful, and then never heard from the recruiter again.  Even after I left messages and rung the office.

Good websites to look on are Seek, Indeed, and Gumtree.  

I worked for a call centre fundraising company called Insight.  It wasn't overly stimulating work but it paid the bills and funded my onward travel so I would recommend them if you are looking for short term work in Sydney.  Many of their staff were also backpackers.

2) Medicare - If you are from the UK we share a reciprocal health care service with Australia.  This means that if you are unwell, need to see a GP or have any hospital care (go to A+E) then you will need this, or face paying large bills.  You need to go to a local Medicare centre, make an appointment and then get your card sent to you.  This is again invaluable. You can then go to any bulk billing health care centre and be seen by a doctor.  In some cases you may need to pay, as not everything is covered by Medicare.  For example prescriptions or seeing a specialist.

3) Setting up a bank account & Tax file number - If you want to get paid then you need to have one of these.  Its a relatively straight forward process.  I set up my account with Westpac, but there were many others you could choose from.  You will need your passport and a copy of your visa.  You can apply for your tax file number online when you arrive in Australia.

For more information on getting your tax file number click here.

3) Somewhere to live - Most people that I had met who weren't in the same situation as me (going straight into a flat with a relative) usually started their time in hostels.  Some even worked and lived in their hostels for the time that they were in each place.  It just depends what you want to do. Know your budget, to move into a flat you will need a deposit.  This could take a huge chunk out of your savings.  Be prepared for it.  There are short term lets or room shares on gumtree, if you prefer to go down that route.  You need to think about where most work is located, you don't want to live miles away from a bus route and not be able to get to work.

4) Farm work - If you are looking to do farm work, be very wary as I have heard some real horror stories of Australian farmers taking advantage of British backpackers.  Word of mouth here is really key, try to avoid the gumtree ads as I have seen many of them have resulted in being a way to take travellers money in promise of a job, just to turn up to the farm which doesn't exist.  One girl I met had actually been woken in the middle of the night, her boyfriend and herself told to leave right then, and shot at.  The police couldn't do anything about it, but they never received any payment for all the work they had done.  This isn't the case in all farms, there are some amazing ones you just have to know about them first! I didn't do any farm work in my time in Australia so can't recommend any specific ones.

5) Travel Insurance - Make sure before you leave you home country that you are insured.  This is so important.  If your policy does run out while you are away, (you decided to extend your trip) there are some companies that will insure you, while not in the UK.  This will cost you more money to do, but is possible.  This happened to me and I went through True Traveller Insurance.  They were so helpful throughout the process, I definitely recommend them.

6) Mobile Phone - I had cancelled my contract before leaving the UK and gotten my phone unlocked.  o2 didn't tell me that I could simply just go online to their website and unlock my phone, as my contract had finished.  They don't like customers to leave so I had to find this out myself, don't be fooled into thinking there is no other way to open you phone up to other networks.  I very nearly fell into this trap.

I got an optus sim card when I got to Sydney.  I topped up $30 a month and that gave me 3G, texting and calling credit.  This seemed to be the cheapest way for me to avoid signing up to a contract, which happen to be so much more expensive in Aus that the UK.  Go figure, I couldn't tell you why!

But hey presto, once you have done this you can put your number on your resume, (what they call cv's on the other side of the pond) keep in contact with family, and call friends you have met.

7) Claiming back you tax and super - Once you have finished working in Australia, you will notice that you have aquired tax and super funds.  As you are not a permenent resident you will be able to claim these back on your return to the UK.  Don't give all your hard earned money over to an agency who take a large cut, its a simple process to do yourself.  I promise, I have done it!

To claim back your super can do this online.  Just make sure to follow the steps and if you have left before your visa expires you will need to cancel it.

Lodging Super Return

To claim back your tax, you can do this earlier than the end of the financial year.  All you need to do is go online to the ATO and print off the forms.  This does take much longer than your super, but it is all guide lined and they are only at the end of a phone call if you get stuck.

Lodging tax return

So that is all the most important things that I can think of.  Everyone will have a different experience of a new place but hopefully with these things in mind, wont make the same mistakes I did. Did you find it hard to find work? Got any experiences you want to share? Please comment below.

Happy Travels!


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