A UK working holiday is a great way to explore the UK and make some money. Make sure that it goes as smoothly as possible with our guide to a UK working holiday.
Get The Right Visa
The Tier 5 (Youth Mobility Scheme) Visa enables 18-30 year olds to travel and work in the UK for up to two years from the following countries:
Australia New Zealand Canada Japan Monaco Hong Kong Republic of Korea Taiwan
(People from Hong Kong, Republic of Korea and Taiwan require sponsorship)
The UK Ancestry Visa enables people to work and study in the UK for up to five years if they are:
a Commonwealth citizen applying from outside the UK able to prove that at least one grandparent was born in the UK able and planning to work in the UK
Have Enough Money
The Tier 5 (Youth Mobility Scheme) Visa costs £225 and the UK Ancestry Visa costs £324. The Tier 5 (Youth Mobility Scheme) Visa also requires you to have £1,890 in savings. While you may be intending to work when you get to the UK, you need a bit to begin with to get you there.
Arrival Accommodation
If you’re going alone on your UK working holiday, you’ll probably want accommodation that enables you to meet new people, so a hostel would be your best bet. These are also well located in major cities like London, Manchester, Liverpool, Newcastle and Birmingham.
If you’re going with a group of friends, you could consider looking around for group accommodation on Airbnb. When splitting the price between you, it can work out cheaper per night, and you can choose from a range of accommodation from apartments to houses in cities, countryside or on the coast – whichever suits you and your group best.
Finding Work
To start earning money right away, you’ll want to look for work as soon as possible, especially if your funds are limited. Try job websites such as indeed.com, monster.com and careerbuilder.co.uk, or, if you have a career in mind, you could look for something more tailored e.g. workmates.co.uk for trades jobs and gorkana.com for media jobs.
Photo by Tim van der Kuip on Unsplash