Season 3 - Episode 7

What It's Really Like Living and Working in Australia on a Working Holiday Visa

Belén had been planning her move to Australia for three years before she finally stepped off the plane in June 2023. She'd saved the money, met the visa requirements, and was ready to go in 2020 — and then COVID happened. She waited. She kept saving. She kept planning. And when she finally arrived, she made the most of every month she had.

In this episode of Chinwag Tuesdays with Aussie English with Amanda, Belén walks through what two years on a working holiday visa actually looked like: the jobs, the language, the cultural surprises, and the heartbreak of leaving when her visa ran out.

The Jobs That Made Up Belén's Working Holiday

Au Pair in Brisbane

Belén's first placement was with a family in Brisbane, where she found her host family through a platform called OPR World. The dad was Irish, which meant she was immediately navigating two very different accents in the same house. The immersion was total, and the family kept in touch long after she left.

She stayed five months before needing to move on. Working holiday visa holders from most countries must complete 88 days of specific regional or agricultural work to qualify for a second year in Australia. That was next.

Farm Work in Tasmania

Tasmania was tough. Belén ended up picking strawberries on a family-owned farm during the height of summer, working 10 to 12 hours a day in the heat. The farm later brought in workers from Fiji, Samoa, and Tonga who were faster and more experienced, and Belén moved to quality control, which was a welcome change.

She and a friend from Spain then found work at a cherry packing house near Hobart over December, working long hours six days a week. Hard work, but it earned her the 88 days she needed.

Adelaide: Cafes, Subway, and Teaching

After a road trip, Belén and her friend ended up in Adelaide almost by accident — a contact on Instagram told them to come, and they did. She had a job in a cafe kitchen the day after arriving.

Of all her jobs, the one that did the most for her English was working at Subway. Regular customers, small talk every day, and genuine curiosity about where her accent was from. She later returned to Adelaide for a second stint, working at another cafe where she got to know the regulars.

In her second year, Belén also found a role at an English language college in Adelaide teaching ESL. She taught classes from 4:30 to 9 PM Monday to Friday, with students from dozens of countries who were all navigating migration in their own way.

What Actually Improved Belén's English

Belén was asked directly which job contributed most to her English development, and her answer was Subway, followed closely by the second cafe job. Not the classroom. Not her formal teaching background. The front counter, the small talk, the regulars who kept coming back.

This is something that comes up often in conversations at Aussie English with Amanda. Formal language learning develops one kind of skill. Living in the language, being in it every day with real people, builds something different. The two work together, but they're not the same thing.

Australian Politeness Norms: Unexpected and Genuinely Surprising

Belén noticed Australian politeness almost immediately. In Argentina, it's perfectly normal to walk into a cafe and say "I want a coffee" without a please. The polite intent is understood. In Australia, that same phrasing reads as abrupt.

But what surprised Belén even more was how the habit stayed with her. Back in Argentina visiting her sister at a restaurant, she automatically said please at the end of her order. Her sister looked at her like she'd done something strange.

Amanda shared a similar example from a Reel she posted featuring an Indian guest who'd been in Australia for 20 years. His first time in a cafe, the barista asked for the magic word. He didn't know what had happened. The polite imperative in Hindi and Punjabi is built into the verb. There's no separate word for it. These aren't knowledge gaps. They're structural differences between languages that formal English instruction rarely covers.

Being Locked Out of a Conversation

Belén's partner is French. When she visited France, his friends didn't speak English. She sat through conversations she couldn't follow, reaching for her phone not out of rudeness but out of necessity, which then looked rude.

Amanda knew the feeling well. Moving to India, she'd thought she was prepared. She'd visited five times. On her fifth trip she spent a month there and felt ready. And then her husband's parents spoke no English, and there was only so much translating he could do before he got overwhelmed.

That experience of being present in a room but locked out of the conversation is one the ICA of Aussie English with Amanda knows acutely. It's not about vocabulary or grammar. It's about pace, rhythm, familiarity, and the confidence to step in.

The Survey About Crying

One of Belén's ESL students ran a survey in class: how many times a month do you cry as an immigrant in Australia? The answer, for every person in the room including Belén, was at least once a month.

Migration is hard in ways that are difficult to explain to people who haven't done it. You can prepare. You can research. You can connect with community groups and Facebook pages and WhatsApp threads. And you still end up in situations you didn't anticipate.

Leaving Australia and Not Knowing When You'll Be Back

The first time Belén left, it was fine. She had her second-year visa and knew she was going back. The second time, in December 2025, was different. Her visa had expired. She didn't know when she'd be able to return. Her partner was still in Adelaide. Her colleagues at the college were waiting for her.

She described it as heartbreaking. The process is long. The uncertainty is real. And the connections you build, with the people you've worked alongside, the students you've taught, the friends you've made from a dozen different countries, make leaving feel like a loss every time.

Advice for Teachers and Migrants Thinking About Australia

Belén's advice was practical and specific. Do your research before you go. Know which visa option fits your situation. Find out whether your qualifications transfer and what steps are required if they don't. Connect with communities on Facebook, LinkedIn, and WhatsApp groups, because there are always people who've been through it and are genuinely willing to help.

Key Takeaways

• The 88-day requirement for a second-year working holiday visa means completing specific regional or agricultural work. Farm work and hospitality in remote areas are the most common options.

• Real English immersion often comes from jobs with consistent face-to-face customer interaction, not from formal study alone.

• Politeness norms in Australia, like saying please, are not universal. They're cultural conventions that take time to absorb, and they can stick even after you leave.

• Being locked out of a conversation because of language is an experience many migrants share, and it's worth naming as a real and specific challenge rather than a general confidence issue.

• Migration rarely goes to plan, and the emotional cost is real and recurring, even for experienced travellers and teachers.

• Community connections, through groups, platforms, and peer networks, are one of the most practical supports available to anyone navigating a working holiday or migration experience.

FAQ

What is the 88-day requirement for an Australian working holiday visa?

To be eligible for a second-year (and in some cases third-year) working holiday visa, holders must complete 88 days of specified work in a regional area. This typically includes farm work, agriculture, construction, or hospitality in eligible regional locations. The work must be with an approved employer and must be documented. Requirements vary slightly by passport country, and some nationalities are exempt from the second-year requirement entirely.

Which jobs help most with English immersion when living in Australia?

Based on Belén's experience and what commonly comes up in Aussie English with Amanda sessions, customer-facing service roles with regular, returning customers tend to be the most effective for natural language immersion. Cafes, hospitality, and retail provide daily exposure to small talk, Australian slang, and conversational rhythm in a way that formal study alone does not replicate.

Is it normal to find Australian politeness norms surprising?

Yes, and it's more common than most people admit. In many languages, politeness is encoded in tone, phrasing, or verb form rather than in separate words like please and thank you. Coming from those languages, Australian conversational norms can feel unexpectedly formal or even abrupt in the other direction. With exposure and time, the habits form naturally.

What support is available for working holiday visa holders in Australia?

Facebook groups, WhatsApp communities, and LinkedIn networks for specific nationalities and regions are widely used and genuinely active. Backpacker forums and country-specific migrant networks are also worth finding. Belén's advice was consistent with what many guests say: there are always people who have been through it and are willing to help.

Want support building your spoken confidence in Australian professional settings? The Australian Pronunciation Studio is a six-month program designed for exactly this, covering connected speech, Australian pronunciation, and the communication skills that actually come up at work. Find out more here.