France’s Working Holiday Visa for Australians
If you’re an Australian aged between 18 and 35 years old, you could be eligible for a French working holiday visa!
This visa lets you live in France for up to a year and work in the country to help fund your stay. Studying that is “incidental to the holiday” (such as taking some French language courses) is also permitted.
This page contains information about the French working holiday (young traveller) visa for Australian citizens. It was last updated on 3 January 2025.
Key facts about France
- Population: Approx. 68 million
- Official language: French (“français” in French)
- Capital city: Paris
- Largest cities: Paris, Marseille, Lyon, Toulouse, Nice
- Currency: Euro
France Working Holiday Visa requirements for Australians
France offers Working Holiday visas to citizens of Australia, Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, South Korea, Japan, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Mexico, Peru, Russia, Taiwan & Uruguay. See the France Visas website for more information.
This information is only applicable to Australian citizens. Please note that while the maximum age to apply for this visa is 35 for Australians, Argentinians & Canadians, the maximum age for other nationalities is 30.
To apply for a France working holiday visa as an Australian citizen, you must meet the following requirements:
- Aged between 18-35 years old (inclusive) at the time of application
- Have a return plane ticket from your country of residence to France (or an affidavit promising you will leave France before your visa expires)
- Have enough funds to support yourself during the initial period of your stay (as a rough guide, you should have at least AUD5,000 in savings)
You cannot apply for this visa if you:
- Are accompanied by dependent children
- Have already held a French working holiday visa
The official France Visas website contains limited information about this visa. But this PDF document from the French embassy in Australia contains some more information about the French working holiday visa agreement with Australia that may also be useful, including the prerequisites and rights that come with the visa.
You can also read the terms of the reciprocal agreement between Australia and France (in French) on the French government’s website.
The French government advises applicants to contact VFS Global if they have questions. The Consulate General specifically states that they do not provide information about visa procedures, required documents, visa appointments or processing times.
Documents needed to apply for this visa
When applying for a Working Holiday Visa for France as an Australian citizen, the France-Visas website says you will need to provide the following documents:
- Long stay visa application form
- A valid passport with at least two blank pages and that will be valid for at least 3 months after the end of your intended stay in France (you need to scan all passport pages which are not blank)
- Two recent passport-sized photographs (ICAO standard)
- Proof of a return flight booking to/from France, or an affidavit confirming that you will leave France before your visa expires
- Adequate travel insurance covering (at a minimum) medical, hospital and repatriation costs for the entire stay in France
- Proof of sufficient funds to support yourself during the initial period of stay in France (e.g. a bank statement showing that you have had at least AUD5,000 in your account for the past 3 months)
- Proof of initial accommodation (e.g. a hostel booking/offer of free accommodation for when you arrive in France)
Please note that this information is subject to change. When you start your visa application, a full list of up-to-date document requirements will be provided to you. If you have recently applied for this visa and the required documents were different to those on this list, please let us know in the comments below!
The French working holiday visa is classified as a long-stay visa, which has a fee of €99 (approx. AUD163). There may also be fees payable to VFS Global (approx. €40-75, or AUD65-123).
How to apply for a French Working Holiday Visa in Australia
You can apply for a Working Holiday Visa between 3 months and 15 days before your intended arrival date in France. (Note that it is not possible to apply more than three months in advance.)
You can no longer apply for this visa directly with the French Consulate General in Sydney. Since January 2021, French visa applications in Australia must be submitted to VFS Global. You’ll need to visit a VFS Global office to provide the required documentation and provide biometrics, but the French consulate is still responsible for processing visas.
Start your visa application on the France-Visas website. Once you’ve submitted the application form, you can make an appointment to attend a VFS Global visa application centre to provide biometrics (fingerprints & photo taken) and pay the applicable fees.
VFS Global offices are available in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, however the Adelaide office is temporarily not processing French visas.
If you’re having trouble finding an appointment on the VFS Global website, keep checking regularly as new appointments are released. You could also try clearing your cache or using an incognito window in Google Chrome to access the appointments page.
Once your visa is processed, you can return to the VFS Global office to collect your passport. Or if you provided a prepaid envelope/paid an additional fee, it will be mailed to you.
Visit the VFS Global website for more information.
We recommend that you begin your visa application and make an appointment well in advance. According to the French consulate, the average visa processing time is 15 days. It could take longer in some cases.
Applying outside of Australia
According to the France-Visas website:
Nationals of countries that have signed a “Vacances-travail” (Working holiday) agreement with France must file their application with the competent visa center in their country or territory of nationality, with the exception of Australian, Canadian and Colombian nationals residing abroad who may file their visa application with the competent French consular service in their country of residence.
If you would prefer not to apply for a French working holiday visa in Australia, you can apply from another country where you are legally residing. However, you cannot apply while already in France. You also cannot apply in another country where you are simply visiting as a tourist.
It would generally be easier for most Australians to apply from within Australia. French embassies/visa centres in other countries may be less familiar with this type of visa. But if you can’t or don’t want to apply in Australia, check the Visa Wizard on the France-Visas website for a list of visa application centres in the country where you want to apply.
In your Visa Wizard search, select:
- The “place of submission of application” as the country where you want to apply from,
- Your visa type as “Long-stay (>90 days)”,
- Your plans as “Other”, and
- Main purpose of stay as “Working holiday”.
Arriving in France
After arriving in France, you would normally need to validate a VLS-TS long-stay visa within 3 months on the French interior ministry website.
However, there is an exception for working holiday visa holders. If you have a “vacances travail” (working holiday) visa, you do not need to validate this after arrival. (The exceptions are listed in French only on this webpage.)
After arriving, to connect with other Australians living in France, you may wish to join the “Aussies In France” Facebook group.
Working in France
After being issued with a working holiday visa, arriving in France and validating the visa (as per above), you’ll automatically receive authorisation to work in the country. There were some issues with this affecting Australian citizens from late 2022 until May 2023, but this situation has been resolved.
While best efforts are made to keep this information updated, we do not guarantee its accuracy.
If you spot an error, would like to suggest new information to be added or simply have a question, please let us know in the comments and we’ll endeavour to respond or update the article as quickly as possible!
Before asking a question, please read through the previous comments to check if your query has already been answered.
Does anyone have a definitive answer if Australians need to have a medical certificate to get the French Working Holiday Visa? There seems to be nothing online about it or what statements the certificate would need to include, I’ve got all the other items on the checklist but wondering if anyone has got the visa without a medical certificate stating they can work/travel?
Thanks!
Hey Caleb,
Did you end up finding this out? I have my VFS appointment tomorrow and didn’t realise I might need medical & police checks – feeling nervous!
Thanks
Hi Susan, at my appointment we didn’t need to submit them because of the bilateral agreement but we had them anyways just in case and submitted them with all of our other documents but it wasn’t on the VFS checklist but it was still very vague. Good-luck with your appointment!
amazing, thanks Caleb!! you’re a legend
Was just hoping if there might be any first-hand feedback floating about for those that applied for the WH visa while outside Australia as a visitor/tourist in another country (e.g. UK). Seems ambiguous given earlier comments, so would love to hear if anyone managed to do it?
I’m in the same situation. I contacted the French embassies in the country I’m in now and they said it’s not possible. VFS emailed me saying it’s possible, so I’m waiting for their next reply…
Hey everyone,
Since I found this page super helpful, and I know how stressful these processes can be, I thought I’d pay it back and recount my experience at VFS Melbourne – I hope this helps someone 🙂
First things first, they turned me back the first time around (in November) for coming in too early, ie. my intended arrival date in France was more than 3 months in the future (April 2023). This was a nightmare to resolve and it was a bit difficult to rebook the appointment as I had to contact the centre directly, they forgot who I was/why I was contacting them directly to book again (even though they had instructed me to do so), etc. So make sure you’re somewhat clear on your intended arrival date and that your appointment happens no more than 3 months before that date. Worth noting, the person who served me at VFS seemed to allude that the “official” date of your trip (and start of your visa) is defined by the dates on your travel health insurance, since you need to be covered for the whole year you’re in France. So for example, my health insurance starts from April 3, 2023, so that’s the date they took into account as my intended arrival date/start of my one-year visa for France.
In terms of documents, I presented everything as listed below and they didn’t really mention whether the police check and medical certificate were needed or not. However, I’ve always erred on the side of caution, so it’s best to bring more/extra, than less, for these type of bureaucratic situations. I did notice that on some form they made me sign they listed my proof of accomodation as the only “extra document”, meaning the police check and medical certificate were probably required in the end. Also it seemed like the most important document was the bank statement, so make sure you present a recent bank statement or transaction record for the last 3 months showing that as of the date of the statement, you have at least $5000 AUD available.
My list of docs for VFS Melbourne:
– Passport
– Copy of identification page of passport and ALL pages with any entry/exit stamps, other visas, etc.
– ID Passport Photograph (my photo was taken at the appointment, but you can bring one if you got it taken elsewhere).
– My one year travel health insurance statement/print-out.
– Medical certificate from my GP (really simple, just stating that I’m in good health, can work and travel, etc. For this I just went to my GP and explained what I needed and he just did a quick general health check-up and typed the certificate for me).
– AFP Police check
– Bank statement/Transaction record (for the last 3 months and clearly showing your balance as min. $5000 AUD available)
– Extra: A signed cover letter (the person who served me seemed to be pleased I included a cover letter).
– Extra: A signed letter from a French-national friend basically saying in case of any difficulty he would be happy to let me crash with him in his apartment while in France, etc.
Best of luck! And I hope 2023 brings good things!
Thanks Karlo, I’m sure many people will find this helpful 🙂
Hi Matt. Any updates on obtaining the working permit once getting to France? We have just received our working visas to move over in April with the sole purpose of the working holiday format. Am a little concerned now.
Hi Simone,
I’m on the same boat. Hoping to move there at the start of April. Not sure if this is helpful, but I had a friend who just got back from a year in France at the start of January (under a working holiday visa) and he told me he was never asked for a work permit, word for word what he texted me when I asked whether he needed a work permit: “Hey, no technically I didn’t need anything but a copy of the visa in my passport (employers send it to the employment office and it’s a strangely lax situation).”
This is beyond confusing/misleading, I also find it a bit odd that the requirement for a work permit for Russians and Australians is only found through digging deep through in the French government website. Nowhere to be found in the general France Visas website or widely available working holiday visas information.
Anyone else who would have an update on this situation?
I’ve tried to clarify this with both the French embassy in Australia and the Australian embassy in France. Neither has got back to me.
This article summarises what we know so far: https://workingholiday.au/france-work-authorisation-australians/
Hi Matt,
Hoping you can assist here – my friend is currently travelling throughout Europe, she used her 90 days Schengen limit straight away but wanted to continue to travel throughout Schengen countries. She applied for a French WHV while she was in Belgium, and this has allowed her to not only spend longer in France but travel throughout Schengen countries once again, even just after using her 90 day limit on her basic Schengen Visa. The only catch she communicated to me is she only has the ability to leave and return to the Schengen countries once while using this Visa.
This sounds too good to be true as I can’t imagine the French WHV allows further time in the Schengen after just being there for 90 days. Would you know anything regarding this?
I can’t comment on this, sorry.
Hi All,
Here’s a short summary of my application (at VFS Perth):
– passport (copies of all pages)
– 2 photographs (EU visa standard)
– 365 days insurance certificate (I went for ahm, medical & hospital cover) + PDS printout
– Bank statement, last 3 months (balance > $5k, regular spending)
– Return flight booking printout
– Affidavit to leave France before visa expiry (for some reason VFS wanted this, even though I had the return tickets)
– Letter from host/relative in France offering accommodation (typed, signed, no special form)
– AFP police clearance (+ copy)
– Cover letter (stating my general plans while in France, why I’m interested in going there for a prolonged period, how I’m going to support myself)
I did *NOT* provide a statement from a GP – VFS asked if I had one, but said it wasn’t required.
Appointment 12/12, processed 27/01.
Visa label in passport says it’s Type D, VLST, Dispense TS.
Multiple entry, valid 12 months from requested date of arrival (or period of insurance cover).
Still unsure whether the visa needs to be validated upon arrival. My intuition tells me it doesn’t, but any further input on this would be appreciated.
Thanks for sharing that info!
Hi All
How do I write affidavit to leave France?.
I’m planning to arrive in Paris on 23 May 2023 and I need to leave Paris before my visa expires but I still won’t be able to book any flights to leave Paris for May 2024 because it’s still 1 year and 3 months away.
Any help will be very helpful
Can you apply at any VFS office regardless of which state you reside in?
I believe this is OK.
Yes, we are from Melbourne and we applied in Sydney. Make sure you choose the right VFS location in the application form on the France Visas website when you apply.
Hi Everyone,
I’ve read through this incredible resource and the content and comments have been amazing!
My wife and I have been trying every day to make a booking at VFS Global Brisbane to lodge our French Long Stay Visa Documents since 23rd Feb with no success. I’ve tried everything, different browsers, private none private sessions, creating a new account on VFS and nothing is working.
The portal shows days and times available, I try to book a day and it takes me to the payment section and it just bugs out and says that the session I selected is not available, even though you can still go back and select that booking time again or other booking date and times with the same message.
I’ve been emailing VFS Global Helpdesk since the 23rd to alert them of the online issues with the portal but I keep getting the same generic responses with no solution.
We need to lodge asap as we take off for Europe on the 9th of May and Land in France on the 9th of June. The earliest booking slot we can make is obviously the 9th of March but because we are leaving in May we need to have our application processed in time for departure on May 9th.
Does anyone out there have any answers?
Appreciate any help.
Cheers
Ray
Hi Ray,
Not sure if this is any help, but I’ve got a direct email address for the VFS centre in Melbourne. I have no idea whether they’ll be able to help you at all, since you’re trying to lodge in Brisbane, but perhaps it’s worth a try? Maybe you can explain your situation or perhaps they can give you a direct email for the Brisbane centre?
[email protected]
Good luck!
Hi Karlo,
Thanks for providing that email address.
I finally got through to someone at VFS Global Brisbane via a phone number that is now listed on the website. Using the phone number (+61 2 8278 4160) I was connected to a call center for VFS Global Australia and they escalated all my previous email correspondence to the Brisbane office which contacted me the next day via email offering to make a manual booking (not sure if this is normal). Note this was after I sent 11 emails to VFS Global Helpdesk over a period of 13 days.
VFS Global Helpdesk is slow with generic responses, so as a bit of advice for anyone trying to make a booking, double check that the booking portal is operating correctly otherwise you’ll miss out altogether. These are the problems I experienced;
1. The portal would identify that there was an “earliest booking available” after selecting a region from the dropdown (Brisbane, Sydney, Melbourne etc)
2. It would then display a calendar that showed no available slots regardless of the region or month I selected
3. When the portal eventually worked days later it would display availabilities but once I reached the payment portal to lodge the booking it would display an error message saying that the booking was no longer available even though you could reboot the portal and it would still be visible and could be selected.
If anyone is experiencing anything like this make sure to keep checking and escalate your concerns.
Hope this was helpful for anyone trying to make a booking.
In regards to Australians needing an additional work permit for a Working Holiday Visa – I contacted the Australian embassy in France and they confirmed it was a mistake on the French website (after contacting the French authorities). NO additional work authorisation is needed if you have the WHV and an Australian passport 🙂
Oh my f*cking God! This is the best news ever! Thank you for confirming this Ashe!
I’m in the same situation. I contacted the French embassies in the country I’m in now and they said it’s not possible. VFS emailed me saying it’s possible, so I’m waiting for their next reply…
Sorry, my comment above in the reply was meant for another comments about applying while a non-resident abroad.
Yes, it’s great that we don’t need the additional work permit 🙂
Hey Ashe,
It’s such a relief to read your comment! A potential employer raised this issue with me and I didn’t have a definitive answer, so we couldn’t proceed with the hiring process.
Would I be able to contact you via email to get a copy of your correspondence with the embassy? I’ve already sent them an email, but last time I did that it took them a month to respond!
Thanks in advance!
Hey Hugh,
Did you manage to get any kind of official correspondence about this?
Thank you!
Hey Karlo,
I received a response from the Embassy, but all they said was:
“Unfortunately, we are unable to provide information regarding immigration, visas, or your options to remain in France.
We recommend that you contact your local prefecture or the French Embassy in Australia for further information.”
A rather frustrating, but not surprising response from them. They never really seem to want to help.
did you find an employer before you left?
Can confirm too, my friend contacted the French Service-public department who told her there was no need for a work permit for Australians on the “Visa vacances-travail” 🎊
Hi Bea,
Any chance you managed to get some kind of official correspondence relating to this? Or did word of mouth suffice for your potential employer?
Hi Karlo,
My French friend received the following response from the French Administration (service-public.fr) on 28/2/23, translated from French.
“Good day Mrs,
The issuance of a “working holiday” visa does not require the prior obtaining of a work permit.
Below is the bilateral agreement on which this program is based:
https://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/jorf/id/JORFTEXT000000252236”
I can forward the email to you if you need?
If I change my arrival flight into France after submitting the application to the official France visa site, but before the VFS appointment, do I need to resubmit my application and/or do the whole process again? Only a day difference in it, but not sure if the “intended date of arrival” can be updated?
I don’t know, sorry, but suspect this should be OK.
Are we allowed to work in other French areas under France such as the overseas territories like New Caledonia, Reunion, or even French Guiana with the French working holiday visa? I mean, they are “France” and part of the EU lol.
I’m not 100% sure, but I don’t see any specific reason why this would be a problem in territories that are still officially part of France.
Hi Mat, which company do you recommed for the compulsory health insurance? Thank you
Sorry for the slow reply, Gab.
Please have a look here for information on travel insurance: https://workingholiday.au/travel-insurance/
Hi,
I want to apply for working holiday visa. There is a requirement of a return ticket from France to apply for the visa. I want to know, does the return ticket has to be to home country only or can I fly from France to any other country and that would be accepted?
Yes, the return ticket needs to be to your usual country of residence.
However, an affidavit stating that you will leave France before your visa expires should also be accepted.
Hi All
I’m currently in the process of juggling the VFS buggy website/no dates available issue, while also considering departure dates, visa application on french gov website and travel insurance options.
I have so many questions but what I’m really hoping to find out is the best order of things?
The French Visa application requires you to confirm your appointment with VFS prior to submitting the application; they have also listed the docs required at the appointment such as copies of return flights and insurance details but given we don’t know processing times it seems risky to book flights and insurance with out confirmation of VISA approval? I have read you should apply no later than 3 months from departure??
I am hoping to depart in mid July, I am still unable to get a confirmed appointment with VFS… can anyone offer any reassurance that I still have a good chance of getting approved in time and also do I just take the plunge with buying the tickets? Of course the price off tickets goes up by $100 everytime you refresh the page…. 🙂
Thanks in advance
Hi Matt,
As someone with a very minor criminal record (shoplifting 4 years ago) will this preclude me from the working holiday visa? I have my appointment with VFS Global on Thursday and have an employer in France writing up a contract for me as we speak. I have accommodation and work from July-September.
I have the required savings, signed affidavit saying I will leave france before my visa expires, filled out the application form on the French embassy website with employer/host details, valid passport and 12 months travel insurance. is there any reason I will get knocked back?
Cheers in advance,
Ben
I obviously can’t give you official advice on this, but I don’t believe a lack of criminal record is a requirement for this visa. So, you should be OK.
Thanks for the reply Matt, much appreciated.
So are you saying that I won’t need to provide a national police check in my interview for the Working Holiday Visa with VFS?
Because I’m still waiting on it and it hasn’t arrived and I’m a little bit worried
Hmm – it’s not really clear, sorry. A police check is not required under the bilateral agreement between Australia and France, but some people in the comments have said they submitted this with their application to VFS Global. It’s not clear what would happen if you didn’t submit this, but I guess it’s possible that VFS might not pass on your application.
Please have a read of the above comments which may assist. Sorry that I can’t give a definitive answer either way.
Hello I read that the validation for VLS-TS is three months after arrival. My current visa is valid from 02/03/2023 to 02/03/2024. I plan to enter France for the first time in July 2023 due to unforseen circumstances. Will I be enter France with this visa and then validate it? Does the three months validation period begin the date my visa became valide or the my actual date of first arrival? Thank you
Hi Matt (and everyone!),
Great news everyone! Just noticed the french government has finally updated the mistake on the website and removed “australien” (Australian) as someone who needs to acquire a work permit under a holiday working visa. It now simply lists “russe” (Russian) as people who need to acquire the additional work permit on top of the working holiday visa.
https://www.service-public.fr/particuliers/vosdroits/F35602/4?idFicheParent=F2728#4
“Si l’étranger a un visa vacances-travail, il bénéficie automatiquement de l’autorisation de travail, sauf s’il est russe.”
So confirmed, no additional work permit required for Australians! 🙂
Greetings from Paris!
Thanks Karlo! That’s great to know.
I’ve covered this new development here: https://workingholiday.au/france-corrects-work-anomaly-for-australians/
Hi Matt and everyone, thanks for all the information so far.
I’ve purchased travel insurance through Mondassur which covers hospital, medical and repatriation expenses however, I’ve seen in one of the links provided in the comments (https://au.ambafrance.org/IMG/pdf/WHM_VVT-3.pdf) that maternity costs needs to be also covered, which isn’t covered by my health insurance. Are you please able to confirm if this is correct and if there are any other health expenses that will need to be covered that aren’t directly mentioned? Also, any links to health insurance policies people have used for their visas would be great.
Thanks,
Tom
Hi Tom, that particular document is a little bit old. As long as your travel insurance provides adequate coverage for hospital, medical and repatriation costs, I think you’ll be OK.
I would take the information from the France-Visas website, the French consulate and/or VFS Global over that PDF document as it’s likely to be more current.
Thanks Matt, all went well and received my visa this week
If you hold a valid British Residence Permit issued for a minimum of 7 months (no C-visit/6 month visa) showing regular settlement in the UK, you’ll be allowed to lodge your selected French long stay visa application in the UK https://france-visas.gouv.fr/ as long as your British Residence Permit is valid.
2//
If you do not hold a valid British Residence Permit issued for a minimum of 7 months but a UK C-Visit 6 month visa or a 6 month UK stamp in your passport based on a tourist status in the UK, this French Consulate’s Visa Section in London won’t be competent territorially to consider your selected future French long stay visa application. In due course, you’ll have to go back to your home country/country of your nationality in order to lodge your selected French long stay visa application at the nearest French Consulate over there.
Regards,
AC/Visa Department
French Consulate General
Hi
Just wondering, when does the france working holiday visa start counting, is it from the date of entry or from the date of the visa approval? Can I apply for the visa, get it approved, and wait for 1 month to enter into France, doest it mean I lose 1 month from the 12 month visa or it only counts from the date of entry? thanks
I believe the visa is valid for 12 months from your intended arrival date in France. This is provided when you apply for the visa in the form of your plane ticket to France, which will have your booked flight’s arrival date on it.
Thanks Matt
Hello. Firstly, thank you for this website and information. The article and comments have been extremely helpful for me.
I have a question. When the Visa is accepted and processed, what form does this take? Are you sent an email? The reason I ask, is I am not sure I am going to be in the country still to accept the visa in person. I will take a replacement passport overseas with me given I will have to leave my passport at the VFS office.
Any information that can be provided here will be incredibly helpful!
Hi Josh, have a look at https://visa.vfsglobal.com/aus/en/fra/track-application
You can track the visa application online. Once it’s processed, you will get a notification to pick it up and/or VFS Global will post the passport back to you, if you’ve provided a pre-paid self-addressed envelope.
Hi there,
I have a question regarding the bank balance requirement. I share a savings and a bills account with my partner, however the account is in his name. I transfer into this account with each pay, leaving me personally with little at the end of each month. I want to know if this will be an issue as I have not had a final balance of $5000 in this account for the last 3 months, however my pay and transactions directing funds into savings will clearly be stated. Should I also take statements from this savings account despite this being in my partners name?
For the purposes of the visa application, I suspect you would need to show bank statements in your own name.
If you need to apply within the next 3 months, you could try taking statements from both of your accounts and explaining that the funds are shared. You haven’t said whether your partner is also planning to apply for this visa, but either way, I suspect the consulate may be concerned that as the bank account with the money in it isn’t in your own name, there is a chance you may not be able to access it when in France. (I’m sure this isn’t the case for you, but I can see how the consulate might be concerned.) So, you may run into some issues with the visa application – but I can’t really say for sure.
If you’re planning to apply in more than 3 months, I’d suggest leaving some savings in an account in your own name for at least that amount of time before applying.
Does anyone know whether we need to Validate our Long Stay Visa (Working Holiday)
Identified on the Visa as – Vacances Travail Australie V4 VLST/Dispense TS
I’ve just tried to validate it on the website but it seems this is only for people with a different kind of Long Stay Visa. Any insight would be appreciated as I do not want my Visa to fault after 3 months
Hi Ray,
A working holiday visa does not need to be validated. There is a disclaimer. on the visa validation website, in french, reading “If you visa has a Vacances Travail label you do not need to validate it.”
Hope this helps!
Thanks Karlo!
Exactly what I was after,
Cheers.
Hi everyone,
A HUGE thanks to Matt and everyone on the comments section here for your help in obtaining my visa. In return, here’s a detailed recount of my experience at VFS Sydney with some extra fiddly things that I learnt.
List of docs provided, costs and some notes:
– VFS appointment letter [VFS appointment + SMS service – $65.60]
– Signed and dated application form – from http://www.france-visas.gouv.fr
– France-Visas Registration Receipt – included at the end of the completed application form
– Passport
– Photocopy of passport identification page and ALL pages with any entry/exit stamps, other visas, etc.
– ID Passport photograph (EU standard) – Taken 3mo before at Auspost [$19 for 6 photos] but VFS said I looked different because my hair colour was different and they offered to take an updated photo at the appointment [cost $17.05]. I didn’t want to risk any delays so I just hacked it. Maybe just take your photo on the day at the VFS office if they offer it?
– 1 year travel insurance certificate (Southern Cross Travel Insurance – SCTI) and PDS which explicitly stated that it covered medical, hospital and repatriation expenses – Problem flagged here where I listed several countries that I expect to visit during this period. The VFS officer suggested I write a letter to explain why I was expecting to go to countries other than France, to say it was for incidental short stays that I wanted to make sure I was covered for. Instead, I called SCTI during the appointment (I was allowed time to adjust some issues during the appointment) to alter my cover to just cover the UK and France and emailed the updated cover to the VFS office, which they printed at the time [charged for printing $13.20]. I’m able to add countries with this insurance at a later date should I update my travel plans but for the purposes of the application, I wanted it to their standards.
– Affidavit to leave France – This was still confusing leading up to the appointment so I went on overdrive, I provided an affidavit (template from Federal Court of Australia) as well as a Statutory Declaration. Apparently, my wording was not specific enough to say I would leave within 1 year so VFS provided me with their own version of the required affidavit. I signed it then and there. Not sure about who my authorized witness was at the office but they accepted it. I imagine, this plus my other legal forms (witnessed by a lawyer) provided enough surety that I wouldn’t overstay my visa. Specifically, the wording on the affidavit says “I, [name] undertake to leave France when the visa expires, in accordance with article 3 of the Franco-Australian agreement relating to the “working holiday” program signed on 24/11/2003.”
– Medical Certificate from my GP – stating I was in good health to undertake a working holiday
– AFP Criminal Record check (purpose Overseas Visa) – [$42] applied online, asked for hard copy at no extra cost, received within a week via mail
– Detailed transaction list for last 3mo showing balance >$5000 – Make sure your name is on this statement. Mine didn’t when I printed it off and didn’t realise until they pointed it out at the appointment. I emailed them another statement which showed my name and that it was the same account and they printed that off too [included in $13.20 charge for printing]
– Extra – Health Summary Sheet from my GP
– Extra – Immunisation History Statement from my GP and Covid Vaccination Certificate
– Extra – Signed, typed letter from French-National friend to provide proof of initial accommodation
Other costs
– Registered Auspost envelope for return courier of my passport provided by VFS – $29.15
– Visa Fee – $162.30
Schedule of events
21/4/23 – Booked appointment with VFS Sydney
14/6/23 – Visa appointment
20/6/23 – Received passport with physical visa inside
12/9/23 – Visa start date (this was determined by my Travel insurance cover dates)
Hope this helps someone out there!
Thanks for this, Bea. I’m sure others will find it useful and glad your visa arrived!
Bon voyage en France 🙂
Fabulous. Thanks Bea
Hi Matt,
Currently filling out the application form on the France visa website. In one section I need to provide my accommodation information for France and the related contact information. I do not currently have any accommodation booked and do not have a job lined up, but I am wanting to figure out these details once my visa is in the application process. Am I able to book a hostel for a few days and use that to complete my online application, or will I need a more permanent place of residence?
Any advice will be great!
Thanks,
Emma
I don’t know 100% for sure if it would be accepted, but if I were you I would do just that – book a hostel for the first week or so after you arrive in France and show this reservation.
Hi all,
I’m having trouble getting an appointment at any Australian VFS offices (preference is Sydney). Does anyone know how often they release new timeslots or a way to get an expedited time?
Thank you! Starting to sweat with my September departute date!
Hi Matt
I got my visa in 2 days after the appointment, very excited.
Just one question, my visa starting date is early August, can I visa a different country for couple weeks before entering France for the first time, or do I need to enter France from Australia(I applied in Sydney). Thanks in advace.
It’s no issue to visit somewhere else on your way to France. You don’t have to enter directly from Australia.
Amazing, thanks Matt
Hi Matt,
My friend and I are Aussies currently travelling Europe, looking to get working holiday visas for France, as we would love to spend the upcoming snow season there. We have Netherlands working holiday visas on the way as these were the only ones we could apply for outside of Australia.
We were thinking to apply for French visas using our residence permit given to us with the Netherlands working holiday visa in the Netherlands. There has been some confusing information online as to whether we should go to VFS global in the Netherlands, or to the French consulate general in Brussels.
Could you please shed some light for us as to what the easiest way to go about this is? Any tips would be greatly appreciated, as we have been researching this for weeks and found some very confusing and conflicting information online.
Cheers,
Kye and Kurtis
Hi Kye, this is a tricky one. Technically you need to apply where you are legally a resident – which at this point in time would be The Netherlands for you, if you don’t wish to return to Australia. However, as France doesn’t have a visa application centre in The Netherlands, they instruct people in The Netherlands to submit their application through the French Consulate General in Brussels (https://france-visas.gouv.fr/en/pays-bas).
I suspect your best bet would be to contact the Consulate General in Brussels.
Thanks Matt,
We will contact them and keep you updated on how we go in case anyone is ever in a similar situation in the future
Hi everyone,
I am an Australian Citizen who is planning to move to France at the end of the year with my French partner.
I was planning to apply for a Working Holiday Visa (WHV), but we have discussed getting married to apply for a Partnership Visa (PV) instead. I have a few questions I am hoping others here can help with:
1. If I do apply for a WHV, should I disclose that my partner is a French Citizen? I will live with him and his family over there.
2. If I go in on the WHV, can we then apply for a PV from France (if we decide to settle there) or would I need to return to Australia to apply for this?
3. Does anyone have any experience on applying for a PV? I would appreciate any information you can share!
Thanks for your help!
Hi Lily,
I would suggest that it probably is not in your interest to disclose in your application that you’ll be joining your French partner. That’s because the French embassy guidelines for the working holiday visa say “It is not intended for any other purpose such as joining your partner/fiancé in France, studying, be an Au Pair or finding long term employment.”
I can’t advise on your other two questions, but I think it does make sense to head over to France now and then switch to a PV later. From a bureaucracy/visa point of view, getting married would probably make things a bit easier in your situation.
Thank you so much for taking the time to respond, I really do appreciate it! This is very helpful.
Hello,
could you teach in schools on a WHV if you have a sufficient education degree?
Thanks!
Hi Callum,
I don’t think there is a specific rule against teaching. However, the visa is intended for people to holiday in France and find only “incidental” work during their stay to help fund the holiday. The visa is not intended for someone going to France with the primary intention of working full-time.
Thanks for the reply Matt!
Is there a working visa better suited if I want to go but dont have any work or employer lined up before i go?
I can’t really advise on other visa types, but you may find that it works for you to head over on a working holiday visa and then switch to a different visa type if you get a permanent job offer.
Hello!
How long can you study in France with this visa? Is there a maximum period of time of which you are allowed to undertake study such as enrolment in a language course?
Thanks a lot!
I don’t believe there is a specific time limit for Australians holding a French working holiday visa. However, the study should be incidental to the holiday and not full-time, etc.
Can I cancel a granted working holiday visa and reapply?
hello! I applied for a working holiday visa class back in Feburary 2023 with an inteneded arrival date of March 2023
Unfortunately, many unexpected life events have happened to me since then which have led me to not have a choice but to postpone my trip to France until my life is more stable.
I know that I want to move and use my working holiday visa eventually. But as of now, it looks like I will need to wait at least a year until I am able to travel. The issue is that if I don’t use my visa expires on March 2024
Is it possible to apply again and get a new visa if I don’t use this one until the last date I am allowed to enter France? Can I call immigration and cancel the granted visa and apply for a new one once I am actually able to travel?
I am extremely worried that if I don’t use this visa, I will not be able to apply for another one. Do they only give one opportunity?
Thank you!
Unfortunately, my understanding is that once this visa is issued it can’t be extended and each person can only be granted this visa once. That said, if your circumstances didn’t allow you to travel to France at all, it may be worth getting in touch with the French embassy and asking the question?
Hello,
I am doing my application for the French working holiday visa to hopefully move by end of October. Just confirming that in the online application the we select ‘Visiteur’ under ‘why are you making this trip’ and ‘Visiteur Majeur’ in the ‘main purpose’ section. Any help with from anyone who has completed the application will be super helpful.
Cheers
Trish
Hi everyone,
I just got my French WH visa so thought I would add some points about my experience.
I applied in Brisbane. I had to make an appointment with VFS in the city.
You don’t need a medical certificate or a police check (even though it may say this when you apply online).
The dates of your medical insurance and the dates of your WH Visa must match %100.
They will update and reprint your application if anything is missing (of course charging you for extra printing)
Remember you need to make photocopies of every page of your passport otherwise they will do it for you and charge you.
They took my passport and mailed it to Sydney/Canberra (wasn’t really clear)
It was extremely quick. I had it back within a week.
ALSO, I applied 1 week before my 36th birthday and didn’t have any problems.
All the best! Thanks for this website! 🙂
Hi Tristan,
I am applying for my French working holiday visa and wanted to check where did you get your Health Insurance from that meets all the France Schengen Health Insurance criteria?
I am looking at Southern Cross Travel but at the current exchange rate it is not matching the EUR 30,000 repatriation requirement.
Regards
Tania
Hi Tania,
This may be useful for you – https://workingholiday.au/travel-insurance/
Yay! Thanks for sharing your experience with us and have a great time in France 😀
World Nomads
Hi everyone,
Unfortunately got my visa rejected today and am supposed to be travelling on Dec 1st, so not leaving much time😭
Does anyone know yet whether police certificate & health certificate are required? (I’m applying from the UK if that makes any difference)
Thank you,
Francesca
You may be able to find the answer by reading through the full comments section on here 🙂
In the comment below yours, Claire said these weren’t needed when applying from Frankfurt, Germany.
Hey there!
My French Working Holiday Visa was just approved and I found this comment thread super helpful so thought I would add to it.
I applied for my French Working Holiday Visa in Germany. I was running out of days on my Schengan Visa so I came to Germany to submit my visa as Australians can get an additional 90 days in Germany. I started the process at the end of September 2023 with the online application form.
Once I had submitted my application online, I booked my visa appointment at the French Consulate in Frankfurt, Germany. It should be noted that Australians cannot submit a visa application at the French Consulate in Berlin (unless you have German citizenship) even though when completing the online application form it will allow for you to put “Berlin” as the place of submission.
I did not submit a medical certificate or police check with my application. I was told at my appointment that if they did need one they would email me, but they never did so was no stress.
My visa got approved 10 days after my appointment. I was able to keep my passport while my visa was getting processed. I did have to return to Frankfurt to collect my visa.
If you want to check which French consulates will accept a Working Holiday Visa application while being outside Australia, you can get in touch with the consulate in Sydney. Just thought I would share my experience and that it is possible to obtain a French working holiday visa while travelling outside of Australia.
All the best!
Thanks for that Claire, that’s very helpful information. Glad you were able to make use of the 90 extra days in Germany, too. Well done and enjoy your time in France!
Hi Claire,
I am currently in a similar position as you were, as an Australian travelling in Europe and hoping to obtain a French working visa from here.
I would love to know whether you are a German resident or whether you were successful in applying for your French working holiday visa from Germany as a non-resident? My understanding is that the application needs to be made from a country of residence but if this wasn’t the case for you I’m hoping I might have similar luck?
Thanks so much and hope you’re enjoying your time in France!
Hi Everyone,
Just confirming that with this visa I don’t need to arrive in France before my 36th birthday? I just need to apply before my 36th. My visa appointment is this week in Melbourne but I am looking to move on January 16 and my 36th birthday is on January 8. I am pretty sure it is okay but checking just in case.
Cheers
Amy
Correct, it’s based on your age at the time of application.
Hi Matt! I’ll be flying into France next year, but don’t know when I’ll be flying out. Do you know if it’s allowed to use a train ticket to the UK as evidence of exit or does it need to be a flight back to my home country? Cheers!
I believe the return ticket is supposed to be to your country of residence, but you could check with VFS Global or the French consulate if in doubt.
Hi Matt, Great info! A question that I haven’t been able to find the answer to yet- Once I get the visa approved, how long do i have before i need to enter France to start the visa? I want to go travel the EU on the 90 day visa free thing and potentially study in spain for 3 months on a spanish visa before i want to ‘activate’ the French visa. So that would be about 6 months of travel…Is this possible? Thank you 🙂
When you apply for the visa, you’ll need to show a plane ticket and the date of arrival in France on your ticket will be the date when the validity of your visa starts.
Note that you cannot apply for this visa more than 3 months in advance. However, you may be able to apply from Spain if you are legally residing there.
HI,
is there any working hour restrictions on what jobs you can work on on this visa?
I am struggling to find this information.
For some reason I was under the impression that you could only work limited hours or could not be with the same employer for more than x amount of months?
I don’t believe there are any specific restrictions, other than that:
1. Any work should be incidental to the holiday, i.e. not the main reason you’re in France, and
2. If you want to work in a job that requires special qualifications (e.g. a doctor), you need to be suitably qualified as per the rules for French citizens doing the same jobs.
Unlike some countries, France doesn’t impose a specific limit on the amount of time you can work for the same employer. You can see an overview of these limits by country here: https://workingholiday.au/working-holiday-visa-matrix/
does anyone know if you have done a year on an au pair visa you are excluded from working holiday visa in france?
I don’t think this would exclude you. You just can’t apply for a French working holiday visa if you already held another French working holiday visa.
Hi all – I am looking into travel insurance options for a French visa. Just wanted to know if anyone has confirmed whether it is 30,000 euros total for medical, hospital and repatriation or 30,000 euros for each? I know credit card travel insurance isn’t recommended – but I’m investigating whether Commbank’s ultimate card’s travel insurance could be a potential option (it is relatively comprehensive: https://www.commbank.com.au/content/dam/commbank-assets/important-docs/credit-card-insurances-pds-info-booklet.pdf)
Thanks Matt for pulling this together! It’s really helpful.
I know you don
Hi Ruby, it’s a minimum of €30,000 for each category.
The CommBank travel insurance isn’t bad, in general, but the French government probably won’t accept it for the purpose of your visa application. You most likely will need to buy a policy. Have a look at https://workingholiday.au/travel-insurance/
good evening, just wondering if anyone can confirm if medical certificate is needed to apply for the whv? I also have a police certificate from 2022 and have receipt I applied for tonight Dec 2023?
Others have confirmed in the comments that they were not required to show a medical certificate. 🙂
Hi Matt, thankyou for this information. I am currently on a young traveller- working holiday visa. It expires in January, can I stay on for the additional 3 months as part of the Schengen visa? Or do I need to leave Schengen zone and re enter on the 3 month Schengen visa. I’m struggling to find information. Thankyou, Liz
Hi Liz, you would need to leave the Schengen Zone (ideally from France) before your visa expires. That is very important. After that, I think it is OK to return to the Schengen Area for up to 90 days as a tourist.
Hi Matt,
I am hoping you can help me here. I have done so much research and tried speaking to the French consulate but I am still struggling to work out the best way to go about my visa.
I am leaving in May this year to do a Yacht Season in the Med and then I’d like to do a snow season in France. I believe the vacance travaille visa is the one I will need to get but I’m just not sure when I should apply for it. The yacht season could go until October and Ill be using a Schengen visa. Should I apply for the vacance travaille before leaving Australia? When does the visa start? If I touch down in France will my visa start? Can I apply for it from the UK as a non UK resident as I will be staying with family there for a little while?
I was also wondeing how you go about getting an affidavid to say you will leave the country rahter than have a flight home booked?
Sorry for all the questions! Just a confused gal wanting to live abroad!
Hi Siobhan,
I’d suggest having a read of the rest of the comments here, as many of these questions have been answered before.
If you’re an Australian citizen, I’m not quite sure what you mean by getting a “Schengen visa” for your time in the Mediterranean as this isn’t really something Australians can apply for. Australians can visit the Schengen Area for up to 90 out of every 180 days as tourists without a visa, but if you wanted to work you would generally need a visa in the country you’re planning to work in.
You can only apply for a French working holiday visa in a country where you are living (or have the right to live in). There is a comment somewhere above that clarifies this. So you may need to return to Australia to apply. Alternatively, you might consider applying for the French working holiday visa before you leave for your yacht season and stopping in at France on the way to the Mediterranean – you’ll get a full year from the date of your initial arrival in France, which would at least cover you until the end of next year’s winter season.
Hello, I just thought I would share my recent experience in obtaining the French WHV visa Vacances-Travail.
I’m 34 from Melbourne, I started by completing the application through the France visa portal exactly 3 months to my intended departure date.
– I did not have a flight or return flight booked
– I listed a hotel as my intended address (booked reserve now pay later on expedia)
– My advise is to be meticulous with the dates. I entered incorrectly a couple of time and had to re-do.
Interview
This is the most challenging part. VFS Global are a nightmare to deal with and you have to be patient. As soon as you get your visa reference number you can book an appointment through the online portal. I tried to book straight away and had no luck. The only advice I have is to log on everyday to find an opening, I did this for about 8 days and then one day they were just available. Some people have just turned up at the office and had luck so try a few different angles to see what gets you the appointment.
What I took with me:
– AusPost Comprehensive insurance for FRANCE ONLY
– Passport Photos
– Passport
– Bank Statement (showing 3 months of required funds)
– Interview confirmation letter.
– You sign an affidavit saying you’ll leave at the end of the 12 months so no need to book return flight.
– No need to bring medical certificate or background check.
Wait Times
Be prepared to wait many weeks. I was advised it would take 21 working days but it took 5 weeks to get my visa back so make sure you leave plenty of time between interview and intended departure date. I learned it took other up to 32 business days for others.
Overall it’s a fairly straight forward process albeit the VFS Global experience, you just need to allow for as much time as you can and exercise patience. Hope this is helpful!
Thanks for sharing your recent experience, that’s super helpful 🙂
Hi Matt,
I have found this comment thread super helpful and would love to hear any insight you or anyone else reading this might have regarding applying for a French working holiday visa from outside of Australia!
I’m an Aussie currently travelling in Europe and would love to make my way to France in a couple months time on a WHV, however I would rather not return all the way to Australia to make the application if I can avoid it. I understand that all the official sources say it is required that the application be made from a country of residence (which in my case is Australia only), but I’ve seen some accounts from people who have been able to work around this rule, for example the comment made from Claire in November who successfully applied from Germany (where I assume she was just a tourist?).
Can anyone else offer any advice or personal experience about having an application accepted by a French consulate in the UK/ Europe, as a non-resident of that country?? I am quite confused as to whether or not it is possible.
Thanks so much,
Roya 🙂