Please Note:

Generally working holiday visa applications lodged electronically may be finalized within two working days of lodgement. In some instances, such as outstanding health requirements or character issues, electronic applications are referred to an Australian Immigration Office in Australia for further processing. Referred applications may take up to 12 weeks to finalise after all outstanding information is received.

Please ensure correct biodata, (i.e name/ date of birth), is entered into your working holiday visa application exactly as it is shown on your passport biodata page (in the machine readable zone). There will be significant delays in processing your working holiday visa application if this information is incorrect and if you advise us of a change in biodata after you lodge your application.

The Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) provides a service called Entitlement Verification Online (EVO) which allows certain third parties to check your visa information with your consent.

You are not required to have a visa label placed in your passport, as you may have your visa information checked using the Entitlement Verification Online (EVO) service. EVO allows certain third parties (i.e. employers) to check your visa information provided they obtain your consent, which you can do by providing the third party with your name, date of birth, passport number and passport country of issue. Work rights can be verified through EVO.

Although EVO is the preferred method for checking your visa information, if you would still like a visa label placed into your passport, two options remain available:

1) If you arrive through Sydney Airport you can have your visa label printed before you leave the airport. Ask to be directed to the Visa Label Desk after you have had your passport stamped.

2) You can go to go to the nearest Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) office in Australia. Addresses of DIAC offices in Australia are available here (http://www.immi.gov.au/contacts/australia/index.htm). DIAC will not charge you for the visa label.

Through EVO, you can give your consent to registered third parties such as:

- employers and labour suppliers, and government agencies, to check whether visa holders are eligible for certain services, or have work and study rights;
- EVO also allows visa holders who applied online to view their current visa details. If you provided a password for EVO in your online application, you will be able to access the service on the Department's website at www.immi.gov.au/e_visa/evo.htm

The disclosure of your visa information by DIAC is governed by the Privacy Act 1988. Therefore, DIAC will disclose information about your visa to a third party only with your consent. You can consent to an inquiry about your visa entitlements by giving the third party your name, date of birth, passport number and passport country of issue. If you do not wish a third party to find out about your visa entitlements, do not give them this information.

The information form 993i 'Safeguarding your personal information', available from Immigration offices, gives details of third parties to which you can consent to your personal information being disclosed, and how you can consent.