This may seem a bit rash but, in a moment of pessimism I realized that I was super unhappy where I was. I loved my friends and where I was living but my job was exactly that: a job. Not the career that I had come to grow into, there was no room for advancement and my learning had ground to a halt. I was stagnant and needed a change.
With only enough money in my bank account for the Visa application and a
one-way flight, I applied for my Working Holiday Visa in Australia. The process was surprisingly easy and painless, taking all of ten minutes to complete. The application is online, responses come from Immigration in around a week under normal circumstances.
Getting a job was even easier. Job offers rolled in within an hour of
sending companies my CV. Chefs are in short supply in Australia, qualified
Chefs are even fewer. I considered for a moment staying with my employer until there was more money in my savings account. When I was offered a whopping three times my present salary it was time to jump ship. Chef wages are much higher than in Canada because of the higher value placed on qualified trades people.
I had a job and a working holiday Visa in less than a week. Giving notice to
my current employer and boxing up my life were the final steps. Packing my life into 3 storage boxes and selling the rest went by in a blink.
I would recommend a resort or remote property to start your working holiday Visa as many of these employers provide staff accommodation. Having a roof overhead and a vast resource of people to draw from for ‘setting up’ questions makes transitioning to a new country easier. Especially if work is needed to supplement the holiday.
A tax file number, like a social security number, is needed to start
employment. There is a grace period of one month for individuals on working holiday Visa’s to get this number to the Australia Tax Authority, provide the number to the payroll department at the place of employment. If the number is not submitted within the month time frame the tax rate is usually around 50% of the gross pay until the number is submitted. Tax file numbers can be applied for online, a letter is sent within a week with the number. Another reason why working in a resort is beneficial, staff accommodation comes with a stable mailing address so applying for a tax file number can easily be done before leaving or while waiting for a connecting flight.
Getting a bank account was easy. I recommend Westpac bank which offers a free cheque account for those on a temporary Visa and has several affiliate banks around the world. The fact that they had an affiliate bank in Canada was a huge draw because it decreased fees when needing to send money back to Canada. While living in Italy I could have saved a lot of money at ATMs and transferring had I been with a bank who was affiliated to my own.
The cost of living in Australia is high and my ‘nest egg’ was not enough to
get set up. Once the Australian wages came in the higher cost of living was no longer an issue. A conservative budget would be around $100 AUD/ day until the first pay cheque. This would be eating at budget cafes and cheap places for lunch and dinner; an average breakfast costs around $20. Tipping is not necessary as everyone is paid a proper living wage which is why meals cost more.
I have set up on a tropical island at the heart of the Great Barrier Reef where I get to snorkel with turtles and play on the beach until I figure out the rest of my Australian plan. Sometimes half-baked plans work out a treat.