Work-travel/ Working holiday opportunities for Singaporeans

Singapore unfortunately does not offer much in the area of overseas work-travel opportunities for Singaporeans. In fact, the idea of taking a gap-year to pursue an adventure that is unrelated to a solid career progression may seem very foreign to the Singaporean society at large. Thankfully, there has been a paradigm shift over the last couple of years in the concept of travel and personal growth and development.

Doing a work-travel visa is immensely different from taking a vacation. It’s also different from working/studying in a foreign country. Granted, there is some overlap in each of these different types of travel. However, the work-travel visa offers one a very unique opporunity to basically have a more thorough understanding of life in New Zealand.

Undergraduates have more choices in terms of countries. For instance, students from local polytechnics and universities can qualify to do a working holiday in Canada, provided they obtain their visa one year from the time they graduate from their respective institutions.

In general, however, Singaporeans have little choice in terms of countries they can choose to obtain a work-travel visa. Singaporeans between the ages of 18-30 can qualify for a 6-month work-travel visa in New Zealand as long as they fulfill certain financial and character requirements. Here’s a list of other criteria that have to be met.
(Source:http://www.immigration.govt.nz/migrant/stream/work/workingholiday/singaporeworkexchangeprogramme.htm)

You must:

  • have a passport from Singapore that‘s valid for at least three months after your planned departure from New Zealand
  • be at least 18 and not more than 30 years old
  • not bring children with you
  • hold a return ticket or sufficient funds to purchase such a ticket*
  • have a minimum of NZ$2,250 available funds to meet your living costs while you’re here
  • meet our health and character requirements
  • hold medical and comprehensive hospitalisation insurance for the length of your stay
  • be coming to New Zealand to holiday, with work or study being secondary intentions for your visit
  • not have been approved a visa under a Working Holiday Scheme before.
    AND
  • if you are already in New Zealand, you also need to hold a valid temporary visa.

You can find more information on how to apply for the visa in this post.
Phew! I hope this helps! x
T