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Commonwealth of Australia · Processing time

Working Holiday Maker visa (subclass 417/462): how long does it take?

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Separate subclass 417 and 462 processing figures; offshore cases may take several months.

How long does the Working Holiday Maker visa (subclass 417/462) take to process in Australia?

Home Affairs currently prioritises onshore Working Holiday Maker applications and warns that offshore cases may take several months. Its tool checked on 10 September 2026 reports 417: 50% in 3 days, 90% in 20 days; 462: 50% in 8 days, 90% in 22 days. Those recently finalised-case figures are not a forecast for a first visa applied for offshore.

Source checked against Home Affairs — Global visa processing-time tool, subclasses 417 and 462 on 10 September 2026.

Typical wait

Separate subclass 417 and 462 processing figures; offshore cases may take several months.

after identity verification and submission

Applies to

Subclass-specific recent decisions; onshore priority, not passport-specific waits

Last checked

10 September 2026

Reality vs official timing

Official clock
Official window with caveat
Delay trigger
Follow the responsible authority’s current guidance
Source checked
10 September 2026

Check your own subclass in the current Home Affairs tool and follow requests in ImmiAccount. Do not book flights or commit to work or study before grant. A country-cap pause controls new first-462 applications; it is not an individual application-status message.

Plan the application stages

  1. Choose 417 or 462

    Before application

    Your eligible passport and visa history determine the subclass and first, second or third visa requirements. A 417 result is not a processing forecast for a 462 applicant.

  2. Check first-462 application access

    Separate from visa processing

    Eligible China, India and Vietnam passport holders need ballot selection before applying for their first 462. Other capped countries have open, paused or closed lodgement status. Selection does not grant a visa.

  3. Lodge and supply requested evidence

    Decision-stage comparison only

    The observed 417 figures are 3 days at 50% and 20 days at 90%; the separate 462 figures are 8 and 22 days. Both official records warn that onshore cases are prioritised and some offshore applications take several months.

  4. Receive grant before committing to travel

    Not included in a ballot wait

    Follow the grant notice and applicable entry conditions. Recent decision percentiles do not guarantee your grant, flight date or employment start.

Why short processing figures can coexist with a long offshore wait

Percentiles describe recently finalised applications: 50% is the median and 90% is not a maximum. Home Affairs publishes no first/second/third split in these two tool records. It also warns that its onshore priority can leave offshore applicants waiting several months. Do not apply an overall subclass result to a specific passport, application location or first-visa cohort.

417 and 462 are not interchangeable

Check the official subclass page for your passport and visa history. First-462 ballot and country-cap rules do not form part of a universal 417 waiting time. Neither of these published subclass figures establishes a separate processing time for your nationality.

First-462 caps: paused does not mean refused

The official cap table distinguishes open, paused and closed. A paused cap may reopen in the same program year; a closed cap waits until the next program year. Check the live table before lodging. China, India and Vietnam use a ballot; Home Affairs also flags an Indonesian ballot expected later in 2026, with its opening date still to be announced. Cap rules apply to first visas, not second or third 462 applications.

An offshore planning example

An applicant selected in a first-462 ballot still needs to lodge a visa application and satisfy its requirements. The 22-day 90th-percentile snapshot cannot be added to a ballot-entry date to predict arrival. Keep selection, lodgement, any evidence requests and grant as separate milestones, and leave travel uncommitted until approval.

These processing sources were reviewed on 10 September 2026. A source’s publication date and this review date are separate.

Official source

Home Affairs — Global visa processing-time tool, subclasses 417 and 462

https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-processing-times/global-visa-processing-times

Cite or reuse this dataset

This figure is free to reuse under CC BY 4.0. Cite the Visa Atlas page for the compiled, dated dataset, and cite the official source for the underlying government rule.

Suggested citation

Visa Atlas, "Working Holiday Maker visa (subclass 417/462) processing time dataset", https://visaatlas.org/processing-times/australia/working-holiday. Last checked 10 September 2026.

Page
https://visaatlas.org/processing-times/australia/working-holiday
JSON endpoint
https://visaatlas.org/api/public/processing-times

Primary source (1)

Frequently asked questions

How long do Australian Working Holiday visas take?+

The 10 September 2026 official tool snapshot reports subclass 417: 50% in 3 days and 90% in 20 days; subclass 462: 50% in 8 days and 90% in 22 days. Both records warn that onshore applications are prioritised and some offshore cases may take several months. They are not guaranteed individual waits.

Does the 417 processing figure apply to a first 462 visa?+

No. Use the correct subclass. The tool does not split these figures into first, second and third visas or provide passport-specific processing estimates.

Is the Work and Holiday ballot part of visa processing?+

No. Eligible China, India and Vietnam passport holders must be selected before applying for a first 462 visa. Ballot registration or selection is not a visa grant and has no guaranteed arrival date.

What is the difference between a paused and a closed 462 country cap?+

A paused cap may reopen during the same program year. A closed cap waits until the next program year. Check the official live table; these first-visa lodgement restrictions are separate from the decision on an application already lodged.

Should I book flights using the 90th-percentile processing time?+

No. It is not a maximum or a deadline. Home Affairs advises waiting for the visa grant before making travel, work or study commitments, especially with the current offshore-delay warning.

Next steps

Reviewed by , Editor and lead researcher.