Extend WHV417 to Regional Tourism - ATEC
- Wednesday, 15 February 2012 16:06
The Australian Tourism Export Council is calling on the federal government to allow travellers on working holiday visas to extend their stay by a year, if they spend three months working in the tourism in regional Australia.
The council says there are thousands of job vacancies in the tourism sector and that changes to the visa system could help to fill them.
Additionally these changes would present the ability to increase the $2.3 billion dollars already being spent by working holiday makers in Australia, particularly in regional areas that need this boost the most.
ATEC managing director Felicia Mariani said their analysis indicates there are significant economic gains in adjusting the eligibility settings for the WHV 417.
"ATEC has been strongly advocating for the extension of the 'regional' classification to the tourism industry allowing working holiday visa holders to extend their visa by 12 months after completing 88 days of work in a regional industry," Ms Mariani said. "This measure alone is expected to deliver over $28 million annually in additional GDP."
Under the current plan, working holidays makers must complete 88 days in a defined regional industry such as agriculture, horticulture, forestry, mining, construction or fishing, in order to qualify for a second year extension. Ms Mariani said, "With 162,000 working holiday visa's issued each year, the current plan only sees around 22,000 people heading to regional areas to find work in defined industries to qualify for the second year extension. This means there is another 140,000 potential WHV visitors who could contribute to the Australian economy."
