Australia suspends Work and Holiday visas for 24 countries

The Australian government has suspended applications for the Work and Holiday visa (subclass 462) for 24 countries, including Spain and Portugal. The suspension affects young people between the ages of 18 and 30 who seek to live, study, and work in Australia for up to 12 months.

While the specific reasons for the pause have not been fully clarified, the Australian Department of Home Affairs (DHA) noted that strong demand often causes applications to exceed available annual quotas. The pause may serve to distribute applications more evenly throughout the fiscal year and facilitate processing. Currently, only five countries—San Marino, Turkey, China, India, and Vietnam—remain open for applications.

Interior Minister Tony Burke acknowledged that visa processing for foreign youth has slowed down, but did not provide further details regarding the scope of the suspension. There is currently no clarity on the status of applications already submitted or when the program might reopen for the affected nations.