Working Holiday Visa: The List of Countries and the Insurance They Require

The Working Holiday Visa (WHV) allows you to live and work temporarily in a country through a bilateral agreement between that country and yours, typically for between 6 and 24 months, with an age limit that usually ranges from 18 to 30 years old (and up to 35 in some specific agreements). More than twenty countries maintain agreements of this kind —including Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Japan, South Korea, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Germany, and France— but each bilateral agreement has its own rules on age, duration, and, almost always, its own health insurance requirement.

Almost every consulate requires an insurance certificate covering hospitalization, medical treatment, and repatriation for the entire stay, not just occasional travel accidents; the most common mistake is submitting a short-term travel policy that runs out before the visa ends.

Which countries offer a Working Holiday Visa

Each bilateral agreement defines its own age limit and duration, so it's worth checking the specific agreement between your country and the chosen destination, not just the general list.

Why almost all of them require health insurance

The WHV is not a tourist visa: it involves working and, in many cases, not having automatic access to the destination country's public health system from day one. That's why the insurance requirement is not optional under most agreements: the consulate needs to guarantee that the holder won't depend on public funds in a medical emergency.

What a consulate looks for in the insurance certificate

• Continuous coverage for the entire visa period, without being split into blocks of just a few months.
• An explicit minimum medical coverage amount stated on the certificate (the exact amount varies by country).
• Hospitalization and medical repatriation coverage, not just outpatient consultations.
• The work activity covered by the visa not being excluded as a high-risk activity in the policy.

Assist-365 lines designed for this type of visa

Assist-365 has specific lines for long stays and Working Holiday-type visas —Global Backpacker, Safe Exchange, and World Explorer— designed to cover extended periods with certificates accepted by consulates and embassies. Each line is designed for a different type of stay (long-term backpackers, exchange programs, and extended work or study stays), so it's worth stating the exact visa type when getting a quote to choose the right line. When buying directly you can use the code MEDALLOADV2023.

Common mistakes when choosing insurance for a Working Holiday

• Buying a short-term travel policy intending to renew it later: many consulates require seeing full coverage from the time of application.
• Not declaring a pre-existing condition when buying, which can leave it uncovered if it becomes complicated during the stay.
• Requesting only the policy in PDF without the formal certificate with a policy number, which is usually what the consulate requires.

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Examples of Working Holiday Visa agreements

Destination country	Typical duration	Typical age limit
Australia	Up to 12 months (extendable in some cases)	18 to 30/35 depending on nationality
New Zealand	6 to 12 months	18 to 30/35 depending on nationality
Canada	12 to 24 months	18 to 35 depending on the bilateral agreement
Japan	6 to 12 months	18 to 30
South Korea	Up to 12 months	18 to 30
Ireland	Up to 12 months	18 to 30/35 depending on the agreement

Frequently Asked Questions

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