Note: This information was last updated August 2022
What does working holiday travel insurance cover?
While it will depend on your insurer, you can find cover for:
Non-manual work. This can be paid or unpaid includes professions such as clerical duties, teaching and childcare.
Manual work. Some policies offer cover for paid or volunteer work in industries such as maintenance, general farm work, retail and hospitality. If your profession is going to require you working at heights, make sure that it is included in the policy.
Guide work. This include work as guide or instructor for activities such as skiing or surfing. Make sure that the activity is covered by the policy.
List of work that is generally covered by travel insurance
Clerical
Administration
Hospitality
Tourism
Working on a cruise ship
Retail
General farm work
Teaching
Childcare
Working on a yacht
Gym instructor
Yoga teacher
Swimming instructor
What don't working holiday travel insurance policies cover?
Just like what you are covered for, what you aren't covered for will vary from insurer to insurer. However, conditions that you should be aware of may include:
Personal liability. While you will have cover for personal liability when travelling as part of most travel insurance policies, this benefit does not cover you while you’re working.
Working at heights. Generally working heights of five metres or higher above ground is prohibited.
Offshore. Most travel insurance policies will exclude cover if your overseas work will be offshore.
Working underground. Generally there is no cover for working underground in mines or caves.
Finder survey: What types of holidays have Australians taken?
Response
Honeymoon
46.67%
None
31.38%
Working holiday
19.06%
Round-the-world
11.42%
Other
10.07%
Gap year
7.19%
Baby-moon
5.4%
Volunteer abroad
3.96%
Source: Finder survey by Pure Profile of 1112 Australians, December 2023
Working holiday travel insurance general exclusions
The general exclusions, or circumstances in which cover will not apply, are the same for working holiday travel insurance as for normal travel insurance policies. These include:
Theft of unattended luggage. If you are deemed to have been negligent in the supervision of your belongings.
Irresponsible behaviour. Reckless behaviour or acts committed under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
Non-disclosure. Claims arising from circumstances of which you had prior knowledge and failed to disclose to the insurer.
Illegal behaviour. Breaking of government prohibitions or regulations, including visa requirements.
Actions by a government authority. Claims resulting from foreign government confiscation, detention or destruction.
Self-harm. This includes suicide or attempted suicide.
Pre-existing medical conditions. If you claim is related to a medical condition that was already affecting you prior to your departing on your trip.
Adventure activities. Pastimes such as such as skiing, rock climbing, skydiving or hang gliding, unless included in the policy.
Scuba diving. Underwater diving, unless you hold a current licence or are with a licensed instructor.
Flying. Any form of air travel not in a licensed passenger aircraft.
Compare travel insurance for your next working holiday
Got a quote before?
Why you can trust Finder's travel insurance experts
You pay nothing. Finder is free to use. And you pay the same as going direct. No markups, no hidden fees.
You save time. We spend 100s of hours researching travel insurance so you can sort the gold from the junk faster.
You can trust us. We say it like it is. We aren't owned by an insurer and our opinions are our own.
FAQs about Non-Australian residents and travel insurance
The Reciprocal Health Care Agreement (RHCA) is an agreement with Australia that allows you to receive basic health care under that country's version of Medicare. Participating countries include Belgium, Finland, Ireland, Italy, Malta, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Slovenia, Sweden and the UK.
An RHCA allows you to access free or subsidised medical treatment and prescription medicines. It's not a substitute for travel insurance.
Yes. You can get travel insurance on a work visa. However, make sure it satisfies your visa requirements. It's possible that you will need to take out form of health insurance from the country you are travelling to.
Working holiday visa holders in Australia need Overseas Visitor Health Cover to meet their visa requirements, unless they are from an RHCA country. OVHC is not the same as travel insurance.
Gary Ross Hunter was an editor at Finder, specialising in insurance. He’s been writing about life, travel, home, car, pet and health insurance for over 6 years and regularly appears as an insurance expert in publications including The Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian and news.com.au. Gary holds a Kaplan Tier 2 General Advice General Insurance certification which meets the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio
Gary Ross's expertise
Gary Ross has written 729 Finder guides across topics including:
Compare Travel Insurance Direct policies online to save time and money. Travel Insurance Direct offers various policies including Annual multi-trip, The Works, The Basics and Domestic travel.
If time is valuable to you, Travel Insuranz may be suitable for you. With its fast online processing process, Travel Insurance provides easy access to protecting yourself for travel. Read its policy online.
Domestic travel insurance can provide cover for trip cancellation (domestic flights), loss or damage to luggage and expensive items, car rental excess charges and much more. Find out why domestic travel insurance is worth getting and compare policies from Australian insurers.
Feedback
How likely would you be to recommend Finder to a friend or colleague?
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Very UnlikelyExtremely Likely
Required
Thank you for your feedback.
Our goal is to create the best possible product, and your thoughts, ideas and suggestions play a major role in helping us identify opportunities to improve.
Important information about this website
finder.com.au is one of Australia's leading comparison websites. We are committed to our readers and stands by our editorial principles
We try to take an open and transparent approach and provide a broad-based comparison service. However, you should be aware that while we are an independently owned service, our comparison service does not include all providers or all products available in the market.
Some product issuers may provide products or offer services through multiple brands, associated companies or different labeling arrangements. This can make it difficult for consumers to compare alternatives or identify the companies behind the products. However, we aim to provide information to enable consumers to understand these issues.
We make money by featuring products on our site. Compensation received from the providers featured on our site can influence which products we write about as well as where and how products appear on our page, but the order or placement of these products does not influence our assessment or opinions of them, nor is it an endorsement or recommendation for them.
Products marked as 'Top Pick', 'Promoted' or 'Advertisement' are prominently displayed either as a result of a commercial advertising arrangement or to highlight a particular product, provider or feature. Finder may receive remuneration from the Provider if you click on the related link, purchase or enquire about the product. Finder's decision to show a 'promoted' product is neither a recommendation that the product is appropriate for you nor an indication that the product is the best in its category. We encourage you to use the tools and information we provide to compare your options.
Where our site links to particular products or displays 'Go to site' buttons, we may receive a commission, referral fee or payment when you click on those buttons or apply for a product. You can learn more about how we make money.
When products are grouped in a table or list, the order in which they are initially sorted may be influenced by a range of factors including price, fees and discounts; commercial partnerships; product features; and brand popularity. We provide tools so you can sort and filter these lists to highlight features that matter to you.
Please read our website terms of use and privacy policy for more information about our services and our approach to privacy.
We update our data regularly, but information can change between updates. Confirm details with the provider you're interested in before making a decision.
You pay nothing. Finder is free to use. And you pay the same as going direct. No markups, no hidden fees.
You save time. We spend 100s of hours researching travel insurance so you can sort the gold from the junk faster.
You can trust us. We say it like it is. We aren't owned by an insurer and our opinions are our own.