Contracting in Australia on a working holiday

[man]

Hi all,

I'm hoping to try contracting in Australia as a limited and i've had a search through the forum but not found any up to date threads covering whether the working holiday visa still allows it (I assume just for 6 months due to the 6 months for one employer rule). Anyone able to clarify this? I see contracting as a perfect fit for the 'work and holiday' idea behind the visa.

Also, if it's possible and I can somehow obtain a proper postal address in advance (which may be the hard part) is there any reason anyone can see that I can't push the paperwork through beforehand to start the business before flying over to allow me to start looking for contracts on arrival and be able to work if anything comes up fast?

Thanks.

[Eirikur]

Try an Australian forum, quick google gives tons of results

[WTFH]

It is possible to search for contracts before arriving in the country, so as well as looking on Australian forums about visas, you could check Aussie job boards as well.

[man]

OK thanks for the replies guys I'll do that. In the meantime if anyone else has been through this sort of thing I'd appreciate any information at all that could help with this

[tvr450]

I did this, but it was 17 years ago, so the rules might have changed.

I went to Australia on a working holiday visa, I found a contract role in Sydney. I had to take on an specialised accountancy company, who brought me onto their payroll by 'employing' me and giving me a work visa for their company.

As far as I'm aware, you can't do the LTD setup in Australia, you have to be employed by a third party who will give you a Worker Visa as part of the accountancy package.

[swamp]

I also did this years ago. Get a contract first when you're there, and then talk to a specialist accountant about your options. This will likely be an umbrella which is pricey, but unlike UK there are/were some decent tax advantages you could make use of.

[man]

Great to hear - I remember reading about Australian contractors tending more towards the umbrella company route anyway so I think I'll have a better chance under the working holiday visa of getting a contract (as at least then the client only expects short term labour) than a job.