88-day counter for your second or third year
Short answer: Home Affairs asks for 88 calendar days of paid specified work for a second Working Holiday visa and 179 for a third, in approved industries and postcodes. Part-time work counts at its full-time equivalent, so 2 days a week for 88 calendar days is about 35 days. Add each job below and this counter totals your days, shows your progress and flags postcodes outside the lists. Home Affairs decides eligibility. This is a tracking aid, not advice.
Free. No account. Your list stays in your browser.
88-day counter, Working Holiday visa
Add a work period
Full-time means the normal full-time pattern, which Home Affairs counts as every calendar day of the period, weekends and rest days included. Part-time counts in proportion to a 5-day week.
Your progress
Second visa
Third visa
Third visa work must be done on or after 1 July 2019 and, as a rule, while on your second visa. The counter cannot see which visa you held on each date, so check that yourself.
Work periods
Home Affairs decides eligibility. This counter is a tracking aid, not migration or legal advice, and does not guarantee that any day will be accepted or that a visa will be granted. Rules and postcode lists change: confirm on the official subclass 417 specified work page or the subclass 462 page before you rely on it.
How Home Affairs counts the days
Summarised from the Home Affairs page "How to count specified work", checked 22 October 2026. Read the full official text.
The minimum
- Second visa: at least 3 months of specified work, taken to mean 88 calendar days, weekends and rest days included.
- Third visa: at least 6 months, taken to mean 179 calendar days, on or after 1 July 2019.
- You cannot finish in a total period shorter than 3 or 6 calendar months.
Full-time, part-time and piecework
- You must work the same number of normal days or shifts as a full-time employee in that role and industry would in that period.
- Working fewer than 5 days a week means a longer period. Piecework agreements are included.
- Several short periods, in any mix of full-time, part-time or piecework, can be added together. They need not be with one employer.
Pay and place
- All specified work must be paid in accordance with Australian legislation and awards. Voluntary work counts only for recovery work in declared bushfire or natural disaster areas.
- The industry and the postcode must both qualify. Our postcode checker uses the same lists as this counter.
- Tourism and hospitality count in Northern Australia and in remote and very remote Australia. Farm work, construction, mining (417 only) and tree farming count in regional Australia.
Timing and limits
- As a rule, all specified work must be done while you hold your previous Working Holiday visa. Limited exceptions exist, such as some work on a bridging visa.
- Visa condition 8547 generally limits you to 6 months with one employer. See the Home Affairs work conditions for exemptions.
- UK passport holders who apply on or after 1 July 2024 using a UK passport do not need specified work for a second or third 417 visa.
Looking for work that counts? See 88 day jobs by state and season, and the 88-day visa guide.
Your questions
How many days of specified work do I need for a second or third Working Holiday visa?
Home Affairs requires at least 3 months of specified work for a second visa, taken to mean 88 calendar days, and at least 6 months for a third visa, taken to mean 179 calendar days. The work for a third visa must be done on or after 1 July 2019, and as a rule while you hold your second visa.
Do weekends and days off count towards the 88 days?
Yes, if you work the full-time pattern. Home Affairs counts calendar days, "including weekends or equivalent rest days during your period of employment". Working 5 days a week for 3 calendar months, for example from 1 December to 26 February, is 88 calendar days.
How does part-time or casual work count?
You must complete the same number of normal work days or shifts as a full-time employee in that role would work in 88 (or 179) calendar days. Part-time work counts in proportion: two days a week is 2/5 of a full-time week, so each calendar week of it counts about 2.8 days. This counter does that sum for you.
Can I add up work from different employers?
Yes. You do not need to do all the days in one go or with one employer, and you can spread them over your current visa. You cannot complete the requirement in a total period shorter than 3 or 6 calendar months.
Which postcodes and jobs count?
Only approved industries in approved postcodes, such as plant cultivation, construction, mining and tree farming in regional Australia, and tourism and hospitality in Northern Australia or remote and very remote Australia. This counter checks each job's postcode against the Home Affairs lists, the same data as our postcode checker, and flags any that do not match.
Does unpaid or volunteer work count?
Generally no. Home Affairs says all specified work must be paid in accordance with the relevant Australian legislation and awards. The exception is voluntary work related to recovery in declared bushfire or natural disaster areas.
Where is my data stored?
Only in your own browser (localStorage). There is no account and nothing is sent to our servers. Clearing your browsing data deletes it, so export a CSV to keep a backup.
Does reaching 88 days mean my visa will be granted?
No. Home Affairs decides whether your work counts and whether you are eligible. This counter is a tracking aid, not migration advice. Keep your payslips and check the official page before you apply.