Working Holiday Visas for Digital Nomads

April 22, 2021

Something I’ve been thinking about as a dual citizen is what opportunities I have to travel. I want to move places and be a serial drifter, more than a true nomad but less than an expat. One way to make that happen is with working holiday visas. The gist is:

• be 30 or younger, inclusive
• have a bachelors degree
• stay, holiday, and work (or not) in a partner country for 12 to 18 months

This is basically a free longer term permit to live in another country, with the authorization to work there or just bum around.

United States citizenship gives you six options:

• Australia
• Ireland
• Singapore
• New Zealand
• Canada
• South Korea

New Zealand citizenship gives many more options, but I’ll only list what I’m interested in, in descending order:

• France
• UK (England, Scotland, Wales)
• Ireland
• Japan
• China
• Amsterdam
• Estonia
• Germany

It’s interesting that NZ citizenship is more useful than US citizenship. If I wanted to go to France, China, the UK, Japan, or Ireland, I would have tourist visas (90 days) usually, or have to deal with work visas (only possible after securing a job offer), or strictly enter under a student visa. While those give my travel mission purpose, if I want more optionality, especially without a rush and high expectations, I’m out of luck. It also is easier in some cases to transition into residency from a working holiday visa.

For more information:

• General guide for country wanted, and citizenship required: https://global-goose.com/working-holiday-visas-countries/