There are quite a few (EU Countries, Japan, Australia…) that you could apply for a working holiday visa, but we will focus on Canada as it is one of the most popular destinations for young irish.
Are you thinking about moving to Canada on a working holiday visa? Canada and Ireland have an agreement in place allowing Irish citizens to stay in Canada for up to two years on a working holiday visa. The best part is that Canada has lots of visas every year for Irish Citizens so if you are from one of the lucky countries, if you want to work in Canada, you can do it! Time to explore our great nation’s three coastlines, and make some money while you’re here!
Year-round
4-24 Months
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Canada’s agreement with Ireland is part of a program called International Experience Canada. This program and the department of the Canadian government arrange the working holiday agreements with various countries around the world. They also process the working holiday visa applications.
The Canada Working Holiday Visa gives Irish citizens entry into Canada for up to two years. When entering Canada with a working holiday visa, the immigration officer will take your visa and in exchange, provide you with an open work permit. This open work permit allows you to work in any job in Canada, for up to 24 months.
Have you or one of your mates been to Australia on a working holiday? Then you might be familiar with the concept of working to fund your travels. The working holiday visa for Canada is just like the working holiday visa for Australia, but better! How is that? Well, us friendly Canadians won’t make you do any ‘specified work’ (otherwise known as backbreaking farm work) for several months to stay for a second year. As long as you meet the required criteria for entry into Canada, you’ll be welcomed in for two years right off the cuff! How’s that for warm Canadian hospitality?
We understand that it can be confusing if you are from Ireland and you are looking to check how many times you can participate under IEC as an Irish citizen.
Detailed and complete answer: You can participate under IEC 2 times, BUT one of the participations must be under the International Co-op (Internship) category for a maximum of 12 months.
This means that if you already had a working holiday in Canada as an irish citizen you can NOT apply for a young professional visa in Canada under IEC, unless you use a Recognized Organization (RO)
This is the reason why the majority of irish travel to Canada under a Working Holiday visa in the first place, as it is the easiest way to work in Canada.
In order to apply for the working holiday visa for Canada, you must meet a number of criteria:
“Absolutely fantastic. Thank you guys so much for all the help and support through my work permit application. If I could give more stars I would! ”— Lauren: Working Holiday 2023-24
Because of the popularity of the Canada working holiday visa, most countries have more applicants than visas available. Therefore, IEC created a system where interested participants submit their profiles to a pool of candidates. Then, candidates are selected at random and invited to apply for the visa. Invitations to apply are sent out in a series of rounds so that IEC officials don’t get overwhelmed with too many applications at once.
Perhaps it’s the luck of the Irish because, to date, Ireland has not maxed out its annual quota of working holiday visas. This means you don’t have to wait on a chance to be invited to apply. However, you still have to go through the process like everyone else, but don’t worry, we’ll be able to support and guide you through the entire process.
The Canada working holiday visa is available to Irish citizens between the ages of 18 and 35. This means you must be within this age range at the time of your application. If you are 35 you can still apply, but take note, you must apply before your 36th birthday in order to be eligible.
Important: If you are 35 when you submit your profile into the pool but turn 36 before you receive your invitation to apply, unfortunately, you are no longer eligible to apply.
After applying and once you have received your visa, you have 12 months to enter Canada. Therefore, if you turned 36 after submitting your application, it is possible to enter Canada when you are 36 and stay until you are 38.
Upon entry into Canada, you are required to show the visa officer proof you have access to the equivalent in Euros of $2,500 CAD or higher. This will help the officer determine if you are able to support yourself while you begin your working holiday and look for a job.
“I love winter sports so spending my working holiday in Whistler has been such a good decision. I am also working for a very good hotel here, so I get to make money to then enjoy my time in Canada. 100% recommend!”— Luke: 2023-24 Working Holiday
The minimum wage in Canada is different in each province. As of January 2024, the minimum wage in Alberta is $15 CAD/hour and in British Columbia, it is $17.40 CAD/hour.
In Canada, it’s common to get paid bi-weekly (every two weeks). If you join our Working Holiday Programs, you will get a guaranteed job with accommodation before you arrive, and the rent for your staff housing will be deducted directly from your paycheque.
Have a question about our Working Holiday Programs for Irish citizens?
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Irish citizens cannot apply twice for a Canada working holiday visa. With an Irish passport, you may only get one working holiday visa in your lifetime.
If you are a dual citizen you can apply for a working holiday visa with your other passport. Of course, only if Canada has an agreement with the country of your other nationality. You can find the full list of countries here. Take note, some countries have a residency requirement meaning you must be living in the country in order to apply for that citizenship.
If you are a dual citizen of Ireland and the UK, you can apply for a second working holiday visa using your UK passport. Yes! Even when you have never lived in the UK before, as the UK has no residency requirement to apply for a working holiday visa in Canada.
The best news! From the IEC 2024 Season, the age limit for UK citizens to apply for the Canada Working Holiday Visa is 35, exactly as in Ireland, which means that you will have even more time to make the most of your UK passport if you want to!
Please note that the UK pool for International Experience Canada (IEC) is way more competitive than the Irish pool, that normally allows every year to Irish Citizens to apply for their working holiday visas all the way until the end of the IEC Season, and there are more visas than candidates. This will not happen with the UK pool so you should apply early in advance! Don’t leave it for the last minute!
Even though Irish citizens can participate in International Experience Canada twice, you cannot use both the Working Holiday and Young Professional visas. One of your two participations in IEC must be with the International Co-op visa, which you can read more about here. Therefore, as an Irish citizen, you must decide between the Working Holiday visa or the Young Professional visa, you cannot do both.
International Experience Canada officials require you to upload supporting documents as part of your application for the working holiday visa. Most nationalities are required to upload a police certificate at this stage. Ireland is one of them. This is to prove you do not have a criminal record.
The police certificate you upload cannot be more than six months old. You should request it from the superintendent who is in charge of your district. Remember each county’s Garda SÃochána office issues its own certificates. For more information, visit the Garda SÃochána.
Yes, you are required to provide a police certificate for every country that you have lived in for more than six months. For more information, check out our guide to getting police certificates for International Experience Canada.
In order to be allowed into Canada on your working holiday, you are required to prove you have health insurance for the duration of your stay. This means that if you want to stay for two years, you must purchase two years of health insurance before arriving in Canada. You cannot purchase health insurance and extend it once you are in Canada.
It is important here to note that the decision of the length of your work permit is up to the discretion of the immigration officer. Even though Irish citizens are eligible for a two-year open work permit, if arrive in Canada with just 3, 6, or 12 months of medical insurance, you risk receiving a work permit of the same duration. For more information, including our recommended insurance provider, refer to our guide on insurance for International Experience Canada.
You can complete Biometrics in only one place in Ireland, the approved location of VFS in the city of Dublin.
That being said, you do not have to complete Biometrics there, if you want to complete Biometrics in London, Madrid, Paris, … you name it, you can do it, as Canada does not require Irish citizens to complete Biometrics in their specific country. As long as you provide Biometrics within 30 days after the request, you will be good to go!
When it comes to Canadian resort jobs, getting ahead of the program is definitely beneficial. Popular resorts such as Whistler, Banff, Jasper and Lake Louise have 2 main hiring periods for each season, Summer and Winter 2025. So that means here at Stepwest, the earlier you apply the better chance you have of securing your dream job in your dream resort! The latest we typically accept applications for these programs are as follows:
It pays off to be organized, the sooner you are ready for interviews, the more resort job positions you could be a candidate for. If you are a last-minute planner, then start to consider planning for the next upcoming Season. Too late for Winter? check our Summer Resort Working Holiday program. You could start out with a summer job and opt to stay for the next winter season!
Our team of working holiday specialists will:
There are quite a few (EU Countries, Japan, Australia…) that you could apply for a working holiday visa, but we will focus on Canada as it is one of the most popular destinations for young irish.
Yes, the easiest permit is the Working Holiday visa under IEC, so if you qualify for it, this is the best bet!
Yes! Irish citizens aged 18 to 35 with a valid passport and sufficient savings of $2,500 CAD or more can apply for a working holiday visa in Canada. They must also have health insurance for the entire stay and either a round-trip ticket or proof of financial means to purchase one at the end of the working holiday.
You can work in Canada temporarily but you need a work permit, only the passport is not enough. Many Irish citizens move to Canada every year under the Working Holiday visa as there is an agreement between Ireland and Canada for Irish between 18 and 35 years old. If you match the requirements from Canada, you could work in Canada.
Up to 24 months – Irish citizens participating in the International Experience Canada (IEC) Working Holiday program can typically stay in Canada for up to 2 years. The work permit duration will be connected to the duration of your insurance. If you bring an insurance valid for less time, your work permit will be shorter!
Yes, as an Irish citizen, you can work in Canada through the International Experience Canada (IEC) program, specifically the Working Holiday Visa category. This program allows young people from participating countries, including Ireland, to live and work in Canada temporarily.
Yes! Irish citizens aged 18 to 35 with a valid passport and sufficient savings of $2,500 CAD or more can apply for a working holiday visa in Canada. They must also have health insurance for the entire stay and either a round-trip ticket or proof of financial means to purchase one at the end of the working holiday.
Maximum 8 weeks from the moment you complete Biometrics. The processing time for a work visa for Canada from Ireland varies, but we offer assistance to streamline and simplify the process, making it more manageable and less stressful.
The duration of a maximum of 2 years and the age limit, you will be only eligible for it if you have an irish passport and you are under 36 years old!Â
As long as you don’t travel to Canada to activate your working holiday visa, you are good and it will not count as a participation, which means that you could apply again in the future as long as you apply before your 36th birthday! This is a new regulation that has been in place after the pandemic, to help all those participants that after being approved could never travel to Canada. Now, you will not lose your chance! As this is only a once in a lifetime type of visa!