So you wanna travel? UK Working Holiday visa!
It’s that time of the year where weary office workers open their diaries to the front page to work out when the public holidays are -the good news is that we’re about to hit public holiday happiness as they fall one after another – make the most of it. The other good news is that Autumn is stretching and crackling it’s gnarled fingers – we’ll soon be pulling out the firewood and getting the Old Brown out for a cuddle. But the best news is that if you’re a summer bunny you don’t have to get the scarf out – if you time your global movements cleverly, you can live an ETERNAL SPRUMMER! All you have to do is make sure you go travelling to warmer climes as the cold fingers ring your buzzer. So how do you do that?
There are options! Lots of em! We’ll start by talking about what we know and have experienced – the UK Working Holiday Visa. Feel free to share your ideas with us too!
Did you know that if you’re aged between 17 and 30 you have a chance of acquiring a WORKING HOLIDAY VISA for the UK? It’s like a gift being handed to you on a golden platter oh ye young working South African’s and you really need to take it… With a little planning you can make it happen and transport yourself to the UK for two years – if you head of in the next few months you will catch their ‘warmer’ seasons! But don’t forget to always pack warmly.
This visa can be tricky and people have been known to be refused one – it’s aimed at young people who are earning money and have some basic work skills for the UK – they don’t want anyone that is going to become a burden to them or try to stay indefinitely so you need to make it clear in your application that you’re going to work part-time and TRAVEL.
There are a few other things you can do to up your chances. You need to save money – besides your ticket you need about R20 000 – R30 000 and you need to show that it’s been in your bank account for three months – they will ask for a statement. A letter from your employer promising you work when you get back is also a plus. The savings are really important because when you get to London it takes a few weeks to get your life together and you need to have money to help you settle in. Some people find a job in a week and get their first wages at the end of week two but other people struggle. A good way to save this money is to get a 32 day notice account that makes it really hard to spend your savings, so stop worrying about wearing the right labels and buying a new car and put that money away every month for a year – you’ll be suprised how soon you have what you need to get the visa.
Getting a bank account once you’ve arrived takes at least a few weeks of begging and standing in queues unless you’re working in a cash-in-hand job you will need one to get paid. Accommodation is also tricky and very expensive – you really need to know someone who’s couch you can ‘dos’ on for a week or two so you don’t have to pay a deposit and rent straight away. Although with rentals as high as they are, if your hosts start looking a bit irritated after about 2 weeks you need to offer a ‘dossing fee’ for sleeping on the couch. No lies. Besides the fact it makes your life easier, the UK embassy will not let you go to the UK empty-handed and they’re really strict about it.
We also recommend that you plan a two year WORKING HOLIDAY and do what the visa is meant to do for you – you’re supposed to work for 12 months and travel for 12 – nice concept hey! So many South African’s get the visa, go and live in Wimbledon (mini Joburg), hang out with South Africans only, don’t make friends with anyone else, work the entire two years (illegal!) and come home with a nice deposit for a flat but not having enjoyed any travel or life experience. If you intend to use this visa as it is meant to be used you will get it easily.
So plan your two years… Think about when their seasons are, think about where you want to travel to and for how long and make it happen! Travel is addictive and so worth it! With the cheap flights offered by airlines such as Ryanair you can pay R200 for a return ticket from the UK to ITALY, SWEDEN, FRANCE or SPAIN and loads more destinations! Travelling is so good for the soul and it’s best to do it with as few strings attached as possible. The older you get the harder it gets.
Work-wise if you have some work experience, finding a good job is generally done through recruitment agencies… a simple search on Google will allow you to find the agencies in your field and you can already start sending your CV to them and finding out if they have contract or short-term work for you. Remember you can try and work in your industry and gain some worldly experience or you can just get a job that pays the bills and let’s you enjoy your stay and hang out at the pub and travel like a mad thing. Lawyers have been known to do legal secretary work, journalists have done construction work and “PA” work is probably the easiest to come by if you can type decently. I.T. is always in demand and banking skills get you the money job! South African’s are known for their hard work so finding a job is not too hard.
Gumtree is an excellent resource for accommodation and part-time work in London and it also has other cities info too – remember the UK is not just London although LONDON ROCKS! But we won’t kid you, it can be hard being away from the comforts of South Africa that’s why you need to really make the most of your two years and go travelling whenever you can and not get caught up in the London hard knock life. It does knock you at times so prepare for a mixed experience.
A good time to go is April/May as the weather starts improving – so enjoy a British summer full of free festivals and late sunsets – work hard and go travelling in Winter to warmer places like India or South East Asia where your pounds stretch so far you can backpack for a few weeks and live live Kings and Queens on your pounds and see the MAGNIFICENT countries of Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam etc. Or you can do it the other way round, go in winter, vasbyt through the cold, earn your pounds for 6 months and travel Europe in Summer which is a bit more costly than the East.
Anyway, this should give you some serious food for thought and distract you from the 1/4 year itch. We’ve given you the info on how to accept the gift on the golden platter so get going! Click here to go to the British High Commission for all the info you need. Let us know if you go and can send us your stories!
As we always say GO GO GO ….BON VOYAGE !
