Job Discussion Forums

Canuk girl · Joined: 27 Mar 2003 Posts: 60

I'm trying to pull together the information for my working holiday visa (I live in Canada) and it requires an itinerary. I already have a job "in mind", well a conditional part time job offer, so I don't know what to put for the six month list they require, of places we will stay, etc. Does anyone have any suggestinons, or anyone who's been thru this Question

Thanks!

BenJ · Joined: 11 May 2003 Posts: 209 Location: Nagoya

yeah i did this a month ago with my girlfriend. Basically we just go the lonely planet guide and picked a fictional route starting and finishing at the airport we were flying to anyway. Included a little info about each place (e.g. visit temples and palaces in Kyoto, Himeji Castle near Kobe, etc)

have been told by many people not to put down that we have a job lined up but that we have the funds required to see us through if necessary

april · Joined: 07 May 2003 Posts: 83 Location: Australia

I also referred to the Lonely Planet and just wrote down a fictional itinerary. For each month I wrote down a few differnt place names and events that were on (ie. cherry blossoms in spring, onsen in winter, festivals etc). Over the interview on the phone I think i said that I would be based in Tokyo, but do many weekends trips to <insert place names here>, and then during my holidays I would go to <insert place name here>. That satisfied them because I got the visa!

Actually I did tell them that I already had a job lined up, I thought having a job prior to departure would be better than not having one. I could be wrong though. Although, during my interview I only ever talked about things I wanted to see and did not mention teaching or saving money.

PAULH · Joined: 28 Jan 2003 Posts: 4672 Location: Western Japan

April

the purpose of the working holiday visa is to travel to japan, experience the culture
, learn the language, work part time to finance your travels. It is not meant as a means to find a permanent or secure teaching job. If you tell immigration you have a job lined up it implies your purpose is WORK, not travel, and its possible they will refuse to issue you a visa.

IMO Its better to keep your work plans under wraps until you arrive in the country.

Wolf · Joined: 10 May 2003 Posts: 1245 Location: Middle Earth

april · Joined: 07 May 2003 Posts: 83 Location: Australia

Yes I know. Preaching to the chior.

During the interview she was asking me on and off what kind of work did I want to do, and how was I going to support myself, and did I know that working in a bar and the 'entertainment field' was illegal. I think that telling her I already had a job teaching was an assurance that I wasn't going to Japan with the intention of being a hostess.

Regardless, I did tell her I had a job. I did get the visa. That's my personal experience. Maybe others have had the opposite experience, I don't know. I have never heard of someone being refused a working holiday visa, that's not to say it hasn't happened. But I do think that lying (or avoiding telling the truth) during the interview will decrease your chances rather than increase. I like to think I can tell when someone is is hiding something from me, and I think the consulant would be even better at it than me.