World Media Journal.

Independent journalism for Australia and the world. Politics, business, sport, culture, comment. · Est. 2026

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● Cabinet reshuffle expected Wednesday morning● RBA decision watched: hold tipped, cut still discussed● Ashes opens Thursday at the Gabba● Cost of living dominates pre-budget polling● JIMPA national community tour begins next week● Sydney property market cools further into May● Climate bill passes Senate by single vote● Iron ore exports to China hold steady through Q1● Matildas name squad for May friendlies in Lyon● Sydney Food Week returns Monday — 30 restaurants● CSIRO opens national AI lab in Adelaide● Pacific climate summit opens in Suva● Cabinet reshuffle expected Wednesday morning● RBA decision watched: hold tipped, cut still discussed● Ashes opens Thursday at the Gabba● Cost of living dominates pre-budget polling● JIMPA national community tour begins next week● Sydney property market cools further into May● Climate bill passes Senate by single vote● Iron ore exports to China hold steady through Q1● Matildas name squad for May friendlies in Lyon● Sydney Food Week returns Monday — 30 restaurants● CSIRO opens national AI lab in Adelaide● Pacific climate summit opens in Suva● Cabinet reshuffle expected Wednesday morning● RBA decision watched: hold tipped, cut still discussed● Ashes opens Thursday at the Gabba● Cost of living dominates pre-budget polling● JIMPA national community tour begins next week● Sydney property market cools further into May● Climate bill passes Senate by single vote● Iron ore exports to China hold steady through Q1● Matildas name squad for May friendlies in Lyon● Sydney Food Week returns Monday — 30 restaurants● CSIRO opens national AI lab in Adelaide● Pacific climate summit opens in Suva

Home/Holidays & Travel/Youth

TravelYouth· Jan 31, 2026· 6 min

Australia's working holiday visa: who is actually coming, and where are they going?

The old assumption was British backpackers. The current data tells a very different story.

Thomas Park

Travel Editor

The old assumption was British backpackers. The current data tells a very different story.

Australia's working-holiday visa scheme, established in 1975, is often described in terms that no longer fit. The British backpacker is a smaller share of the intake than at any point since the scheme began. The current top nationalities are different.

Top five in 2025

United Kingdom, France, Germany, South Korea, Taiwan. The Korean and Taiwanese growth has been particularly strong over the past three years. The German number has held steady. The French number has grown.

Photograph · World Media Journal · Jan 31, 2026

Where they work

Regional Australia remains the biggest employment destination, but the mix has shifted. Hospitality in metropolitan centres has grown as a share of working-holiday employment. Agricultural work, still large in absolute terms, has become proportionally smaller.

The scheme is, quietly, one of Australia's most successful visa programs. Retention rates as permanent migrants have grown steadily, particularly among the East Asian intake.

In this story