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Student Practical Work Experience

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Visa Advice

Students from overseas may experience that Australia has some very strict immigration regulations for those who want to do something else than just travelling. If you like to conduct a practical work experience on Kachana you must apply for an “Occupational Training Visa” (subclass 442 of a “Temporary Residence Visa”). For detailed instructions and all application forms please visit the website of the Department of Immigration and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs (DIMIA)

The application process can be quite complicated and takes a bit of time. Please only start applying if you've discussed the details of your work experience with or .

Below you find a little “tutorial” for the visa application, written by Philipp Nauer.
(The author does not take any responsibilities for grey or lost hairs due to misinformation in this article, but you may before suicidal thoughts enter your mind... )

1. Nomination for an occupational training:

To get an occupational training visa, you must first be nominated by your employer in Australia. In this particular case, you will be nominated by Kachana Pastoral Company. (Notice that KPC does not employ students!) The nomination form (form 913) will be lodged at the DIMIA office in Perth WA.

Please coordinate all applicaton steps with .
Complete questions 1-8, 21, 23-27 of the nomination form. (Question no.8: students from Switzerland have to apply in Berlin, Germany)
Write a letter for the DIMIA in Perth, stating that you are currently enrolled in an University and that the work experience is a fundamental part of your course.
Also you have to provide an official enrolment statement of your university. (Für Studenten der ETH Zürich: die offizielle Einschreibebestätigung reicht nicht, bitte legt auch noch eine Kopie der Legi bei!)
Any additional information that proves your enrolment and the importance of the prac work for your study will help.
Send everything together with your CV to Danny Waser. (You can send it via email.)

Danny will complete the form and send everything to Perth. The nomination approval letter will be sent to him, so don't worry if you won't get any mails from Perth.

2. Applying for visa:

As soon as you receive the nomination approval letter you can lodge an application for an occupational training visa at the appropriate Australian embassy. Your application should include:

Nomination approval letter
Form 147 completed
Your passport
Credit card payment authorization for the visa fee
Your CV (again...)
Enrolment statement (again...)
Provide evidence of adequate health insurance arrangements, and...
...evidence of adequate funds for your stay (short list of your expenses and your avaliable funds with bank statement, or similar)
Make shure you don't have one of these ugly diseases listed in the form, and tell nobody about the candy you snitched as a kid!

Please always check for the latest informations on the DIMIA homepage. If you notice any important changes, please let me know.

The whole process can take up to two months, so it might be a good idea to start applying as soon as possible.