UK and New Zealand expand working holiday visas

More young people will be permitted to reside and work in both the UK and New Zealand for a longer period of time.

The Youth Mobility and Working Holiday programmes will be extended, as agreed upon by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his New Zealand counterpart, Jacinda Ardern.

The maximum period of stay in the host nation will now be three years, and the application age limit will increase from 30 to 35.

A similar agreement is followed to permit young people to work and visit Australia.

18 to 30-year-olds were previously eligible for the UK-New Zealand programme.

The decision, according to Home Secretary Priti Patel, “will provide even more young Britons and New Zealanders with the opportunity to improve their talents, forge lifelong friendships, and contribute to their host country.”

Working holiday visa reform has long been a priority for New Zealand, according to Ms. Ardern, who is in London to meet with Mr. Johnson.

Prior to entering politics, the leader of the New Zealand Labour Party resided in London while serving as a senior policy consultant in Whitehall.

I enjoyed working and living in the UK, and I was one of many Kiwis who did. We hope to give British people the same wonderful experience as New Zealanders have had, she continued.

Following Thursday’s conclusion of the NATO meeting in Madrid, the prime ministers convened at Downing Street.

According to Ms. Ardern, the free trade agreement reached last year and the response to the Ukrainian crisis will be discussed.

Mr. Johnson commended New Zealand for its “quite strong line,” and Ms. Ardern added, “We have also supplied our military aid via our cooperation with you.”

The Home Office indicated that more details regarding the Youth Mobility and Working Holiday programme will be released the following year.