Last updated: 1 September 2023
The Australia-United Kingdom Free Trade Agreement enters into force today.
The agreement is welcome news for early and mid-career Australians considering a career break or to work abroad. Australian professionals now have the same access to the UK job market as nationals from the European Union, except the Republic of Ireland.
Youth Mobility Visa Changes for Australians
The agreement also includes changes to Youth Mobility, formerly known as the Working Holiday visa.
From 31 January 2024, Australians up to the age of 35, up from 30, will be able to apply for working holidays in the UK and stay for a maximum of three years, up from two years.
The Youth Mobility Visa holds a special place for us because it’s how our adventure in London began a decade ago! It’s hard to believe that it’s been 10 years already since we packed up our belongings into two large suitcases and made the exciting and daunting (well, mostly exciting) decision to begin a new adventure on the other side of the world.
We had to adhere to the previous requirements of the Youth Mobility Visa of being under 30 years old and stay for a maximum of 2 years. Given that I’m a few years older than Roma, this age requirement expedited my decision-making process.
We’re really glad that’s been a change to the age limit which has seen it increase to 35 because it now opens up the opportunity to a greater number of people, people who may not have been in a position to travel for an extended period of time before they turn 30 due to a number of reasons. Now there’s a greater opportunity for more people to make the move and explore London, the wider UK, and Europe in their early 30’s.
As a couple of Aussie expats, we’ve embraced our move to London with gusto by exploring as much of the UK and Europe as possible, planning many short weekend breaks, keeping an eye open for cheap long weekends, and travelling whenever and wherever possible. In fact, Roaming Required started off as a way for us to keep in contact with family and friends during our many travels.
One of the best things about living in London is that we run into other Aussie expats who have made the move over on the Youth Mobility Visa and it’s always so much fun to discuss travel, upcoming destinations, and some of the new things we’ve all discovered living here; from visiting Buckingham Palace state rooms during the summer months, to taking a cruise along the Thames (which has to be done because seeing London from the Thames is a completely different experience), to going to see the fireworks across London on Bonfire Night, and attempting to take on the Bermondsey Beer Mile, there’s so much on offer.
Are you thinking about Applying for the Youth Mobility Visa?
If you’re an Aussie who’s reading this and thinking about applying for the Youth Mobility Visa from Jan 2024 then we suggest you do your research to understand that living overseas for 3 years won’t always be perfect or idyllic but it will certainly be an adventure.
If we can be of any assistance or answer any questions you may have then please don’t hesitate to drop us a line on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, or email.
Australian Products Entering the UK Duty Free
More great news for those importing Aussie products. As of today, over 99 per cent of Australian products will enter the UK duty free. This includes exports, such as wine, rice, sugar, honey, nuts, olive oil and food supplements.
UK tariffs on Australian industrial goods, such as auto parts, electrical equipment and fashion items are now eliminated.
For Australian consumers, tariffs on 98 per cent of UK imports to Australia are now eliminated, with the remainder removed within six years.
