Every link

Works from any phone in Australia — locked, no credit, no SIM. The operator asks which service you need and where you are. Learn the address of wherever you are sleeping tonight.

112 also works from any mobile and connects to the same service. 911 does not work in Australia.

SourcesTriple Zero — 000·ACMA — emergency call service (112 and 106 behaviour)

The right call at 2am when you cannot tell whether something needs a hospital. It will also find you the nearest open pharmacy or after-hours GP.

Victoria runs its own line — NURSE-ON-CALL on 1300 60 60 24. Queensland runs 13 HEALTH on 13 43 25 84.

Sourcehealthdirect

Open to anyone in Australia, 24 hours a day. A lot of new arrivals hit a flat, homesick patch around month three and do not tell anyone.

SourceLifeline

Also the right call for a snake or spider bite once you have called 000 — they advise on first aid while help is coming.

SourcePoisons Information Centre

Your visa lives here. Applications, evidence uploads, decisions and any request for more information all come through this account.

Use a permanent personal email, not a work or university one. People lose access to visa records this way constantly.

SourceImmiAccount

The main route for young travellers. Second and third years are available, usually by doing specified work — but the rules differ by passport.

Age limits and specified-work requirements vary by country and change. British passport holders no longer need specified work for a second or third visa. Check the page for your own nationality.

SourcesWorking Holiday visa (subclass 417)·Department of Home Affairs — subclass 417 (Age limits and eligible countries)

Some nationalities need educational qualifications, a letter of government support, or English evidence. Check which subclass applies to you before you pay anything.

SourceWork and Holiday visa (subclass 462)

You need an Australian account for wages and for your rental bond. All the major banks let you open one from overseas before you arrive and collect the card in a branch.

Open it before you fly if you can — the "new arrival" process is much easier than the walk-in one, and you get your card within days of landing.

SourceOpen an Australian bank account

On a bush track, a beach or in a suburb you do not know, you may not be able to give an address. The app shows your location, and you can place the 000 call from inside it.

Install it before you need it. It helps with your location; it does not replace knowing how to call 000.

SourcesEmergency+ app·Queensland Ambulance Service — calling an ambulance (Call from the app, location, what3words, CPR videos)

One of the most underused services in Australia. You can use it to phone a doctor, a government office, a landlord or an emergency service and have an interpreter join the call.

SourceTranslating and Interpreting Service (TIS National)

Read this before you commit three months of your life to a farm. The postcode, the industry and the way you are paid all have to qualify, and unpaid work generally does not count.

Keep payslips, bank records and your employer ABN for every day you claim. Verbal assurances from a hostel are worth nothing at decision time.

SourceSpecified work for a second or third visa

The safe way to find farm work. Use the calendar to time your arrival — turning up in the wrong month means weeks of no work and hostel bills.

Never pay anyone for a job. Hostels that require you to book weeks of accommodation in exchange for promised work are running a known scam.

SourcesHarvest work via Workforce Australia·Fair Work Ombudsman — horticulture (Never pay for a job)

Genuinely useful for working out what is realistic in the time you have. Each state also runs its own board with better regional detail.

SourceTourism Australia

Student visas require OSHC as a condition. Many work visas require OVHC. This is the independent comparison, not a broker.

SourceOverseas health cover (OSHC / OVHC)

Many occupations here are licensed or registered. Starting the assessment early matters — some take months, and skilled visas depend on them.

SourceGet overseas qualifications recognised

Australia has three time zones, and the clocks change in some states and not others. Calling home, booking a flight or joining a work call goes wrong easily if you assume one time for the whole country.

SourcesNSW Government — Daylight saving (Which states change, and the 2026–27 dates)·Business Victoria — Daylight saving (Start and end rule, and pay on the night)·NSW Government — Definitions of time (Zones, offsets, Broken Hill and Lord Howe Island)·Bureau of Meteorology — Daylight Saving Time (Zone names)

Some airports have separate domestic and international terminals, and a few are a long way apart. Looking at the map before you land makes the first hour far less stressful.

SourcesSydney Airport (Sydney)·Melbourne Airport (Melbourne)·Brisbane Airport (Brisbane)·Perth Airport (Perth)·Adelaide Airport (Adelaide)·Gold Coast Airport (Gold Coast)·Cairns Airport (Cairns)·Canberra Airport (Canberra)·Hobart Airport (Hobart)·Darwin Airport (Darwin)

There is no visa stamp in your passport in Australia — it is all electronic. VEVO is how you and your employer prove your work rights.

Do ImmiAccount first — this depends on it.

Know your condition numbers. 8547 caps working holiday makers at six months with one employer; 8105 caps student work hours. Breaching a condition can cancel a visa.

SourceVEVO — check your visa conditions

The keystone account. Almost everything government-related in Australia is reached through it. Set it up first and the rest of the list gets much shorter.

Use your own permanent email and phone. Recovering a myGov account tied to a dead phone number is genuinely painful.

SourcemyGov

Without one, your employer must withhold tax at the top rate — around 47% of your pay. With one, you are taxed normally. This is the highest-value ten minutes of admin you will do.

Do myGov first — this depends on it.

A TFN is always free. Any site charging you a fee to "apply for" or "fast-track" a TFN is reselling a free government service.

SourcesTax file number (TFN)·ATO — no TFN withholding rate (Top-rate withholding)

A single ambulance ride commonly costs $500–$1,800. In Queensland and Tasmania it is free for residents. In Victoria a membership costs about a dollar a week. Everywhere else you need cover.

This is the single most expensive thing new arrivals get wrong. Check your state page and sort it in week one.

SourcesAmbulance cover — check your state·Queensland Ambulance Service (Free for QLD residents)·Ambulance Tasmania (Free for TAS residents)·Ambulance Victoria — membership (Victorian membership cost)·NSW Ambulance (NSW fees)

The most important link on this page for anyone working. Australian minimum pay is set by industry awards and is usually well above the headline national minimum — including penalty rates for nights, weekends and public holidays.

Underpayment of new arrivals is widespread and illegal. Check your rate in your first week, not when you leave.

SourcesFair Work Pay Calculator·Fair Work Ombudsman — awards (Award rates and penalty rates)

Everyone working in Australia has the same rights regardless of visa status. The Ombudsman has an explicit assurance protocol so that reporting underpayment does not put your visa at risk.

Cash in hand with no payslip is a red flag. You must get a payslip within one working day of being paid. No payslip means no proof — and for working holiday makers, no evidence for a second-year visa.

SourcesFair Work Ombudsman·Fair Work Ombudsman — visa holders (Same rights regardless of visa)

Check before you swim. Always swim between the red and yellow flags — that is the patrolled area, and it is the single most effective safety decision you can make in Australian water.

Rip currents cause most Australian drownings. If caught in one, do not swim against it — stay calm, float, and raise an arm to signal.

SourcesBeachsafe·Surf Life Saving Australia — National Coastal Safety Report (Drowning and rip current data)

New arrivals are heavily targeted — fake rental listings, fake job offers, fake immigration officials demanding payment. Read the current list once so the pattern is familiar when it arrives.

No Australian government agency will ever call and demand immediate payment in gift cards, crypto or bank transfer, or threaten to cancel your visa over the phone. That call is always a scam. Hang up.

SourcesScamwatch·ATO — verify or report a scam (Government never demands gift cards)·Services Australia — scams (Impersonation scams)

The rain radar is the single most-used app in Australia. Warnings for cyclones, floods, heat and fire all originate here.

SourceBureau of Meteorology

Bushfire, flood and cyclone warnings are issued state by state — NSW has Hazards Near Me, Victoria has VicEmergency, Queensland has its own, and so on. Install yours in your first week.

In summer this is not optional. Fire moves faster than people expect, and the warning levels have specific meanings worth learning before a bad day.

SourceEmergency alerts — find your state service

Australia has among the highest skin cancer rates in the world and UV here is genuinely more intense than most arrivals expect. You can burn on a cool, cloudy day.

Slip, Slop, Slap, Seek, Slide. Sunscreen every day the UV index is 3 or above, which in most of Australia is most of the year.

SourcesSunSmart UV widget & app·Cancer Council Australia (Skin cancer rates and UV advice)·ARPANSA — UV index (UV measurement)

Not for immediate danger to life — that is 000 — but the number to call when the roof is leaking in a storm or the street is flooding.

SourceState Emergency Service (SES)

For reporting a theft after the event, a minor crash, or something suspicious that is not happening right now. Keeps 000 free for emergencies.

SourcePolice Assistance Line

Share housing is how most new arrivals start. Inspect in person, meet the housemates, and never transfer money for a room you have not seen.

Rental scams targeting new arrivals are common and follow a pattern: a great price, an owner who is "overseas", and pressure to pay a deposit sight unseen. Never do it.

SourceFlatmates.com.au

The single easiest way to meet people in a new town. Register once anywhere in the world and the same barcode works everywhere. Coffee afterwards is the actual point.

Sourceparkrun Australia

The most underused free service in Australia. Many libraries run free English conversation groups, newcomer sessions and job-application help. Membership usually takes ten minutes with proof of address.

SourceYour local public library

Search your city plus your nationality, and your city plus your hobby. Share houses, casual work and lifts get posted in these groups before they reach any website.

SourceMeetup & local groups

When the power and the mobile network go down, ABC local radio still works on a battery radio. This is the fallback the whole country relies on.

SourceABC Emergency

Your employer reports your pay to the ATO directly, so most of your return is pre-filled. Lodging yourself is free and takes about twenty minutes. Tax year ends 30 June; returns open in July.

Do myGov and Tax file number (TFN) first — this depends on it.

Working holiday makers are taxed on a separate scale with no tax-free threshold. Make sure your employer has registered as a working holiday maker employer, or you will be over-withheld.

SourceAustralian Taxation Office (ATO)

Your employer must pay superannuation on top of your wage — it is your money. Pick one fund and keep it. Multiple funds means multiple sets of fees eating the balance.

Do Tax file number (TFN) first — this depends on it.

Do not let each new employer open a new fund for you. Give them the details of the one you already have.

SourcesSuperannuation — YourSuper comparison tool·ATO — super guarantee (Employer obligation)

If you are eligible, enrol as early as you can. It is the difference between a $100 doctor visit and a free one.

Do myGov first — this depends on it.

SourceMedicare enrolment

If you hold a passport from the UK, Ireland, New Zealand, Sweden, the Netherlands, Belgium, Norway, Slovenia, Malta, Italy or Finland, you may be able to enrol in Medicare as a visitor. Most people from these countries do not know this.

An agreement is not travel insurance. It does not cover ambulance, dental, elective treatment or getting you home. Cover for Italy and Malta is limited to six months.

SourcesReciprocal Health Care Agreements·Services Australia — Reciprocal Health Care Agreements (Eligible countries)

Your bond is lodged with a government authority, not held by the agent. If nobody lodged your bond, something is wrong. Free tenant advice services exist in every state and are worth calling early.

SourcesACT Government — Renting (ACT)·NSW Government — Renting a place to live (New South Wales)·NT Consumer Affairs — Renting (Northern Territory)·Residential Tenancies Authority (Queensland)·Consumer and Business Services — Renting (South Australia)·Consumer Affairs Tasmania — Renting (Tasmania)·Consumer Affairs Victoria — Renting (Victoria)·Consumer Protection WA — Rental bonds (Western Australia)

Increasingly required for higher-security government services, and it strengthens your myGov account considerably.

Do myGov first — this depends on it.

SourcemyID (Australian government digital ID)

Handles licences, vehicle registration, digital licences, working-with-children checks, fines and concession cards. The state equivalent of myGov.

SourcesAccess Canberra (ACT)·Service NSW (New South Wales)·NT.GOV.AU (Northern Territory)·Queensland Government services (Queensland)·Service SA (South Australia)·Service Tasmania (Tasmania)·Service Victoria (Victoria)·WA Government (Western Australia)

No product sales, no affiliate links. The budget planner and the rent-vs-buy tools are the best free ones in the country.

SourceMoneysmart

Filter for bulk-billing practices — those charge Medicare directly and cost you nothing at the counter. Not all practices bulk bill any more, so ask when booking.

SourceFind a doctor, pharmacy or after-hours service

Free, no recruiters skimming, and it lists the government-funded training and support programs alongside the vacancies.

SourceWorkforce Australia

If a professional job is advertised in Australia, it is almost certainly here. Set up saved searches with alerts on day one — speed matters more than a perfect application.

SourceSEEK

Broadly: on a temporary visa you can usually keep driving on a valid overseas licence. Once you become a permanent resident, most states give you three to six months to convert.

Carry an English translation or an International Driving Permit alongside your home licence. Police can ask.

SourceConverting your overseas driver licence

Australian rentals are competitive. Applications usually need photo ID, proof of income, and rental references — assemble that pack once and reuse it.

Sourcerealestate.com.au & Domain

Independent, no commissions. Victoria has its own equivalent at Victorian Energy Compare. Switching takes minutes and is one of the easiest recurring savings available.

SourceEnergy Made Easy

They exist in every state and most regions, they are free, and almost nobody uses them in their first year. They know the local landscape better than any website.

SourceMigrant resource & settlement services

Government-funded, available in person and online, and the hour caps that used to apply have been removed for most participants. Changes to who is eligible have been proposed but still need to pass Parliament, so check the Home Affairs page before you enrol.

SourceAdult Migrant English Program (AMEP)

The fastest route to Australian references on a resume, and one of the better ways into a community if you have just moved to a town where you know nobody.

SourceVolunteering Australia

If you are thinking about staying permanently, this is where you find out whether your occupation, age and English score add up to a realistic pathway.

SourceSkillSelect & the points test

Voting is compulsory in Australia and so is enrolling once you are a citizen. You get fined for not turning up. New citizens are enrolled at their ceremony, but check it took.

SourceAustralian Electoral Commission — enrol to vote

Useful if you move around, because any doctor you see can pull up your history. Accessed through myGov, and you can control who sees what.

Do myGov and Medicare enrolment first — this depends on it.

SourceMy Health Record

Free training, a real qualification, and probably the most Australian institution there is. Clubs actively want new members and are used to teaching people from scratch.

SourceSurf Life Saving Australia

Explicitly built to combat isolation. Skews older, welcomes newcomers, and there are over a thousand of them.

SourceAustralian Men's Shed Association

If you worked here you will probably need to lodge an Australian tax return after 30 June, and you can do it online from your home country. Leave without sorting your myGov and your income details and a refund becomes much harder to chase.

You can lodge early, before 30 June, only if you are leaving permanently and will earn no more Australian income apart from interest, dividends and royalties. Early returns are on paper and take about 50 business days. If you have a HELP, VET Student Loan or Australian Apprenticeship Support debt, you must wait for the normal 1 July to 31 October period.

SourcesLodge your tax return when you leave·ATO — lodge your tax return before leaving Australia (Early lodgment rules)·ATO — lodge your tax return from outside Australia (Lodging from overseas)

Your bond is held by a state authority, not your landlord, and you claim it back when the tenancy ends. Doing it before you fly is far easier than from another country.

Time limits and forms differ by state, so use your own state authority, and claim before you leave if you can.

SourcesACT Government — Renting (ACT)·NSW Government — Getting your bond back (New South Wales)·NT Consumer Affairs — Renting (Northern Territory)·Residential Tenancies Authority (Queensland)·Consumer and Business Services — Renting (South Australia)·Consumer Affairs Tasmania — claiming a bond (Tasmania)·Consumer Affairs Victoria — Renting (Victoria)·Consumer Protection WA — releasing a bond (Western Australia)

Temporary residents can claim their super back once they have left and their visa has ceased. It is taxed heavily — for anyone who has held a working holiday visa, at a much higher rate — but it is real money worth reclaiming.

Start the claim after you leave. Keep your super fund informed of your address, or the balance ends up transferred to the ATO and the claim gets slower.

SourcesClaim your super when you leave (DASP)·ATO — DASP tax rates (Withholding rates, and when you can claim)

Medicare does not cover you overseas, though a country with a reciprocal agreement may cover some costs. If you get a payment, you may need to tell Services Australia you are going.

Set up your online access before you go. You may not be able to create a Centrelink online account from overseas, and if you cannot reach myGov you will have to phone an international number to report changes.

SourcesTell Services Australia you are leaving·Services Australia — when you live outside Australia

If you spend AUD 300 or more with one business before you fly, you can claim the GST back at a refund desk at the airport.

The goods must be bought within 60 days of leaving, the AUD 300 must be from one supplier with the same ABN, photocopies and photographs of invoices are rejected, and you must be ready to take everything on board as carry-on.

SourceTourist Refund Scheme (GST refund at the airport)

Better than Lifeline for the slower stuff — anxiety, low mood, isolation, adjusting badly. Free counselling by phone and chat.

SourceBeyond Blue

Migration advice is regulated. Anyone charging you for it and not on this register is acting illegally, and bad advice can cost you your visa.

Never hand your passport or ImmiAccount password to an agent. A legitimate agent never needs to log in as you.

SourceRegister of Migration Agents (MARA)

Sorts the enormous, confusing landscape of Australian mental health support into what you can actually access today, including free digital programs.

SourceMedicare Mental Health (formerly Head to Health)

The single most common way visitors get into serious trouble here. Fuel stops can be hundreds of kilometres apart, phone coverage disappears, and heat kills.

If your car breaks down remotely, stay with the vehicle. It is easier to find than a person walking, and it gives you shade.

SourceDriving long distances and remote areas

Entry on foot is free at many sites; vehicle passes and camping usually cost. Book campsites ahead in peak season — popular sites sell out months in advance.

SourceNational parks

The reputation is wildly out of proportion to the risk. Deaths from snakes and spiders are very rare, and no one has died from a confirmed redback bite since antivenom was introduced. Learn what to actually do rather than what to fear.

SourcesAustralian Museum — dangerous animals, factually·Australian Museum (Species and bite data)·Australian Venom Research Unit (Antivenom history)

Australian consumer guarantees are strong and they apply regardless of what a shop sign says. "No refunds" signs are generally not lawful.

SourcesAustralian Consumer Law — your guarantees·ACCC — consumer guarantees ("No refunds" signs)

The clearest short summaries of natural hazard risk anywhere, and if you are an Australian citizen travelling on, registering means the consulate can find you.

SourceSmartraveller

A culturally safe alternative to the mainstream lines, available 24/7.

Source13YARN

Free, confidential and open 24 hours. Home Affairs says visa holders can use it. If your visa depends on a partner, Home Affairs has a page on family violence and your visa.

Source1800RESPECT

Not a lender and not a debt company — actual free counsellors who negotiate with creditors on your behalf. If money has gone badly wrong, call before you borrow.

SourceNational Debt Helpline

If a financial company will not resolve a complaint, AFCA can make a binding decision. Costs you nothing.

SourceAustralian Financial Complaints Authority

Free to get, but only appropriate if you are actually running a business.

If an employer tells you to get an ABN for what is really a normal job, that is sham contracting and it is illegal. It shifts tax, super, insurance and leave onto you. Check with Fair Work before you agree.

SourcesAustralian Business Register (ABN)·Fair Work Ombudsman — sham contracting (Sham contracting is unlawful)

A few dollars. If a car has finance owing, it can be repossessed from you after you have paid for it. Every backpacker car sale should start here.

SourceCheck a used car before you buy (PPSR)

Free case managers who walk you through what to do if your identity or accounts have been compromised. There is no equivalent in most countries and it is very good.

SourceIDCARE

There is one in every region. Free, independent, and used to advising people on temporary visas.

SourceCommunity Legal Centres

Discrimination on race, nationality, age, sex, disability or religion is unlawful. The complaint process is free and does not require a lawyer.

SourceAustralian Human Rights Commission

Storms and heavy rain move fast. The radar shows what is coming in the next hour, which is why most Australians check it before a drive, a hike or hanging out the washing.

SourceWeather radar