HOW TO APPLY?
US citizens
US citizens wishing to travel to Ireland under the terms of the agreement should make an application for a US Working Holiday Authorisation at the Consulate General of Ireland in Chicago.
A completed and signed application form (PDF 35kb) should be presented together with:
- Valid United States passport;
- 2 recent identical passport photographs with your name on the reverse;
- Current curriculum vitae (with references);
- Original bank statement showing that you have access to €1,500 (or $US equivalent) plus a return ticket; or €3,000 (or $US equivalent);
- Originals of any educational qualifications obtained or letter from school/college/university (where applicable)
- The relevant fee of $337 (if you are picking your WHA up in person) or $349 (including courier fee for applications by mail)
Once the Consulate General is satisfied with the documentation above, the application will be approved in principle and the applicant notified. The Working Holiday Authorisation will then be issued on submission by the applicant of:
- Return airline tickets;
- Certificate of medical/travel insurance showing coverage in Ireland and valid for the duration of the trip (based on dates on tickets)
- United States passport that is valid for the entirety of the trip to Ireland; ie for a full year after their ticketed date of entry.
Irish citizens
Irish citizens wishing to travel to the US should consult the website of the US Embassy in Dublin for detailed information http://dublin.usembassy.gov/ .
The US government has in place a two step application process for this scheme. Applicants must first apply to an authorised sponsoring organisation to be issued with a form DS-2019, and once that document has been issued they should apply to the US Embassy for the relevant visa. A full list of the authorised sponsoring organisations is available on the website of the US Embassy.
Some sponsoring organisations are specifically focusing on the Irish scheme, such as the Boston Irish Immigrant Centre - www.iicenter.org and USIT - www.usit.ie . In order to assist Irish citizens interested in participating in this scheme links to other organisations focussing specifically on the Irish scheme will be added here as and when details are confirmed
Irish citizens wishing to travel to the US should contact an appropriate sponsoring organisation or the US Embassy in Dublin directly for further information about this scheme.
