If you're heading to Australia on a student visa, three questions come before any other: can I work? How much? Doing what? This guide answers all three, no runaround.

The hour limit on the student visa (500)

On the student visa, you can work 48 hours every 14 days (fortnight) while your course is running. During school holidays, the limit disappears — work as much as you want.

How much do you earn working 48h/fortnight?

Type of work$/hour (casual)Gross fortnightGross monthEst. net month
Café / baristaA$27–32A$1,296–1,536A$2,592–3,072A$2,100–2,490
Restaurant / waiterA$27–35A$1,296–1,680A$2,592–3,360A$2,100–2,720
Cleaning (company)A$28–35A$1,344–1,680A$2,688–3,360A$2,180–2,720
Cleaning (self-employed / ABN)A$35–55A$1,680–2,640A$3,360–5,280⚠️ see ABN note
Supermarket / retailA$27–32A$1,296–1,536A$2,592–3,072A$2,100–2,490
Delivery / driverA$27–38A$1,296–1,824A$2,592–3,648A$2,100–2,960
ConstructionA$35–45A$1,680–2,160A$3,360–4,320A$2,720–3,500

Source: Fair Work Ombudsman — Pay Guides. Net month estimated for a tax resident with the tax-free threshold active, income ~A$33–42k/year.

Do the maths: 48h/fortnight at an average A$28/hour comes to roughly A$1,344/fortnight, or A$2,688/month. Enough to cover rent and basic expenses — in cities outside Sydney, at least.

Employee (TFN) — tax is already deducted from your pay

Working as an employee with a TFN, income tax is withheld automatically by the employer each payday — what lands in your account is already net. Withheld too much? It comes back to you at tax return time.

ABN (self-employed) — no tax is withheld. You need to set it aside.

Working on an ABN, the full gross amount hits your account, with zero deductions. Looks great at first. The shock comes at the end of the financial year, when the ATO charges it all at once.

Example: A$4,000/month self-employed through the year = A$48,000 gross. At tax return, the ATO can charge around A$7,000–9,000 in tax — in one hit.

The golden rule for ABN: set aside 25–30% of everything you receive in a separate, untouchable account, just for tax.

Jobs that don't require prior experience

  • Barista / café — the RSA (Responsible Service of Alcohol) is mandatory for bars and pubs. You can do it in Australia (A$30–100, online)
  • Restaurant, pizzeria, snack bar
  • Residential and commercial cleaning
  • Supermarket and retail
  • Food delivery (DoorDash, Uber Eats)
  • Babysitter / childcare — WWCC (Working with Children Check) mandatory
  • Warehouse — night shift pays up to A$38–42/hour

Self-employed cleaning — earning more with an ABN

Cleaning is one of the most accessible jobs for immigrants — no tough interview, no advanced English, no prior experience. And there are two paths:

Working for a cleaning company

The simplest way to start — you're hired as a casual employee, paid by the hour (A$28–35), with no worries about clients or scheduling. Search SEEK and Indeed for "cleaner", "cleaning staff", "house cleaner".

Self-employed cleaning with an ABN — higher pay, more patience required

With an ABN you work for yourself, charge A$35–55/hour and keep 100% of it.

To find clients: advertise in neighbourhood Facebook pages (search "[suburb name] Community" or "Buy Sell Swap [suburb]"). Airtasker works too, and a referral from a happy client is the best advertising there is.

The realistic side: filling your schedule takes time — weeks, sometimes months. Hence the recommendation: keep a parallel job and shift gradually to self-employment as the schedule grows.

What about working in your field?

This one matters and isn't talked about openly enough. You can work in your field on a temporary visa — but the challenges are real:

Permanent vs temporary roles on a temporary visa

Many companies prefer candidates with PR for permanent roles — especially in IT, engineering, health and finance. The reason is simple: a temporary visa has an expiry date, and that creates uncertainty for the employer.

Impossible? No. Temporary contracts of 6 to 12 months are very common in these fields, and often they're exactly the way in. Once inside, you build a track record — and can be made permanent or move to a sponsored visa (SID/482).

Don't give up on your field — try to get into it. But keep a survival job in parallel to pay the bills while you chase the career opportunities:

  • Work 24h/week at something simple (café, delivery, cleaning) to cover the bills
  • Use the remaining hours for applications in your field, local certification courses and networking
  • Look for temporary contracts in your field — they're more accessible on a temporary visa
  • And when you land a contract in your field, consider scaling back the survival job

Where to look for work

SEEKAustralia's biggest job site — seek.com.au
Indeed AustraliaSecond biggest platform — au.indeed.com
LinkedInJobs in your field and professional networking
GumtreeInformal jobs and cash jobs — gumtree.com.au
AirtaskerOne-off tasks — great for the self-employed and people starting out
Community groupsFacebook/WhatsApp — jobs shared within immigrant communities. Search for your community in your city

The right resume strategy — quality, not quantity

A classic mistake: handing out resumes at 50, 100 places, at random. In practice, 5 well-delivered resumes beat 100 delivered any old way.

What actually makes a difference: going in at quieter times (Tuesday to Thursday mornings), asking for the manager by name and handing it to them personally, showing up well presented, having your resume on your phone and on paper — and following up 2–3 days later.

The first job often comes from your network — not from SEEK

In practice, many people land their first job through someone they already know — a course mate, a friend of a friend, someone from the local community group.

So invest in connections from day one. Join community groups, talk to people in your course, show up at events — and say openly that you're looking for work, no embarrassment needed.

Official sources