Working Holiday
Route status
Active as of 2026-06-26[2][3][4][5]
Open to new applications under the rules recorded below.
| Open only to nationals of | Argentina, Australia, Canada, Chile, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea as of 2026-06-26[2][3][4][5] The scheme runs on bilateral agreements and is open to nationals of these seven countries and to nobody else. Each country has its own page, its own age limit, its own funds requirement and its own permitted work period, so the allowlist is not a formality – it is the scheme's organising structure. |
|---|
Residency route facts
Identity
| Official name (local) | Working holiday – Australien, Canada, New Zealand og Sydkorea as of 2026-08-22[2] Heading of the Danish-language edition of this route's own page on nyidanmark.dk, transcribed as published. The Aliens Act enumerates the grounds by section number and gives the permits no names of their own, so the authority's published Danish heading is the local name. |
|---|---|
| Official name (English) | Working Holiday as of 2026-06-26[2][3][4][5] SIRI publishes the scheme across four pages titled by country group: 'Working Holiday – Australia, Canada, New Zealand or South Korea', 'Working Holiday for Japanese citizens', 'Working Holiday – Argentina' and 'Working Holiday – Chile'. |
| Legal basis | Udlaendingeloven (Aliens Act), LBK nr 1183 of 25 September 2025, section 9 l(1) as of 2026-08-22[2][3][4][5][6] Section 9 l(1) grants a residence permit to a foreign national who, under an agreement between Denmark and another state (section 45), is entitled to an extended holiday stay in Denmark and, in connection with it, to work here to a defined extent. The permit is granted on the conditions the agreement itself sets, and the agreement may fix a quota, which is why the per-country quotas and terms differ. The scheme therefore sits outside the fourteen employment grounds of section 9 a(2): it is a treaty ground with its own section. Danish text: “§ 9 l. Efter ansøgning gives der opholdstilladelse til en udlænding, der ifølge en aftale mellem Danmark og en anden stat, jf. § 45, er berettiget til et længerevarende ferieophold her i landet og i forbindelse hermed er berettiget til at arbejde her i landet i et nærmere afgrænset omfang. Opholdstilladelsen gives på de betingelser, som aftalen opstiller. Der kan i aftalen være fastsat en kvote for, hvor mange opholdstilladelser der kan gives i en nærmere fastsat periode.” |
| Instrument type | residence permit as of 2026-06-26[2][3][4][5] |
Who can apply
Permit terms
| Initial duration | 1 year as of 2026-06-26[2][3][4][5] One year from the date of entry, on every agreement. The permit is shortened where the passport expires within 3 months of the end, where the required insurance expires sooner, or where a return ticket names an earlier departure date. |
|---|---|
| Renewable | No as of 2026-06-26[2][3][4][5] SIRI states that the permit cannot be extended beyond 1 year, and that a previous working-holiday stay in Denmark normally bars a new permit. |
| Work rights | Recorded at the source, but not reducible to a single value[2][3][4][5] |
Permanent residence and citizenship
Requirements
| Job offer required | No as of 2026-06-26[2][3][4][5] No employer and no job offer; the permit is granted for a holiday of which work is an incident. |
|---|---|
| Labour-market test | No as of 2026-06-26[2][3][4][5] None. |
| Qualification requirement | none as of 2026-06-26[2][3][4][5] No educational or professional condition on any agreement. |
| Employer sponsorship | No as of 2026-06-26[2][3][4][5] |
| Own means requirement | Recorded at the source, but not reducible to a single value[2][3][4][5] |
| Job-search route | No as of 2026-06-26[2][3][4][5] Not a job-search route: work is permitted during the stay, which a Danish job-seeking permit does not allow. |
Process
| Where to apply from | Recorded at the source, but not reducible to a single value[2][3][4][5] |
|---|---|
| Observed processing time | 3 to 4 months as of 2026-06-26[2][3][4][5] 3 months normal and up to 4 months where further information is needed on the Japan, Argentina and Chile pages. The Australia/Canada/New Zealand/South Korea page publishes 3 months with no second figure. Argentina and Chile add that a decision comes no later than 3 months from submission to VFS. |
| Fees |
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| Quota |
Your next step
Read the requirements above considering your own situation: the income multiple, the absence limits, who you can bring. Check the country record for the reference figure those amounts are calculated from, and for anything that has changed recently.
The next step is your own case. That assessment is legal work. Create profile for our assistance in this.
Profile benefits
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Verification
| Sources cited | 7 |
|---|---|
| of which official (tier 1) | 7 |
| Oldest as-of date | 2026-06-26 |
| Newest as-of date | 2026-08-22 |
| Reviewed on | 2026-08-22 |
| Schema version | 1.1 |
Sources
- [1] Working Holiday – Chile and Argentina
Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-02-27 · Accessed 2026-08-20 - [2] Working Holiday – Australia, Canada, New Zealand or South Korea
Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2025-12-03 · Accessed 2026-08-20 - [3] Working Holiday – Argentina
Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-06-26 · Accessed 2026-08-20 - [4] Working Holiday – Chile
Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-06-26 · Accessed 2026-08-20 - [5] Working Holiday for Japanese citizens
Danish Agency for International Recruitment and Integration (SIRI) · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-06-26 · Accessed 2026-08-20 - [6] Bekendtgoerelse af udlaendingeloven (Aliens Act, consolidated), LBK nr 1183 af 25/09/2025
Udlaendinge- og Integrationsministeriet / Retsinformation · statute · Tier 1 · Published 2025-09-25 · Accessed 2026-08-22 - [7] Apply for a permanent residence permit
The Danish Immigration Service · official portal · Tier 1 · Published 2026-07-07 · Accessed 2026-08-19