Whether you’re planning to live in Australia for an entire year on a Working Holiday Visa or longer, at some point you’ll need a bank account. Thankfully, getting an Australian bank account as a backpacker isn’t too hard—as long as you have the right documentation.
The tricky part of getting an Australian bank account as a backpacker is that you don’t have as many options as an Australian. The reason for this is most banks require different documentation. This other could be a bill with your house address. Or, another document with your full name and Australian address.
Many backpackers won’t have this in their first few weeks in Australia. Which is why they go with another bank that doesn’t have the same requirements. Those banks are the biggest in Australia, and anyone can apply for an account.
Before heading to a bank, make sure you have all of these documents:
- Passport
- Visa grant letter or VEVO Visa Details Check
- Australian mailing address
- Australian phone number
- Mailing address in home country
- Tax file number
- TFN equivalent from home country
- Drivers license from home country or other government issued ID
Something else to keep in mind is that signing up for a basic Australian bank account usually means a savings account. Chequing accounts are just for cheques.
It’s possible to sign up for an account before arriving Australia. This is an easy way to transfer money over before arriving. Some limitations to this is no transfers, payments or withdrawals can be done before doing an in-person identity check is done, at a bank branch.
Most banks have some fees, but others will waive fees if there’s monthly deposits of over A$2,000.
This is great for backpackers working their entire time in Australia, but most won’t be doing this. It’s better to go with an account with no fees.
All of the banks featured on this list have apps to check your account balance and transfer money, along with other features. All accounts can also pay through your smart phone or watch, including Apple Pay.
Here’s the Australian bank accounts backpackers can get when first arriving in the country. Banks are listed alphabetically, with the name of account. I’ve also included current account fees as of the publication date.
Table of Contents
ANZ | Access Advantage
Monthly Fees: A$5 or free for under 25, or with A$2,000 monthly deposits.
ANZ is one of the biggest banks in Australia, and has around 2,600 ATMs around the country. The company’s basic everyday account is the Access Advantage, which features a Visa debit card.
CommBank | Everyday Account Smart Access
Monthly Fees: A$4 or free for under 25, or with A$2,000 monthly deposits.
Commonwealth Bank has the largest network of ATMs in Australia, at over 4,000. This means it will likely be the easiest to access funds through ATMs while travelling Australia. The fee is slightly cheaper than ANZ, but it still offers the discount for young applicants and those with monthly instalments. The Everyday Account Smart Access is a debit Mastercard.
NAB | Classic Banking Account
Monthly Fees: Free
Unlike the other big bank competitors, NAB is the only bank that doesn’t have any fees for an everyday banking account. NAB’s Classic Banking Account offers a debit Visa. Although NAB only has around 1,000 ATMs around Australia, customers also can withdraw funds free from over 7,000 ATMs in Australia. These include ATMs of NAB, Commonwealth, ANZ and Westpac across the country. Also included in the account is your choice of a black or pink bank card.
Wespac | Wespac Choice
Monthly Fees: A$5 or free for backpackers for the first year, under 21 or with A$2,000 monthly deposits.
Last on the list of Australian Bank accounts for backpackers is Wespac. The company features a slightly different fee scheme than other banks on this list which is free for the first 12 months. Meaning it’s free for those that only plan to stay 12 months or less. Another bonus this account has is those under 30 will have A$40 paid into their account when fulfilling some terms. This offer is valid until January 16, 2020 for new customers.
Once you decided on a bank account it’s time to sign up for super before beginning work. Understanding superannuation is the next step to working legally.
