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Working abroad as a climber: visas and paperwork

Moving between the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand means a visa or permit. This guide says what the government pages described in October 2026.

Checked against the sources at the bottom of this page on October 6, 2026. Rules, fees and pay change: the source has the last word.

This is not legal advice. Immigration rules change, and the page for each passport and situation decides.

Working holiday routes

Working holiday schemes let young people from certain countries live and work abroad for a set time. They are not tied to tree work. Which scheme you can use depends on your passport.

ToScheme and ageStay
CanadaIEC, 18 to 35 (18 to 30 in some countries)Set per country on the page
United KingdomYouth Mobility, 18 to 35 for AU, CA, NZUp to 24 months
New ZealandWorking holiday, normally 18 to 3012 months, up to 23 for CA, up to 36 for UK

Canada

On its International Experience Canada page, the government says that if you are 18 to 35 (18 to 30 in some countries) you can come to work and travel in Canada. The eligibility by country page lists Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. The United States is not on that list. You create a profile, and eligible candidates receive an invitation to apply for a work permit. The page said the pools for the 2026 season were open, and it showed no fee or processing time.

United Kingdom

The Youth Mobility Scheme gives a visa to live and work in the UK for up to 24 months. The eligibility page lists Australia, Canada, New Zealand and South Korea at ages 18 to 35, and several other countries at ages 18 to 30. The United States is not on that list. You cannot apply if you have children under 18 who live with you or who you are financially responsible for.

On the overview page, the listed figures are an application fee of £340, a healthcare surcharge that is usually £776 per year, and savings of £2,530. It says you can work in most jobs. You can also be self-employed and set up a company, as long as your premises are rented, your equipment is not worth more than £5,000 and you have no employees. Only people from Australia, Canada and New Zealand can extend by one year after the 2 years end.

New Zealand

Working holiday visas allow young people from recognised countries to work and travel in New Zealand. The who can apply page says you must work for an employer under an employment contract or a contract for services, and that you cannot operate a business as an owner.

People from Canada can stay up to 23 months, and people from the United Kingdom up to 36 months. The page for United States citizens says you must be aged 18 to 30, can stay up to 12 months, and need at least NZ$4,200 for living expenses. The visa fee starts from NZ$770.

Australia

Australia has two routes for young adults who want an extended holiday and work to fund it. The Working Holiday visa (subclass 417) page says applicants must be 18 to 30 years old, or 35 for some countries, must hold a passport from an eligible country or jurisdiction, and must not be accompanied by dependent children. The Work and Holiday visa (subclass 462) page gives an age range of 18 to 30 inclusive, a passport from an eligible country, and the same rule on dependent children. Each page lists its own set of eligible countries.

Skilled worker routes

United Kingdom

A UK Skilled Worker visa depends on a 4-digit occupation code. The your job page says the code is found with the CASCOT tool, and that the job description must match what you will be doing. It gives a salary floor of £41,700 per year or the going rate for the job, whichever is higher.

On the eligible occupations table, updated 22 July 2025, Arborists are listed under code 5119, agricultural and fishing trades not elsewhere classified, as Medium Skilled. The your job page says that for a Medium Skilled code you can apply if the job is on the immigration salary list or the temporary shortage list, with a few exceptions such as extending an earlier visa. On the immigration salary list, updated 11 November 2025, the only entry under 5119 is jobs in the fishing industry. Forest workers sit under code 9112, which the table marks Ineligible.

Canada

The government's NOC profile for code 22114, landscape and horticulture technicians and specialists, lists Arborist and Tree service technician as example titles. It is at TEER 2, which means occupations that usually need a college diploma or apprenticeship training of two or more years. The profile says a 2 to 3 year college program is usually required, that an apprenticeship exists for arboriculturists, and that trade certification for landscape horticulturists is voluntary in all provinces. It does not name a certification for arborists.

Australia and New Zealand

Immigration New Zealand keeps a Green List search of roles it needs workers for. A role on Tier 1 can lead to a Straight to Residence Visa, and a role on Tier 2 to a Work to Residence Visa, if you hold the qualifications, registration or experience listed. Its National Occupation List sets the occupations used for an Accredited Employer Work Visa.

Work permits and petitions

Canada

Canada has a work permit page that describes two main types. An employer-specific permit needs a job offer. An open permit does not. The page also has a section on who can work without a work permit.

United States

The USCIS page on working in the United States says a common way to work temporarily is for a prospective employer to file a petition on your behalf. In many cases USCIS must approve the petition before you can apply for a visa or seek admission at a port of entry. How long you can work depends on the type of status you hold.

The H-2B visa is for non-agricultural work. The Department of Labor page says the employer must show a temporary need: one-time, seasonal, peakload or intermittent. The employer files a job order and an application with the Department of Labor 75 to 90 days before the date of need. The USCIS H-2B page said that on September 4, 2026 the cap for the first half of fiscal year 2027 was reached, and that new cap-subject petitions with a start date before April 1, 2027 would be rejected. Neither page names tree work.

Getting a certificate recognised

No official page linked here says that one country accepts another's tree certificate in place of its own.

ISA says on its types of credentials page that a certification is a voluntary program administered by a non-governmental organization. It lists Certified Arborist, Utility Specialist, Urban Forest Professional, Certified Tree Climber, Tree Worker Aerial Lift Specialist and Board Certified Master Arborist as credentials, and the Tree Risk Assessment Qualification as a qualification, which it treats as a different kind of award.

For what each credential is, see the guide on certifications by country. Contract work abroad is covered in the guide on subcontracting and cover.

Dates and changes

  • Each immigration site sets its rules by passport, so the page for one passport can say something different from another.
  • Fees and age limits change, and each official page carries its own date.
  • The guide to finding climbing work lists where employers post jobs in each country.

Sources