The Working Holiday Visa was introduced in April 2001 as a reciprocal scheme enabling young Japanese and British people to work and travel in each other's countries. Lucy Holmes is currently working in Japan on the visa and has sent the Embassy a personal account of her experience.

I came to Japan on a Working Holiday Visa following advice from the Consular Section of the Japanese Embassy. Having lived and worked in Japan before, I wanted another shot at becoming pera pera* in Japanese. The Working Holiday Visa allows you to live, work and travel in Japan for up to one year and of the application process is to outline a proposed travel itinerary. I also needed to show that I had sufficient funds before going, either £1,500 together with proof of purchase for an airline ticket, or else £2,500 with no proof of ticket.

Having a Working Holiday Visa in my pocket meant I did not have to rely on finding work before going to Japan, nor did the company who eventually employed me have to sponsor a Working Visa or worry about any paperwork. Time is also an important factor: a Working Visa takes up to three months to obtain, whereas the Working Holiday takes roughly two weeks.

After various interviews in Nagasaki and Tokyo, I decided to settle in Hiroshima where I am teaching in a small school. The visa certainly helped me to find a job, both from an employer's point of view and because it gave me a wider choice of options. I chose Hiroshima because I was offered a teaching job here and also because I liked the atmosphere of the place. I had lived in Osaka before and I wanted somewhere more relaxed which would also give me more opportunities to speak Japanese.

I work about 25 hours per week and teach almost 90 students of varying ages and abilities - my youngest are aged two. I had previously worked for a large chain of schools, where the teachers were under commercial pressure to encourage students to renew at the end of their course or buy teaching aids. There are fewer benefits such as health insurance and flexible holidays in my current smaller school, but there is much less pressure. The teaching hours suit me as I am studying for my Proficiency Exam, Level Two and it gives me the time to study.

In terms of travel, I have already visited beautiful Miyajima, and will be visiting Okinawa at the end of the month. I have also managed a few days in Korea, and will be spending Christmas with my sister in New Zealand.

I am still far from pera pera* but the Working Holiday Visa has given me the freedom to travel and work as and when I want. In other countries, the scheme is a fairly well-known method of exploring Japan but it is still quite new in the UK. Yet it is a perfect means of funding travel throughout Japan without the trouble of looking for work beforehand.

Further information and application forms for the Working Holiday Visa are available from the Consulate-General in London (tel: 020 465 6565), the Consulate-General in Edinburgh (tel: 0131 225 4777) or online at www.uk.emb-japan.go.jp. Please note that applications can only be accepted from British citizens resident in the UK.

* pera pera = fluent