J1 closing dates

sarsarsar

Hi guys,

I want to apply tor the j1 this year but I cant seem to find the closing dates for booking anywhere, with any of the companies.

I am trying to put off booking as long as possible as I may have to stay in Ireland this summer. I wont know until roughly May. If anyones been in this situation before is it possible to put it off until then??

lil_lisa

I didn't apply until late-March early-April last year (2009) there's not an early closing date I don't think but the price will go up, for the J-1 visa and for the flights!

sarsarsar

thank you, good to know the option is still there even if its more expensive!

abelard

In or around May 16th last year was when I applied (it was definitely during the UCD exam period which is around there). It was something like the second last day I could apply. The only downside was that I couldn't fly out until the second week of June, so if you want to beat the crowds for jobs and stuff, you might just have to take the risk and book a little earlier.

The sites of the likes of go4less and USIT will have notices up on their website around the start of May advertising the deadline for applications, so keep an eye out there around the end of April.

edit: and I didn't have to pay any additional fees for booking so late.

lil_lisa

Its not that you pay additional fees but the price of flights may go up and they may not have the offer for the free visa still running! I think we booked ours on the very last day of it or something close!

abelard

lil_lisa wrote:

Its not that you pay additional fees but the price of flights may go up and they may not have the offer for the free visa still running! I think we booked ours on the very last day of it or something close!

Tbh I don't think the "free visa" offer ever really ends unless there's HUGE demand in any given year and they know they'll sell their allocation of visa's regardless. With the current economic climate blah blah blah I doubt there'll be that huge demand this year, so don't worry too much, but do bear in mind that as lil_lisa said it could potentially end.

My flights last year were only a little over 400 (I flew with Continental), which isn't much more than you'd pay if you booked flights with the likes of Aer Lingus right now. So you definitely still can get cheap flights with a last minute booking, but then maybe I just got lucky....

lopppy

abelard wrote: »

Tbh I don't think the "free visa" offer ever really ends unless there's HUGE demand in any given year and they know they'll sell their allocation of visa's regardless. With the current economic climate blah blah blah I doubt there'll be that huge demand this year, so don't worry too much, but do bear in mind that as lil_lisa said it could potentially end.
.

Its all ready ended, its up to 95 or 99 now

abelard

lopppy wrote: »

Its all ready ended, its up to 95 or 99 now

Colour me shocked

abelard

lopppy wrote: »

Its all ready ended, its up to 95 or 99 now

On this, I saw a USIT rep in UCD today putting up posters for the j1 with FREE VISA plastered across the top, so it seems the free visa offer was reintroduced (or maybe naver really ended).