Does Paspaley Pearl Farm Deckhand (Darwin) count as specified work?

Yes. The work location's postcode 0800 is on the Department of Home Affairs Regional Australia list, and Fishing and pearling work can count towards your specified work days.

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Aquaculture and fishing・Pearl farm (offshore, live-aboard option)

Paspaley Pearl Farm Deckhand (Darwin)

Q: Do I need a car for Paspaley Pearl Farm Deckhand (Darwin)?

To be confirmed. The ad does not explain transport to and from the pearl farm.

7.0Worth considering

Darwin, NT 0800

Hiring now・Closes 26 Oct Hiring started: 2026-09-28 ✓ Counts as specified work・Fishing and pearling

Casual deckhand at a Darwin-based pearl farm (Paspaley; optional 2–6 month live-aboard contract; the ad explicitly accepts working holiday makers)

Apply via online form

Last checked: 2026-10-08Before you apply

At a glance

PayTo be confirmed Peak seasonTo be confirmedCloses 26 Oct HoursFull-time hours AccommodationProvided TransportTo be confirmed LicencesCoxswain licenceRequirements: 4 ReviewsNo reviews yet LegitimacyABN activeDirect employer

Overall score

7.0/10・Worth considering

Pros

The ad explicitly accepts working holiday makers
Casual role; requires a background in physical labour / maritime / farm work, no certificates needed
The ad says meals and accommodation are provided ("Meals and accommodation provided*"; the condition behind the asterisk is not explained)

+2 more

Posted on the employer's official careers system; closes 2026-10-26
Postcode 0800 is in the Northern Territory; fishing / pearling counts as specified work and is not subject to the 6-month limit with one employer

Watch out for

The advertisement does not state a pay amount
Must pass a medical examination, a fitness test, drug and alcohol testing and a police check
Remote offshore work; on board you share living space with others

+2 more

Many applicants; only successful ones contacted
Darwin is very hot in October–November, followed by the wet season

How it is calculated

Calculated automatically from public information with a fixed formula — not scored by hand and not a paid ranking. Seven items are each scored 0–10 and combined as a weighted average.

✓ Meets the specified work requirementSpecified work eligibility is a threshold: locations that do not qualify are marked "Does not count"; qualifying ones get no extra points.

Online reviews25%6.0No verifiable rating yet, so the middle value of 6

Pay transparency20%4.0Pay method to be confirmed, no amount in the ad

Accommodation15%10.0Accommodation provided

Transport10%5.5To be confirmed

Legal and transparent10%9.0ABN active, Employed directly by the company

Amenities10%10.0Good local amenities

Weather10%7.0Climate data to be added; 7 for now

7.5 or above is "Recommend", 6.0–7.4 "Worth considering" and below 6.0 "Consider carefully". Items that are still to be confirmed score lower than confirmed good conditions; online ratings with few reviews are pulled towards the middle value of 6, and records of underpayment or official penalties from the last 10 years lower the score. Full calculation method

Specified work eligibility

✓ Counts as specified work

Postcode: 0800Regional Australia
Work category: Fishing and pearling

See full details

This location counts as specified work. Postcode 0800 is on the Department of Home Affairs "Regional Australia" list, and the work type is "Fishing and pearling".

Use the postcode of the work location — not the company's head office, and not where you live.

Work address

Darwin NT 0800 (Darwin-based roster; work is on pearl farms / vessels at sea – exact farm locations not published)
Postcode 0800・Darwin · Map location is approximate
Open in Google Maps

Work category

Fishing and pearling
Catching or farming fish and other aquatic life, and collecting or culturing pearls.

Within one employer, not every role counts as specified work (for example office admin or cleaning depends on Home Affairs' current temporary concession). Check the label on each role below, and keep every payslip.How specified work days are counted

Note: on 17 September 2026 the government announced second and third visas will move to a ballot. Completing specified work makes you eligible to enter, but it no longer guarantees a visa (start date not yet announced).Details

Jobs

Roles: 1

Pearl farm deckhandDeckhand Casual

CasualCounts as specified workTo be confirmed

Australian or New Zealand citizen
Steady work history in physical labour
Must pass a pre-employment medical examination
+3 more

Duties & requirements

Pearl farm deckhand (casual)

Work duties

Remove marine growth from pearl shells, care for the pearl shells (husbandry) and maintain farm-related facilities.

Pay method

To be confirmed
The ad only says "Attractive salary", with no amount.

Hours

Full-time hours; 2 weeks on, 1 week off (2:1) from Darwin, or a 2–6 month live-aboard contract

Requirements

Australian or New Zealand citizen, or confirmed Australian work rights (stated to include working holiday makers), Steady work history in physical labour, maritime or farm work, Must pass a pre-employment medical examination, a fitness test, and drug and alcohol testing, Have, or can obtain, a national police check, Able to accept remote areas and shared living spaces

Licences

Coxswain licence or related certificate: highly desirable, not required

Pearl farming falls under fishing and pearling specified work; fishing in Northern Australia is not subject to the 6-month limit with one employer. The ad is marked Casual, posted 2026-09-28, closes 2026-10-26. Source: https://paspaley.elmotalent.com.au/careers/comeworkwithus/job/view/75

About this employer

Work duties

Looking after pearl oysters at an offshore pearl farm: cleaning off growth, caring for the shells and maintaining farm equipment. The website says the company has land-based and vessel-based farms, where teams of 10–50 people live and work together.

Work environment

Outdoor work at sea, remote locations and shared living spaces (original wording from the ad); a fitness test must be passed.

Products & services

South Sea pearls (pearl oyster farming)

1 casual / seasonal roles. Duties, requirements and required licences are listed separately.

Pay and superannuation

To be confirmed

Advertised pay: Not published
Legal minimum hourly rate: To be confirmed
Superannuation: 12%Paid on top by the employer
How often you are paid: To be confirmed

See full details

Pay: The ad only says "Attractive salary", with no hourly rate or annual salary.
Applicable Award: To be confirmed
How you are paid: To be confirmed
By law wages must be paid in money (cash, cheque or bank transfer) at least monthly; whichever method is used, the employer must give you a payslip within 1 working day of paying you.
How often you are paid: To be confirmed
Superannuation: Yes. Your employer must also pay 12% of your wages into your super account — this applies to working holiday makers too, however much you earn. From 1 July 2026 it must be paid within 7 working days of each pay day. You can claim it back after leaving Australia (taxed at 65% for working holiday makers).
Tax: If the employer is registered as a Working Holiday employer, 15% is withheld on the first $45,000 of income. Being taxed 30% suggests the employer may not be registered; without a tax file number (TFN), 45% is withheld.

Statutory figures last checked: 2026-10-05. Your actual pay is what your employer's contract and payslips show.

Hours

Usual hours: Full-time hours
Weather-dependent?: To be confirmed

When they need workersHiring now (ad closes 2026-10-26)・Hiring started: 2026-09-28

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See full details

Usual hours: Full-time hours; 2 weeks on, 1 week off, or a 2–6 month live-aboard contract
Shifts: Rotating roster (from Darwin, or long-term live-aboard)
Weather-dependent?: To be confirmed
Additional notes: The ad says the roster is 2 weeks on, 1 week off (2:1, from Darwin) or a 2–6 month live-aboard contract (liveaboard).
Peak season: The ad does not mention a season; live-aboard contracts are 2–6 months.
Hiring: Hiring now: Paspaley's official careers system (ELMO) posted "Deckhand Casual" (Darwin, Casual) on 2026-09-28, closing 2026-10-26. The ad explicitly accepts working holiday makers (including Working Holiday Makers). You can choose a roster of 2 weeks on, 1 week off from Darwin, or a 2–6 month live-aboard contract; you must live in Darwin and work full-time hours. The ad does not give a pay amount.
Deckhand Casual (pearl farm deckhand, casual, Darwin, posted 2026-09-28, closes 2026-10-26)
Hiring started: 2026-09-28
Hiring status is checked automatically every day; last checked: 2026-10-08. See the job ad

Accommodation & transport

Accommodation: Provided
Transport: To be confirmed
Amenities: Good amenitiesGood local amenities
Nearest town: Darwin

View this company on Google MapsDarwin, NT 0800

See full details

Accommodation

Accommodation provided
The ad says "Meals and accommodation provided*", but the condition behind the asterisk is not explained; on board you live with 10–50 people (website). The ad does not say where you stay in Darwin on your days off.

Transport

To be confirmed
The ad does not explain transport to and from the pearl farm.

Getting there without a car: Darwin has buses (Darwinbus) but no commuter rail; the ad does not explain transport to and from the boat.
Public transport: Darwin's buses are run by contractors and managed by the NT Government's public transport division (Wikipedia).
Nearest airport: Darwin International Airport (in Eaton, sharing a runway with RAAF Base Darwin) (Wikipedia).
Nearest town: Darwin (capital of the Northern Territory)

Amenities

Darwin is the capital of the Northern Territory (population 139,902 in 2021).

Grocery shopping: Darwin is a city; individual supermarket stores were not checked this time.
Medical: Not verified this time.
Other: To be confirmed

Online reviews

No verifiable reviews yet

See full details

Compiled from Indeed, Glassdoor, backpacker blogs and the news. Everything is a paraphrased summary — follow the links to read the originals.

Paspaley's Indeed company page currently has no employee reviews (https://au.indeed.com/cmp/Paspaley/reviews). No backpacker accounts were found.

Review summary last checked: 2026-10-08. Online reviews are personal experiences and may be out of date or not reflect the whole picture; ratings change over time, so the original sites prevail.

How to apply

Online form on the official website

Apply via online form Email: recruitment@paspaley.com.au Phone +61 8 8982 5560

My application status Saved only in this device's browser

You will need

Australian work rights (the ad states this includes working holiday makers)
Pass a medical, a fitness test and an alcohol and drug test
Police check

+1 more

Physical labour, maritime or farm background

Restrictions

Must live in Darwin and work full-time hours (as stated in the ad)
On board you share living space with others
Closes 2026-10-26

See full details

Before you apply

Apply online with "Apply" on Paspaley's ELMO careers system (you need to create an account); the company says it receives many applications and will only contact successful applicants. The website also offers an email for general applications, recruitment@paspaley.com.au, and phone +61 (0) 8 8982 5560.

Licences required

Coxswain licence or related certificate: highly desirable, not required

Each role needs different licences — see the role descriptions above.

Only apply through the channels listed on this page or published on the employer's official website. Legitimate employers never ask you to pay for a job; for look-alike job sites or people who message you privately, check the official website first.Avoiding illegal work

Official website: paspaleygroup.com
Careers page: Go to the careers page

Weather

Next 7 days

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Monthly temperature & rainfall

October is Darwin's hottest month, with an average high of 33.8°C; December–March is the wet season, and annual rainfall is about 1,800 mm (Wikipedia).

Climate data to be added.

Legitimacy

Company registration: ABN activeABN 67 009 591 708
Employment arrangement: Direct employer

See full details

Make sure it is a registered company that gives payslips and pays super, so your specified work days will hold up.

Company registration: ABN 67 009 591 708・PASPALEY PEARLING COMPANY PTY. LIMITED・Active
View on ABN Lookup
Employment arrangement: Employed directly by the company
Notes: ABN 67 009 591 708 (Paspaley Pearling Company Pty. Limited) active since 2000-03-24, private company, registered for GST since 2000-07-01, main business location NT 0800; registered business names Australian South Sea Pearls, Darwin Pearls, Northern Territory Pearls and Paspaley Aviation, trading name Paspaley Pearls Joint Venture (ABR, checked 2026-10-08). The job is listed on the ELMO careers system linked from Paspaley's website (direct employment). The site already has an entry for Paspaley's Broome pearl farm; this is a separate job in Darwin.

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Sources

Last checked: 2026-10-08. If you see outdated or incorrect information, let us know.

Not yet confirmed (4)

The actual farm location is not published; the coordinates use Darwin city centre (ABS area centre). The ad says the company's farms range from Exmouth in WA to north of Darwin.
The condition behind the asterisk in "Meals and accommodation provided*" is not explained.
It has not been confirmed which Award applies to pearl farming, so the award field is set to null.
Paspaley currently has no employee reviews on Indeed.

See all sources (5)

To be confirmedHiring now・Closes 26 Oct

Apply online