Seasonal job scams: check the offer before you pay or travel

When the offer is too easy

Scamwatch warns that employment scams can promise high income for little effort and use online advertising, social media or messaging apps to steal money and identity details. Pressure to act quickly, an unexpected message and a job you never applied for are reasons to pause.

For seasonal work, be cautious if a supposed recruiter will not provide the employing business, exact worksite, written pay and a reachable supervisor. A attractive photograph, copied logo or positive comment is not proof that the sender controls a real vacancy.

Sources: Scamwatch · jobs and employment scams

Never pay to secure a job through this board

Applications through Seasonal Jobs Australia are free. Do not transfer money for a guaranteed placement, guaranteed visa days, priority selection or access to a secret job list. Be especially cautious with cryptocurrency, gift cards or payments to a personal account unrelated to the named business.

Accommodation, transport or documented programme travel costs need their own clear written terms. A legitimate-looking invoice is not enough: independently check who receives the money, what it covers and what happens if the job does not begin.

Sources: Scamwatch · jobs and employment scams · Fair Work · deductions from pay

Check the business independently

1. Find the business website or registry details yourself.
2. Call a phone number sourced independently and ask whether the role and recruiter are genuine.
3. Match the contract’s legal name and ABN with the claimed employer.
4. For labour hire, check the official licence register and status.
5. Ask for the worksite, roster, pay arrangement and start date in writing.
6. Search the business name with “scam” and read results critically.

A public registration or licence is one check; it is not proof that every message using that name is genuine.

Sources: Scamwatch · jobs and employment scams · Queensland · labour hire licensing and public register · Victoria · labour hire provider obligations and 2026 changes

Limit what you share

Send documents through a channel you have checked. Do not send your full passport, bank login, card security code or a selfie with identity documents to an unknown messaging contact. Employers may need work-rights evidence, but you can ask why it is needed and how it will be handled.

Keep copies of the advertisement and messages. In this board’s application flow, select the documents you want to share; private tracker evidence is separate from a job application.

Sources: Scamwatch · jobs and employment scams

If money or identity details have already been sent

Contact your bank or card provider immediately, stop further contact with the sender and change compromised passwords. Report the matter to Scamwatch. Its guidance also points to IDCARE for identity-recovery help.

Use the board’s report form so the listing can be investigated. Retain payment references and messages, but do not send more sensitive documents in a public comment. If there is immediate danger in Australia, call 000.

Sources: Scamwatch · jobs and employment scams

Common questions

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