The evidence they ask you for
What has to be on a payslip, what to keep from day one, and why the Department can ask years later.
Without proof, the days do not exist
The Department does not take your word for it. You may genuinely have worked 88 days, but if you cannot show it those days do not count and the application is refused.
It is the part almost everyone neglects, because while you are working it feels obvious that the work happened. The problem arrives months later, once the seasonal business has closed and the supervisor has moved on.
What has to be on the payslip
The employer name, their ABN, the period covered, the hours worked and gross pay. Without the ABN a payslip is worth much less, because it cannot be tied to a real business.
You also need where you worked, and that is often missing. If the payslip carries only the registered office, ask the employer to add the work site, or keep the contract and rosters that show it.
Form 1263
This is the declaration your employer signs: it confirms who you are, what you did, where, and for how long. The Department can ask for it, and in practice often does.
The moment to get it signed is your last day, not six months later. An employer standing in front of you signs; the same employer emailed in the off season sometimes never replies.
What to keep, from day one
Every payslip, bank statements showing the deposits, the contract, the income statement, and the signed form 1263. Photograph everything and keep a copy off your phone.
Cash work with no payslip does not count, and there is no way to recover it afterwards. If an employer offers cash only, those days are lost for the visa no matter how hard you worked.
Get your evidence in order
Add a payslip and the app reads the dates, the hours and the employer, and tells you straight away whether that period holds up or something is missing.
Get your evidence in orderFAQ
I lost a payslip, what now?
Ask the employer: they are legally required to keep records for seven years. Failing that you need the bank statement showing the deposit plus the contract or a signed form 1263.
Is a bank statement enough on its own?
No. It shows money arrived, not who paid it or for what work. It has to sit alongside other evidence.
My employer will not sign form 1263
They are not obliged to. Strengthen everything else: payslips with the ABN on them, the contract, rosters, messages that discuss the work and the location.