Where to Print, Copy and Scan Documents in Australia — A Guide to Libraries and Officeworks
A guide for temporary visa holders (working holiday makers and students) looking for somewhere to print, copy and scan resumes, visa paperwork and lease documents. It covers library membership requirements (no citizenship or permanent residency needed), guest printing without joining, Officeworks self-service, file-transfer and payment traps, and links to each state's official library finder. Fees and policies change often, so official check links are included throughout.
Where to print — two main routes and 6 things to check
When you've just arrived in Australia, it can feel bewildering to work out where to print or scan a resume, visa documents or a rental lease, because there are no convenience-store printers like back home. In practice there are two main routes. ① Public libraries — cheap, and scanning is usually free, but access and membership conditions vary depending on where you live. ② Officeworks — a large office-supplies chain with stores across the country; it requires no membership, visa or proof of address at all, making it the easiest option for someone who has just arrived. Choose based on what you're printing (a black-and-white resume or a colour document) and how urgently you need it.
How to read this guide
The information below lets you check six things: ① library membership eligibility ② whether you can print without joining ③ any free allowance ④ fees ⑤ how to transfer your file ⑥ whether scanning is available. Keep in mind, though, that fees and policies change often. All the amounts in this guide are approximate ranges as verified in July 2026, so confirm them again on each organisation's official page before you visit. Trust the official pages of libraries, councils and companies — not third-party blogs.
Officeworks self-service — your first choice, no membership or visa needed
Officeworks is an office-supplies chain with stores across Australia, and each store has self-service printing, copying and scanning machines. It doesn't ask for membership, an account, ID, a visa or proof of residence — all you need is a way to pay — which makes it the most reliable choice for temporary visa holders. As verified in July 2026, a black-and-white A4 page costs roughly around ten-odd cents, a colour A4 page roughly 50 cents or so, and a scan roughly 30 cents, but fees change, so confirm them on the official page before you go. You can bring your files in via USB, email (send them to a dedicated address in advance and print using the code you get back), the cloud (Dropbox or OneDrive), or the PrintMe app.
How to avoid getting stuck in-store
People get stuck at file transfer and payment more often than at the printing itself. Sorting out just these three things in advance can save you a wasted trip.
- A USB drive formatted on a Mac (APFS or HFS+) can't be read by the machines — format it as exFAT or FAT32, or just send your file by email or the cloud instead.
Public library membership — temporary visa holders can join too
The most common misconception is that "only permanent residents can use libraries." That isn't true. Across the 8 states and territories we checked, no public library required citizenship, permanent residency or proof of long-term residence to join. The only barriers are ID and, in some places, proof of your current address, and joining is free in most cases. Working holiday, student and work visa holders can all join. However, the required documents and the names of membership tiers vary by state and branch, so use section 5 below to find your local library and confirm the exact conditions on its official page.
- The standard combination is a passport (proof of identity) + a document showing your current address (a lease, bank statement or utility bill). With those two, you'll usually become a full member.
- There's a path even without proof of address — many libraries offer a 'visitor' or 'temporary' membership tier and let you join at a branch with just your passport (borrowing limits and durations may be restricted).
Without membership, at low cost — 4 things to know
These are the four things that vary most from branch to branch when using a library. Each point is a general tendency ('usually the case'), and it differs by location, so confirm it on the relevant library's page before you visit.
Some libraries let you print without an account using a wireless app or web tool like Princh, just by entering your email (for example, City of Melbourne libraries). Others strictly require a membership card and PIN. If you want to print without joining, check on the relevant library's page before visiting whether guest printing is available.
Many of the state and council libraries we checked state that scanning (saving to USB or sending by email) is free. It's useful for scanning visa, contract or bank documents to keep or submit as a PDF. Note, though, that many places require you to bring your own USB drive.
At most places you pay from the very first page. The one confirmed exception is Libraries ACT in Canberra — 20 free black-and-white pages a day (membership required, printing from a library PC, bring your own USB; laptop WiFi printing and colour are not included). This is as verified on our check date and may change each financial year, so confirm the latest details on the official page.
Many organisations don't accept cash at all (for example, State Library Victoria) or don't give change. Bring a card (or Apple Pay / Google Pay), or top up your membership card in advance.
Finding a library near you — official directories by state
Australia has hundreds of public libraries, so rather than list them all here, we point you to each state's official directory for finding the library closest to where you live. Search by suburb or postcode using the links below, then confirm fees, membership conditions, whether guest printing is available and how to transfer files directly on the official page of the library you find. In South Australia (SA), the One Card means that once you join, your card works at libraries across the whole state.
NSW (Sydney, Newcastle, etc.): search the State Library of NSW public library list
Real-world traps and places to avoid
Here we've set out in advance the situations where you find a place but still can't print on the spot, and the places that are a wasted trip. In particular, watch out for garbled characters in Korean, Chinese, Japanese and Vietnamese documents.
- Convert Korean, Chinese, Japanese and Vietnamese documents to PDF before sending them, and open the converted PDF to check the characters aren't garbled — if you upload a Word file as is, the library server may not have the relevant font and the text can come out as □□.
- Government form PDFs, such as visa and tax forms, often print incorrectly — open and print them with Adobe Acrobat Reader. Files you send to a library for printing are usually deleted automatically after a day or two, so collect them at the store the same day you send them.
Reference links (fees and policies change often — confirm before visiting)
- Officeworks — Print, Copy & Scan Self Serve(opens in a new window)
Officeworks self-service printing, copying and scanning fees and how to use them. Confirm here whether you can use them just by paying, without a membership, and whether the black-and-white, colour and scan fees have changed since our check date.
- Officeworks — Store Finder(opens in a new window)
Officeworks store finder. Search by postcode to check the nearest store and its opening hours — stores are not open 24 hours, so late-night printing isn't possible.
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