Quoll

Wagga is as good a place as any. There isn't much else that would justify you being a couple of hours away. BTW - I commented on your other post. NSW is one of the states that charge school fees for temporary visa holders - abt.$6k pa per student I think now. If you arrive by the end of this week your 16 year old could go into year 11 - but she can't really start half way through HSC so she may have to go into a much younger cohort when she does arrive or do HSC at TAFE or something.

Just a heads up, you do know that in some states you have to pay school fees on a temporary visa?

Once they have got on the GCSE roundabout it's better to let them finish A levels tbh, that way they keep all their options open. If you can't get them to Australia to start year 11 which is when they've either just turned 16 or just about to turn 16 then let them finish in UK. In Australia the last 2 years - 11 & 12 lead to a year 12 score which sets them up for Uni so you don't really want to arrive and put them in half way through the course because that would seriously disadvantage them. If the dilemma is whether to finish GCSEs or not because of a time frame, the most important thing is for them to arrive before or just as they turn 16 because GCSEs mean diddly squat here. Once they're past 16 if they can arrive with A levels, they convert well to Uni entrance scores. The other thing to consider of course is what if you decide you actually want to return to uk - then you've sort of screwed up their Uni options a bit - the Yr 12 scores don't convert as well in the opposite direction and often a Foundation year may be required and you'll be up for international fees because they won't have been resident for the 3 years before they start Uni. Your other option is to leave the older kids behind - board with family or friends - to finish their education then when they're done they can choose UK or Australia for further education and training. In answer to the "is 47 too old" question - well, it's borderline. Australia is quite an ageist place and the closer you get to 50 the more over the hill you are seen to be with respect to employment. It gets harder to build up your Super for a comfortable retirement too so unless you're coming with a lot of money it could be struggle street for a while as you get on your feet which means you don't have the cash to pump into Super.

First thing - will your teaching qualification allow you to teach in Australia? Here you have to have 4 years University based teacher training - so either a 4 year education degree or a bachelors plus PGCE. School based training doesn't count. Can you get a visa? Some states have particular requirements for visas like you need a second language or a special Ed qualification or they are only taking secondary teachers because there's a glut of primary teachers or they only want you if you'll go remote. Then you have the dilemma that there are too many teachers applying for jobs in places that people actually want to live and plenty of vacancies in places that people don't really want to live. Some states have a requirement that you have to do rural/remote work before you can apply for the plum positions (government systems). Teachers will tell you that it is tough going (because they always do) and I know more than a few teachers who have quit because they've got better offers elsewhere, offering them more stability of employment. If you're a secondary maths/science teacher though they'd probably bite off their arm to get you. Cost of living here is going up rapidly just like in UK and in many places you've needed to be a double income family to make ends meet for a long time. Fortunately I don't have a mortgage but house prices seem somewhat eye watering to me though Canberra is right up there on house prices with the other major cities. The thought of a million dollar mortgage for a very ordinary place like mine fills me with horror! It's just another first world country with the same issues besetting all other first world countries at the moment although we do generally tend to lag UK by a few years. If you want an adventure, go for it.

You could have applied for a visa but you wouldn't have got a teaching job. If you were prepared to change career there would be nothing stopping you working in Australia. School based training is not considered an adequate qualification to be a teacher in Australia.

Someone on here just got their 309 much quicker than they expected. With a long relationship and kids from the marriage I'd say good be in the speedier queue.

No, you have to live in UK for the 3 years before you start Uni. So if you're out for a year or two and you had a choice to live overseas then youve not been a British resident - gap years with parents still in a UK residence of course dont count. Being a citizen is irrelevant if you've been living and studying elsewhere. That's why the most sensible option for anyone with kids at the later stages of school is dont move until after A levels then you keep all your options open. A levels convert much better to Uni entrance scores if your student devices to move and they haven't screwed up their chances of going to a UK Uni in the process. UK unis usually have an A level requirement and the ATAR doesn't convert too well so there is often a requirement for a Foundation year. Though once you get to mature student level there are other options.

Probably not for Uni unless she got a very high ATAR, she might have to do a foundation year and her entire Uni course would be at international student rate. For any other big standard job? No idea. It rather depends on the job but I would imagine she would probably be OK for an apprenticeship or something that needs GCSEs. Marisa has a point - if she's already 16 or turning 16 before, say end March/April can you get her here in the next couple of weeks then she could start year 11 at the end of the month. I do know though that the years can be quite wildly out - my grandson turned 8 in August is now in year4 but if he were here he would just have finished year2. So it may not be that bad a thing for your daughter to go into year 10 when she arrives.

Have you got your UK citizenship sorted? You should do that before you leave, if you havent already

You know that if your baby is on a visitor visa they will only be entitled to reciprocal medicare so you will need travel insurance for him/her and, as has been said, there is no bridging visa. Alternatives - can you get yourselves to Australia before the baby arrives (then the baby will be an Australian citizen not by descent) or can your partner go ahead if your baby's documents havent come through and you and the baby follow on later or can your partner go for a quick weekend away to Australia to validate the visa then come home - that would probably be the most sensible as then he will have a year to enter permanently and you'll all be less stressed in case something should go wrong.

Put your application in now - you may be pleasantly surprised. And get your wife's UK citizenship sorted I'd she doesn't already have it, before you leave.

Some exam boards do international exams like Cambridge Assessment for example but they tend to be in countries where the education systems maybe aren't quite up to the same standard but each examination board has a different curriculum so what she's studied with her board may not be the same as they assess. It's the examination board you need to talk to not the school. I vaguely recall seeing adverts for a distance Ed school here in Australia which did GCE and A level courses but their fees were rather eye watering, they may be an option. Could you not apply for an RRV extension just for her to sit the exams - if they say no, you lose nothing. If they say yes you win. Australia is a foreign country with a completely different system. She would be best advised to enter year 10 in May - because the last 2 years of school 11&12 are a consolidated course and if she were to enter year 11 when she arrived she would miss a substantial part of the year 11 program - like doing A levels but missing a couple of terms. She may be a bit older than her cohort which, this year in year 10 will be 15 turning 16 but that's OK. Don't think of it as repeating or going back because she hasn't done year 10 in Australia before. If there is a chance that you may go back then you might find a school that does the IB which travels back better than the ATAR. But if she did decide that UK Uni was where she wanted to go, you'd be up for International fees even if you are British citizens.

She cant. Can she take a quick trip prior to validate her visa then return for exams? If her visa expires, apply for RRV and explain the extenuating circumstances. But if you are planning on living in Australia for the longer term they're irrelevant anyway. There will only be interest in her year 12 results and the GCSEs will mean diddly squat. You could contact her examination board and ask them if there are options for remote examinations but I doubt it.

It's ghastly, the noise has already started. Can't wait for the weekend to be over!

Yes, sorry, Seven Seas. We were very happy with their service and it was a seamless door to door job.

Smallest move cube?

If you've got siblings I'm sure it's probably less of an issue because it's easier to palm off responsibilities to one of them. If you're an only then it's the pits. You might be around retirement age yourself before parents become a crunch issue in which case you might be free to return then to look after them. We were certainly able to retire to look after my parents - I reckon the tipping point is somewhere in their late 80s but maybe I was just fortunate in that regard.

Alternatively, it could be said that banging your head against the brick wall to make the headache go away is also not a great idea. I dont think it takes that long to know whether you belong or not. I hesitate to use the word "settled" because that implies you are never going to move and I hate that feeling. I have been here a long time and in the beginning it was fine, no homesick, no yearning to return because I always knew that it was possible to move on and I had great holidays back with my folk. However once it became obvious that I was stuck here then it became really unpleasant - I dont belong and never have, despite having been here for more than half my life. My head has told my heart for decades that "this is home" but my heart doesnt listen and, for me, living in UK for nearly a decade from 2011 was the most amazing experience despite being full time carers for elderly parents. I am back here now and the black dog is creeping back despite all my attempts at rationalisation. I really think you know quite early on whether this is the place you want to grow old and die in and you do have to be proactive about moving on rather than letting yourself get beyond the point of no return which has certainly happened to a lot of us - finances, family etc etc There is absolutely no shame in deciding you dont want to live here - it's just another first world country, it isnt magic and if your needs, values, interests are best met somewhere else then moving on is the most sensible option - I hate it when moving on is portrayed as a "failure" of some sort - it's no such thing.

You can submit offshore and if it has not come through before your flights you can enter Australia on a tourist visa but then you have to leave and re-enter on your partner visa when it's issued. As as been said, though, you should have everything collected so that you are in a position to submit as soon as you arrive. Be aware though that your chances of employment while on the bridging visa may not be as great as you may hope - certainly in a career based occupation as employers won't be wanting to take on someone who may not stay. If you're just thinking casual hospitality etc, it should be easier.

I would imagine you could - why not start the process now rather than waiting. As long as you've got all the evidence of living together, joint tenancy agreements, joint bank accounts, testamonials from friends etc Then if it looks like you're going to struggle maybe engage an agent. Look at the application form, there'll be guidelines of what to submit.

So sorry to hear about your wife, @Bobj it sounds like you had a wonderful life together. As for the OP it's probably going to be better in the major cities. You hear good and bad stories everywhere really. I don't think it's inherently better or worse here than there, health services are stretched all over and if you can get private health cover you've definitely got more options. If you've had private cover overseas I believe the pre-existing conditions may be waived - well, that was the impression I got when renegotiating rejoining private cover on our return, might be worth checking (think BUPA to BUPA)

Has your partner got her UK citizenship? If you have time and she is eligible she would be well advised to do that before you leave because you never know if she might want to return and getting back into UK can be a bit trickier down the track. What a shame you didnt apply for the visa a few months ago then you wouldnt have been in limbo without a job for several months. At one stage they were processing them very quickly from London.

The autism isn't going to go away, so yes, it could be a problem. You'd better talk to one of the agents who specialise in medical conditions for advice about the best way to proceed.

Excellent!!!!!!

They did when we sent ours! We had great fun following where the ship was - though whether they told us the name of the ship and we followed it on the shipping version of flight radar, I'm not sure, the DH did it. Don't think it would have made a bit of difference if we hadn't known though, they tell you when it's arrived and when it's cleared customs etc.