Quoll

For us it was 12 December to 1 April but we needed to wait until there was an empty truck from Melbourne to Canberra and covid hit, right in the middle so there were all sorts of changes. From memory we had to pay in dollars for the Aussie end what we paid in pounds for the U.K. end but we needed the long delivery trip which would be less if you’re in a state capital. Like Amber, we measured out the space in the dining room and stacked it as a practice. We were lucky that we didn’t have to rely on emergency supplies at either end but we did (as most everyone does) realise that we sent a hell of a lot of stuff that it is quite easy to live without!

That rather depends on whether the OP took out another citizenship before (wasn't it 2002?) voluntarily (ie not born with it) in which case Australian citizenship was automatically lost. It can be applied for so that if children were born when citizenship had been lost, then I think there is some shenanigans they have to go through to get it re-established so that citizenship by descent can then follow.

We used a Seven Seas move cube to move in the opposite direction and they were great, we had no complaints at all.

You won't qualify as a teacher. The on the job training that UK do for QTS isn't acceptable - the postgraduate teacher training has to be the one year University based course. Might have to bite the bullet and do a PGCE.

@Penelope Pitstop and @Sarahelle were most concerned at the time and I have no idea how it turned out but the one chap who did get it had been out of the country but left his wife and family behind in UK and there had been a clerical error. Just deciding you've changed your mind about emigrating might be a whole other ball game but they may have tried it.

I found it this morning but had to dash out and can't find it now. Might be on iPad, will check that in a mo

You might be lucky you never know - what strong ties did you maintain? Regular visits back? Property? etc

Not according to a poster on here back in 2014 who got knocked back despite a UK OH and having lived there for 8 years prior. I guess this is one of those hindsight times where "Get your British citizenship before you leave" is a wise mantra. Apparently this is a difficult visa to get

No can't see that. Be aware that there are several posts which suggest that just having a UK spouse and child is not necessarily grounds enough for the RRV - you have to have had other significant ties like, your family were in UK and you visited them but if you all decided to emigrate then that might be a bit trickier (someone on here back in 2014!). Good luck with it - been a good learning experience as the question of return to UK is often pondered here.

Actually checked further and there is a return resident visa, sounds much like the Australian one, costs £516. Always a good move to get UK citizenship if you can before you leave! If you were away for more than 2 years (Returning Resident visa) You lose your indefinite leave to remain if you’ve been outside the UK for 2 or more continuous years. You may be able to re-enter the UK and get indefinite leave to remain by applying for a Returning Resident visa. You may not need to apply if your partner is in the British armed forces, or works for certain UK government departments or the British Council. Eligibility You must provide enough evidence to show: your strong ties to the UK - for example you or your family have lived here most of your life your current circumstances and why you’ve lived outside the UK

Just checked, your ILR lapses if you are out of the country for 2 or more years so the OP will have to apply for a new visa I think Your indefinite leave will lapse if you stay outside the UK for 2 or more years (5 or more, if granted settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme) at a time. If you’re a Swiss citizen with settled status under the EU Settlement Scheme your indefinite leave will lapse if you stay outside the UK for 4 years or more in a row.

Find a GP, register, take along any medical history and hope that they continue to prescribe the same things - they may not, some drugs aren't used here but they will generally offer an alternative. It seems to be a thing for most UK emigrants to need to find a bulk billing GP but that's not necessary, Medicare was built on a co-pay system so most of us pay to go to the GP and we also pay for prescriptions. You can go to whichever practice you want and you can go and change if you dont like what's on offer but (around here anyway) the best practices shut their books regularly. When you arrive, ask around amongst your acquaintances about which doctors are the "best" in the locality. Register for reciprocal medicare first though.

No, not really, the main round of job advertising is August/September time. Casual relief is all year round. No point in worrying either, you know the old saying "Hope for the best, plan for the worst and take whatever comes" - never more true than when moving to a foreign country.

Yup, getting a job and getting a visa are two entirely different issues. People do seem to think that if a job is on the list for a visa then that automatically equates to there being lots of job vacancies, which, for some occupations like teaching is not true. Well, there may be job vacancies but mainly because they are in places where nobody wants to live. What secondary subjects do you teach? Some are more in demand than others and they generally reckon you need a couple of strings to your bow. Maths and science generally in demand, humanities and PE not so much. You're not likely to get a job before you arrive really.

If you're a teacher, wanting a permanent teaching job you may have to just go where the jobs are. NSW has a system whereby teachers are expected to do a rural or remote placement for a few years in order to get "points" to be considered for the more desirable positions. They may offer you something in Dubbo or Hay or any other small NSW town inland and expect you to be there for 2-3 years - both of those are about as far from the beach as you can get. If you want to teach in the private system the next biggest employer is the Catholic system but they pretty much like you to be a good Catholic. If you are secondary Maths/Science you're in with a better chance than if you are primary. If you don't mind not being a teacher then the world is your oyster, go for what you can get. Bear in mind, there's not a shortage of teachers in Australia, many new graduates can't get jobs and leave the profession before they start and as a teacher you do have good skills that transfer to other areas. A good barber is probably going to be OK anywhere.

One of those piece of string questions (what does comfortanle mean to you?) but a combined income of $200k give or take is not going to be baked beans on toast territory. Do those salaries include Superannuation? If so, then you'll be taking home quite a bit less (employers often include super to make the figures look better). School education is going to cost you $5.5k pa for the first child and less 10% for subsequent kids. On a temporary visa you aren't going to get any benefits for child care so bank on probably around $500 a week for that if you have under school age kids. It'll all mount up but you should have enough to run two cars, have the odd holiday and go out for dinner every now and again. Obviously if you rent a place that is going to cost $1k a week then your budget is not going to go as far as renting a place for half that but rent is going to take the biggest slice of your income so work out what percentage you can manage. Come prepared with a nice chunk of savings because setting up, buying cars, insurances etc etc can take a substantial chunk before you start and you don't want to start out behind as it can be a chore to get ahead.

They are. Whether they should or not is another issue.

Quite right, foreign country different structure. The key thing is for a kid to be in Australia to be able to enrol in year 11 - which is the year that they have just turned 16 or are just about to turn 16 (exactly when, depends on the state they are going to). That way they can do the full 2 year course of yrs 11/12. GCSEs mean diddly squat in Australia but if there is a likelihood that the kids will be returning to UK (temporary visa etc) then they would be better waiting until A levels are finished. Always a risk to change systems towards the end of a school career and people tend to forget that Australia isn't England with respect to education. Some states have a college system for 11/12 but most have those as the last 2 years of HS. On a temporary visa, too, in some states, the cost of sending a child to the latter years of HS can get quite expensive.

The thing about UK is that nowhere is that far from anywhere else and if you have an Australian perspective of distance you should be fine, Plenty of nice big Yorkshire cities though now getting good raps - I have a friend whose daughter simply loves Sheffield and another whose son thinks Leeds is the bees knees (wouldnt touch Bradford with a barge pole though LOL). I once went from Cambridge to Manchester for afternoon tea and from Cambridge to Durham for the day to do family history - it's all so accessible. I would be inclined, as I have said elsewhere to avoid being in the inlaw pockets - for the sake of your little family and so that you both have to learn the same ropes. As for feeling guilty about leaving your folk - happens to all of us who do it but it is your life they cant live it for you, one family is going to be without no matter where you go.

With respect to visas, the best - if she is eligible - would be the ancestry visa but she would need a British born grandparent to get that otherwise, yes, a partner visa. As for cars, plenty of second hand cars on the market - cant say that I know of too many that lease (my son does but he's the only one I know) and you can get a second hand runabout quite cheaply to start yourself off. Phones - do you want to keep your Aus number for things like bank communications? I had real trouble with St George who could not work out how to get their system to call a UK number and so I had to keep my Aus number - changed it to a 365 day Vodafone plan which cost dollars rather than hundreds of dollars. Definitely tell your bank that you are going OS or they will begin to freak when you start using your card in UK.

Susan, I am so sorry for your loss and for the situation you find yourself in. I was in your shoes exactly in 2011when we went on holiday to UK and didn't return until March 2020. For us, the lingering was 9 years (which we really didn't expect) but we obviously had it easier than you because we squatted in my parents back bedroom and we didn't have to pay rent (or the TV licence!). I think had we had our own place it might have been easier in some regards but no use when having to pick an oldie up from the floor or help them in the loo in the middle of the night. Must admit we didn't have some of the expenses you have and our monthly outgoing was significantly less than it is now back here in Australia. My advice would be to persuade your MiL that going into a care home is not the end of the world, then, if you feel so inclined, you can return to Australia. My dad was NEVER going into one of those places but he accepted that the price he had to pay for living in his own home was that he had to go into respite so we could visit Australia and our grandkids every now and again. One time he decided that he liked it so much he didn't want to go home and we were grateful that it really was his own decision. The stress on your nerves, I can assure you, will be significantly reduced! We also had had to put my demented mum into care for the last 18 months of her life but I am certain that had we not been there, their lives would have come to an end much sooner. I found the NHS (admittedly pre Covid) to be fabulous for the oldies and I not only had my parents but a childless aunt and uncle travelling the same aged pathway so we were helping out there too. I'm an only child and I would have given an arm and several legs to have had a sibling to share it all with but my husband was fabulous (he had had the same experience as you, being in mid flight when his mum in Australia died just as he was going to visit her as she had been sick) and our eldest son was a real lifesaver. I missed my dad's funeral when he died unexpectedly (not Covid) early on in the epidemic but by that time we had his affairs mostly settled (thank God we persuaded them that a POA might be sensible and didn't mean we were taking over) and I was fortunate that my adult son who lives in UK stepped up to the plate and did all the funeral stuff. I have found that executing a will from Australia is the pits (especially in Covid times!!!!!) so have delegated my son into my role and turned it over to a solicitor. My aunt and uncle hadn't asked me to be an executor as we were in Australia when their wills were written for which I am very grateful as they have both gone in the last 2 years too. So, good luck with the rest of the journey and make the most of what you can!

If she's still miserable she might not get any better. Plenty of places within easy distance of London. Alternatively have you thought of elsewhere in Australia, might be easier for your little family to settle together as a unit without you and your family having it all and she and her family not so much. Could you move to UK? Visas etc.

Sounds like you are up for a career break adventure. Be aware that as the dependent on your temporary visa your DH might struggle to find meaningful career oriented work. You haven't said what he does for a living but if he's in trades there will be multiple certifications to plough through. Employers aren't always keen on training up someone in their organisation who may leave at the drop of a hat. If he had a niche skill which is in demand he should be OK.

Could he do GCSEs in his gap year post A levels? I'd be talking to the school he will be attending and asking for their advice about the best way to go about solving the issue. What year is he in in Aus? There may be some equivalence but now that most states dont have the year 10 assessment thing like they used to, that could be tricky. Or could you send him to a UK boarding school now maybe and then go into the first year of GCSEs so he will have missed only 3 months - then do A levels when you get home.

I keep getting notices in my facebook stream about this lot https://www.crimsonglobalacademy.school/au/campaigns/cga-access-lp/?utm_source=p_social&utm_medium=fb_ig&utm_campaign=AU_cgahq_2021-09-23_ttt_conversion-rural-1_lead&utm_content=rural_access_ad4-Facebook_Desktop_Feed&utm_term=rural_age&fbclid=IwAR22Zw7SYe0PxJGzG-5Zwp17AbuLqpbprmgVwuglL6Armm2roxIq64b026I They do homeschooling GCSEs, pretty expensive but may be an alternative if you are stuck (no affiliation or personal knowledge but there arent too many options to study GCSEs in Aus!). I think I have heard of kids doing GCSE at the same time as their A levels or even after A levels and if they are prepared to do them over 3 years that would solve your international fees issue.