Quoll

So he was on a BVA having applied for an onshore partner visa? Or was he on a partner visa? If he had only applied for the partner visa but it hadn’t been granted he really needs to talk to an agent ASAP because it can’t be granted if he is not onshore and he can’t return as a tourist And wait for his visa because Aus is only accepting PR and citizens Or essential business trips (and Tom Hanks)

The showers are good - I love my shower! The car parking spaces are wider and our local malls have indicator lights which tell you where the spaces are! They’re definite positives! The wine’s not bad either. But the sausages are genuinely crap (lol - always a bone of contention here) You might be lucky with the mozzies - interestingly my DH never gets bitten here in Aus, but in U.K. he was forever being bitten and itched for days whereas Pommie mozzies ignored me but the Aussie ones bite as soon as I stick my nose out of the door. So if the Pommie ones love you, chances are the Aussie ones won’t. I hope you like birds too - got swooped for the first time this season a couple of days ago - being dive bombed my a magpie is certainly an experience you’ll never get in England! Not only that I also got swooped by a mynah the other day too - he definitely had an identity crisis, must have been modelling on the maggies. Hope for the best, expect the worst and take what comes with an adventure, I reckon. If you do that you won’t be disappointed.

That's it exactly, Amber. A lot of people get caught by the lack of jobs - they think it will be as easy as it was back in UK but the Aus employment system can move exceeding slow in some cases and the states always used to say that migrants need to show that they have enough funds to see them through 6 months without work. I dont know if they still check up. If you think the average salary these days is around $85k then for 6 months you'd be thinking (ball park) $40k - that's nigh on £20k. A decent car is going to cost you around the $10-15k and heaven help you if you need two! Health insurance if you need it is going to cost you $3-4kpa, then you've got car rego and insurances, home insurances (they always seem to be about $1k a pop these days) They all do mount up unfortunately. We easily spent £10k just getting us and our stuff here recently what with one thing and another and that was without visas and the need to find a home because we have one. It was silly little things like communications, larder stocking, seeing a doctor for first prescriptions (ouch), getting back on health insurance so as not to incur the age penalty, repairing things we needed in the house, stocking up on wood for the winter etc etc. All those other things we didnt have to deal with like visa costs, visa agents, skills assessments, kids flights, setting kids up for school and, of course, the recent quarantine charges, they would raise the cost even more, especially if, to get a seat, you have to pay Business or 1st class fares (the mind boggles)

Only thing I can agree with here is the adventure - that is the one reason why you might think of moving. Higher salaries (but dont go on straight comparisons, compare as a percentage of the local average salary), yes, but higher living costs too - I shudder at my weekly grocery shop here and for relatively little it seems. Better climate - for some maybe, and for others not so good - personally I hate the incessant heat, having to get out at 6am so I can walk without burning to a crisp in summer, lurching from air conditioned car to air conditioned mall and back (hopefully this year) to our air conditioned house and a week of hot sweaty nights is wrist slitting territory. Our houses (Canberra) arent built for the cold either so this winter has been a shock to my system after 8+years in UK - we've gone through over a tonne of wood just to keep warm. Outdoor lifestyle - lovely if you like mozzies and flies and various other creepy crawlies; I am much less inclined to be outside (in summer especially) than I ever was in UK, no sitting on the grass having picnics that's for sure (no real grass, just couch grass which is most bare skin unfriendly although I think they might have real grass down in Vic and Tas). I know a lot of people on here are beach people but after a while I am of the "seen one beach, seen them all" persuasion - it's all personal choice. Laid back approach - nice joke. Longer working week, fewer vacation days and a CV driven need to climb the greasy pole and meanwhile keep step with the Joneses. Most families I know are dual income because they cant afford to live on one income (yes, Canberra is expensive). If you also choose to budget for trips "home" to keep in touch with family, that's one holiday a year gone and a lot of money in the process. If you have no family left to visit then you are quids in but dont expect people to come out and visit you either - it's expensive, it takes up a big chunk of their holidays and the older you get the less appealing is the 24 hours flying. Canberra used to do a lot of social work sponsorship and usually within the first couple of years, 90% of them would have moved on, mostly moving home because of the burn out. Had a chat with a lot of them and whilst we in the associated fields really loved their approach, the management would clamp down so hard on them that they would give up in despair at not being able to do a proper job. Hopefully that may have changed by now. Someone even wrote a semi autobiographical novel about her SW experiences here before she headed home, it was very amusing but I suspect it took her a while to recover. You mentioned living about an hour away from the City - an hour away from the centre of the big cities means you are still in the Big City - the suburbs go on boringly for hours. You may mean one of the smaller country towns and they generally have a nicer sense of community, but they will generally be some hours from the major capital cities (Canberra is the exception however, we are a nice size and although the suburbs are spreading like cancer they're nowhere like in the Sydney Melbourne league) WDU is one step removed from H&A I suspect - sugary viewing and bearing little resemblance to the reality. Have the salt pot ready when you watch it. However, as I said, if you are only in it for the adventure then go for it and to hell with the pennies.

I’d say the whole move, when you are a family with kids will be in the ball park £30-50K. It’s not just the visas, they’re a drop in the ocean compared to the whole. The upper end of that estimate is if you can’t find jobs immediately - though I should thinK SWs will always find a role in child protection, if nothing else, the burn out rate is very high. It’s things like buying a car or two, Many different insurances, bonds, technology, essentials, upfront accommodation payments, quarantine (an added bonus), on top of the cost of shipping your stuff, fares (moving now, seems like 1st or business class is the only way not to get bumped off and who knows how expensive they’ll be when the cap lifts and the planes start flying). We moved back recently - to our own home and when economy fares meant economy but we haemorrhaged cash to begin with on the little things and we still haven’t bought a car (sharing the son’s old banger) - nowhere near £30k of course but all up we didn’t see much change from £10k and that’s without visas and we have our own mortgage free home. If you want to come then it’ll cost you - and then there’s the issues of education, moving with a 16 year old (bottom line, think very carefully about that and, best case scenario, wait until they’ve done A levels or leave them to finish Alevels then join you)

Another slightly related question - you seem to think it will be “better” for the kids. Not quite sure how you come to that conclusion but they key question is rather - would it be “better” for you? If push came to shove and the worst happened and he left (that’s his right, he can leave his kids if he wants) would you be better trekking half way round the world to a foreign country where you will be on your own trying to get established (lots of money!!!) and then be there in splendid isolation? What if it doesn’t work for you and you’ve made the leap? Well, I can tell you, unequivocally, you will be stuck there, unable to return home with your kids. Australia is one of the most draconian adherents to The Hague Convention and it never lets kids leave if the other parent, no matter how much of a drop kick says they may not leave. Many (especially) women have found this at their great cost. In fact, I would go so far as to say that if your relationship is so rocky that divorce is on the cards, that you rethink the emigration thing entirely. Emigration has a nasty tendency to split sometimes even the most apparently stable of relationships and, honestly, the last thing you want at that time is to be split from your extended family and support network. Australia isn’t the land of milk and honey that you may have visions of, its bloody hard work as a new migrant getting established and even harder if your life is turned upside down and your relationship goes belly up. If your DH chooses to go away from his kids, that’s his choice, but you are under no obligation to follow him. (Sorry if that sounds harsh but been on these forums long enough to have seen plenty of women caught in that particular trap). Good luck but take care!

Once your PR has been granted as an individual you’re home free, independent permanent residents. edited to say, If he says you can’t leave uk with the kids then you could be in trouble.

Are you doing a nursing degree? That’s now a requirement to be registered as a nurse in Australia. Only post qualification experience is included in assessments. There is also talk about whether nursing remains on the skills list with local nurses being churned out and not always able to find jobs. Not sure about business admin but qualifications usually need to be accompanied by relevant recent experience. As for where to go - go where you get an offer and where you get a job. Generally, the nicer the place, the more the competition for work and sometimes you might need to compromise on some things - for example, living in more remote areas you’re more likely to find a job in essential services but that means living hundreds of miles from a beach and with a questionable future for your kids. It’ll be a matter of working out what you’re prepared to compromise when push comes to shove. What are you expecting your “better” life to look like?

Just as a matter of interest, and, of course, different Unis may have different algorithms but UWA had this chart for A level - ATAR conversions https://www.uwa.edu.au/study/how-to-apply/international-and-overseas-qualifications/gce-a-levels

I’m not the OP, they have left the forum Guest in their name is a clue

Kids are generally quite resilient and they can look upon it as an adventure. At 11 most kids are going to experience a huge upheaval in their education anyway with high school looming on the horizon. The best thing you can do for your kids is to be a happy parent! Modelling good mental health, happiness and positivity is one of the best gifts you can give them. Most kids settle just fine - and if it were a move in the opposite direction, everyone would be telling you to go for it. I see I commented originally, 10 years ago and I cannot believe how much my life changed in that decade with nearly 9 years in U.K. In the interim - became undepressed, lost weight, made friends, saw the country etc. No kids of course but I would have done it with a kid at 11, not sure about the 18 year old given international Uni fees but recalling my lads at 18 they’d have told me to bugger off and have fun. Good luck whichever way you jump.

Just being the parent of an Australian child doesn’t confer a “right” to remain. Talking to an agent is really your best bet before immigration is alerted to the break down in your relationship and you get your marching orders with days to leave.

https://www.pbs.gov.au/browse/medicine-listing Unless your skills are Niche and in high demand, I wouldn’t be holding my breath about getting an employer sponsored visa in this day and age

Teachers are ten a penny in Australia and there are loads who will be seeking to return to recession proof teaching roles if they can now that other options are going belly up. Other things you may not realise about Australia is that it’s very ageist and an experienced teacher (usually the older lot) costs more than a newly minted one so they go for the young ones and although you haven’t yet hit 50, by the time you get a visa (if indeed there was one you could get, which I doubt) you’d be galloping towards it and finding a job at that age gets exponentially harder. Your concept of rural teaching and the actuality are probably going to be poles apart and there’s a very good reason why Australian teachers don’t want to be there. Even if you could swing a sponsorship for a couple of years in a remote location, it would be just that - 2 years in a remote location, then you go home. Sadly, I think this is just a pipe dream. Use your very generous U.K. holiday provision and come for long trips!

We just sold my dads house and wet signatures were indeed required. We sent ours by Aus Post express and it was 10 days so we were fortunate there. Good to know about the DHL though - we contemplated it but the DH just took the easy option. I’ve given up on will execution though and nominated my son as attorney - too many wet signatures and tardy document delivery.

Oh yuk! The Guilt Trip parent. Must say mine were never that thank goodness and I think, if they had been, my inner b!tch would have come to the fore and I would not have felt as inclined to take responsibility. I loved living in UK and really don’t like being back at all. I just don’t belong and after 40 years here, all up, I never will. My life in UK was so much better than anything I have here unfortunately. I am enjoying the granddaughters but missing the grandson. Enjoying being in my own home instead of squatting in my olds’ back bedroom but I’ve not got real friends here even after all those years - I’ve spoken to just one since I’ve been back and that was because I approached her twice. But I have no choice, I will get on with it because I have to but it’s hard work and yet again I have to make a big effort to reestablish myself. Im sure if you actually enjoyed Sydney before then you probably will again, at least you know what you’re going back to and with luck you won’t have been away so long that you’ll need to put too much energy into reestablishing your social connections. Overriding the arrows of guilt coming your way are going to be hardest to manage - Kevlar knickers required!!!!!

I hear you about the only child thing! Sucks, doesn’t it?! That’s why we didn’t return from the “holiday” We embarked upon 9 years ago today. My parents were intransigent, they Were Going To Die In Their Own Home! We stayed so they could do that but, in the end, neither did - mum had to go into care 18 months before she died because of her dementia and she was happy enough because she forgot she had a home. Dad actually made the decision to stay in his respite care place One day and was very happy there - but the time was right for him. I don’t think we would have done anything differently though at the end of the day and it wasn’t easy leaving him in his care home in March. It was no easier getting the call here, as we did 2 months ago to say that he’d died than it was being just down the road from mum - and the number of nights I spent in A&E over the years, expecting the worst doesn’t bear thinking about. I think the biggest problem you may have will be what to do when the first one dies - will you go back for funeral? How will the survivor cope? Can you further bolster support for the survivor? Etc From the vantage point of being their age, I guess all you can do is suss out what alternatives they might have, try and set up support networks for them - recruit other relatives if you have them etc (I have an aunt and uncle who were childless and they had 4 of us nieces and nephew around to do all the medical visits etc, sit in A&E, take them out for trips etc and they felt very supported.) But ultimately it’ll be up to them what they want to do with their lives. Oh, and I will say, if they’ve asked you to be an executor for their will - it’s bloody difficult doing it from here in Australia! I’ve given up and asked my son to be my attorney and we are leaving it with the solicitor. Good luck, being an only child with elderly parents is the pits but it’s too late to go back and ask for a sibling!

Has your wife got her British citizenship? You should do that while waiting if she hasn’t. Never know when you might need it.

I would have thought that if anything happened to your wife, you would be your kids’ family and they’d be wanting to stay with you and your family wouldn’t they? But yes, you’d have 5 years to enter once you’ve validated within the year of issue.

I’m the same age as one of your parents - do they actually want to move away from their lives, belongings, friends, social connections to the other side of the world? Perhaps you’d be kinder to them, encouraging them to move into retirement living and letting them enjoy the end of their lives in their own place, where they belong. Moving to the other side of the world is expensive (I now pay a lot for my BP meds that were free in U.K. We’ve also resumed private health just to be sure - over $300 a month. We are fortunate in that we own our own home but for someone moving over new it would be a real challenge, unable to buy anywhere without having jumped through numerous hoops, setting up to be independent and even getting established socially (and we were only away for 8.5 years) is also hard work. You and the kids are probably not going to want them around 24/7 and what if you decide to take a better option in another state - would they be moving around with you? Then, When they need Ongoing care care that’s going to cost you a lot of money because they’ll be entitled to nothing. All that and their pensions would be frozen as at the date they move and subject to the vagaries of the exchange rate. I would be pretty pissed if my kids started planning for my future I must say.

Pre teens are always going to be anxious at leaving their friends - chances are they are going to be moving away from those friends anyway as high school looms, so I wouldn’t be overly worried about that. Further education for the 18 year old could be more of an issue - international fees for Uni if that is what they are thinking, for example. We basically went to U.K. 9years ago next Monday and didn’t return until March 17 this year - so our situation was very different, no kids, retirement age etc but it was the best thing that ever happened to us (and I say us even though the DH hated the thought of living in UK) back in the day it was a relative doddle - I think C19 is definitely a complicating factor and it makes things so much more unknown. Good luck with whatever you decide! If you don’t go now, you won’t go at all I suspect.

We didnt use Jeyes, just soap and water but even then it wasnt that big of a deal. I am sure there would have been some of my shoes that didnt get a lick of anything.

There are several opportunities to do the IB in Canberra and that may be a possibility, having a good international transfer. The longest standing is Telopea Park HS/Narrabundah Coll (they have the best rep but you’ve got to live in area or be fluent French speaker to get in) but other places are now doing it too. AFAIK no opportunities for GCSE/A levels unless you home school and that has to be approved by the Dept of Ed. Biggest issue will be on return to U.K. that international fees will be payable for Uni as the student won’t have been resident in U.K. for the 3 years prior to commencement. If returning with just yr 12 results - they don’t transfer quite as well as A levels in the opposite direction and very high scores would be required for even mediocre Unis in U.K. We were faced with a similar dilemma at one stage - interstate Move, not international and our solution was to have them board where they were for yrs 11&12 - is that a possibility for you too? Could your eldest board with family or friends until A levels done and visit for the holidays?

I think you may be jumping the gun somewhat. First thing is can you get a visa? I have absolutely no idea but PTs are ten a penny here so I would be surprised if it’s in the list of Skills that Australia needs, especially without any post qualification experience. The visa process for skilled visas has slowed somewhat but generally you could be looking at a year - without C19, at the moment our borders are pretty nigh closed and heavens knows when International travel may start again but “By next year” is probably going to be a pipe dream - maybe half way through next year if you are lucky. If you’re under 30 you can probably get a WHV which will allow you to visit for a year (or two if you go and work in regional Australia for 3 months doing farm work etc) but then you go home. As for getting a job as a PT - there seem to be loads around but I think most are self employed and given the nature of their work they try and build up some longevity for their client base.

You knew that when you started out. It's only a fortnight for heavens sake.