Marisawright

It’s not really a question of rejection. You will either be invited, or you will sit waiting in the queue until your application expires. It depends if they decide they need accountants right now, and how many accountants there are with higher points than you

If it’s only a WHV then I doubt it would be a problem

The beach is what makes it problematic, because as soon as you're close to the beach, house prices and rental prices skyrocket. Sydney's demographic centre (i.e. where most people live) is actually Parramatta, way out west, for that reason. As you're coming from London, ordinarily I wouldn't expect Sydney prices to be a problem for you, but cutting down to one income changes the goalposts. It really depends on your tolerance for commuting. Again, if you're from London then maybe the Central Coast commute won't seem as daunting to you as it does to the average Australian. If I needed to drive to work (e.g. because I needed the car for my job) there is no way I would do it. My boss lived on the Central Coast for seven years and had several accidents and countless near misses - too many huge trucks on the road. However there is a train and if you don't mind the train commute then the Central Coast would be a lot more affordable. You have to be careful as there are some dodgy areas and some nice ones - also check the distance from the station. Check out Homely for some idea: https://www.homely.com.au/find-places The Central Coast will obviously be a lot quieter than the Northern Beaches. Newcastle really is a nice place, and perhaps you could have a couple of days up there in your first few weeks to check it out, before you commit to a Sydney rental. It's like most cities, you need to know where the nice areas are - it's possible to drive along the main roads and miss everything! https://www.domain.com.au/news/seven-things-i-love-about-living-in-newcastle-20160111-gm322g/ The post below is old - 13 years ago - but it still gives you an idea, and Newcastle has improved further since then: https://www.tripadvisor.com.au/ShowTopic-g255325-i1816-k846979-Living_in_Newcastle_with_a_young_family-Newcastle_Greater_Newcastle_New_South_Wales.html

As WRussell says, the easiest option is to have an initial consultation with a good migration agent (he is one). All the reputable agents will give you a first consult free of charge. The cutoff for most visas is 45 - there are very few exceptions and none which would help you. The problem might be that there is no visa available for couples who are just dating, except to get repeated tourist visas to visit each other. There is a prospective marriage visa (PMV) for those who are ready to marry soon. You apply for the visa and then you have to travel to Australia and get married, and then in due course, you go through the whole visa process again to apply for a partner visa. The partner visa is for couples who are already married or de facto. De facto means living together in the equivalent of marriage. To be eligible for the visa, you must have been de facto for at least 12 months. You don't have to be living in the same house for all of that time - Immigration recognises that people get posted overseas for work or get separated due to visa problems even when they're married, However if you have a patchy record of living together and still have separate finances and separate homes, it's going to be very hard to convince Immigration you're a real couple and not just dating - so there is no way I'd attempt that without an agent's support.

I agree

Indeed, if they've been opened then you can't bring them, because you can't prove they haven't been tampered with.

Assuming the money is already in your bank account, and not sitting in a superannuation fund or investment fund, then there are no restrictions and no difficulties. There are always limits on bank transfers but when you have a large amount to transfer, you simply have to go to your bank in person and arrange it specially. The transfer companies will always be cheaper than transferring directly from your bank to your UK bank. You can shop around for the best rate, but I always use Moneycorp, simply because you get to talk to a real person who does the actual job, not just some call centre operative. If you sign up for their service via these forums, they don't charge their usual fee. Have a chat to @Susan Watts from Moneycorp, who is on these forums, and she'll explain how the transfers work etc. If you do have money in a superannuation fund, then do be careful - if you can withdraw that money and have it paid into your Australian bank while you are still resident in Australia, it just becomes money in the bank and there is no barrier to transferring those funds to the UK. However if you leave the money in your super fund and want to transfer it later, once you're no longer an Australian resident, the British taxman will take over a third of your nest egg in tax.

In that case I’d say go for Newcastle as a base - far more liveable on a single income (unlike Sydney), good schools, and local work available (unlike the Central Coast), plus commuting to Sydney for individual projects is practical (I used to travel from Sydney to Newcastle quite a lot for projects).

If you are not a permanent resident then you’re living in Australia illegally, there’s no other visa you could be covered by.

What does your husband do?

Unless your husband has a high level management role, it's very unlikely he'll be able to land a job while he's overseas. I'd echo what Bob Hatton said. Sydney has a spectacular harbour and a vibrant nightlife, but it also has the most expensive housing in Australia by a long chalk. If you're not able to work for a while, that's going to stretch the budget, so I would be heading for Newcastle, which is about 2 hours' drive from Sydney. It's the next biggest city so is likely to have the best employment opportunities, and the housing is about half the price.

Huh? You don't need a job to get most PR visas, in fact that would be impossible because no employer is going to wait over a year for those visas to be processed. The vast majority of migrants arrive with no jobs.

To be clear, Immigration isn't worried about what it will cost you - they are worried about what it will cost the taxpayer (because hospital and doctor's visits and prescriptions are all subsidised by the government). Having private health insurance makes no difference because once you have the visa, there is legally no way to force you to have private health insurance - so they assume Medicare will be wearing the total cost.

Why? I'd be going for an AirBnB apartment myself. If the idea is to check out what it would be like to live there, staying in luxury isn't going to give you a realistic idea.

You've also got to remember, if an agent tells you there's no chance, he won't get the business. Reputable agents with a thriving business will be honest with you, but there are people out there who'll talk up your chances just to get you to sign up. Apparently the 190 is unpredictable, because the state doesn't go strictly by points and chooses people based on what skills the state needs at the time.

Loved Eungella.

Sydney is by far the most expensive city in Australia for accommodation. Backpackers like it because of the party scene, but otherwise it's just a big city. You can see all the sights in a week (the beaches look great to a new arrival, but they're ordinary compared to beaches further up the coast!). So, if you want your money to stretch, I'd plan a fortnight maximum in Sydney and then get travelling (and yes, I'd book in advance as the affordable places book out quickly).

Not at all common AFAIK. The application process takes far too long. They will go for a 482 (temporary) visa first, to get the applicant onshore and able to start work. When I was contracting, I worked for a few large firms which simply wouldn't sponsor anyone, except at the highest levels.

Up to you, but I disagree. You don't want to leave it too long. You said yourself, this agent plays hardball and they will be hoping you'll say nothing until it's too late to object. Personally, I would lodge the request for the bond. If the agent contacts you to object, just say oops sorry, you're new to the country and someone told you that was what you were supposed to do. Once it's done, there's nothing the agent can do about it. They'll either have to pay up, or tell the RTA how much they're proposing to withhold and why.

The agent relies on tenants meekly paying up, because tenants don't know how the process works, or think it's not worth the hassle. Here's the page about bond refunds and how to dispute them if you and the agent can't reach an agreement: https://www.rta.qld.gov.au/Renting/Ending-a-tenancy/Bond-refunds I suggest you file a request for a refund. If they won't refund the money, then they have to go to dispute resolution. Agents usually charge a fee to go to dispute resolution, so they need to ask the landlord's permission - and many landlords say nah, just pay the bond. It's worth a try.

TBH I'm surprised the saving was so little in the first place. Have you tried Moneycorp?

Can't you just arrange the transfer there and then?

The only problem you might hit is that you'll have a limit on how much you can transfer. However you can get around that by transferring in smaller amounts. Also, of course, you'll need to keep your Australian mobile and make sure you have global roaming activated.

Each state works to its own rules and it's based on what occupations they feel are needed at the time. So, no way to predict.

I know Melburnians moan about it, but I think Melbourne public transport is brilliant, especially compared with Sydney. But I do notice there are a few train lines which seem to have constant interruptions.