Marisawright

Me too. It was a real shock to me to come to these forums and see the genuine grief felt by people who had migrated and then discovered they had a much deeper attachment to their home country than they'd ever suspected. It's easy to take the attitude that people should just try migrating and if they don't like it, they can come home - but that's simply not a realistic option for a family who have just spent a chunk of their life savings relocating.

Neither of you is likely to get a job before you arrive. Get on Seek.com.au and search for jobs in your line, then look at what agencies and companies are advertising those jobs. Make your list that way.

The financial requirements are a real issue, many people can't meet them. I've heard that many people end up going to Ireland because as a British citizen, you have right of entry and you can bring your wife along.

This quote says it all. I get criticised for pointing out the negatives and told that "people have already done their research" so it's mean of me to pour cold water on their dreams. I bet @bug family wishes he'd met me on these forums before he migrated. People who already have a clear idea of what Australia is like, won't be put off by having a few downsides pointed out to them. But from what I've seen, there are far too many people planning to migrate who are as naive as bug family.

No, we didn't have jobs lined up. We're retired so we were able to provide evidence of sufficient savings. Do you own your home? If so, you can use the equity in your home as evidence of savings. I have a nasty feeling that you need to have an offer on the house and then get a solicitor's letter showing the sale is in progress - but I hope I'm wrong. I'm sure you'll find some info on that if you Google. The financial requirements are very stringent, no exceptions possible at all. No, my husband did not have to do the English test. He didn't have to wait long for the biometric interview and I think the whole thing took us less than six weeks.

That's a very general question! Where will you be working? Sydney is a sprawling city and you can easily be living 2 hours from the city centre and still be in the suburbs. A lot will depend on your budget. Prices vary massively across the city. The further from the city centre and coast you go, the cheaper it gets but also, of course, the longer your commute (if you're working in the city) and the further from the beach. Domain.com.au and realestate.com.au are the two sites for buying and renting. Be aware that if you are on a temporary visa, you need special permission from the FIRB to buy, and you'll pay about three times the normal stamp duty on the purchase. So, for example, on a $900,000 house, an ordinary Australian would pay $35,000 stamp duty, but you'll pay $107,000 stamp duty.

If you are applying independently for the 189 or the 190, then your employer-sponsored visas (457 and TSS) are irrelevant. Where it would be relevant is if you wanted to go the employer-sponsored PR route, i.e. the 186 or the 187

You've got to remember that although Australia is huge, the population is only a third the size of the UK. So there's only a third as many universities or colleges either - and remember, there's a lot of distance between the big cities. To be honest, I doubt companies would employ a specialist manager to fly around the country supervising the installation of kitchens and bathrooms. So I would be pessimistic about you finding exactly the same job in Oz. That said, I'm sure your skills would be transferable to other fields?

I'm sorry to hear you've had visa troubles. You cannot enter the UK and then apply for a spouse visa, the rules say you must apply from your country of residence. We applied from Sydney and although they quote 3 months, our visa came through in less than 3 weeks after the biometric interview. So I suggest getting the application in asap and see what happens. Look into whether you can apply for tourist visas so you can stay in Australia for the additional time you need. The online application is fiddly but just takes patience. One thing to watch out for - you also have to complete Appendix 2, which is a form your wife has to print off and take with her to the biometric interview: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/733638/VAF4A-Appendix2-08-18.pdf You'll notice it asks for an address in the UK. When we did it, we used our sister's address and they didn't check. However nowadays, I believe they're really strict. You need a genuine address where you can live for a reasonable length of time and you'll need to provide proof that you have a right to live there and that there's room for your family.

I wouldn't worry about finding work. In my experience, Australian employers are very ageist but it's not nearly as bad in the UK. We moved back four years ago (when I was already over 60). I had no trouble getting interviews and had a job offer (but by that time we'd decided to move). Just don't expect to find a job before you arrive - no one is going to hire you while you're still in Australia. They'll want you to be back and settled first. I wouldn't worry about Brexit either. I know there's lots of speculation about it hurting the economy, but if you listen to economists, Australia's economy is on the skids too - so you'll be no worse off.

As Colllie says, you can leave your superannuation in the fund as an investment until you retire and it will continue to earn interest. If you've stopped working or have left the country, you just have to let them know and instruct them to cancel all insurances (which probably wouldn't be valid anyway). Your next question relates to how you'll be taxed if you get PR and then take a lump sum when you retire. It's quite a complicated issue and it might be worth a consultation with an expert. Certainly, a PR holder can withdraw their lump sum at retirement age and the Australian government won't take a penny in tax. Unfortunately if you're living in the UK at that time, the Inland Revenue will swoop in and take a huge chunk, so you may be no better off. It's also worth checking whether the money you paid while on the 482 would still be labelled as being liable for DASP anyway.

That's true IF YOU ARE RESIDING IN AUSTRALIA. If you've lived in Australia for 10 years, then you are entitled to the full pension (means tested, of course). However if you are living overseas, different rules apply. To get the full pension overseas, you need 35 years' residency. If you've only got 10 years' residency, then you'll only get 10/35ths. Anyway, if you move to the UK before you reach pensionable age, you can't even claim it. If you move back to Australia and live for 2 years either before or after your eligibility date, you can claim the pension and then you can move back to the UK and keep the pension - but I doubt many of us would be keen to uproot ourselves for 2 years in our late sixties/early seventies.

If you are only sending 150 cu ft, then you have only one choice. Seven Seas is the only company that offers a container that is small enough for you, it's called the Movecube.

To be classed as a resident of Australia, you must be resident in Australia. So if you're living in the UK, you're not resident and therefore you can't claim the pension, sorry. It's a crazy situation, because if you went and retired in Spain or France or Italy, you would be able to claim it, because they have a reciprocal agreement with Australia. Whereas the agreement with the UK expired in 2000 and no one has got around to renewing it. So, the deal is that if you leave Australia before you reach pensionable age, you will not get the Australian govt pension. Therefore it's very important to be paying your NI contributions (and back-pay any you missed) so you can claim the British one.

Anything would be better than Melbourne beaches!

Because the whole of Australia isn't a paradise. There are some lovely places to live, but nowhere in the world is a perfect paradise. Recently, someone joined these forums asking about migration. They said they KNEW that moving to Australia would automatically make them happier and healthier and less stressed, because Australian life is so laid back. Someone arriving in Sydney and finding all they can afford is a flat in Mount Druitt is going to be sadly disappointed, don't you think?

When you say, "going round in circles", what do you mean? If you've been talking to reputable migration agents and none of them can give you a solution to migrate, there probably there isn't one. You can't count any of your work experience, because only experience AFTER you get your qualification counts. So I don't think there is an option for you at the moment. Even the 482 (the new employer-sponsored visa that replaced the 457) has the same requirements for qualifications and experience. If you are young enough, you could get a WHV (Working Holiday Visa) which would give you a year or two in Australia and is very easy to get.

If you don't meet the criteria, then you must show "strong ties of benefit to Australia", and compelling reasons why you weren't able to return. The problem for you is that if you don't have "strong ties", then they don't care how compelling your reasons were. "Strong ties" could be something like owning a home in Australia, having relatives living there, having a job offer.

Yes that’s right.

At that size, you would be much wiser to use a Movecube, not a container. Most people pack it themselves, but you can pay them to pack it for you. https://www.sevenseasworldwide.com/moving/movecube You may not be able to fit large items of furniture into the cube but the largest one is 6 cubic metres, I think - more than you need. It's very hard to say what the added tax will be. If it is all second-hand personal effects, it shouldn't be too bad.

Actually if they are currently resident in the UK, they would be covered while in Australia under the reciprocal health agreement, so meds etc shouldn't be a problem. I can't help with the schooling issue I'm afraid, hopefully someone else will be able to help.

Don't forget things like inheritance tax too. Given the thousands of pounds it could cost if you get it wrong, it would be well worth paying someone like Alan for a one-off consultation to examine your finances and explain how it will all impact you. It's so complicated you can tie yourself in knots trying to work it out yourself!

The other snag is that because you're an international student, you'll be classed as a foreign investor. That mean you'll need to apply for special permission to buy from the FIRB. The fee is a few thousand dollars. Then you'll be charged about four times the stamp duty that Australians would pay. On a $600,000 house in Queensland, an Australian would pay $12,850 in stamp duty. You will have to pay $54,850. If you think about that, you'd be better off using that extra $42,000 to pay rent instead, and wait until you're no longer a student. If you keep your house in the UK and rent it out, that will help pay for your rent (and give you a safety net if the rules change and you're unable to get on the Work Ready program)

You've got a good deposit there but the important thing for a mortgage is whether you'd have enough income to qualify. This calculator will tell you: https://www.realestate.com.au/home-loans/borrowing-power-calculator/ However, be aware that most banks won't lend to international student visa holders, because obviously, most of them are going to leave the country long before the mortgage is paid off. And I'm sure you'll appreciate that they can't take your word for it that you're staying for the long term. Personally, I wouldn't worry about it yet, because I doubt you'll be ready to buy for a year or so. I say that because you're going to be in an AirBnB/holiday let for a month, then you'll have to sign up for a rental for at least six months (some landlords insist on 12 months). There's 7 months gone already. Also, it's unlikely you'll both get 20 hours' work straight away. Part-time work is hard to find and depending what your wife does, she may find it hard to get a job because employers aren't keen to employ people on short-term visas. So it could be several months before you're both earning. I would just park the idea for now and plan on the basis that you'll be renting - then worry about it down the track.

In the old days, nobody used an agent. But then, the application fees were a lot lower and the forms were a lot simpler. Nowadays, I don't think I'd risk not using an agent, personally. The problem is that Immigration are very unforgiving. Make a mistake on your application and they won't come back and ask, "Did you mean....?" They'll just reject the application and you've wasted all that money.