Marisawright

Yes, it is related to the number of points other applicants have, so yes it can vary, but it seems they ae only considering the very highest point scores now. Also, there were some changes in November to how the points are calculated.

https://www.iscah.com/unofficial-skill-select-results-10th-january-2020-189s-491s/

What a pity you've got the honeymoon booked in your maiden name as you could've got your passport changed before you go. As Loopylu says, make sure you apply to renew your passport as soon as you're back from the honeymoon, as you only get a certain window to make a name change free of charge. No one will care if your bank accounts etc are in another name, though you might find it easier to do all that once you've got the passport done.

No point in applying for either as no one is getting invited with less than 90 points. Take a look at the regional visas

Absolutely, and I think it’s a great opportunity to have an adventure if the family treats it as such. The OP asked specifically about moving to Australia which I took to mean permanently not just for the short term

Ah, but what you have to consider is WHY thoughts of home were so powerful that you couldn't even enjoy a nice event. If at some point, you made up your mind to hate everything about the place, and from that point on, you were determined not to enjoy everything - that's one thing (and that does happen!). If you return to Australia, all you have to do is decide not to be such an idiot next time! But if you went to Australia with a reasonably open mind and just found that you couldn't help it, you were always thinking of home - then it's not something you can control, ever. Like I said, I understand the temptation to convince yourself it wasn't that bad, that you didn't try, that it would be fine - because you can't shake that guilty feeling about dragging your wife back to the UK and you want to make her happy. But you have to be really, really careful. Some people can move anywhere in the world and live anywhere without a second thought. Those people make good migrants. But some people - and actually I think it's the majority - have a very deep attachment to their homeland, which never fades. They may not even be aware of it until they try to move overseas, and even then they might not understand why they can't settle. Logically they can see all the good things about their new country, but they know something isn't right. Those people should simply never be migrants.

Removes some stains but doesn’t whiten

It’s not a matter If declaring that you’re resident or not, you don’t get to choose. If you’re not resident in the UK for at least six months of the tax year, you’re a non resident. Using someone else’s address to look as though you reside there is illegal.

Impossible to say now. I was willing to try somewhere else but my oh kept putting off a move. But I’m not sure it would have worked. I feel much happier in Australia

You also need to add it to your signature on every post

Nemesis’ own case was rejected.

Are you absolutely sure you didn't try to settle, or was it really because your homesickness was so powerful, you couldn't settle? If you were being bolshie and not trying, then you'll make a go of it the second time. If you were horribly homesick, that feeling will return just as strongly the next time - it won't matter how fantastic life is in Australia, it will all feel empty because you're not where you belong. And that feeling never goes away. I give that warning because sometimes when we have a row, my OH throws that "you didn't try" argument at me (we tried to settle in the UK a few years ago), and now the memories are fading, I'm almost starting to believe him. I think back on our time in the UK and think, I can remember some nice walks and we had a nice home, and....maybe I'm exaggerating and it wasn't that bad? Maybe I didn't try hard enough? And yet I know I wasn't making it up, because I also remember waking up one night in our flat in Southampton, and thinking the easiest solution would be to jump off the balcony. That was the catalyst that made me insist on returning to Australia. So i guess my message is, don't underestimate the power of rose-coloured glasses. It's human nature to remember the good bits.

Yes, but that post only talks about BUPA and that was several years ago. I think it would be worth talking to other health funds. Although BUPA is big in the UK, it's a new, small player in Australia and not well regarded.

I imagine you could do that, but then you'd be more likely to top up 6 years, then voluntarily pay contributions from that point on - safer than waiting, just in case the rules change before the next time you want to top up! I'm a good example of what you mean. I left the UK in my thirties. I didn't know about voluntary contributions, and I don't think I'm unusual in that - I just assumed that I'd left the UK and therefore the door was closed. By the time I found out in my sixties, I could only backpay six years, so I don't even get half of the UK pension. At the time we were considering a move to the UK. We didn't really need the government pension: we both have superannuation and could take an income stream, but while that's tax-free in Australia, it would be taxed as income in the UK. We were old enough that we could've cashed in our super and moved it over as a lump sum, but there is limited scope to invest that tax-free in the UK, so we'd still have ended up paying more tax than if we stayed in Australia. In summary, we'd have ended up with less income from our superannuation in the UK than we would get in Australia. That might not have been a deal-breaker, but the bigger problem with superannuation is that it's a finite pot of money - there's a risk it will run out before you do, and if that happens, you need a safety net. In Australia, we'd both get the full Australian pension if we ran into trouble. In the UK, my OH would get nothing and I'd get less than half the UK pension. Based on various projections, we're likely to run out of superannuation in our 80's somewhere (and we don't own a home). Of course we might be dead by then, but what if we're not? We didn't fancy having to up sticks and return to Australia in very old age. Luckily, I find I prefer living in Australia anyway (though my oh always says he'd move to the UK as soon as he wins Lotto...).

Nil. If your goal is to live in Australia permanently, then I'd advise you to stop wasting time with temporary visas, and apply for a 491 somewhere, if you can find a state which still accepts accountants. Every year, Australia makes it harder for people to get a permanent visa. So every year you waste on a temporary visa makes it more likely you will eventually have to leave.

As Amber says, you can do it online - but if that is too much hassle, all you have to do is contact the International Pension Centre. You can fill in a form or there are phone numbers here: https://www.gov.uk/international-pension-centre If you are hoping to go back to the UK eventually then it is really, really important to do this urgently. Find out how many years you can back-pay, and pay them. Then start making regular contributions from now on. That way you will be entitled to a PART British pension in your old age. If you leave Australia before you reach pension age, you won't be able to claim the Australian pension and a part British pension won't go anywhere close to replacing it.

It's a condition of your 482 visa to take out a policy. I believe it is possible to let it lapse after you arrive - don't ask me how that works! Many Australians have private health cover but it's not to cover GP or specialist visits - for Australians, it's not possible to get cover for those things. Cover is available for hospital treatment and extras only. In Australia, doctors (GP's and specialists) are not employed by Medicare. They are all independent and decide what fees they want to charge. Medicare will only reimburse a fixed amount. You pay the doctor, then claim back the fixed amount. The difference is called the "gap" (and like I say, for Australians there's no mechanism to cover that - you just have to wear it). Some large GP practices "bulk bill", which means they only charge the Medicare fixed fee. and they don't charge you - they bill the Government direct, in bulk. They make that decision because although they are being paid less, they don't have to handle money and they don't need so many support staff.

I think the BUPA person you spoke to is confused. It makes absolutely no sense. I suggest ringing some of the other health funds (most of whom don't even offer the Reciprocal policy and yet, still offer MLS exemption). BUPA is a fairly new and small player in the Australian market.

But that's the point, we're thinking of all the people still in the queue, which is progressing more slowly every day because immigration officials are spending 2 or 3 hours of their day, logging and processing unnecessary emails.

Sorry, i was on my phone. Yes, it is possible to renew a temporary visa, but all that gets you is another temporary visa. And you can't keep renewing it again and again, it's not allowed. Besides, renewing doesn't improve your chances of getting PR - in fact, probably the reverse, because the longer you're on a temp visa, the more occupations are removed from the lists and the more requirements for permanent visas are going up, so your chances of ever getting permanency are likely to get worse, not better. Ultimately if you can't get a permanent visa, you'll have to go home, and the longer you've been away, the harder it will be to settle back in the UK. It may not be an issue for singles or couples with no ties, but harder for families to live in that situation.

That's not a reasonable conclusion to draw. If she hadn't sent any emails, she might well have got the decision at exactly the same time.

But it’s still temporary. You can’t keep renewing forevermore

By far your best option is to contact them direct and just ask

Yes, the high likelihood that the rules will change over the next four years and if you leave it too long, you will find it much harder to get in. Australia is steadily closing the doors to migrants and I can foresee a time when they’ll impose financial and other restrictions on partner visas, like the UK and other countries.

The question is, how many years was the expat in Britain before leaving? Did they pay class 2 contributions during their whole absence ( you can back pay only about six years)? Many people don’t. If you are sufficiently well off to be certain you’ll never need to fall back on the Aussie pension any time for the rest of your life, then you can move to the UK with confidence. Not everyone is in that fortunate position