Marisawright

You might like to read up on Peter Dutton, aka Mr Potato Head. He's the current Minister for Immigration, who might more appropriately be called the Minister anti Immigration.

You are not being selfish. You have just as much right to be happy as your husband. It will be very hard to find a solution that suits you both and I recommend you get professional help from a counsellor

If they are married then they apply together. You probably wouldn't have to worry about the amount of money as it's quite likely you'd never have to pay it. The waiting time for the 804 visa is 30 years.

https://www.stockbrokers.org.au/education/qualifications

The harsh reality is that the vast majority of people who'd like to migrate to Australia, can't. If you are going through all the options and not finding an avenue that works, it is very likely that there isn't one. Australia isn't a developing country any more and can produce a reasonable supply of locally-qualified professionals for itself most of the time. The unemployment rate is much the same as the UK and just like the UK, the government doesn't want to be accused of allowing migrants to "take our jobs", so they limit migration to a select number of occupations (the annoying thing is that they are very slow to update the lists to reflect actual demand) You might think Australia would be actively seeking migrants to grow the economy by developing the vast empty areas of the country. However, most of those areas are unsuitable for urban development as they have inadequate access to water. There's a growing feeling that our big cities are already over-crowded, hence the government's move to force migrants out into the regional areas. Like everywhere else in the world, there is right-wing backlash against immigrant communities, and our right-wing government is very sensitive to that, too.

You are paying your agent good money. She is not allowed to throw up her hands and say, "I can't do it!". It's her responsibility to seek help and get it resolved, either by contacting Immigration or by consulting a fellow professional agent. Ring her again and ask her what she plans to do about it and when. It's her job!

Yes you have, sorry. There are temporary work visas you could get but that's only for a few years if you can find an employer to sponsor you. The upper limit for most visas is 45.

What visa do you have?

If you're 38 then I would get the ball rolling fast. The 189 visa (the main permanent visa) is a competitive visa. You need to score a minimum of 65 points to apply, but then you are up against other applicants, and the applicants with the most points win. Currently, you need to be able to score 85 points or more to stand any chance of being selected. That affects you because you get points for age - and the older you get, the less points you get. The whole process of getting a visa takes at least a year. If you are lucky enough to get a visa, then you just have to pop over as a famliy to make an "activation visit", then you have five years to get your act together and make the permanent move. So there's no reason to delay even if you don't want to move for a year or two.

Do you know whether you can even qualify for a visa yet? If not, that's your first step. Make an appointment with a registered migration agent. All the reputable ones will give you an initial consultation free of charge. The reason I ask is that if you've been in business that long, I assume you're in your forties. That may make it difficult to get enough points to qualify. If you're over 45, you've missed the boat. You could get a short-term visa for a few years (which I wouldn't recommend with kids, as it's too disruptive to their education) but you've got no chance of migrating permanently. Unless your wife is younger and has an occupation that would qualify her to apply. You will need to do a training course when they arrive in Australia, then work as a trades assistant (similar to an apprentice) for several months, before they are allowed to work as an electrician in your own right. I know that sounds mad when you've been an electrician for so long, but that's the way it works.

The 491 is brand new so no one will have experience of it yet. It is easier to get than the 189 or 190, and you need to be aware of the conditions. You can't live in Sydney on that visa though, it's only for regional areas. The good news is that you've got an offer of sponsorship so that gives you at least 2 years to sort yourself out. Have a consultation with a migration agent and they'll give you an idea what your chances are - all the reputable ones will give you an initial consultation free of charge.

Forget all that stuff about a better life in Australia. It’s utter nonsense. It’s a different life not a better one. Some people like the Australian life better than the British one. Some people like the British life better than the Australian one. It’s just a personal preference, nothing more.

As Quoll says, Sydney isn't as big or as crowded as London, but it's the closest thing that Australia has. Housing is eye-wateringly expensive (like London) so most people have to live in the far outer suburbs which can be pretty boring, unlike the fantastic lively centre (like London). If you want to live in the best bits of Sydney (near the beach and the centre) then you either need to be very rich, or prepared to squeeze into a shoebox (like London). For most people, daily life in Sydney is much the same as daily life in the UK, except where London people are stuck indoors on wet, rainy days, Sydney people are stuck indoors on hot, sticky, sweaty 40 degree days. If you're lucky and can live near a beach, you can have the dream Aussie lifestyle, but most Sydney residents can't afford it (the biggest population centre in Sydney is in Parramatta, which is an hour's drive from the nearest beach on a good day and two hours on a bad day). Like most big cities, people keep themselves to themselves and it can be hard to make friends. You should prepare yourself for a year or two of feeling isolated and lonely, with no babysitters and no support. My biggest concern is that you're already worried about being very homesick. That rings alarm bells for me. Successful migrants are usually people who are already fairly independent, who don't see their parents all that often even while they're in the UK. If you live in your friends' pockets, see your mum every week and can't imagine how you'd manage without her, you will very likely be miserable in Australia and will never settle. We have members on this forum who've been living with their Aussie husband in Australia for 20 years or more and are still as homesick as ever, but they've basically sacrificed their happiness for the sake of keeping the family together. In your shoes, I would be thinking twice about the move and seeing if your OH will consider staying in the UK instead. If he isn't desperate to be near his famliy, but you are very attached to yours, then it won't be as much of a sacrifice for him as it will be for you. And it's much, much easier to stay where you are, than to move to Australia and then have to persuade him to move back (or give you permission to move back with your child).

The 189 visa would be very difficult to obtain. It's a points-based visa and it's a competition, not a queue - the people with the most points get picked. Currently, there are so many accountants applying with high point scores, you'll need over 95 points to get picked. Anything less, and you'll just languish in the queue until your application expires. The regional visas are all managed by the states, and each state has its own rules and requirements. You'll find some occupations are on the list in some states but not in others, and the conditions vary too. So you'll need to check the requirements of each state to know whether you can apply. The easiest way forward is to have an initial consultation with a migration agent. The reputable ones will give you a free initial consult.

@Loulabell, as this is such an important event in your life, you really should be prepared to hire wrussell or Alan to sort this out for you. Solving problems like this is how they make their living, it's unreasonable to expect them to do it all for nothing.

@Silver_Swan, this may have already occurred to you, but the other solution is to send your container off a couple of months before you fly. Then you only need about a month in an AirBnB in Sydney (which you'll need anyway to give you time to find a long-term rental). That often works better, because you can manage to 'camp" in your home in the UK by keeping back old cutlery, crockery, pots, pans, camp beds etc that you can just throw away or take to the charity shop before you go. Or borrow stuff from family.

If the father is shown on the birth certificate then I'd say she would need his consent, or some kind of legal document confirming that he is untraceable.

If you know the employer and you’re able to apply for a PR visa immediately you arrive, then that’s the best of both worlds. The risk if you have to wait two or three years before applying, is that the rules are getting stricter all the time and there would be a risk the option won’t be available for you by the time you’re eligible

@theleggates, as you say, you could probably get by without private health insurance because of the reciprocal agreement, however you're required to have private insurance as part of the conditions of your 482. I hope you're aware that the 482 is just a short-term visa, you're not migrating? The 482 is designed to fill short-term gaps in the labour market, so the government wants you to go back to the UK at the end of it. There is a possibility of applying to stay permanently afterwards, but it is only a possibility, and the government is making it harder every year. Some employers will make it sound more definite because they want you to take the job, but it's smoke and mirrors. If you take the 482, plan on the basis that you'll be going home after 4 years - and make sure your employer will pay your relocation costs both ways, or it will be an expensive adventure. If you are keen to migrate to Australia, you might want to look into the 491, which is also a short-term visa - but the government wants you to stay at the end of it. it's designed to attract migrants to smaller towns and cities. When you get the visa, you have to live and work in a regional area for three years, and then you can apply for a permanent visa (and stand a good chance of getting it). The government's idea is that once you've been living in an area for three years, you'll feel so settled that you won't leave. Have you consulted a migration agent? All the good ones will give you an initial consultation free of charge so you can fully understand your options.

It's my understanding that the assurer doesn't have to pay the money until shortly before the visa is granted. If your parents are applying for the 804 visa, then you will never be asked to pay, because the waiting period is 30 years and your parents won't live to see the day.

Just to make one point clear: The TSS is a temporary visa, designed to fill short-term gaps in the labour market in Australia. The government wants you to go home in the end, but leaves the door open to let you apply to stay (some would say grudgingly) IF you can make a good enough case. The 491 visa is not a temporary visa, it is a provisional visa. It's designed to push migrants to settle in regional areas of Australia, where it's hard for employers to find local applicants. The theory is that after four years of living out in the country, you'll be so well-settled that you'll stay for good. So the government actually wants you to apply for the permanent visa at the end.

A TSS visa will get you 2 to 4 years in Australia and that's that. If you are a couple with no kids and no ties, it's a good option to have an adventure. However you shouldn't regard it as a path to migrating permanently. There is a "pathway" to be sponsored for PR after you've met certain conditions, but it's only a possibility not a guarantee, and your employer is under no obligation to go through with it, no matter what they promise at the start. Besides, you are banking on the rules still being the same by the time you're able to apply for PR. If your occupation has been taken off the list, or the requirements have increased, you won't be able to apply and you'll have to go home. Considering how fast the rules have been changing recently, three years is a long time so that's a major risk. You're also insecure all the way through the visa period. You can only stay in Australia while you're employed by that employer. If you don't like the job, tough - you can't leave unless you can find another sponsor to take over your contract. Unfortunately, employers know you can't leave and some will take advantage of that. Also, if your employer gets into difficulties and makes you redundant, or the company goes bust, you'll have 90 days to leave the country unless you can find another sponsor (and 90 days isn't much time to achieve that). I think the worst case scenario we've seen is someone whose company went bust just a few weeks after he arrived in Australia - he couldn't find another sponsor and had to go home. Your partner will also find it harder to get work, because employers know he/she is totally dependent on your visa, and if you lose your job, they'll lose their employee. As for finding a sponsor - you look on Seek for jobs, and apply for them. But it's very hard these days. The process is now complex and expensive for employers and they have to open their books to the government, something some employers would rather not do! For that reason, employers won't sponsor an overseas employee unless they're struggling to hire someone locally. I don't know what the market is like in your occupation.

They get my vote as well, great service.

Yes, you are subject to capital gains tax in Australia. I hope you've been completing an Australian tax return for the rent while it's been rented out. The rules for capital gains for non-residents changed recently, so not many people will have experience of the new rules. Actually, I'm not sure if the new rules are already in effect or are about to change this year. So I won't get specific about what you'll pay, as I only know the old rules and it might be totally wrong!

ALL reputable agents do free initial consults. The waiting time for the contributory visa is 5 or 6 years now and I'd be pessimistic about that improving. The current government would like to stop them altogether, but that would require a change in the law, so they're on permanent go-slow instead.