Marisawright

So you've been working for another employer illegally all this time? I'd say the visa holder is in big trouble and needs to hire a good migration agent immediately. I can't see how the two years with the new employer counts towards a 186 if the 457 was never transferred.

MARA affiliated means nothing. If you only have 60 points, then you need a lot more than 5 extra points. Although 65 is the official minimum, it won't do you any good. Like I said, Immigration picks out the applicants with the highest score. Every day there are new applications coming in - and most of them have 70, 75 or even 80 points, so they'll leapfrog over you. You'd be wasting your money. You may have thrown away your $600, I'm afraid. As noted above, reputable agents like Raul will usually give you a free initial consultation to give you an idea of your chances, so I think you should take advantage of that.

I believe they got their money back eventually

Unfortunately in the past when other visas have changed their rules, it meant applications already being dealt with. Applications in the queue were cancelled.

There is something wrong with the information as the 190 visa is not a 5 year visa, it's a permanent visa. There is another state sponsored visa which is a 489 visa, which is temporary, and which allows you to apply for permanency after a qualifying period. It may be that you've misunderstood because it's all so strange to you - but if the "agent" made such a basic mistake, then he has no idea what he's talking about. As for the points - that also doesn't sound quite right, because for most occupations, having only 50% of the requirements would mean you're not eligible to apply. How many points did they say you had? The agent should have explained that you need to have 65 points before you're eligible to apply, but that doesn't mean you stand a chance of getting invited. Your application doesn't go into a queue to get reviewed when its turn comes: it's a competition, and the applications with the highest points get picked. If there's a glut of applications, they may decide not to take anyone with less than, say, 80 points, and everyone else will miss out. So you need to ask them whether they mean you're 5 points short of the 65, or 5 points short of whatever the current threshold is to give you a reasonable chance. To be honest, if you can only get 65 then there's not much point. Remember, you've paid them for advice and if there's any aspect of it that you don't understand, you're entitled to go back and ask them to clarify in writing - it would be unreasonable of them to charge you extra for confirmation of their existing advice. Do also note that just because there's a visa available for South Australia, that doesn't mean that's "where the work is". The state doesn't arrange work for you or guarantee you a job. The agency can't help you find work either (if they offer to do so, they are definitely scammers). You will need to find your own work when you arrive and since SA has a small population, it may take some time. You'd do well to check on Seek.com.au to see what vacancies are like.

Yes you can claim the same deductions on an overseas property. You may also be able to claim depreciation if your property isn’t too old or if you’ve done work on it recently

A few years ago, I'd have said she didn't need an agent. However, the government now has a habit of changing the rules and playing with points, and I think it's too hard for the average person to keep up to date - so an agent is always a good idea.

You do know that you don't have to wait 4 years? If you can build up enough points before then, there's absolutely nothing stopping you from applying for a permanent visa yourself. The only downside is that you'll have to pay all the fees yourself if you apply independently, whereas if you wait patiently till the end of your contract, you get support from your employer. But personally I'd say it's worth it.

I looked it up on the PTV site (which is the metro trains). You would be on the country trains. I find country people in Australia treat distances differently but I notice it much less in the cities - but then I have only lived in Melbourne and Sydney. Like I said, it's important to remember that Australians aren't all alike, any more than a Londoner is like a Glaswegian. When we were living in Southampton after 30 years in Sydney, I was stunned to find English people driving 1.5 hours to go to ballroom dancing in the evening. People in Sydney wouldn't even contemplate such a thing.

Yes, I definitely wouldn't wait as the way things are going with our current anti-immigration government, you never know if it will still be an option in three years. I'm sure it's just last minute nerves in your case, but it wouldn't hurt to sit down and have a chat with your partner to make sure you're both on the same page and still both raring to go. As John Lennon famously said, "Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans". Just occasionally, we see couples who've been so focussed on getting to Australia that they've failed to notice what a good life they've built in the UK, or they've never stopped to appreciate how they will feel to be separated from family and friends. It's only in the final days when it's all becoming real, that it starts to hit. So just make sure that isn't you, and you'll be fine.

65 points is the minimum number of points you must have before you're eligible to even be considered, and that's always the same (unless they decide to increase it permanently). However, there's also a minimum threshold to get an invitation, which fluctuates depending on how many visas they've already granted amongst other things. You'll see that figure being quoted from time to time but I don't know where people get it from. On top of that, occupations which are heavily saturated have an even higher points threshold, as you quoted above.

I think it's a bit of a myth that people judge distances differently in Australia. It depends WHERE in Australia you are (because Australians in every state are different), what the traffic conditions are like, and why they're travelling. Sydneysiders will drive from Sydney to Noosa to go on holidays, for instance, and yet they won't drive from Neutral Bay to Sutherland for a party because it's "too far". I do find Melburnites are a bit more willing to cross suburbs, though. However those with really long commutes are usually doing it because they've been forced out of the city by high prices, not by choice, unless they go rural. You say Pakenham is only 30 minutes away as if that makes it commutable to Melbourne, but to me (as an inner-city Melbourne dweller), Pakenham is out in the wilds itself. From Pakenham into the city is 1.5 hours by train.

"A bit out from town"? That's like saying Dundee is a bit outside Edinburgh (same distance). A rent of $500 a week is cheap for an apartment within 20km of Melbourne city centre, but it gets more reasonable the further out you go.

You’re probably better off looking at Geelong if you can’t afford a decent suburb in Melbourne

You're lucky in that you're going with work, so I assume you're getting your expenses paid. The worst that can happen is that you have to put up with 4 years of being stuck in a job you don't like in a city you don't like, then they pay you to come home again. Even if you hate it, you'll have leisure time where you can have a few adventures on the other side of the world. Assuming you haven't sold your home, what have you lost?

You don't say how old you are, or what visa you're on. If you're still young, with no kids, then why do you need to make a decision? Enjoy your travels and when you've had enough and want to settle down, that's when you need to make your mind up. In the meantime, don't do anything permanent, like buy a house - unless you buy it as an investment property. As soon as you buy a home you risk being trapped, if house prices change and you can't sell it for what you bought it for.

Definitely wouldn’t even be considering it without a fortnight's recce

What part of Melbourne are you in, could be important for comparison

You are limited to only six years of back payments. Whether it’s worthwhile depends how long you think you’ll live. Remember, unlike the Australian pension, you get the UK one as soon as you reach pensionable age, and though it may be a small amount, you’ll go on getting it till you die.

Did your previous marriage result in a change of name? If so, then you need to mention your previous marriage and divorce and provide the documentation. I am not sure whether they're necessary otherwise.

So does that mean you are not eligible to apply for the 189?

That's what I thought. I sensed that for you and your Mum, it was that feeling that you had never really settled and still think of England as "home". I think, when someone feels like that, then you've just got to do it - even if it might mean you're less well off financially. I only mentioned the finance/pension side of things so you can plan effectively. You'll see people trying to put you off because we see a lot of people moving back for other reasons, and often they're not good reasons. Some say, "I want my old life back" - that's never going to work because their old life is gone, the scars they created by leaving have healed over and their family and friends have moved on. Some talk about how Australia has "gone to the dogs", seemingly unwilling to believe that politics and the economy are just as bad in the UK as in Oz. Others just have itchy feet and will probably never settle completely anywhere.

You're right that rent is normally a month's bond plus a month in advance, but that only applies if you have a credit rating. If you have no credit rating, it's six months upfront. It may depend on where you are - if you're somewhere the rental market is slow, I daresay agents will be more lax. Where we were in the south of England, agents were totally unimpressed by our (substantial) savings balance, but the rental market was very competitive there so they didn't have to make concessions. If you read Money Saving Expert, you'll see that building a credit rating doesn't happen quickly, it can take 2 or 3 years. I had no problem getting a mobile phone when I first arrived in the UK, despite having no credit rating - but I couldn't get a credit card. After a couple of months, my bank gave me a credit card with a limit of 250 pounds! I seem to recall that MSE recommends some credit cards that are designed for those with poor credit and suggest using those to build your rating. Happily, getting a mortgage seems to be tied more to income than credit rating.

If he has a visa for 2 years, why is he going back after 12 months? It seems like you're missing a golden opportunity. Considering you're about to spend the rest of your life in his country, it's a small ask for him to stay in your country for 2 years. Then you can set yourself up as a couple in the UK, collect your evidence, then submit your offshore application and get on with your lives while you wait. And in the meantime, your mother gets to spend some extra precious time with you and her grandson. And you don't have the stress of being on a bridging visa.

If you're applying offshore from the UK, the wait isn't as long as it says on the website, because that includes people from high risk countries (who take a lot longer). Offshore visas are generally processed faster than onshore ones.