Marisawright

There comes a point where you need to call him and pay for more detailed advice

Sorry I was referring to the 189 queue

Zero to none. The visa queue isn't really a queue, it's a competition. The people with the most points get cherry-picked out of the queue. As long as there are new applicants joining the queue with 70, 75, 80 or even more points (and there always are these days) you don't stand a chance.

12500 is still a reportable lump sum so I would check it doesn’t raise any issues. Anyway while you leave your super in accumulation mode, it’s being taxed within the fund at 15%, so you’ll be better off moving it to an income stream when you can, because then there’s no tax.

Use a Movecube

You have to do the four years residency and I believe you can’t count periods spent outside Australia

Based on the experience of others on this forum, proving you’re ordinarily resident for the NHS doesn’t appear to be too hard, at least not yet. I agree the pension situation would make it hard if she waits till she wants to retire

You don't need an immigration lawyer to help you with citizenship. The rules are very clear. If you do want professional help, then consult a migration agent not a lawyer, they are more knowledgeable. I think you've already had discussions with Paul Hand on these forums, he is an agent.

There are different kinds of pensions. If you convert your super to an "annuity", which guarantees you a fixed regular payment until you die, then your heirs get nothing. However, most Australians just convert their super into an "income stream" pension. If you do that, then you choose how much pension you get paid and you can change it any time. When you die, the balance goes to your estate.

It's what I was told when I looked into it. I can't recall if there was a portion that was tax-free and the rest was taxed, or if it was a lower rate, but it worked out slightly less than normal income. However maybe I was misinformed and I defer to your superior knowledge.

Oops sorry, disregard my answer. I missed that word “temporary”

The easiest way to work out job opportunities - contact the local authorities in Hervey Bay to find out whether there are any "young persons supported accommodation schemes" in the town.

I don't think you can say it will "definitely" be a disaster because although 1974 London doesn't exist, that may not matter. If he's one of those people who feel a connection to place, then the detail of what people are wearing, how they behave, how busy it is etc , will not matter a jot. He'll be on home soil and that will fill the void. You are absolutely right - there are some people who lose their connection to their homeland but don't find a connection to their new country either. I know a few.

You are partly right. Your superannuation lump sum won't be taxed by Australia no matter where you are when you withdraw it. However, if you're a resident of the UK, it will be taxed by HMRC and at a high rate, too. Unfortunately, popping over for a holiday won't work. You don't stop being a resident of the UK just because you go on holiday. You'd have to stay out of the UK for more than six months of a tax year (and you'd be wise to get the advice of a tax expert to make sure you've met all the requirements). Any time you take a lump sum, you will be taxed on it. So taking over a chunk each year won't work either. As far as I know, the only sensible option is to convert your super into a pension (your existing super funds can organise this or you can choose a new provider), then choose to have the pension paid monthly. It should be possible to have it paid into a UK bank account but check with your fund. Then you just declare the pension as income to HMRC. The good news is that pensions are taxed at a lower rate than normal income.

Once your visa is activated then you have 5 years to make the permanent move. The 5 years is counted from the date the visa was granted, not the date it was activated.

You mentioned you thought most migrants were happy and settled and I was referring to that group - I've noticed there are two sub-groups within that cohort, the ones who are happy and the ones that are too happy to be true.

Do you mean defined benefit? That means you are guaranteed a fixed amount per month until you die, right? I’m not sure how you could transfer that to the Australian superannuation system, which just gives you a pot of money and it’s up to you to make it last

Ooh that's a tough one. My first husband and I were separated for several years before we got around to divorcing, even though we never had the slightest intention of getting back together. So I do understand that it's perfectly possible to be fully committed to a new partner while still married to someone else. However it does make the whole partner visa situation more problematic as Immigration is looking for the slightest excuse to suspect the relationship might not be genuine. You will definitely need an agent to make sure you cover all bases! I trust your respective divorce proceedings are well in train.

If that's all you're worried about then stop worrying. You don't have to live together for every single day of your year to qualify. The rule is that you must have been together in a relationship "which is the equivalent of marriage" for 12 months. So just dating doesn't count, you need to have evidence to show the date it became permanent. However even married couples have to be apart from time to time, perhaps to visit parents overseas, or for work. So even if you had to leave Australia when your 482 expires, your relationship still exists and the clock continues to tick. If you've been apart for large chunks of the relationship it's a different story and you really need an agent to prepare your application. But if you do have to go home for a few weeks, it shouldn't be a big deal, because you can demonstrate there was a good reason why you had to be apart.

Let's face it, if you were working for a British company, came to Australia on holiday and did a bit of work while you were here, no one would say boo. So whether it's strictly legal or not, I'd think you would be OK - especially if you have the fees paid into your UK account. The big issue is whether it's legal for you to stay in Australia. Your 482 should have cancelled your evisitor visa, so I'm not sure you'd get away with claiming it's still valid, even if the immi account still shows it. Perhaps you could hop over to New Zealand or Asia, then apply for a new tourist visa to re-enter? However I'm not sure how that would help you, since it's illegal to seek employment or sponsorship in Australia while on a tourist visa. I think it would be worth a consultation with a migration agent.

Having a marriage certificate makes no difference, since people do contract fake marriages to get a visa. So you still have to submit all the evidence.

The "half of all migrants" figure was often quoted on Wanted Down Under, so who knows where it came from. But I do wonder if everyone you meet who '" loves it here" is really as happy as you think. I notice two different kinds of migrants. There are people like me, who enjoy their life in Australia and feel settled. Then are migrants who LOVE it here and think it's AMAZING and life back in Britain is absolute SH!!* these days and don't you DARE criticise anything about their WONDERFUL NEW COUNTRY!!! They're the ones that are lying to themselves. That's why they can't let anyone mention the downsides of Australia, because they can't afford to question themselves - it might burst the bubble of denial they've created for themselves.

I'm not sure that your idea will get you to Australia much quicker than the 143, to be honest. In most cases, work experience before you get your qualification doesn't count for anything, so you'll need to start from scratch. Seven years may seem like a long time, but by the time you've done a two-year course and three years experience (which is often what's required), it'll disappear faster than you think. And a skilled visa takes about a year to process. There's always the risk that the occupation won't be on the list by the time you qualify, too, so your efforts will be wasted. So make sure it's something you will find useful if you find that you're stuck in the UK

There are no other visas that let you work in Australia unless you can get a sponsored visa (the 482 visa which is for 2 or 4 years). To be realistic, just because you take a sponsored job for 2 years, you're not manacled to the job. If you want to give notice and go home after a year, you can (though you may have to reimburse some costs). However you'd need to look into whether your occupation is on the list of jobs eligible for sponsorship, and then you'll have the challenge of finding a sponsor - it's not easy. If you don't need to work, then you could get tourist visas and just keep hopping over to New Zealand or Asia to apply for another one. There's always the risk Immigration could get suspicious if you keep doing it, though.

I wanted to make sure you understood. A while back we had another member who thought it meant they weren't liable for tax in the UK, so they never submitted a tax return for their rental income. Some years later HMRC found out and not only did he have to pay tax, but he got fined several thousand pounds.