Marisawright

99% of "independent" mortgage brokers in Australia are not truly independent. They get paid commissions from the mortgage providers, so even though they're not officially tied to a particular set of providers, they will recommend the one that pays them the highest commission (how do I know? I used to work for a mortgage provider). This mob claims to be truly independent but I know nothing about them: http://www.independentmortgageplanners.com.au/

You can’t look into the visa while you’re in Australia, you’ll need to do that while you’re still in the UK. Easiest way to do that is to have a consultation with a MARA registered migration agent

It would be very unwise to trust online searches, particularly as real estate agents unashamedly doctor the photos of the properties. You could use them to create a shortlist of properties to view in your first few weeks, but even that isn't as easy as it sounds. It makes a lot more sense to start with a holiday let for four weeks while you look for a rented place, then take a lease for six or twelve months, to give you time to research the city thoroughly and make a considered decision. To understand why I say that, I suggest you do a trial run - make a short list of properties, then pretend you're in Australia already and you're going to view them this week. You'll have to check the "Open for Inspection" time on the property listing because that's the only time you can view the property. If you've got three houses and they're all open at 10.30am on Saturday, tough - unless you're in the country, agents aren't cooperative about opening the property for you any other time. Make a schedule for your first Saturday, and remember to allow driving time from one house to the next. You're likely to find that you don't have time to see many properties - and if you don't even know what the various suburbs are like yet, you'll end up driving by some of them because the neighbourhood looks dodgy. How many homes did you look at before you bought your last property, which was probably in a region you knew well? When you find one you like, if it's for auction (which is common), they may not take an offer, so you'll have to wait up to 6 weeks for the auction. If you're successful, then it's typically 6 weeks for settlement. Meanwhile you're still in your AirBnB.

To be honest, that sounds like they are exploiting you because they know you cannot leave without risking your visa. If you do leave, I think they would be likely to complain so it would be a risk.

Sounds like there’s not much you can do about it. Can you opt to receive the pension quarterly instead of monthly so it’s a bigger sum?

Actually for many occupations other than nursing, Australia is the same.

Let us know how you’re getting on

Spousal is the most certain, if you have strong evidence. Large numbers of partner visas are refused but that’s because so many are fraudulent or provide inadequate evidence. It can be a long queue, but it’s strictly first come first served, and you’ll get a bridging visa if the 457 runs out before it comes through. With the skilled options, you can still fail even if you’ve got all the qualifications and experience, because it’s a competition, not a queue - applicants with the highest points get cherrypicked and the rest ignored, so it’s possible to have a long wait or even miss out altogether

Did it occur to you that maybe what you’d already provided didn’t constitute “strong ties” and that’s why they asked?

That's what they do, and that's why we are always recommending to use an agent. The process is very unforgiving - make a mistake and they won't come back and ask, "Did you mean......?", they'll just reject the application.

Yes, that's what a lot of people do, from what I've seen on the forums.

I've been corresponding with Livvy and from what she has told me, there is absolutely no chance of reconciliation, much to her regret.

The employer has to do most of the work. Most employers do engage an agent to do their side, because it's complicated and expensive. Their agent will act for the employer, not you, so you should consider getting an agent to represent your interests. At the very least, have a free initial consultation with an agent to understand the process. They'll give you a quote so you can decide whether to engage them. There are several good agents on these forums. You being on a WHV makes no difference to the process they have to follow. Question: who has said they'll sponsor you? Is it just your manager and is it just verbal, or have you had official confirmation and a job offer from HR? If it's just your boss, I would advise not getting too excited. In my career as an office manager, I saw several department managers offer sponsorship to WHV workers - and I'm sorry to tell you that not one of them succeeded. In a big company, especially if it's a government body, a manager doesn't have the authority to sponsor anyone. Often when they make the offer, they have no idea how difficult and expensive it is, so they get a surprise when Human Resources knocks them back. Firstly, the costs may be over budget and can't be approved - it's not just the visa fee, but the agent's fees, advertising costs (they have to prove they can't find a local candidate), administrative costs to complete the considerable paperwork, etc. Then there are company rules which may exist - the company may have a policy of recruiting overseas staff only above a certain level, or they may have an annual quota for overseas staff which they've already used up. If your occupation is on the skilled list for a permanent visa, then you'd be better off applying for a skilled visa in your own right.

I started out in the Eastern suburbs (Paddington, Double Bay) then my marriage broke up and it's been all downhill since then! Only joking really - Paddington and Double Bay are very upmarket, but I've been lucky to live in nice suburbs throughout my time in Sydney. In fact that's the reason I'm now in Melbourne - when we moved back from overseas, we couldn't afford to buy or rent in an acceptable area. Large parts of Western and South-Western Sydney are awful, faceless, dormitory suburbs and there was no way I would live in them. As we have no family left in Sydney, there was no reason for us to compromise, so we came to Melbourne instead. Places I've lived in: after my divorce, I lived in Randwick and Alexandria, then when I remarried I lived in Five Dock and Ashbury (both west of Sydney and as far West as I'd ever consider living). Then we moved down to Oatley to be near my mother-in-law. My mother-in-law lived in Gymea, another nice suburb with good coffee shops, and my husband's niece lived in Kirrawee. I used to go to Wollongong, Newcastle and Parramatta frequently for work. I used to go sailing at Jervis Bay on the weekend, so I often stopped off at Kiama on the way.

If she applies for a partner visa from OUTSIDE Australia, then she can still get tourist visas to come and go while she's waiting. She might get scrutinised more at Immigration to make sure she's intending to leave again. If she applies for a visa from INSIDE Australia, she'll get a bridging visa BUT then she'll be stuck in Australia. Every time she wants to leave the country, she'll have to apply for a BVB, and she'll have to give a specific justification for each trip (e.g. a wedding, business, funeral - it's not enough to fancy a trip home). Note also that if she applies in Australia, the waiting time is significantly longer than if she applies outside Australia. Most reputable agents will give you a free consultation - try any of the agents on this forum like Westly Russell or Raul Senise. They'll give you a quote before you decide to engage them, too. I think that whole pre-approved sponsor thing has been put on hold but the agent will advise.

In that case you need to start all over again with a new application for a 482 visa. It is too late to fix the mistake.

We did have someone recently who was in the same situation. She found it very stressful, because it turns out the Kiwi spouse visa takes several months to be processed, and she found life on the bridging visa difficult. However I think that was mainly because she wasn't allowed to work, and that wouldn't be a problem for you. Melbourne is expensive by Australian standards (though still much cheaper than Sydney).

A lot of people are wrong. The 457 doesn't exist any more, but even then it was just a temporary visa - and while it did offer a chance to apply for a permanent visa at the end of the contract, it was only a chance, not a certainty. The 457 has been replaced by the 482 visa, which is the same - it only lets you stay in Australia for 2 to 4 years and then, for some occupations, there's a chance to apply for PR. But it's so uncertain that you should plan as if it's definitely just a short stay, and if you get PR at the end, it's a bonus. If you want to move in the next 5 years, then start work on your plans now. If you could apply for a PR visa now, it would be ideal - the process takes about a year, then once the visa is approved you can pop over to Australia for a short holiday to validate your visa, and then you have 5 years to make the move. But of course that depends whether your occupation is on the lists and whether you have the required experience.

Yes you need to make a few more posts before you can use the message feature. I’ll send you a message when I get back home

I'm sorry you're unhappy in Australia. Some people can leave their homeland and never look back - it sounds like your wife and her family are like that. But an awful lot of people - maybe the majority? - can never be truly settled and happy unless they're on home soil. If that's you, you don't have to justify it to us, we see it all the time. It's a normal and natural reaction to being uprooted from where you truly belong. Australia could be a paradise and you still wouldn't be able to settle. It's a pity your wife is so unsympathetic - but for people who don't feel that way, it's an awfully hard thing to explain. But the trouble is, you only make it worse by picking holes in the place, because she's only going to think you're exaggerating or making a fuss about nothing or not trying or some such - and then she's even less likely to take you seriously. And people like us, who would otherwise sympathise with you, get offended because you're slagging off a country that we like living in. Britain is certainly multicultural, but so is Australia. Melbourne has the largest Greek population outside Greece I have coffee in Lygon Street most days, Brunetti's is like being in Italy. I used to live in Sydney and places like Campsie and Cabramatta are like being in Korea and Vietnam. I used to live near Hurstville, where most of the Chinese restaurants didn't even have menus written in English. If you feel like some Turkish Delight, head for Auburn - all the Middle Eastern food you could want there. Different parts of Australia are different.

People talk about "the Sutherland shire", which covers a big area south of the Georges River. Overall it's regarded as a nice area to live in. There's also a suburb called Sutherland. If you mean the suburb, I find the shopping centre a bit faceless but it's a convenient place to live, and it's good for commuting because even the "limited stops" trains stop there. The best place to check out suburbs is Homely.com.au. Here's a bit about the Southern Highlands to tempt you: https://concreteplayground.com/sydney/travel-leisure/travel/a-weekenders-guide-to-bowral Any other questions, ask away. I lived in Sydney for over 30 years but I've had to move away in retirement. Loving life in Melbourne though.

I have to disagree with you. One of the reasons I found it hard to settle back in the UK was that most people had never lived outside the UK. Oh, they had travelled plenty - to Benidorm or Tenerife for their holidays - but they had never really experienced another culture. And they'd never done a "gap year" either before or after university - something that was very, very common for Australians of my generation. It does depends where you are in Australia, I think. Australians are not the same all over the country, any more than a Cockney is the same as a Glaswegian. It's less obvious because the accent doesn't change as much, but it's still there. When I visit Perth, I always get the impression that people there are less adventurous than in the Eastern states.

Cost is the biggest issue. Sydney is far and away the most expensive city for housing in Australia. The next most expensive, Melbourne, is only about two-thirds the cost (for both renting and buying). Everywhere else is cheaper again. It's frustrating because unlike London, there's no "Sydney weighting" on salaries to compensate for it. It depends what your occupation is, whether you can find work outside the major cities. In the long term, employers are becoming more flexible about working from home. I know of several IT professionals who live well outside Sydney, and only visit the office one or two days a week. In Melbourne, there's an increasing trend to do the same, living in (or on the way to) Bendigo or Ballarat.

Yes, that's how I read it, too. But wouldn't that just be treated as a new application, so he's back competing with everyone else on a points basis? In which case, with only 65 points he probably has little chance?

Yes, Cronulla is pricey. As a rule, anywhere near the beach is going to be expensive - even if it's an hour's commute from the city centre, like Cronulla. The St George area is slightly inland from Cronulla and therefore a bit cheaper. Look at the stops along the Illawarra line from Cronulla. Places get cheaper as you go along that line, until you start getting close to the city centre. Oatley is a cute suburb, with a village feel. You would only get an apartment for that price in Oatley, but if you search for Oatley on realestate.com.au and tick "surrounding suburbs", it will bring up other areas that are close by. Let's look at driving time. If you go Central Coast, it would be at least two hours drive to get to Cronulla. So if you drive between one and two hours to the south, where does it get you? If you go inland, it gets you to the Southern Highlands. Several nice villages (Bowral is the main town), green hills and scones with cream, Bundanoon Highland Games, very popular with retirees, and it has a train line. Worth a look. Or it gets you to Kiama, a lovely seaside town. It has a train line too. Or Shellharbour.