Marisawright

I'm not quite sure what you're asking so apologies if I tell you stuff you already know. There are employer-sponsored visas, but they are short-term (2 to 4 years) and you go home at the end. It's common for people to talk about a "transition" to a permanent visa at the end of the contract - but that's misleading, because it's NOT a transition. All it means is that you're eligible to apply for a permanent visa at the end. Many people think that sounds like a great option. You take the contract, get your air fares paid, have a job from day 1. It takes all the risk out of migration - but it doesn't, because the rules are changing so much. The government keeps on raising the bar. We've seen many members take the sponsored route,. only to find that the requirements had increased by the time they were eligible to "transition", and they're no longer eligible. I remember one family who missed out by a couple of weeks. There's no way to predict. All in all, it's so uncertain that you shouldn't sell your home in the UK. Treat it as a short-term adventure - if you get PR at the end, it's a lucky bonus. If you want to go that route, do consider how it will affect your older child's education. If you want to migrate permanently to Australia, the only realistic option is to apply for a Skilled visa in your own right (with or without a migration agent). It's very hard to find an employer to sponsor you. The problem is that the whole process, from starting your application to arriving in Australia, takes a year or so. How many employers do you think would offer you a job, then wait a year for you to arrive, not even knowing if you'll make it? In the old days, when Australia was a new country with major skill shortages, employers would wait that long. These days, the unemployment rate is about the same as the UK, and there are far more local applicants around. Even people who already have their visa granted, struggle to get a job offer from the UK - again, why would an employer wait two or three months for a family to pack up and get to Australia? They'd rather settle for a less-qualified local who can start next month. That's why most migrants take a leap of faith and arrive without a job. The advice is to save up so you have six months' living expenses, in case it takes you a while to secure a role. It's not a cheap process - in fact, the application fees and agent fees are the cheapest part of the process.

The longer hours is a statistical fact, but of course it mostly refers to employees, not business owners. I see no reason why running a business here in Australia should be any different than running the same business in the UK - so I find it even less understandable that a business owner would move to Australia for a better work/life balance. You could open a café or sandwich shop in the UK and achieve the same thing. The only difference is the weather and what you do with your spare time, and I'm assuming it's those things that you're looking at.

I've noticed that a fair bit recently. Paul Hand explained the rules well in his post - if you can't meet the 2 years out of 5, or you've been away longer, then there are supposedly tough hurdles to cross to get a RRV. However, looking at people who've managed to get a one-year RRV recently, it seems like it's not as strict as we think.

It's not so much that it's relentless, it's the level of humidity that's the killer. 30 degrees in Adelaide would be lovely because it's a dry heat. 30 degrees in Sydney or Brisbane and I'd be hiding in the air conditoining because it feels so unpleasant. Of course, in both you'd get severe sunburn if you went out without 50+ sunscreen, hat etc.

Oh boy, that makes my head spin!

Are you still going for the parent visa, Ramot, or are you resigned to sticking with the one you've got?

I have to laugh at the work/life balance. Australians work longer hours than people in most of the developed world. When I was living back in the UK a couple of years ago, I was struck by how much more free time people had. The difference, really, is in what you do with your time off. If you're an outdoorsy person and able to cope with the heat/sun, then you'll feel you can make better use of your leisure time. I do agree about the more positive, can-do attitude of Australians although in my experience, it's not the same over the whole of Australia.

But the thing is, if it's a matter of "where you feel you belong", then does any of that matter? It always worries me when I see people who stay in Australia because they're better off financially, even though they're longing to "go home". Too often they think they will move back when they retire, only to find it's not so easy because of pensions, or settled children, and then they're stuck where they don't want to be, and miserable in their old age. I'm a strong believer that living where you're happy is far more important than money.

https://www.theguardian.com/weather/2018/jan/07/sydney-records-hottest-day-as-temperatures-reach-47c-in-penrith Penrith is usually 2-3 degrees hotter than the coast, and has no sea breezes so it feels even hotter.

Just be grateful that Australia still accepts parents. Many countries do not. For instance, if you lived in the UK, you would not be able to bring your parents unless they were so ill they could not look after themselves. The waiting times for Australia are long but at least the visa still exists.

I agree the Blue Mountains are cooler but you do need to get up past Glenbrook before the temperature drops much - and that adds noticeably to the commute time. The OP has absolutely no need to live in Sydney, they have a 190 which means they have to live somewhere in NSW. Personally, if I had the choice, there is no way I'd live in Penrith when I have all the coastal towns to choose from.

Stifling hot and two hours drive from the nearest beach. Teenagers will be bored stiff

I understand about the delay because we had a similar problem moving from Australia to the UK. We had to provide proof of residence for various things but it took us several weeks to find a place, and nothing could be done until we had the documents. It's frustrating! They say to bring your Medicare card or number IF you have it, so it's not essential. You'll need proof of ID instead. To answer your other questions - there are various concession cards you can get as a pensioner, which can reduce your prescription costs. Like the pension, they're means tested, so ask about them when you're dealing with Centrelink. Once you have your Medicare card, look for a GP that bulk bills. Then you'll pay nothing for your visits. Also when you are referred to a specialist, make sure you tell your doctor that you want to be treated in the public system, then you'll pay nothing. Doctors here are so used to people having private health insurance, they automatically choose private specialists unless you speak up.

I hope she has a lot of money. I'm no longer in Sydney, driven out by the high prices. Luckily I'm loving Melbourne.

I'm out of date but the areas to avoid used to be Windale, Mount Hutton, Gateshead, Woodbury. They all have big areas of housing commission houses (i.e. council estates). Best suburbs - The Hill, New Lambton, Charlestown, Merewether. The inner city suburbs used to be run down but they were all getting gentrified when I left NSW so I'm guessing many of them would be nice now. I used to work with two men who got transferred from our Newcastle office to Sydney. They commuted all the way (two hours each way!), because they refused to move their families to Sydney. They felt the lifestyle in Newcastle was so much better for their kids. Of course they were both looking for jobs back in Newcastle but being in insurance, it wasn't easy and they both did the commute for a couple of years, from memory. Take a look at Homely.com.au, there's a "Suburb Reviews" section that's informative.

Are you moving to the village at Claremont? It looks lovely. I assume you're an Australian citizen. In that case, you just need to re-enrol for Medicare when you return. I'm not aware there's any waiting time. You go to the office with your passport and ideally, your old Medicare number. You also need to provide TWO documents to prove that you are residing in Australia again. That could be a lease agreement (in your case for the retirement village), and evidence of an Australian bank account. You can also offer proof that you've left your old country of residence, e.g. evidence of the sale of your former home. If you were living in the UK at the moment, then you'd be able to claim reciprocal health care immediately - however as you've been living in France, that doesn't apply. If there is a delay, then the worst case scenario is that you'll have to pay for a private visit to a GP and pay the full price for a prescription.

4bed ideally, it doesnt necessarily have to be sydney my husband is electrician and im a midwife so would need to be close to hospital/ construction. We want to settle in perth but need to do 2years in NSW to fulfil our 190 visa. Have never been to NSW so was just looking for guidance on suburbs to look at. We are completely open tk anywhere in NSW to be completely honest but near the beach would be ideal as when we lived in perth we lived near the beach amd loved it. Once we do our 2 years we will be heading back to WA In that case, I'd strongly recommend you avoid Sydney altogether. You're lucky having occupations where you can find jobs outside Sydney in the regional cities. I would advise you to aim for Newcastle. It's the next biggest city, rents are half the price and you'll have a more relaxed lifestyle, a shorter commute, and a much better chance of being near the beach. In fact the beaches in Newcastle are nicer and you're near the wineries, too. Sydney is by far the most expensive capital city in Australia. Melbourne is next, with rents about two-thirds those of Sydney. Everywhere else is cheaper. Moving to Sydney is like moving to London. If you can avoid it, you should.

I've seen a few people on these forums in the same situation - thought it didn't look that hard, decided to do it themselves. Turned out they were right, it wasn't that hard, but then there were a lot more costs at the other end than they had anticipated, so, it didn't save that much money. Considering how much else there is to deal with in a move, I wonder if it's worth the extra time to DIY.

How many bedrooms? How long a commute are you willing to accept (assuming you're working in the city) - alternatively, where will you be working? Sorry for all the questions but you're asking about such a huge area, we need to narrow it down somehow! Check out domain.com.au and realestate.com.au. $600-$700 a week is a low budget for a house. In most beachside or near-beachside suburbs, you'd pay that for a small flat. Is there a reason you've chosen Sydney rather than another city?

What’s your definition of affordable? For me, no suburb in Sydney near the beach is affordable, so I’m hoping your definition is different

From what I've heard, it still has a dodgy section (called the "dark side"!), mainly around the big housing commission area. However the rest of the suburb is green, leafy and pleasant. Just don't rent or buy anything until you've checked the area out thoroughly so you're sure not to settle in the wrong half!

Just watch out for tax implications. If you can withdraw the money before you leave Australia then there’s no tax. But if you wait until you’re back in the UK you can lose a lot in tax if you take a lump sum. Make sure you get advice

I'm sorry to hear Australia hasn't worked out for you. I do think 3 months isn't long enough to make up your mind - the first few months in any country is usually horrible!

No, you can't just keep getting RRV's and you can't get citizenship either. Both the RRV and citizenship have minimum residency requirements. Your current travel facility (i.e. your right to enter Australia) is valid for five years. To get your first RRV at the end of your five years, you need to show you've been resident in Australia for at least two out of those five years. They will sometimes waive that requirement, IF you can demonstrate you have "strong ties" to Australia (owning a home, family here, etc) - but it doesn't sound as though you would. However, let's say that by some miracle, you got a new five-year RRV. At the end of the next five years, you'd have to apply again. Again, you'd need to show two years' residency or demonstrate "strong ties" - and at that point, they're likely to observe that the ties can't be very strong if you haven't moved back yet, and you'll be out of luck.

Holy cow, that's a long time! I found this thread from last year/earlier this year, where 30 weeks seemed to be the norm. Have you chased them up? https://www.pomsinoz.com/topic/201740-aasw-skills-assessment-processing-times/?page=2 I tend to agree with VeryStormy. If you start the sponsorship process now, it's going to take several months, and chances are your PR application will come through first - so it's not likely to be worth it. Plus you'd better be sure to cancel the sponsorship deal promptly, since it would be horrible if your PR got approved and then the temp visa came through shortly after (which would cancel your PR!!).