David1316 Posted June 2 Share Posted June 2 So back in 2013 I received a speeding fine in WA, stupidly I was told by friends ect that because I was on a whv and wasn't planning to stay and I had a UK licence I didn't really need to pay the fine. (Yeh I know stupid) I left the country but now looking yo apply for a 189/190 visa. Will the speeding fine cause me problems ? Preferably will be applying to go to VIC, of that makes any difference. Happy to pay the fine (as long as it hasn't racked upto about $200k during that time lol any advice would be appreciated. P.s I was young and abit careless so please don't hate for not paying it, and just to clarify I didn't realise I was speeding I was on the highway at night which had no lights I didn't realise going past the airport area it changed to variable speed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcdonagh migrations Posted June 2 Share Posted June 2 Ahhh you are not the first and probably won't be the last! There are a couple of things to consider here. First is the fine itself. Typically traffic offenses aren't a problem as the bar for behaviour is usually a 12 month prison sentence (which can be across several convictions or suspended). A paid fine for speeding wouldn't be a problem - 95% of people would be barred if it were. Your issue is that the fine wasn't paid and is presumably still showing as overdue. As part of your police checks this is the sort of thing that may well pop up and show on your record and cause questions. The second concern is that most visas have a provision that they can only be granted if there are 'no debts owing to the Commonwealth'. Technically a traffic fine in WA isn't a federal debt but it is a Government debt. I'd suggest contacting WA Police and clearing the fine. Then in your application be transparent - it is always, always, much better to declare these things up front and address head on rather than 'hide and hope'. You would be amazed at the stuff the Department finds out that people think are lost in history. Your Agent can help you with how you explain things so position yourself positivly as you can. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David1316 Posted June 3 Author Share Posted June 3 I rang WA police they can't seem to see how much the fine is however their is an infringement under my name. They've emailed the relevant department to figure out the next steps however she said because its been 10 years the fine is likely to be a large sum. Therefore, it could be the end of the road for me with the idea of moving to Australia. I don't mind holding my hands up and paying the fine and maybe a penalty but I won't be paying thousands, or tens of thousands in fines because it's been left for 10 years. Let's see what they say tomorrow/Wednesday if they respond.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amber Snowball Posted June 3 Share Posted June 3 1 minute ago, David1316 said: I rang WA police they can't seem to see how much the fine is however their is an infringement under my name. They've emailed the relevant department to figure out the next steps however she said because its been 10 years the fine is likely to be a large sum. Therefore, it could be the end of the road for me with the idea of moving to Australia. I don't mind holding my hands up and paying the fine and maybe a penalty but I won't be paying thousands, or tens of thousands in fines because it's been left for 10 years. Let's see what they say tomorrow/Wednesday if they respond.. hi, please do post when you find out, as this is probably something a few have done, so would be useful to know. I got pinged speeding when I first moved to Australia, speed camera in the middle of nowhere, hadn’t seen a speed sign for about an hour. I guessed what it might be and guessed wrong! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David1316 Posted June 3 Author Share Posted June 3 7 minutes ago, Amber Snowball said: hi, please do post when you find out, as this is probably something a few have done, so would be useful to know. I got pinged speeding when I first moved to Australia, speed camera in the middle of nowhere, hadn’t seen a speed sign for about an hour. I guessed what it might be and guessed wrong! Will do! It actually wasn't me driving it was my partner. She was doing the correct highway speed late at night (actually just under the speed limit) didn't see a sign (wasn't even lights on the highway) but didn't realise along where the airport was the speed limit reduced so got done by a mobile camera. So what she thought she was doing about 5kph less than the legal limit it was actually speeding on this particular stretch Maybe if they had lights and clear signs you could see at 2am it would have been helpful. But that's life and we move with it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David1316 Posted June 4 Author Share Posted June 4 UPDATE!! So I've been in contact with the relevant departments. My fine has been written off and closed. Aparently after so many years of no contact they just close the case and it will not re open if you enter the country, it's completely written off. I did say I could pay the fine A$256 But he said its closed and wouldn't make a difference theirs no criminal offence or charges outstanding, and no penalty points will be given if I got a WA licence. I wouldn't obviously recommend this to anyone, however leaving the country and receiving fines then never bothering is just one of those things you don't think of 10 years later will effect you. He did say it "shouldnt" effect a visa application as its a road traffic offence (closed) and not a criminal offence. However, i would see it as a u paid debt thats been written off so i would assume id have some explaining to do on my application. However I'm more than happy to pay the fine to clear the "debt" that's already been written off if that helps towards my application. 2 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David1316 Posted June 4 Author Share Posted June 4 Anyone been in this situation with a written off road offence that's applied for a visa I'd like to hear how your application went.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blue Manna Posted June 4 Share Posted June 4 24 minutes ago, David1316 said: Anyone been in this situation with a written off road offence that's applied for a visa I'd like to hear how your application went.. It looks like you were lucky. You hear of debts that get sold on and snow ball with bailiff fees and fines etc. I'd buy a lottery ticket. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David1316 Posted June 4 Author Share Posted June 4 Just now, Blue Manna said: It looks like you were lucky. You hear of debts that get sold on and snow ball with bailiff fees and fines etc. I'd buy a lottery ticket. Hahaha I might do actually! However the department on the phone did say that if it happened now/more recent then it would most likely spiral into bigger debts but 2013 things were done differently so maybe I got away with it as they knew I wasn't an Australian resident/ didn't have an AU licence and I wasn't even in the country. Like he said the more time they waste trying to sort a $250 fine for someone who's not in the country it would end up costing them more knowing they'd be very unlikely to get the fine paid. However it's just made a bit of a situation for me as now it probably looks bad on my application. But yeh, here in UK in a matter of months it would have doubled then tripled let alone 10+ years lol. They're probably waiting for me to arrive in Au and arrest me and chuck me in a cell for 10 years 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BendigoBoy Posted June 4 Share Posted June 4 Sounds like you are solid, fella. Good luck with your application. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulhand Posted June 4 Share Posted June 4 I recommend that you apply for a AFP police check just to make sure nothing has percolated through to that. Not suggesting it will have, but I’d be covering that base before lodging a visa application. 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David1316 Posted June 8 Author Share Posted June 8 On 04/06/2024 at 18:05, paulhand said: I recommend that you apply for a AFP police check just to make sure nothing has percolated through to that. Not suggesting it will have, but I’d be covering that base before lodging a visa application. Just received my AFP and states "no disclosable court outcomes" under my name. Is that sufficient or is that just a court search? I did pay for a police check for immigration/citizenship so assume that's the same searches they'll use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dumbyouth Posted Wednesday at 12:34 Share Posted Wednesday at 12:34 Similar situation for me but wondering if it will affect a dependants visa application I wasn't the brightest in my youth either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted Thursday at 00:27 Share Posted Thursday at 00:27 11 hours ago, dumbyouth said: Similar situation for me but wondering if it will affect a dependants visa application What kind of visa is a dependant's visa? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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