Peachy

Awesome thanks!

Hi We are due to apply for citizenship. We qualify having been in Australia for 4 years. However one of the family is now undergoing medical tests. Is a change in health status taken into account when applying for citizenship or is it just the number years as a permanent resident / passing the citizenship test? Many thanks for any advice P x

Hi These areas are fabulous for families. I live in a suburb close by. Michelton and Keperra are on the train line which is a huge advantage. All three have good shopping centres. Of the three, Mitchelton is more expensive to buy but has better quality of housing, shopping centre, coffee shops and closer to the centre. I would chose this over the other two areas, but I have friends in all 3 suburbs and all love the respective locations. If you are looking in those areas I would also consider Ferny Grove and Ferny Hills. Excellent station at Ferny Grove and end of the line so you always get a seat on a morning. Ferny Grove State School has a good reputation. It is a large school but I understand that it is a good supportive environment. Ferny Hills has access to the shopping centres, train line and a fabulous with heaps of free events put on for families. Within walking distance of Ferny Grove State School.

Hi My hubby is a SW. He managed to get a permanent job over here at a higher level, before we moved over. Telephone interview with questions emailed over beforehand. Tips for getting the job: 1. Look at Smartjobs - for gov / QHealth positions 2. Phone the contact to discuss the position (having done a heap of prep first). 3. Make sure you understand the impact of NDIS on the area you are working in, to show that you are up to speed with current changes. 4. Follow the gov format for your statement in support. Gov employers expect you to follow the selection criteria v strictly - use the headings and work through putting examples (anon) of your work. Most people cram heaps into their statements. 5. Research the legislation and the role. My OH had Australian text books shipped over before the move so that he better understood the landscape - this was great enabling him to complete (2) and (4) with sound QLD knowledge. 6. Be aware the SW over here is a little way behind the UK so have some ideas, but don't be too revolutionary 7. Check whether you do need to be a member of the AASW - most jobs say that you need to be eligible (which you should be, but I think you need an assessment done) but it is expensive to actually join up. OH only joined AASW once he was looking to move upwards again. Good luck!

https://www.ahpra.gov.au/Registration/Registration-Process/Standard-Format-for-Curriculum-Vitae.aspx This should help :-)

I had a job lined up. I applied online via the agent's website. I did not need to pay additional rent, over and above the usual. I did supply a lengthy statement in support of my application to make me more favourable than someone already in Australia. It had to be pretty good as we were also bringing over our 3 cats to stay in the rental!!

I am a little surprised that you can get from Ipswich to Brisbane in 30 mins. Is usually 50 mins to an hour on the train and 50 mins or more by car, traffic depending. The OP was also keen to get to the coast, which would be at least an hour away. I have family out that way, and they feel that they are 'a long way from things' and don't enjoy the commute from Ipswich to the city, or going into Brisbane on a weekend. Obviously the OP won't be doing a commute if they live and work out there. P

Will check them out. Very helpful to get quote online too. Thanks for the suggestion. P

Hi Captain R What did you decide to do in the end? Who did you go with and how much did it cost? I am now in the same position of going back to the UK to do a final clearout of my things. Any advice much appreciated. Thanks P

We exchanged on our house on the day of Brexit!!! We actually bit the bullet and brought the money over - we timed it to coincide with a rate jump when there were various court cases underway re Brexit. You can lock in a rate with Moneycorp so that you can benefit from a rate jump in the UK v a decline in the strength of the AUD. Sometimes it jumps momentarily when a government announcement is made or similar. I am glad we did bring the money over. It has prevented the constant watching of rates and enabled us some financial security over here, albeit having lost a chunk of money. We worked out what we would be happy with rate-wise and stuck with that. I found the people at Moneycorp very patient with my enquiries so would have a chat with them about the options. P

Suggest that you get a wriggle on with it. To get it done by February is doable but pushing it. We had the same issue coming up to my husband's 40th birthday. We contacted the skills assessment people and asked if they would be willing to expedite it, which they did for a small fee. Made things a bit more stressful though. Definitely get going with it now!

We rented from the UK too and found the perfect house for us. Great to prepare the kids before the move too so that they had a new 'home' the minute we landed. Good tips for others doing this - Google street view all the way along the street and surrounding streets Confirm with the agent that the photos of the property are recent (and not taken 10 yrs ago when the property was first tenanted!) Check out the crime map for the area - very useful to determine that you are not going to land in a hotbed of drug dealing!! Go with 6 months if you can, rather than 12 months just in case it is a pit.

Sunscreen is so much cheaper over here. We buy the massive tubs of SPF 50 - Coles own brand. We have never burnt and I have very fair skin. You will get through large quantities of the stuff so you might as well just get used to a new brand. Sunscreen has a shelf life and probably wouldn't travel that well in the high heat of a container and you wouldn't want to waste cabin luggage space on something that you can buy cheaply everywhere.

Husband and I both secured permanent jobs before we set off. Lots of hard work, research and carefully focussed applications. I put in my application and had my interview before I even got PR!! It can be done :-)

Do you have a choice of area? If not, then there isn't much that you can do. Certainly not terrible, but wouldn't be my first choice of location. Areas close by that I would choose in order of preference - Eatons Hill, Cashmere, Warner.