kzzam

We have been here for 6 months. We went with John Adams as our agent. They were great we got our own advisor so we wasn't passed round the office and she knew our situation. The kids loved going with him as they called him grizzly. It took 12 months all in to get our visa, lot of hard work. However John Adams told us exactly what to send them and when and also any changes that might be relevant to our case. I would say start collecting references and any work related documentation. I had to send photos and descriptions of work I had done. Next door neighbour in mornington vic is a painter and decorator and he is raking it in. He works for himself, but if you work for someone else pay is average. It is a good way to start out then once you have found your feet start up on your own. Lots of tax breaks for small businesses. Tax system here is great, every year everyone does ther tax returns and you get a good chunk back. I have just received 4k back.

Congratulations on your visa being granted recently! It's such a great feeling :biggrin: As as for the programmes, yes they are available over here. You will have to get Foxtel, which is like first generation Sky in the UK. You pay monthly and select the channels you want. I only watch the walking dead out of your selection, this has just had its finale this week but it did run not far behind the UK, so I missed the first half of it during the move over and settling in phase. As far as I can tell, we get most of the same programmes but some of the are far behind, for example Dexter is still running and The Following, which was aired in UK last summer is just about to start over here. TV can be a bit hit and miss, some programmes start and then disappear for no obvious reason, it just takes a little getting used to. Good luck with your move over :rolleyes:

Hi Barbara, It sounds like we are on the same boat at the minute! I haven't actually been into Mount Martha yet, what is it like to live there? I would love to meet up for a coffee and a chat, let me know when is best for you and we will sort a date to meet up. It will be nice to have someone to chat to. I hope to hear from you soon x :laugh:

Hi Ladycroft it's a shame that you aren't in the area yet but you have obviously been here before. My girls have settled into school life here really easily. They love their schools, teachers and made new friends on their first days. The prep rooms at my youngest daughters school are lovely, were only built a couple of years ago and quite open plan with lots of space to play. There is also another school close by that people I know use that that has renovated it's outside space beautifully with lots of fun things for the kids to play on. I'm sure that your little boy will love it. I don't know where you are now but my girls love the fact they can pop down to the beach anytime as it is so close and the beaches a lovely and clean, quiet and the sea is shallow so they can play safely. I hope that you do move here as it is lovely and maybe we could meet up for a coffee when you do. Best of luck with the move :cute:

Hi Vik im not sure if you got my PM. I would love to meet for a coffee if your free. My girls are at mornington primary and secondary. I'm a medical secretary, and just been asked to go and see someone for a chat about a job, but I'm concerned now that I won't be available as much as I want for my girls and their activities with school etc. anyway I hope to hear from you soon re that coffee. kzzam

I think the kids are more resilient than we are! They have settled into school, made friends, been on camp and had sleepovers already, whereas I'm still looking for work and friends :cute:

Hi, yes he is!!! Are you the "chap from Stoke" from work he has told me about???

Hi, my family and I moved to Mornington about a month ago. I have two girls aged 12 and 8. My OH has just started a new job. I'm currently free to meet up for coffee and chats if anyone local fancies it :cute:

Hi Vik my family and I arrived on Melbourne at the end of January and are now renting in Mornington. I have two girls, aged 12 and 8 who are settled in school now and really enjoying themselves. My OH is an electrician and has recently started working. I'm the only one left to try and sort now and miss my family and friends from back in UK. We are originally from Lichfield in staffs and with the joys of Fb still see what everyone it up to but it's not the same as seeing someone face to face. If you want to meet up for a coffee and a chat let me know, I'm free pretty much all the time :laugh:

Hi, my family and I arrived in Melbourne at the end of January so know exactly what you mean. We started off in Melbourne, then moved down to Frankston but have recently got a rental in Mornington. Its beautiful here and I love it, but as you say the hardest thing is leaving family and friends behind. I've found that finding new people to socialise with is the next hardest thing! We are originally from Burntwood, near to Lichfield, so not too far from Stoke-on-Trent. I'm sorry I'm not a Port Vale fan but my other half is an avid Everton fan and is seriously missing his footy! (He refuses to call it soccer) :biggrin: . So far I haven't found any get togethers but if I hear of any I will let you know.

Hi everyone, my family and I arrived in Melbourne city at the end of January. We moved to Mornington about 4 weeks ago and my two girls, aged 12 and 8, are settled in school now. My OH has secured himself a job but so far i havent been able to get one. Im feeling a little left out as they are all making friends and i am struggling a little. I would love to meet up with anyone locally for a chat. We are originally from Lichfield, Staffs and im 38 and my OH is 39. Let me know if anyone wants to meet up or if you hear of any get togethers that might be happening that we could gate crash :cute:.

I am currently living in south east Melbourne. I am trying to find an rto to do my training. The energy safe site says its Kangan but I can't get any joy. I have my OTSR and 16 years experience but means nothing I still have to do the theory again. I am hoping to do the test straight away as I have my electrician qualifications and a BTEC in electrical engineering. I have managed to find work but not in the field I want. If any one knows where I can get in touch with somewhere to do the gap training that would be great.

Hi, yippee we have been granted our permanent residency visa on 21st November. My OH is a maintenance electrician and I am a medical secretary. We were really hoping to secure jobs before we left the UK but were hoping to book flights for the end of January to help our girls with the intergration into new schools. My OH has applied for several jobs but not heard anything from any of them. Can anyone give us some help/advice about getting jobs? Is it feasible to get a job in Oz while we are still in the UK or will we have more luck when we are in Oz? We are planning on moving to the suburbs outside Melbourne. Please help :wubclub:

We have been knocked for six with this development. Surely the people in the know knew about this proposed change long before the Go Live date. We might not have made the cut off date anyway but still it is a shock to find that the cost for the visa alone has now doubled, added to that all the other costs makes things start to look bleak. I understand the DIAC can and will increase charges and we will just have to go along with it to get over and start our new life but it does make things a lot more difficult prior to that. It is such a stressful time anyway with the costs involved, selling your home, leaving family behind that this could just be the straw that breaks the camels back!:sad:

I am currently getting quotes to take our scitzu/yorkie cross to melbourne and thought the quotes werent too bad for what you get. As Tulip says if they are a real member of your family you dont mind the cost but do mind them being seperated from the rest of their family doing unfamiliar things and with unfamiliar people. I am unsure how our little dog will cope and it worries me about how long she will have to be in quarantine