Initial Enquiries made

[diana2013]

After making an initial enquiry with go matilda about appointing an agent I have exchanged a few emails with an agent. The situtation is my husband is 43 his job is on the skills list but he has no formal qualifications in his job axceot for a yts aprencticeship in 1985 (but he has lost the certificate). Go matilda have said that to get the points up he will need to sit the IELTS test and also satisfy the TRA skills board by doing a qualification that meets their standards . They have offered assistance with all of this but they charge a fee each time . The question I have now i have made these inital enquiries and i am a bit more genned up on everthing is could we go it alone and apply for the 175 visa having got the two requirements above done or do i need to assign an agent. we are on a tight budget so the fees are goind to be a struggle. My husband is not very academic so i also have the worry that he may not pass the IELTS test and get the level he requires to gain the extra points. Can anyone offer advice , also does anybody know what is involved with the TRA australian skills qualification. Its very frustrating because he knows his job inside out and has 25 years experience . He is a plasterer.

[lebourvellec]

175 ceased to exist on Saturday for new applicants.

Timing is an issue for you, as once he turns 45 he will lose 15 points, and then likely not be able to make the points to be able to apply.

TRA is one of the worst to get a positive skills assessment from, and will turn people down - but when add a little bit more evidence they sometimes can get a positive assessment. Therefore using an agent for this part of the process may be the best. DIAC to assess your work experiance, for self employed people require lots of paper work to back it up, to get you the points.

The IELTS test costs £125, if you are worried about in not managing why not sit that first to see if you are able to get the scores you need. I got my OH the IELTS book from ebay to practice with.

From what you have posted your case is not straight forward and sometimes not using an agent sometimes is not a saving money, especially if you get it wrong, you may never get the chance to be able to reapply, due to age, and can cost more as there is not refunds in visa application charges.


Go Matilda is a very well respected agent on this forum and on other review sites - I beleive they issue a payment schedual so you dont need to pay it all at once.

[diana2013]

Thank you for your advice . I have Booked him on the IELTS test in august and I have ordered the practice book form amazon. When i get the results from the test I will contact go matilda and ask for a breakdown of the costs.
regards diana

[Alan Collett]

You haven't received a breakdown of Go Matilda's fees already, Diana?

Best regards.