TRA nightmare

[gigagirl]

Don't know where to start. Is there any point going for TRA given my circumstances below:

My husband is a plumber but there are a number of problems.
Firstly he has no formal qualifications. He worked from 1992 to 1999 as a plumber but his employer was in fact his father. From 1999 to 2003 he was self employed. But as a sole tradesman doing mainly sub-contract work - he didn't have a business registration certificate as he had neither premesis, nor employees.

In 2003 he was in a motorcycle accident and badly broke his wrist and was unable to do plumbing for two years. When he went back to work he went back to plumbing on a self employed basis. In April 2006 he worked for Pirtek as an employee fixing hydraulic hoses on site for about 6 weeks. He then left this job to go back to plumbing for a local company as an employee. He was with this company for a month before moving to another plumbing job with a housing association. He left this job in December after finding that we couldn't afford to live on the low wages which were considerably less than the advertised position. After a month without work, he comenced employment with his current employer in February, although he has just had a month off on holiday as we went to Melbourne for 4 weeks for a good look around.

We are confused as to whether he will pass the TRA as his work history is complicated and without qualifications. Would they accept the word of his father as his employer of 7 years or would this be dismissed due to the family connection. If this were to be the case, how could we go about applying for a visa? Which visa could we apply for? Does he need a TRA assesment on an employer sponsored visa? If not - where is the best place to start with finding an employer?

If necessary we would be happy to live in a regional area, would this be a possible alternative?

What do you wonderful people think? I'm fresh out of ideas and I'm desperate

[gigagirl]

Your lack of replies is not filling me with confidence..........

[hays]

noooooo!!! dont worry!!! there will be loads of people on and off all day and evening, so someone WILL know! There are a few agents that are on and off during the day/evening as well and they offer friendly and helpful advice! to name a few, alan collett, ptlabs, and welshtone. You could always PM them to ask for a quick bit of advice. and i THINK that some of the agencies offer the first bit of advice free.
good luck !!

[hays]

reading my last post back i think i over did the word advice!!!!!! hey ho! should have read it back first!!! lol

[gigagirl]

You can never overdo advice. Thanx for the post.

[Lynandsean]

Hi ya Gigagirl
Welcome to PIO, we are very helpful and mega friendly on here but you need to be a bit more patient in waiting for replies. :)
Although we do know that the whole process does make you desperate for answers/hope.
My OH is a plumber but his skills/training was all very straightforward so we had no problem however given your OH's l strongly recommend you contact a migration agent who offers a free assessment. There are plenty around, just 'google' and try a few.
We personally used Ian Harrop who have been excellent but there is also one called Go Matilda whom l have spoken with who are also very helpful.
Good luck
Lyn x

[hays]

to add to lyn's post, Alan Collett (that i mentioned before) is the MD of Go matilda, always worth a go, he has been really helpful to me in the past with a de facto relationship issue i have. we'll be using them when we apply.
Try a PM if no joy by tomorrow.

[carla&trev]

Hi gigagirl

I'm no expert but we had a similar problem ourselves and although we haven't passed the TRA yet, I have read and re-read the terms and conditions and my husband does fit in to what they require.

Your OH has plenty of years experience and although he doesn't have formal qualifications, he has more than 6 years work experience which is the requirement. I know you say most of this was with his Dad but I am guessing that his Dad is set up as a plumbing company, is registered etc etc and the family connection shouldn't matter if you can verify that his dad is a bona fide company. I would also get as many references from everyone that he has done work for that you can. Part of the TRA is to describe in detail everything you do in a day from making tea to proper work (!) and if he can do that then it should be fine. I would still try and ask a migration agent but don't get downhearted until you know for sure it isn't going to work.

My view was that the TRA is only costing us £130 so if we don't pass we haven't lost that much and if we do pass then the hard work is all done and we should be fine at the next step - visa application.

You can still do Statutory Declarations for any periods of work that you can't get references for so who you have worked for isn't the issue as much as the TRA believe that you know what you are doing.

Good luck!

Carla

[gigagirl]

Thank you Carla. That's reassuring. Chris' dad is fully registered, CORGI etc. etc. and is now running his fathers original business set up in the 50s - so longevity of the company isn't a problem.
Am I right in thinking that if you don't pass the TRA the first time - they give you the specific reasons why not, and what you would need to do to get it through. It's tempting to send in just the minimum required for them to tell us what they need. Would probably work out cheaper than an agent too.
Andrea

[Ian&Lou]

Hi gigagirl,

i really think your best bet is to talk to an agent, as I know that some jobs you need to have worked in them full time for 12 out of the last 18 months for them to apply. Most agents offer a free consultation where they will discuss what your options are.

Lou