Sarahawayfromhome Posted July 24, 2016 Share Posted July 24, 2016 hey everyone I'm just in initial research stages and looking for a guide to how much the move will cost us. Two adults, and two children. I will be main visa holder. thanks in advance (excuse my cluelessness) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoldcoastMAD Posted July 24, 2016 Share Posted July 24, 2016 hey everyone :)I'm just in initial research stages and looking for a guide to how much the move will cost us. Two adults, and two children. I will be main visa holder.thanks in advance (excuse my cluelessness) Hi,everyone's circumstances are different, but here's our costs to date. Not including cost on arrival. were a family of 2 adults and 2 children. One way Flight £2,250.00 Medical Fees £950.00 pcc £90.00 IELTS £120.00 Visas ( 189) £4,100.00 Skill ass £250.00 visa validation Holiday £5,700.00 TOTAL £13,460.00 plus shipping two dogs across has cost us just under £5000 Hope that helps Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarahawayfromhome Posted July 24, 2016 Author Share Posted July 24, 2016 Hi,everyone's circumstances are different, but here's our costs to date. Not including cost on arrival. were a family of 2 adults and 2 children.One way Flight £2,250.00 Medical Fees £950.00 pcc £90.00 IELTS £120.00 Visas ( 189) £4,100.00 Skill ass £250.00 visa validation Holiday £5,700.00 TOTAL £13,460.00 plus shipping two dogs across has cost us just under £5000 Hope that helps Wow thanks for that Rebecca! may I ask was the visa validation holiday a requirement? (I have already been to Australia 3 times and my sister is a pr waiting for citizenship soon) bet you can't wait for August!! s Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoldcoastMAD Posted July 24, 2016 Share Posted July 24, 2016 (edited) Wow thanks for that Rebecca!may I ask was the visa validation holiday a requirement? (I have already been to Australia 3 times and my sister is a pr waiting for citizenship soon) bet you can't wait for August!! s Depends, once your granted a visa you need to visit the country within a year from the date of either the PCC or the medical (which ever was first completed ) or you can just move before the year is up. For example, we completed our PCC first of the two on the 25/11/14, meaning we had to enter the country to validate the visa before 25/11/15. Edited July 24, 2016 by GoldcoastMAD error Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted July 24, 2016 Share Posted July 24, 2016 When your visa is granted, you'll have a deadline by which you must arrive in Australia. If you can't move permanently before that deadline, then you'll have to make a flying visit to activate the visa. Obviously you're going to save a lot of money if you don't have to do that. The main costs of migrating are not the fees or the fares, but the cost of getting set up. You'll have to budget for: 1. Costs associated with selling your home in the UK (if you do). 2. Shipping your belongings (or replacing them all when you get to Australia if you don't). 3. Temporary accommodation once you arrive - you should book 3 or 4 weeks in a holiday flat to give you time to look for a long-term rental, unless you can stay with family. 4. Money for a rental bond (four weeks' rent). 5. Money to buy a car - cars are more expensive in Australia so do your research. Plus insurance, registration etc. 6. If you don't have a job lined up, you should budget for six months' living expenses just in case you have trouble finding work (unemployment is a bit higher than the UK right now). If you're in an occupation where you have to work at a lower level at first until your qualifications are recognised, then you need to budget for the lower income too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarahawayfromhome Posted July 25, 2016 Author Share Posted July 25, 2016 Depends, once your granted a visa you need to visit the country within a year from the date of either the PCC or the medical (which ever was first completed ) or you can just move before the year is up. For example, we completed our PCC first of the two on the 25/11/14, meaning we had to enter the country to validate the visa before 25/11/15. Thanks again ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarahawayfromhome Posted July 25, 2016 Author Share Posted July 25, 2016 When your visa is granted, you'll have a deadline by which you must arrive in Australia. If you can't move permanently before that deadline, then you'll have to make a flying visit to activate the visa. Obviously you're going to save a lot of money if you don't have to do that. The main costs of migrating are not the fees or the fares, but the cost of getting set up. You'll have to budget for: 1. Costs associated with selling your home in the UK (if you do). 2. Shipping your belongings (or replacing them all when you get to Australia if you don't). 3. Temporary accommodation once you arrive - you should book 3 or 4 weeks in a holiday flat to give you time to look for a long-term rental, unless you can stay with family. 4. Money for a rental bond (four weeks' rent). 5. Money to buy a car - cars are more expensive in Australia so do your research. Plus insurance, registration etc. 6. If you don't have a job lined up, you should budget for six months' living expenses just in case you have trouble finding work (unemployment is a bit higher than the UK right now). If you're in an occupation where you have to work at a lower level at first until your qualifications are recognised, then you need to budget for the lower income too. Thanks, having been to Australia a few times before the setting up costs seem to make sense in my head, it's what I'll spend before I even get on the plane I'm trying to work out. We don't have a lot of material pieces here and just rent property, so I think it will be easier to do a few ikea runs once their rather than start shipping. Also the Australian living layouts are fairly different to ours from memory. does primary education incur big charges of looking at state schools? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 Thanks, having been to Australia a few times before the setting up costs seem to make sense in my head, it's what I'll spend before I even get on the plane I'm trying to work out. We don't have a lot of material pieces here and just rent property, so I think it will be easier to do a few ikea runs once their rather than start shipping. Also the Australian living layouts are fairly different to ours from memory. does primary education incur big charges of looking at state schools? Will depend if you are on permanent or temp visa. If on a temp one then in most states the fees will apply and ruj at about $5-6,000 a year per child in our state. If PR then its the normal few hundred dollars per child that everyone pays. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 Thanks, having been to Australia a few times before the setting up costs seem to make sense in my head, it's what I'll spend before I even get on the plane I'm trying to work out. We don't have a lot of material pieces here and just rent property, so I think it will be easier to do a few ikea runs once their rather than start shipping. Also the Australian living layouts are fairly different to ours from memory. Don't underestimate the cost of having to replace everything new! I wouldn't bring beds or bedding because they're different sizes in Australia and nothing will fit, but it can be well worth bringing stuff. It's not just furniture, it's the myriad other things that you need that mount up - pots, pans, towels, crockery and cutlery, utensils, books, CD's etc etc. I'd suggest looking into the Movecube (by SevenSeas). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VERYSTORMY Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 One of the important things to budget for is day to day living. You our need enough cash to pay for bills, food, transport / buying and running a car and everything else we all spend money on for at least 3 months and preferably 6 months while you look for work. So, look at rents - you will need to pay this, plus bond while you look for work, household bills are about the same and you will need to pay these while looking for work and same with everything else. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jodipodi Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 (edited) When considering the 'setting up' part.....think long and hard about whether to ship or not. Firstly I would be deciding whether my furniture etc was a standard worth shipping in any instance. Mine isn't, it's vintage style second hand doer upper stuff and ikea... However my two sofas are good quality, my washing machine is brand new, my beds need to be renewed anyway etc.....tot this up and then.....decide if you are going to get a holiday let for a while upon arrival, or are you getting a relocation company to help you secure a rental on arrival - if you are staying in a holiday let this will bump up your costs. A relocation company will charge but you might save in the long run. Both these options have different plus/neg points. Holiday let will allow you to wait for your shipping to arrive. A long term rental means pretty much having to buy most things while you wait for furniture arriving. We've decided to sell our bits and pieces, use the money we'd have spent on shipping to buy from ikea or Gumtree on arrival. Going to get a week in a holiday let to get over the journey and get a relocation company to help us find and secure a long term rental. As people have said though - remember you will need essential items whilst waiting for shipping if you decide to ship....but these suggestions might give you good for thought to help you decide. All the best x Edited July 25, 2016 by jodipodi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 (edited) I tend to agree with VeryStormy above. If you can, have funds to allow for 3-6 months living costs once you arrive, ideally the 6 months as money disappears fast in the setting up stage and early months of a move. As for before you land in Aus, GoldcoastMad has given a good example. If there are 4 of you then factor in flights one way for you all, car hire possibly before you leave, money to get out of any contracts you are tied to (ie mobile phone contract), removals and shipping even if a smaller amount like personal effects could cost £1500 or so to ship. Then of course the visa (costs vary, do you have any idea what visa type you are looking at?), plus medicals and police checks and any tests you'll need to sit to go toward it. Oh and passports for you all if you don't all have them atm. And agent fees if you are using an agent. That will add on a bit to the costs. Also if you sell or rent your home, that will have financial implications. And if you can't migrate within the timeframe given at grant time, then a validation trip for you all to Aus to validate before the validation window is passed. That can cost a heap and be a real stinger if you had not banked on it but say could not sell your house or some such. Of course the outlay before you make the move is important and you need to have funds for it but I'd be more concerned with having plenty of savings to see you through the other side for at least the first 3-6 months. Finding work can take a while, months even and it just disappears fast when you have to buy a car (even an older one can be expensive, we paid $6,000 for ours and could have bought the same car for £1-1,500 in the UK at the time. Then just the day to day living, weekly shop (you could easily spend $150 a week on a family of 4 but could also spend less or far more, depends on your habits and preferences). Then simple things like uniform for the kids can stack up. Second hand uniform shops are great but often things in the size you want not in stock etc. Also medical and dental, unless you can find bulk billing places. This can stack up also, even if just having a check up or some such at the dentist. All visit your dentist a few weeks before you go and get any work done before you leave. I'd say ballpark £10,000 before you leave. Cover your bases. Then double that or more if you can for once you arrive in Aus. It can be done on less once here but honestly, if it means you could really struggle or find it hard going and thus perhaps put a real dent into your settling in process, its well worth having a bit more cushioning IMHO. Edited July 25, 2016 by Guest typo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 Definitely living expenses before and after the move when you are not working is something many people overlook - I ended up not working for 8 months and from the point at which we decided to migrate we spent £70k in 12 months but that was probably extreme and we 'wasted' a lot - premium economy flights, holiday rental for two months, air freighted some stuff we didn't want to wait for and so on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markb28 Posted July 25, 2016 Share Posted July 25, 2016 I didn't find a decent job for 7 months, burned through all my savings over that period. Its a very expensive time when you emigrate. That was with my partner finding a job quickly and paying the main bills, still spent a bundle. Make sure you have enough money to last a considerable amount of time comfortably - if you're worried about financials in the first few months it will not be a great experience at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarahawayfromhome Posted July 26, 2016 Author Share Posted July 26, 2016 When your visa is granted, you'll have a deadline by which you must arrive in Australia. If you can't move permanently before that deadline, then you'll have to make a flying visit to activate the visa. Obviously you're going to save a lot of money if you don't have to do that. The main costs of migrating are not the fees or the fares, but the cost of getting set up. You'll have to budget for: 1. Costs associated with selling your home in the UK (if you do). 2. Shipping your belongings (or replacing them all when you get to Australia if you don't). 3. Temporary accommodation once you arrive - you should book 3 or 4 weeks in a holiday flat to give you time to look for a long-term rental, unless you can stay with family. 4. Money for a rental bond (four weeks' rent). 5. Money to buy a car - cars are more expensive in Australia so do your research. Plus insurance, registration etc. 6. If you don't have a job lined up, you should budget for six months' living expenses just in case you have trouble finding work (unemployment is a bit higher than the UK right now). If you're in an occupation where you have to work at a lower level at first until your qualifications are recognised, then you need to budget for the lower income too. Thanks! no house to sell and I really don't think I'd ship much! Probably selling everything to make way for a wee trip to ikea on arrival. Also here people do alit of buying selling on Facebook sites now, is that also the case in oz? i really don't think I'd commit to bring my family without having a job secured at least for me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarahawayfromhome Posted July 26, 2016 Author Share Posted July 26, 2016 When considering the 'setting up' part.....think long and hard about whether to ship or not.Firstly I would be deciding whether my furniture etc was a standard worth shipping in any instance. Mine isn't, it's vintage style second hand doer upper stuff and ikea... However my two sofas are good quality, my washing machine is brand new, my beds need to be renewed anyway etc.....tot this up and then.....decide if you are going to get a holiday let for a while upon arrival, or are you getting a relocation company to help you secure a rental on arrival - if you are staying in a holiday let this will bump up your costs. A relocation company will charge but you might save in the long run. Both these options have different plus/neg points. Holiday let will allow you to wait for your shipping to arrive. A long term rental means pretty much having to buy most things while you wait for furniture arriving. We've decided to sell our bits and pieces, use the money we'd have spent on shipping to buy from ikea or Gumtree on arrival. Going to get a week in a holiday let to get over the journey and get a relocation company to help us find and secure a long term rental. As people have said though - remember you will need essential items whilst waiting for shipping if you decide to ship....but these suggestions might give you good for thought to help you decide. All the best x Thanks! good thoughts, and I think if really try and limit any shipping. And as my sis already in Sydney i could set family there for a week and sort long term rental pretty quickly I think, although I think my preference would be for s.a. whens your move? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarahawayfromhome Posted July 26, 2016 Author Share Posted July 26, 2016 Definitely living expenses before and after the move when you are not working is something many people overlook - I ended up not working for 8 months and from the point at which we decided to migrate we spent £70k in 12 months but that was probably extreme and we 'wasted' a lot - premium economy flights, holiday rental for two months, air freighted some stuff we didn't want to wait for and so on. Wow 70k if I thought it would be anywhere near that I'd be stopping in my tracks now! thanks though! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarahawayfromhome Posted July 26, 2016 Author Share Posted July 26, 2016 I didn't find a decent job for 7 months, burned through all my savings over that period. Its a very expensive time when you emigrate. That was with my partner finding a job quickly and paying the main bills, still spent a bundle. Make sure you have enough money to last a considerable amount of time comfortably - if you're worried about financials in the first few months it will not be a great experience at all. thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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