My partner & I and our two children, aged 3 & 4 want to seek a better life in Oz. However, where on earth do you start? I don't really want to pay a migration expert as I think/hope I am can do the paperwork myself, but the thought of starting the visa application & paying out a load of money with no guarantee of success scares me stupid.
Where can I find out information about the different places one offer to live in OZ, the attractions etc of each location, jobs available etc. As a family, do we move to Perth or Brisbane? We just haven't got a clue? Can anyone start us off in the right direction?
Good Migration Agents will give you a free 15 minute or so chat on the phone, because they won't take you on unless they think they can get you a visa.
I prsonally recon that ptlabs is THE man to talk to if your skills are IT based, even thoughhe is in Sydney.
For other skills, the UK-based Agents most freequently recommended on here are:L
Do Matilda, in Southampton.
Ian Harrop & Associates, near Oxford.
Visa Bureau, but I'm not sure of their location.
Ring them all, I suggest, after a prelimiary look at the links above.
Location: From Bury,Manchester To Jimboomba, Brisbane
Posts: 6,171
Hiya and welcome to poms in oz ,i dont think i can offer any more advice or links on top of what Gill has already listed.Many folks have done the process thereselves although i opted for an agent as i couldnt risk waiting moths to be told id failed,,(with an agent they doucble check everything for you)we used Visa Bureau who were excellent and derfinately worth every penny!! good luck
Cal x
Location: Coombabah, Gold Coast from Oldham, Gtr Manchester
Posts: 1,027
Hi, have a 3 and 4 year old too, plus a 14 month old, and live on the Gold Coast. There's plenty to do here for them; our kids love Dreamworld, Seaworld, and Movieworld, all within easy reach, half hour tops from us near Surfers Paradise. Australia Zoo is a couple of hours drive, and there are also two water parks, Wet n Wild and Whitewater world. The beaches are beautiful, there are parks all over the place, and our kids love their kindy. Downsides are there are not many things for us to do at night; few pubs (not that I go out now!), and it goes dark earlier as no daylight savings in QLD. Very humid throughout the summer too, and there have been floods due to the heavy rainfalls. Very relaxed place though, great to bring up kids; depends if you want to put up with, or maybe like, the humidity/heat!
On the agent front, we didn't use one- pretty straightforward for us, but if things like family issues or work not so straightforward, an agent may be of use. Good luck, difficult decision to make. Jo x
First thing to do is to find out if your or partners skill is on the 'in demand' list which means you'll get more points. Next you'll need to get your skill assessed and passed before you can proceed onto your application. On line applications seem to be being processed more quickly at the moment because it's new - this may slow down in time as more and more people apply via this route. We did the application ourselves because our application was pretty straight forward, for those who've used an agent, at times they've been worth their weight in gold.
Ali
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I will have a look at the links. Thanks everyone for your reply.
Can anyone tell me how much it cost them to get their visa's and move & everything?
How much using an agent and how much going it alone?
Our situation is staight forward and my skills as a childcare coordinator is on the list. My partner (we are not married, does that make a difference?) is manager of a Builders merchants so his job isn't on the list.
I'll check out the links tonight.
Location: From Bury,Manchester To Jimboomba, Brisbane
Posts: 6,171
Hiya me and Gary werent married when we applied ,you just have to proove your relationship with old photos,joint bills/mortgage statements etc(even thou our eldest child was 8).my visa and passport are still in my maiden name as we only married a couple of week before leaving the Uk..With an agent we paid approx 3,500gbp ,thats agent fees,visa fees,meds police checks etc.We originally just shipped 18 large boxes out using Crown relo(who were excellent) that cost about 800gbp with insurance(lots of hubbys tools).I found the advantage of the agent to be not only advising which is the best visa we can apply for but someone who helped and double checked all the way,even giving us templates to base TRA and stat decs upon.good luck with everything
Cal x
