Hi! Young couple looking for change of life!

Hi,

 

My name is Ben and my fiance Steph. We are both 23 and have lived together since we were 18. We are expecting our first baby in October this year and are due to get married next year!

 

In a nutshell, we are looking into emigrating to Australia for many different reasons, mainly to better our and our future children's lives!

 

I am a fully qualified gas engineer and currently work for British Gas, so am certain I have no issues in qualifying for the skilled visa. Steph works in administration.

 

So, basically we have come here to try and make some 'friends' to share experiences or guidance on certain area's of emigration to Australia.

 

Please feel free to say hello!

 

Ben and Steph :smile:

Hi, whereabouts in Australia are you thinking of moving and what makes you think life will be better here?

Hi buzzy,

 

We are still in the very early stages of getting information on different areas etc... We have began looking at the gold coast but have LOADS to research yet, just looking to learn as much as possible from you guys and get a personal insight.

 

There are a lot of reasons, we are both complete sun worshippers and are very much outdoor people. The style of life suits us a hell of a lot more than over here.

 

Do you mind me asking, are you an ex-pat?

I live in Brisbane, have done for the last 5 years. The only people that 'sun worship' are tourists. During the summer months its not uncommon for various places to be like ghost towns as a) everyone is avoiding being in the sun b) its too hot and humid to be in the sun c) everyone is using their cars etc to avoid the sun.

 

I can't tell you how many people (slightly older than me) that have been treated for skin cancer. There is one beach up the coast from me (Rainbow Beach) that has a massive remembrance board. On it is a picture and small bio of local young people (mostly under 30) that have died from skin cancer.

 

If you are looking to come here and 'sun worship', especially with children, its the wrong place for you...

 

People do have an outdoor life here, but its mainly done in the very early morning. Qld has no daylight saving so its dark really early, approx. 6:30pm in the summer. But gets light really early, most people are out doing their various sports (cycling, surfing, running etc) around 5:30 - 7am. Even gardening!

 

If you are coming to 'sun worship' then its the wrong place for you...

Hi Tickled,

 

I used that phrase just to emphasise liking the outdoors. I am fully aware of the dangers of UV, but if I did not enjoy sunshine I think I would almost certainly be looking at the wrong part of the world. :laugh:

 

Of course I am not looking to relocate to sunbathe! It is the way of life that interests us!

Hi Tickled,

 

I used that phrase just to emphasise liking the outdoors. I am fully aware of the dangers of UV, but if I did not enjoy sunshine I think I would almost certainly be looking at the wrong part of the world. :laugh:

 

Of course I am not looking to relocate to sunbathe! It is the way of life that interests us!

 

The Gold Coast is your place guys. I surf , JetSki , out in boats all in the middle of summer I must be doomed. Some places like ghost towns in summer , that's a new one. Lived here all my life and when it gets hot , theirs traffic jams with people from Brissie getting to the beaches.

Gold coast has loads of outdoor recreational activities. Diving, deep sea fishing ,surf fishing ,great surf breaks,jet skiing and some bloody great locations boating . I'm guessing most forum experts here don't take advantage of any of this, just another first world country to them .

I agree with being sun smart , it's a must but loads of fun to be had IF you take advantage of it.

Hi Ausborn,

 

Thank you very much for your reply! (Did make me laugh a little :laugh:)

 

If you don't mind me asking, when did you take the plunge? How old are you now?

Hi Ausborn,

 

Thank you very much for your reply! (Did make me laugh a little :laugh:)

 

If you don't mind me asking, when did you take the plunge? How old are you now?

 

I was born here mate, am a dual citizen and been backwards and forwards when I can. Bit of a gypsy.Wife is a Pom and all the family. Getting close to the big 40 ,just not mentally.

Its a big step to take but with the right attitude and goals anything is possible . Just check how your occupation is doing here for both of you. Most trades doing great , but other areas not so much from my knowledge. Need money to have fun .

Oh my bad lol! That's the way to be in my eyes haha!

 

Well, this is exactly how I see it! We are still only looking into ideas, it wouldn't be possible in the very near future, hence why we are on here to learn and make friends to get advice from. Oz has always been a place I am fascinated in ever since my mom showed me pictures of me at 1 year old over there when she spent 6 months but ended up moving back (I could have grew up there!).

 

My trade seems to pay very well over there as far as my research says but need to look a lot more into hours, workload etc... can't imagine it is more than what I do atm!

 

Thanks for your replies!

I am Saffa who spent time in Perth , regarding the sun I much prefer the temperate climate of the U.K. To be honest. If you like plenty of life in the evenings don't choice Perth. Try it as you are still young, you might like it then again you might not as everyone is different. It's not a better life in OZ but just different, you have to work

bloody hard to have a good life and Aussies do work very hard with a lot less annual leave than in the UK. Try it, you only live once.

Edited August 30, 2016 by Perthbum

I am Saffa who spent time in Perth , regarding the sun I much prefer the temperate climate of the U.K. To be honest. If you like plenty of life in the evenings don't choice Perth. Try it as you are still young, you might like it then again you might not as everyone is different. It's not a better life in OZ but just different, you have to work

bloody hard to have a good life and Aussies do work very hard with a lot less annual leave than in the UK. Try it, you only live once.

 

Thanks for the reply mate!

 

This is a motto we live by and has served us well so far, however a lot to find out yet!

Im a bit older than you (on paper,lol) but moved here with my family 10 years for very similar reasons to what you mention in your OP, im yet to be disappointed, Qld is brilliant and the weather is awesome compared to what i grew up with. The first few years can be tough whilst you settle and get used to the Aussie ways but it can be worth it in the end.

The only thing id advise you do is look into state licencing, despite the skills tests etc you do for the actual visa, plumbers, gas fitters, electricians etc have quite a few hoops to jump through before they can work without supervision here and it can be a pain. especially if your not expecting it.

 

Lots of luck with everything, Brisbane and the Gold Coast are great places to be.

Cal x

Im a bit older than you (on paper,lol) but moved here with my family 10 years for very similar reasons to what you mention in your OP, im yet to be disappointed, Qld is brilliant and the weather is awesome compared to what i grew up with. The first few years can be tough whilst you settle and get used to the Aussie ways but it can be worth it in the end.

The only thing id advise you do is look into state licencing, despite the skills tests etc you do for the actual visa, plumbers, gas fitters, electricians etc have quite a few hoops to jump through before they can work without supervision here and it can be a pain. especially if your not expecting it.

 

Lots of luck with everything, Brisbane and the Gold Coast are great places to be.

Cal x

 

Thanks for your reply cal!

 

Haha, forget about whats on the paper, it's only a number! :wink:

 

Yeah, I have been reading quite a few threads from people looking for the same work on here... looks like there is a lot involved, gonna have to spend some good time finding all that out and see what my options are!

 

Look forward to getting to know you all better!

Welcome to the forums and good luck with your plans.

 

My own advice would be to take one thing at a time. You're about to have a baby and that is going to TOTALLY transform your lives. I don't know how close you are to family, but once the baby is born, your fiancee is going to want her Mum more than she ever has in her life!

 

I've had several friends who were real career women, came out to Australia with their partners and loved it, but once they had a baby they were desperate to get back to the UK and their Mum for a while. So my first advice would be, wait and see how you both feel once the baby has arrived before you start spending money on visa applications etc. Your girlfriend will probably need some time to adjust to motherhood before you both jet off to a new life.

 

The other thing to consider is child care. Assuming she'll want to go back to work after the baby is born, look into the cost of child care in the state you're aiming for. It's a lot more expensive than in the UK ($80 to $100 a DAY). You can get half of that back in benefits but there's an annual limit I think. There's one member here who's decided to postpone migration until his child is old enough for primary school for that reason.

 

Finally - and I see you've asked this on another thread - look into how soon you'll be able to earn a good wage. The Immigration website will tell you what qualifications you need to get accepted for a visa, but those qualifications won't allow you to walk straight into a job in Australia. For many trades, you have to do extra study or get extra certificates or even do a short apprenticeship before you can get your full licence, and that can take up to a year. So you have to consider, how would you manage to support your family for that first year with a lower wage, especially if your wife's salary is barely covering the cost of child care?

 

Not saying it's impossible, just that you need to save up so you've got a "cushion" of money to see you through the first year while you get on your feet.

I totally agree with Marissa about the while wait until the baby is born thing. My OH is Australian and we talked about moving to Australia right from when we got serious but once we had kids the last thing I wanted was to move to the other side of the world from my family - and we would have had family support from my OH's family when we got there. As the kids got older I felt less and less like I needed to be near my family and we moved when our youngest was 7. You and your OH may feel different and/or have little in the way of a support network and feel that you would be as well being in Australia as the UK and at that point you can then make the call to move.

Cash in on the free babysitting while you can then think about moving when they are approaching school age is my advice.

 

Brisbane and the Goldie are great but you won't enjoy it while moving with a baby with no support.

It has become sad to me that PIO which is supposed to provide advice and support for people moving to Australia has become a site which advises people not to come.

 

The site won't be needed if it continues in this vein.

There are plenty of us who manage fine with new babies and without our mums!

There are plenty of us who manage fine with new babies and without our mums!

 

I agree!

 

We moved to Sydney 3 weeks after my first baby was born. We then had another 2 babies within 2 years (3 under 3 - Nuts!) - we had no friends nor relatives in Sydney and survived just fine. Also - my husband had a job running the office in Sydney, Hong Kong and Singapore - so he spent 2 weeks here and then 2 weeks in Asia - that was his permanent work arrangement up until our youngest was about 3.

Edited August 31, 2016 by purpleal
grammar

My children are now 10,9 and 8 and we are still together, happily married. My sister has recently moved here too - she has a husband and a new baby - trying to fit in visiting with her is another thing - they have built up such a social network through their baby that they are quite busy!

It has become sad to me that PIO which is supposed to provide advice and support for people moving to Australia has become a site which advises people not to come.

 

The site won't be needed if it continues in this vein.

 

Parley, I can only see one post that 'conditionally' says not to come. All others are pro coming!

There are plenty of us who manage fine with new babies and without our mums!

 

I know and I think you're superwomen! The thing is, though, everyone is different. I was very surprised to see my career-women friends - who barely spoke to their families back home - suddenly feel the need to "go home to Mum" when their babies arrived. The OP has time on his side, so why not wait until the baby is born and see how she feels first?

 

My other point was about baby-sitting and child care - if their salaries will comfortably cover both then that's fine, but if not then a few years' free babysitting in the UK gives them a chance to save for a move when the child starts school. Why struggle when you can do it more comfortably?

Edited August 31, 2016 by Marisawright

Shouldn't we leave it to people who have actually had children in Australia to give advice on matters such as this ?

 

Someone who is childless is just guessing really.

 

The mothers who have posted should be listened to.

Hi buzzy,

 

We are still in the very early stages of getting information on different areas etc... We have began looking at the gold coast but have LOADS to research yet, just looking to learn as much as possible from you guys and get a personal insight.

 

There are a lot of reasons, we are both complete sun worshippers and are very much outdoor people. The style of life suits us a hell of a lot more than over here.

 

Do you mind me asking, are you an ex-pat?

 

You do not get handed a new lifestyle upon clearing immigration. Lifestyle is not driven by the country you are in, it is driven by the individual and the choices made. My lifestyle was virtually identical in Australia as UK, because that is the lifestyle I chose for that period of time. I am back in UK now and for first time I am leading a new lifestyle and it is nothing to do with my location, it is to do with specific choices I have made.

 

But I am not saying this to put you off Auatralia, not in the slightest, just saying that it doesn't change your lifestyle and indeed many people find the outdoors harder to deal with in Australia. But you are young, both up for this and have long felt a pull to Australia then I think it is a good decision and you could build a great life for yourselves. I would research work opportunities on the Gold Coast a bit more though, I think the name can be enticing, but the reality is that it can be hard to find work there. Maybe Brisbane would be better with weekend visits to GC.

Shouldn't we leave it to people who have actually had children in Australia to give advice on matters such as this ?

 

Someone who is childless is just guessing really.

 

The mothers who have posted should be listened to.

I arrived in the country 29 weeks pregnant and 7 weeks later had my daughter(early), knowing no one in Australia except a couple who we met in our holiday accommodation. I dont know why people bang on about support networks, I don't think I am "Superwoman" , you just get on with it. Yes it does change your life having a baby but it changes it where ever you live, just happens that you have babysitters on tap in your home town.