Thinking of a move to Brisbane

Hi, I am brand new to the forum so apologies if this is in the wrong place.

Its very early days for myself and my partner regarding a move but I thought it best to gather as much information as possible beforehand.

So my partner recently returned from a trip to visit family in Australia (Cairns and Newcastle). She has always had a thing in her head about moving to Australia, as have I. And once she returned it only heightened this.

We have decided to take a 3 week holiday in January 2018 to 'scout' Brisbane and see if we like it. I realise this is not enough time to fully see all the areas etc but it is at least something. And then if we like it, begin the application process.

Reasons we want to move are mostly lifestyle and weather based. Financially for my partner but not so much for me as I earn good money here. We both realise the cost of living is higher over there too and we may not financially be much better off, if any. But like I say that is not the driving force behind the move.

i spent 4 months in Melbourne in 2012 on a working holiday visa, initially I wanted to spend the full term but I didn't take enough money with me and just found myself working to pay rent and nothing else and eventually I didn't see the point in staying. Also being young and having a very active social life at home I missed my friends. In hindsight I should have travelled to different areas and made more of it but I was young and naive. It's all change now as I have grown up and settled with my partner. I solely own my own home (mortgage) which I plan to keep and let out to keep ties here and have a regular income in case it all goes wrong out there.

I am 25, a fully qualified plumbing and heating engineer, gas safe, 10 years experience. My partner is 23 and a registered nurse.

So really my questions are is there opportunities for people like us in the Brisbane area or should we be looking elsewhere? I have told my partner we are not going unless once of us has a job offer so we at least have one wage coming in. I realise we will both have to transfer our qualifications over and sit additional tests/training etc which I am fine with. I had no problems finding plumbing work when I was in Melbourne and worked the entire time I was there.

Also which visas should we be we be applying for? Should we both do separate applications or should one of us piggyback onto the other? I had a read through the official website but it confused the hell out of me!

Thanks for for reading and thanks for any responses in advance!

Hi and welcome to the forum. It looks like you have thought this through. We moved to Australia and I had never visited so it's good that you have been before. To be honest I wouldn't waste money coming back over in 2018 instead I'd put the money to one side as a safety net. It's an excellent idea to rent your house rather than sell as this will give you another safety net to fall back on.

In regards to jobs, I'm sure you should both do fine in Queensland, I know when we lived in Cairns we could never get a plumber out as they were always too busy. I would check about transferring your qualifications and check what extra exams, licenses you may need as for some this is a nightmare.

In regards to what visa is best for you I'm not the right person to answer sorry. It may be worth while making a seperate post in either the migration section or the Ask an Agent part of the forum.

If your partner is not degree qualified that is the first thing you will need to sort out as she will need to top up her studies to work as a RN in Australia

Normally skilled migrant visas are recommended but it can prove trickier securing a job from the UK. A sponsored visa (457) may have some advantages for you. A job to come to and the employer may assist with relocation costs. Also as a non-resident landlord any profit from renting out your uk home would not be taxable.

As you are also trying out Australia you will save the visa costs if it doesn't work out. Best to speak with a MARA regidtered agent to look at all the pros and cons.

I would speak to an agent and see if either of you qulaify for a skilled visa. They take longer to process than a sponsered but offer much more security once your here. I think both of you would find work in and around Brisbane relatively easy once you both have the relevant State licences etc.

Cal x

Thanks very much for all your responses! We will definitely speak to an agent regarding visas and all the legal stuff and will look into how to go about getting our qualifications changed over. That's really good to know about the tax break I would get regarding rental on my property, I wasn't aware of that!

Hays recruitment randomly got in touch with me a couple of months ago about work in Australia and said to contact them nearer the time of a possible move and they should be able to get me work in Brisbane, Sydney or Melbourne which is encouraging.

Rosie I'm not 100% sure what you mean by degree qualified but she went through 4 years university here and has her nursing degree here. Pretty sure she will need to sit additional courses over there to bring her up to Aussie standards, as will I.

If she has a degree and some experience then she should be right to go once registered. It seems to be a tedious registration process but she can start it from the UK, and there are lots of threads on this forum about that. It is only the diploma qualified people who can no longer get visas as nurses.

Re:tax and rental in the UK, be aware that Australia tax your worldwide income so it is possible that you will be under the threshold to be taxed in the UK but will be taxed in Aus if you make a profit on your UK rental. All depends on how much you make in Aus of course but be aware it can happen.

Re:tax and rental in the UK, be aware that Australia tax your worldwide income so it is possible that you will be under the threshold to be taxed in the UK but will be taxed in Aus if you make a profit on your UK rental. All depends on how much you make in Aus of course but be aware it can happen.

Only if you are PR though. Temporary visas such as 457s means that Australia only taxes you on Australia income and you are a non-resident landlord for the UK so no tax under current rules.

Thanks very much for all your responses! We will definitely speak to an agent regarding visas and all the legal stuff and will look into how to go about getting our qualifications changed over. That's really good to know about the tax break I would get regarding rental on my property, I wasn't aware of that!

Hays recruitment randomly got in touch with me a couple of months ago about work in Australia and said to contact them nearer the time of a possible move and they should be able to get me work in Brisbane, Sydney or Melbourne which is encouraging.

 

Rosie I'm not 100% sure what you mean by degree qualified but she went through 4 years university here and has her nursing degree here. Pretty sure she will need to sit additional courses over there to bring her up to Aussie standards, as will I.

Degree qualified she will be fine. Check out the AHPRA website to see what she needs to do to register but it certainly won't involve extra courses, its just a question of producing evidence of her degree and work back home.