mr luvpants

Living in Boyne Island and recently transferred to Road Policing Command. Still loving this wonderful country.

There is no requirement to exchange your driving licence to a QLD driver licence if you are on a temp visa. However you still can if you wish. The three month time limit only applies to someone who becomes a permanent resident. You have three months to change it to a QLD licence otherwise you are deemed unlicensed. Regarding the OP. His WA driver licence is no longer current as it would have been replaced with the UK driver licence (you can only have one driver licence). My advice would be to exchange it for a QLD drive licence as soon as he/she arrives as the three month rule won't apply as he/she is already a citizen. Hope that makes sense. JOHN

Been in Australia for nearly 8 years and have moved to Boyne Island for work and have to start again on the social front. We are both aged 50 with no kids. Anyone fancy coffee?

Very well, thank you. still loving it and its been nearly 7 years. How are you?

H Cal Im always lurking! JOHN

Where are you based Sunnycoaster?

hi. Wife is a Nurse at Nambour. PM me if you fancy coffee? We have been here nearly 6 years.

and where are you in this beautiful country?

No Idea. I would be lying if I said I have not a had few "moments". In fact the last was about 8 months ago when I would have been in the UK fire service for 20 years if I was still in the UK and saw all my colleagues on FB getting their 20 year medals. Out of the blue it hit me and I thought " what am I doing here"! I had a good chat with my wife about my feelings and I give myself an upper cut and it all went away. It was a big thing moving away from the UK and it is not to be expected that "things" are going to pop up. I am super settled now and in the words of Susan Boyle "wild horses would not drag me away". How are you getting on?

Where do you LIVE?

UPDATE: So after nearly 5 years here we finally became citizens last week and my ozzie passport rocked up today. Our house is up for sale and we put in and had an offer accepted for a piece of land to build our dream house. Life is great here. Yes we miss family but as a couple we are stronger than ever and can honestly say we enjoy life here and will not be going back.

Hi all Been doing some research for my SIL. She is a degree trained social worker with two years experience and she is looking to move to QLD under the state nominated scheme. My understanding of the visa system is that she can can apply now to get her skills assessed for migration purposes (she achieves the required 60 points with the skills assessment) but she can not apply to join the AASW yet as she has not got 3 years experience. Does she need membership to be considered for a social work job? JOHN

Wow! How time flies! This day four years ago Lisa and I stepped off the plane at Brisbane to start another chapter in our life. It's been hard sometimes as we miss family and friends in the UK but overall it was a great move and we love our life and our jobs here and have no intention of returning to the UK to live. We love exploring Australia in our camper and we are able to do more as a couple due to the life style here (and the weather). If you are interested, our updates are in our post history. Tomorrow we can apply for citizenship. To all those thinking about it, JUST DO IT. If it is not for you then return but at least then you will know. JOHN http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/reccie-arrival-reports/104518-luvpants-have-landed-our-arrival-report.html http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/reccie-arrival-reports/202316-we-have-been-here-three-years-we-going-back.html

How old are you? Most charges before the age of 18 are null and void (except murder obvioulsy).

Need to be aware guys that if a bridging visa is granted then the bridging visa does not allow you to go out of Australia HOWEVER you can apply for another bridging visa which allows you to go of Australia for UP TO 3 months per year and no more.

Is this true as I can not find anything on the net about it other than the hearing was today.

Can I ask where you heard that? And also if you pay tax in the UK you won't get taxed over in oz as you dont pay tax twice.

Of course. If I put my CETV figure into the Qsuper retirement calculator, it gives me a figure that my super pot will be worth at aged 60 and a yearly figure that I can expect to have from that pot. The yearly figure is less than what my UK Fire service pension will pay me at todays rates and in 13 years time (when I retire) it will (hopefully) be even more. My UK pension forecast has grown 1000 pounds since I left the UK 4 years ago. If it carries on that way, the tax I have to pay here in Oz would still make leaving the pension in the UK worth while. Question: Why would I be taxed here on my UK pension if my Oz super retirement payments are tax free? Surely I would be entitled to an Oz tax allowance? JOHN

I have been thinking about this subject for the last two weeks. I have 18 years pension payments in a UK fire service pension. It is a defined benefits scheme. I have done my homework and if I transfer it over now to a OZ QROPS and draw on it when I am 60, the yearly figure I have been given is just under what the Fire service pension people say they will pay me BUT the fire service pension figure is at todays rates. In 13 years time when I am 60 it will have gone up as it is index linked. I won't pay a lot of tax on it as I will be entitled to a full tax allowance in the UK despite living in Oz. I also have a Super account over here so in my mind I have the best of both worlds. The main reason that a pension transfer to Oz appealed to me is that I can have full access to it when I am 60. But I intend on living a full and long retirement so have decided not to transfer. Just my thoughts.

What exactly did that "point" bring to the table? Nothing! The OP was expressing an opinion and not damning the people back in the UK. I feel that same. I feel that we have had the balls to do something major in our lives whilst our friends back in the UK are quite content in doing "the same old things". It does not make us or the OP better than them just different. Mate, stop trying to make a positive post into a negative post just to fit your agenda.

My wife met an OT at the hospital she works at, the OT recognised her accent and it turns out she was in my class in junior school!

Great place to live.

Might help if you tell us where you are????

Migration advice: People with a criminal record (and in particular a recent criminal record) and who have failed to disclose it will get their visa revoked when found out.

"He took an illegal substance, he did not hurt anybody except himself. Yes, it was stupid, but of course it was a mistake, What else can it be classed as?" How about illegal? He says in his opening post "took some xtc pills with me because we want to party hard 1 time before i leave". So basically he was drug dealing? "If we don't make mistakes, we can't begin to learn from them." Bit more than a "mistake" I think? He knew what he was doing. Yes, now he regrets it but only because he can't come here not because he has done wrong.