Mike@Bonbeach

Hi Ramot I didn't mean to say the pension was insignificant, just any savings made by going to different "broker". I too have been having my pension paid here since 2007 and certainly don't consider it insignificant. I probably could have worded it better. We kept a UK bank account open just to receive premium bond winnings, and it helped subsidise our trip back in 2016. Mike

Hi Kpnuts We just went along with having it paid into our Australian bank, so I suppose it is done through City Bank WorldLink service. Any savings by going elsewhere soon pale into insignificance once your pension stays frozen for a year or two, plus so far it has been 100% reliable although it does seem to take between 3 and 6 days to get here, especially if there is a weekend involved. I guess their computers must be turned off at weekends. Mike

Not really familiar with how our Health policy worked, we went along with our Doc's recommendation for a Appendectomy for Connie a few months ago. The specialist said get in touch with this Anaesthetist for the operation. His rate was estimated $750 for an operation lasting less than 1hour, Medicare paid $225 and our health scheme paid $75, we had to stump up the rest about $480. We have since learned that we could have gone to any Anaesthetist and not had to have the one specified by the surgeon. We will know better next time round. Mike

A beach hut on Brighton beach sold this week for well over $300,000, about 4m x 3m I believe. Mike

FWIW, I think the lack of police presence on the roads is possibly to blame for the sometimes poor quality of driving. They only seem interested in catching speeding drivers and don't seem to bother about other bad driving habits, tailgating, swapping lanes, using phones, driving through amber lights when there is plenty of time to stop, not stopping at Halt signs, driving through flashing red lights on level crossings. The police could fund a few extra police just by sitting at a level crossing near me. (Bonbeach, Chelsea and Carrum). I reckon just one in ten drivers stop at the halt sign at the top of the road where it joins Station Street. Gosh, you could go on for ever criticizing drivers here in Australia ( Victoria), but I have just become so enured to it all. Now I just drive to expect the worst and that anything can happen and so drive accordingly. Why don't they increase the fines for mobile phone use, instead of $300 or whatever it is make it $3000 and loss of licence, that'll make them think a bit. Mike

I don't think that it will make any difference who is the primary applicant because my understanding, as an ex 143 migrant, once granted, you are both able to work part time or full time or in our case, not at all.

All except the ALP, Greens and several other interested parties who tried to stop the vote, even appealing to the High Court. They couldn't trust the Australian plebs to do the right thing.

Sounds a bit like the pot calling the kettle black. Keep your personal comments to yourself, Parley. At the grand old age of 77 I'm probably a lot more active than you are, even though I have no clue about you or your inclinations. There, just like you have done, I have made a comment about you.

Parley How many EPL matches are not played in England/UK during a season?. I still thinks it's an expense most supporters could do without. Have exhibition matches by all means but having a home and away match in a different country?, I would have better things to spend my hard earned on. I've got friends who are past AFL/VFL players and are entitled to finals tickets yet refuse to travel 35 kms because of the cost of tickets at the MCG., so travelling to Asia is a definite nono for them.

So if it is such a hard game and the poor dears can't play a full home and away system why don't they get rid of a few of the Victorian / Melbourne teams, allow a team in Tasmania and NT then they can really call it AFL. Alternatively reduce the size of the current league by having 2 leagues, with promotion and relegation. It may be a "harder" game but they do have a big number of "subs" on the bench, and a break between quarters. And I would be a bit peed off if the AFL suddenly decided to play one of my teams matches abroad, didn't 2 teams play in NZ last year and I understand that there is a home and away match taking place in China this year. Think of the cost to an ardent supporter to follow his team to China. I hasten to add that I am not anti-AFL, in fact I play golf twice a week with two retired AFL players and you couldn't wish to meet two nicer fellows, and some of the stories they tell of the goings on on the field before the days of multi referees and camera coverage is enough to make your eyes water, such as going out on the field with the intention of putting opponents out of the game. Mike

Hi Here in Victoria AFL is seen almost as a religion. Even now in the out of season there are stories and articles both in the newspapers and on television. Is it the same in other states? Some observations. The main season is called home and away, yet all teams do not play each other twice. There are only 16 teams so why can't they play each other twice, is it a fitness problem?. Do they have such tall and wide posts because the kicking isn't as accurate. When a player is banned after the Match review panel the team benefitting from the ban won't be the team he offended against, shouldn't they have yellow and red cards as in soccer, so the the team he offended against gets the benefit. Just me thinking out loud, nothing nasty intended. Mike

We are in much the same boat. Both my and Connie's pension providers couldn't come up with the required info. One excuse was that the UK rules said that the company was only obliged to keep data for a certain number of years and as her pension commenced paying out in 2003 the just didn't have the records. My company pension provider even had to go to the Actuaries of the fund and I'm still waiting 3 years later even after constantly chasing them up. My emails aren't even being answered now. So like you we have given up. At least now we are receiving the Aussie pension so in my case it's the first "rise" I've had in 10 years. Mike

In answer to my own post. I submitted our claim on-line 8th July, it was completed on 15th September and yes , it does get backdated to the submission date. Re the exchange rate fluctuation, they told me that once a month the GBP/$AU rate is updated, so the $AU fortnightly payment will vary month to month. Regards Mike

Marybeth52. We have just applied for the Aged Pension (July 2017) and there was no mention of a change in the residence qualification of 10 years. Is this a new ruling to take affect in the future? Mike

Hi We have just submitted our claims for the Australian Aged pensions (July 8th) and checking on Mygov web site it confirms our applications and says they should be actioned by August 28th. My questions to you recipients of the Aussie pension are, is the pension backdated to the qualifying date, ie when submitted or does it start getting paid once they have actioned it and secondly does the fortnightly payments vary depending on the exchange rate GBP?$A ?

The chair of a Multicultural Community Leaders Forum would say that, wouldn't she?

We have lived on the Bonbeach side of Patterson River for the past 9 years and have never noticed any bad smell from the waterworks. I have cycled around that area many times, Connie does her main shopping at Patterson Lakes , both Coles and Woolies are there. Doctors Surgeries that bulk bill. I don't think the waterworks should be an issue to not consider Patterson Lakes/Carrum as a place to live. Patterson River Golf Club is a terrific course, playable all year round, very close to the wetlands, lots of lakes pools etc on the course. Easy access to the motorways, beaches, cycle paths and of course the railway. All in all a very good place to settle. Mike

Thanks for that, but believe me I have been trying for about 3 years with my company pension providers who say they just don't have all the information that is needed, and are trying to get something out of the Actuaries. Connie's pension is with a County Council who tells her that all records were on paper and they were not required by law to keep anything past a certain time. At least she gets annual rises whereas the company who now pays my pension says they cannot or will not afford an increase to pensioners who were with the original company before being taken over,(twice). It was 1970 when I retired from the original company. Mike

Connie and I have tried to get the UPP form filled by getting in touch with our private pension companies. Her company says they can't supply the information as they just don't hold records for that far back. My company pension provider has changed hands a number of tomes since I left them and even going to the actuaries I'm not getting anywhere. Has anyone managed to get the 8% or whatever rate for UPP without having all the information they need? Mike

Where did I say I think I am "hard done by" ? Didn't know anything about the returning expats and the Aussie pension rules. Seems to me to be wrong too. Did they actually pay into a Pension plan?. Just paying taxes is surely different than paying into a Pension scheme as well as paying your taxes which is what I and thousands of UK ex-pats did in the UK, and what thousands of UK ex-pats living in countries other than Commonwealth countries did and are getting the annual increases in the UK age pension. Just my opinion.

I agree whole heartedly, but the question of "fairness" to Commonwealth ex UK pensioners is getting nowhere. We are coming up to our 10 years residency qualification in Australia and so qualify for the Aussie Age Pension and it's looking quite good, if my initial calculations are anything to go by. But IMO it is not right for Australia to have to make up the difference when we have paid into the UK system for 40+ years. Regards

I would say no. Your visa expiring just means you cannot re enter Australia should you go offshore for any reason. PR means permanent residency, Mike

I bet their Term Deposit rates or any interest paying accounts don't go up,

I questioned our UK bank,(Halifax) to ask if an account doesn't get used for a number of years whether it would be closed and they said they did not close accounts for non-use. They also send our new cards to us in Australia. I guess it must depend on the individual bank. Mike

Just this week Connie's sister in Scotland wanted to send a donation to our Daughter in law's sister who is getting married here in Australia. (Did you follow that?). She went into her bank in Scotland with our Aussie bank details with the intention of transferring 50 GB Pounds for us to pass it on. After completing all the details she was told it would cost 25 GB Pounds to transfer it. She cancelled it there and then. What we did in the end was get her to transfer it into our Halifax account in the UK and we'll withdraw the money with our debit card here. OK there will be a loss of something for the Foreign Exchange rate and a bank charge, but nowhere near 25 pounds. Mike