sandch
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Everything posted by sandch
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Thank goodness; there is human life in the forum yet. A very appropriate rant if I may say so.
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Well done! You should get a lot of very interested people using that one, new forum user. And thanks for reminding me, I can't remember if I mentioned, I did manage to get My Mate at Coles eventually? Perhaps I did. Any unrecorded progress on the CPV tracker out there folks? Seems to have been a quiet August, understandably.
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That's only for the 103 visa - the thread has been temporarily hijacked!
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Well that’s one way to pad out the Contributory Parent Visa thread I suppose. :confused:
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Found her on another site, still chattering away helpfully - there are so many of these expat forums around, just don't have the time to get involved in them all!
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You'll be fine Moira - they say the first 10 years are the worst. Seriously though, it can be a wrench when there are so many connections, especially as we get older. Once here, it's best to get fully immersed into day to day life (Vegemite excluded). We still have a daughter in the UK so we can't fully let go - don't want to actually - and will probably aim for dual citizenship. We can't know what we will feel like in 10 years' time, so it's a good option to have. Best wishes Steve
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Best to check with the rules Wendy http://www.immi.gov.au/migrants/family/balance-family.htm Note the points about step children etc. Good luck Steve
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We also opened an account with HSBC many years ago in Perth because it was a global bank - but it's a bit misleading. The Australian HSBC has very different systems, and feels like a small organisation out here. There are very few branches in Australia (see http://www.hsbc.com.au/1/2/misc/locations). Our HSBC account is now inactive and we do all our banking with Westpac. We also experienced a challenge paying the final visa fee, having moved it in dollars to HSBC Australia first. In the end, after first setting up the fax indemnity and then two faxes (the first got lost), they would only send a bank draft to our home address, not to DIAC directly. So it came to England and then we couriered it back to Perth. So be aware, though if it is more convenient it's still an option; HSBC is a solid bank, we've been with them in the UK for decades. I would however avoid buying foreign currency via any high street bank. All the best Steve
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I’m now the proud owner of a jar of that great stuff Matt. J
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Works for me too Les. I also have one good adaptor for more portability around the house but it was bought in Australia; good quality (a bit of a rare find).
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Great to hear your news guys. And yes Steve they certainly could do with some help in the construction standards dept. All the best for Busselton, a great part of the country. Best wishes Steve
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Pretty impressive and well organised by the sound of it! You're going to settle in very quickly. Welcome to Australia and good luck with the house purchase. All the best Steve
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Yes, Mike it would make sense, I'm just a bit nervous about sending emails out but what the hell. By self-service I was just referring to the facility for anyone to set themselves up on the tracker. Until last year, I had to do it. I got a quiet thread going again though! Cheers! Steve
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Don't you worry Val, I won't remove anyone! It's just an observation really. Cheers Steve
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It seems to me that since opening up the tracker last year to "self-service" we're seeing a lot join, then never updating their records. The June 2010 batch must by now have COs. I'm not sure there's a lot I can do about this, and of course it may also be a reflection of the drop-out rate; that wouldn't surprise me. It might also be holidays I suppose. The visa granted list however is still a fair indication of the timescales, though this will lose relevancy as time goes by if the numbers diminish. Cheers Steve
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Thanks Matt, I'll need to go to a bigger Coles than the one near us I think; I'll make it a quest for next weekend. We're considering a motorhome in a few years' time when we have a bit of time to use it - and money of course they're not cheap. Cheers Steve
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Hello Matt it is really good to hear from you again. I imagine that is hugely frustrating for you guys, but a stark fact of life which we all have to be mindful of. We know that they will favour young and Australian in most cases, it's a barrier. Getting into an organisation is the challenge - once inside there is a better chance to influence. Glad to hear that you've got hold of some My Mate. Haven't found any where we are, and have not yet adapated to Vegemite. Cheers Steve
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Great news Pete and Marge, many congratulations! And you too Les, that's a significant obstacle removed. The streets which you may have to roam might be a bit quieter in September when the wild animals go back to school to continue their impressive education. Best wishes all Steve
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What a volatile currency the Aussie is. Now back at around 1.55 after the relative calm on world stockmarkets.
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I can understand what you must be going through having been through the trauma of house sales in the past more times that I care to remember.
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Hello Moira It seems to have already been updated!?? Cheers Steve
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Now see what you did Charlie? It was sensibly invested Les, in the Australian stock market. Oh hang on... Nah. All gone. It's nice to see the dollar falling at last isn't it? And all it really needed was a truly global loss of confidence, the melt-down of the financial systems of leading economies, and the end of capitalism as we know it. Giving us a much more reasonable 1.55 to the pound. :skeptical:
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Ah flattery. Works every time! Thank you Charlie and I hope you are edging your way comfortably towards citizenship. Cheers Steve
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Keep 'em coming chudleighval - all useful stuff! You should be able to get around 1.54 at the moment, but it'll be interesting to see what happens when the European markets open tomorrow. When we got here last November / December we were moving money at around 1.6 which we thought was awful. The rate has some way to go before it reaches the heady heights of awful and improves to just very bad.
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Global Financial Crisis II. :shocked: