Goochie

These threads do make me chuckle. My wife and I came over here with just $1200 cash in our pockets and collected a credit card with a small limit from Commonweath bank upon arrival (With a job and a 176 visa you can apply before you leave the UK) However, I had secured a job before arriving and had paid for the first month's accomodation in advance from the UK. My employer also gave us a car to use for the first month. We've been here nearly 4 weeks now and I've been working for the last two. I get paid tomorrow and will be able to clear the crediti card balance easily. However we have just $20 cash to our names and have spent about $4k on the card - most of that being a deposit for our rental. Some things here are expensive whilst others are cheaper. Parking is cheap (if not free) Public transport is cheap (free in Perth CBD) Petrol is cheaper - I paid the equivalent of 99p/L this week Car insurance is cheaper

Chris. Your UK debt will have no effect on your ability to get a bank account or credit card here in Oz. If you wanted, you can go bankrupt in the UK once you're in Australia using a specialist solicitor in London - Normally you would have to attend the court but they can act on your behalf if needed. After all, you're so skint in Australia that you cant afford to fly home for a few hours The other option would be a debt managment plan. Someone like Payplan will speak to your bank and arrange a payment plan. You then pay payplan a small ammoutn each month (we're talking just a few pounds) and they pay your bank. This isolates you from the bank and means they are less likely to find you, just incase you want to hide in the future. Remember, the banks systems are very clever and like any website, they can track your location using your IP address. If you want to hide from them, do not use internet banking and dont even click "allow pictures" when they send you emails. Buying flights with Quantas on your credit card also helps them to find you if they want - Using a travel agent on the other hand makes it a bit more difficult. Which option you take depends how often you want to worry about returning to the UK. Whilst a debt give no grounds for preventing travel, it will be impossible to lead a "normal" life again in the UK if you leave big problems behind. Having said that, you could always go bankrupt upon your return.

As above, every house we viewed in the last couple of weeks (North Perth) had a built-in / walk-in wardrobe in every bedroom. You'd struggle to buy a free-standing wardrobe here because they're so unpopular.

Before we leave at the end of this week, we'd like to take the bank details of some family members with us so we can send money to the UK. Obviously we need a bit more than a sort code and account number so what do they need to give us?

A quick one for someone with experience of these things........ Is it possible to pay a rental bond and agents fee etc. on a credit card?

I've just had a confirmation email from Commonwealth bank regarding a foreign currency account. Once you've arrived, you can set up an account with them which can hold pounds (or Euros, or any other major currency). This will allow you to transfer to-and-fro in pounds without incurring exchange rate issues or fees. It also allows family to send you a cheque in pounds.

Thanks for the reply. However, we're going to be closing our UK accounts so that wont really work for us.

NAB is the one you hear about on here all the time. However, we found that Commonwealth bank offered the same no-fee deal which continues upon arrival if you pay a decent amount in each month (like your salary). Unlike many others, you can also apply for a credit card before you arrive if you're on a 457 or 176 Visa and have an employment contract in place with an Australian employer. Another thing to consider is that unlike the UK, banks often charge you for using someone elses cashpoint so if you know where you'll be living, look on Google or the bank's website to see who has the most machines and branches near you. Another thing to consider is that your own bank *may* offer a better transfer rate than some of the ForEx specialists if you're moving smaller sums in the future. For £15k a ForEx company will probably be the best but for less than £5k I found HSBC and Natwest both offered pretty much the same deal after fees were paid.

Had a chat with my parents last night and they were asking what the best way is for them to send money to us for birthday and Christmas presents etc.? I’ve moved a few thousand through a Forex company and know you can do a bank transfer, but the fees for moving a couple of hundred pounds are a little high. Do you know of a more efficient way to move small sums?

We'll be arriving in Perth in September and have holiday accommodation sorted for the first 4 weeks. After this we'll need a more permanent place to live. So if you're looking to break your lease and return to the UK< please send me a message or reply here with the details. Thanks.

We're moving to WA in September and to help us avoid spending a fortune, please can someone make a list of which supermarkets are cheapest? From cheapest to most expensive in the UK, I'd say it goes: Lidl Aldi Asda Morrisons Tesco Sainsburys M&S Waitrose So how about Australia?

It is a very simple CV - Not the sort you'd use to apply for a job. Just a list of places you've worked with job title and contact details. Oldest job first.

Its a simple CV, listing the places you've worked with relevant referee details. You may also have to send them certified copies of your P60 covering the years you're claiming for and and duty statements and job offer letters etc. which will help back up your claim. I had to do the CDR route because my degree wasn't part of the accord so it may be slightly different. However, I guess the proof of employment requirements will be the same.

Some places pay you extra for having a day off too!

I'm sure I'm not the only one thinking this................. What on earth does the "dogging" course entail ?!?

Yes - We booked our flights directly on the Malaysia website. During booking it gives you seating options. If you booked through an agent they should also be able to make seat reservations for you.

You should be able to make a seat reservation at this time though. We're flying with Malaysia on September 1st and have already reserved our seats (exit row with more legroom for £140 each extra)

You can only check-in 48 or 24 hours before departure. That is quite normal and common with every other airline.

We had two bicycles to pack yesterday and having wondered how on earth we'd pack them I called our local Halfords superstore to see if they could keep some of the boxes which the bikes are sent to the store in. They were more than happy for us to help ourselves from the back of the shop and there were loads! We had a couple for the bikes and a few more for pictures and mirrors etc - Things which just wouldnt fit into "normal" boxes. So if you have a bike to pack, give your local Halfords a call.

If you're looking for a sponsored visa, membership of EA will be purely optional but may make it more likely that you'll find something. If you want a skilled migrant visa, EA will have to assess your skills/qualification as part of that process and once completed, you can apply for membership very easily on the back of that assessment. Have a look at the EA website, it is pretty good. http://www.engineersaustralia.org.au/about-us/migration-skills-assessment They have a few booklets you can download which will help explain the different options.

Hi Fallguy - I've just sent you a private message.

I compared the total cost of the transfer. Basically, if I transferred 100 pounds to my Oz account, how many dollars will I get after fees etc. Very little difference in real terms.

I looked extensively at this and found that forex companies are only useful for moving large sums. They seem to be very good at promoting their apparent benefits and I'm convinced they do very well out of people on this forum. However, for paying small'ish sums of money, I found my own bank (Natwest) offered a service which was very simple and the cost of the transfer was within a few pounds (less than a tenner) of the well known Forex companies. Much like the use of a migration agent Vs. doing it yourself, I think these places are staffed by slick sales people but in reality it's just smoke and mirrors.

We've been looking at some areas in the east but we'd like to be 30 mins from the beach (on foot or public transport) - Is that possible from the east?

How well are Perth homes prepared for the winter in terms of double glazing, insulation and heating?