deanblb

My wife banks with Barclays and her letter said her account would be closed in November. However, every time she tried to transfer her money to Wise, Barclays stopped the payment. Then followed never ending calls to there customer service who asked why she was doing the transfer.

If it helps HSBC were very good when I moved to Australia. It took a bit of convincing them, reminding them that they advertise themselves as an international bank, and finding the right person to talk to. They set me up with an Australian HSBC account and an everyday global account in sterling and savings accounts in sterling and Australian dollars. I used the A$ saving account for the money from our UK house sale as the interest rate for a few months was competitive. However, I never used HSBC to transfer funds as the exchange rate was better using Wise or XE. I had been a customer of HSBC for many years in the UK. They did accept a UK cheque from HMRC a few months ago but it took about 4 Weeks to clear and they had to send the cheque to Sydney from Brisbane, so was not an easy process. I still use HBSC current account in Australia and in the UK but alongside other accounts here in Australia.

Hi if it helps we moved to Australia from the UK last July. I have a SIPP with you invest and a stocks and shares ISA with Hargreaves Lansdown. Both have allowed me to purchase new shares and funds from dividends but I am not allowed add any new money to either account All the best

Yes it is still worth claiming (you earned it) and it is likely to be worth more than you think especially with 27 years of contributions. There is likely to be a lump sum amount too. Have a look at https://www.lgpsmember.org/ or if you know the LGPS scheme you were in google it. Most now have online portals that will give you an update on how much pension you will get. You should be able to take the pension at 60 at the earliest.

Agreed not a priority visa but not a benefit to the country, I don’t agree with that. I have this visa, will be arriving next month, hoping to have interviews for jobs lined up for when I arrive and will work my little socks off when I arrive. It is nothing to do with the visa that benefits the country, it is the motivation of the individual that benefits the country. Plenty of people arrive on working visas and return home after a year or two, that does not benefit the country.

No need for an agent, they are just time consuming and you have to get all the information together before you do them. They are done online.

Because they applied when the number of visas were higher. When I applied there were over 500 visas issued a year. After three years waiting i was asked to do medicals and police checks but then they reduced the visas issued to about 80 a year. It then took another 4 years to get the visa.

Hi Dayan i think you may have at least another 10 to 12 years to wait, but things may change as people in the queue before you may drop out or less likely they may increase the visa numbers.

Hi we were notified late January 2018, had medicals and police checks early March and visa was approved early May. So it was just over four months from being notified. You should automatically be contacted once the queue date has passed. However, I don’t think it hurts to be proactive. I noticed that our queue date had been passed in November 2017 and by late December I had not heard anything so started chasing. It lets the case officer know that you still want to go to Australia. Good luck

Hi Danieldd192 From my experience they seem to update once a year usually in November/December and the date moves forward between one or two months. It seems only 70 to 80 are released from the queue each year. It is very likely to me that your aunt will be released from the queue next year. Keep an eye on the immi site in November and wait for the date to be updated. Once the processing queue date passes your aunts queue date talk to her migration agent and get them to chase her case officer. You should get confirmation in January or February next year. If she has not heard anything by June 2020, it will mean waiting to the following year. They work on a July to June year not on calendar years. Good luck

Thanks everybody for you advice. I am an accountant working for local government and charities and my wife designs library interiors for schools, universities and public libraries. It seems like Australia has similar rules to UK in regards to whether a person is an employee or a contractor. Alan, I will be in touch when we have settled down and found a house. Kind Regards

Thanks Ken that’s very helpful

Hi I was wondering if anyone can give us some advice or your experience of setting up a business and in which country it would be best to base the business. Our situation is that my wife and i are planning to emigrate to Australia from the UK later this year and we have both told our employers that we will be moving. Supringly to us both employers have asked if we can carry on doing some work for them from Australia. Neither of us have has our own business before and we are not sure on how to go about setting a new business up and which country we should establish the business in. Many Thanks

Check with a registered migration agent regarding your biological father. Did someone else adopt you as their son? My wife’s father remarried a few years before he passed away and some people (even some migration agents) said they his new wife was a relative. Eventually found out that Australian law did not recognise her as a relative of my wife and we could apply for the LRR visa. I’m sure you are aware of the long wait for this visa and the limits on working in Australia.

Hi Clim That is correct. PR granted May 2018, visa now validated and moving to Australia in July. Keep a watch on the government website as the dates do change when you are least expecting it. Also, it is likely that a number of the 1636 applicants will fall out due to changes in their circumstances or they don’t actually meet the criteria, which could reduce the waiting time. Good luck and I hope it comes sooner than you expect.

Hi My queue date for last remaining relative visa was 9 May 2011. I received the visa on the 9 May 2018, 7 years to the day, now preparing to move to Australia next year.

Hi my last remaining relative visa took seven years from applying but I did stay in the UK.

Hi Sophiavee Well done for waiting so long and getting to Australia. If you don’t mind could you let us know when your visa was approved. Your queue date was a few weeks before mine.

Hi application date was 3/5/11; qd 9/5/11

115 visa approved. 7 years to the day after sending applications off. Still coming to terms with the news. It has been a tough journey but was worth the wait.

Thanks Andy, that is really helpful. I am trying to maximise tax relief on contributions and obtain the most efficient way making withdrawals. I am hoping that I will get confirmation of the visa in the next few months. If it is okay I will give you a call then. Regards

Thanks Pom queen

Hi I am hoping to move to Australia within the next two years and want to check my understanding of the current rules regarding pension transfers. I will be 55 in the next couple of months, so should I be filling my SIPP with as much as I can and then transfer it to an Australian superannuation scheme? Will I be able draw on the Australian superannuation tax free? The pension at the moment is not large about £40k, I also have an occupational pension which I will not be transferring. Any advice will be much appreciated.

I have a queue date of May 2011 and am still waiting.

Hi I have a queue date of May 2011, the immi website is showing that it is progressing applications with a queue date before February 2011 and has been that date since about October last year.. I look often to see if it has changed.. It is difficult to know how long the wait will be but people in the queue before you will drop out as their circumstances change so hopefully it will not be as long as some people are saying.