grahamffc

That assumes you've told the Inland Revenue that you are in Australia, what if you used the UK address of a friend or relative for any correspondence. Obviously it's tax evasion but my point is that I can't see it being difficult to keep the ATO from picking it up.

I wouldn't let a house worry you. I didn't buy a house before leaving the UK and really regret it now. Every other expat I've met seems to have one, renting easily covering the mortgage and increasing in value. I suppose it's complicated by your OH thinking it is finally putting roots down in oz, maybe you should suggest to your OH that you think it's a good idea to buy somewhere with good investment potential incase you all decide to go back.

Of course it is taxable in Australia, I fail to see why anyone would be surprised at this. The fact it's not been transferred to Australia is irrelevant, that's like saying "I was paid loads of money but left it in my back account". That said, if money is not transferred the Australia Tax Office would never have any knowledge of it's existence, I bet a lot of people don't bother to inform them which is illegal.

I would make two important notes. The above poster is right in that some people expect to live an idillic life which leads to an expensive existance. However she clearly realises how fortunate they were for her husband to be able to arrange a job and visa. The figures quoted by others are accurate, I spent about 20,000 GBP mainly on the visa and living expenses while looking for work and I'm just a single guy. If you are a family and cannot afford 50,000 GBP I would make every effort to get a job secured before going, and if nothing materialises it's probably wise to leave it. Secondly, all the stuff many people say about 'giving it a go', 'better to regret doing something than not doing it' is non sensensical. By giving up your lives in the uk you are not doing that. Even ignoring the money spent, you might have missed promotions or a dream job by not being in the uk. I think this is of added importance to you given your children's ages. They would miss out on finishing off their education in the uk which could be a more significant missed opportunity than moving to Australia.

I agree with Quoll. I'd sooner sit in economy, get the tube straight to Harrods and buy myself a nice watch. It would still work out much cheaper an the satisfaction would last much longer.

While I can see the obvious benefits, you can't compare spending money on flights, hotels, and trains to a mortgage. Suppose you could do this for 25 years, at the end of it you'd own your Sydney house, the alternative being a pile of receipts. Also, what happens if Jetstar decide to stop running the Sunshine Coast - Sydney route? It's similar to people in the UK who move out of London because they get so much more property for their money. But then spend a massive amount on train season tickets not to mention a couple of hours of their time which is seldom quantified.

This is rubbish, there are no restrictions on how long you can work for one employer whilst the visa is valid, which is two years. However in your circumstances it's probably not the best option, unless you wanted a cheap option to give it a go for two years without the expense and hassle of a partner visa.

If you threw in a decent job and somewhere to live then I couldn't accept it quickly enough.

Cost me about £20,000...that includes visa, agents, flights, rent and other expenses while looking for work (about 2.5 months)

Am pleased for you, it must be such a relief to make a decision that has been traumatising you for so long. I came back in June (after 18 months), have found it so easy to find work and the jobs are much better, could afford to have two months off in summer owing to having a support network here, and am now in the process of buying a house. There are some things I miss about Melbourne and it's been a great experience. I feel completely different now, do loads more outdoorsy things than I used to...there is no reason why people can't have 'the outdoor lifestyle' here if that is what they really want. Good on you for going back over for six months first as that will show commitment as opposed to selfishness or stubbornness.

A return resident visa costs $400, and brand new PR application would cost over $4,000. Not to mention the effort involved. That would be reason enough for me.

If his occupation is not on the skilled occupation list (that process would take over a year anyway) and he is unlikely to be offered employment from a firm willing to to sponsor him your best bet is with a partner visa. However this requires you to have lived together for a year. Your situation sounds very similar to that of a friends brother (English) and her partner (Aussie). They met while he was in Sydney on a WHV and decided their only option was for her to get a WHV for the UK (they give two years), live together for that time, then they were able to get a partner visa. Sure it's not ideal to temporarily leave the life and career you have built for yourself there but if you really want to be together a couple of years working abroad should be an easy sacrifice. My friends moved to London (his family were from somewhere else) which was probably a great idea, it was an adventure for the both of them and it will have been much more fun for her than being stuck in some small town with all his family and friends. This also depends on you being under 31 to be eligible for the WHV of course.

I don't think having an Australian partner necesarily helps. It certainly didn't in my case, I think going with someone from the same background who also goes with an open mind is better. That said I know there have been cases where one person is desperate to go home but the other loves it and it causes problems. The main thing you'll need is to accept that you are a long long way from home or anywhere in fact, which you might be looking for anyway. Everything is so far away not only from home but from anywhere even in Asia or Australia. Take Perth for example, if you are happy staying put save for going to Margaret River for a few days everytime you want a break then you will probably get on fine. I would expect that is more suited to families who want little more than to spend quality time with other and aren't fussed about wider family or friends or going to new places. It is also worth realising that Australia is huge and places vary so much, so having an idea of what you are after should help you decide where to go. eg if year round warm weather is important head to Queensland, if you are happy with a cooler more UK climate but a great city that doesn't feel crowded or expensive head to Melbourne.

There are loads of hostels in Melbourne, but I have heard the best recommendations of Base, Habitat, and Urban Central. If going in January try to for base as it is located just a block away from St Kilda Beach. Work will be fine so long if you are looking for call centres etc, you'll be going at a competitive time when many other backpackers in town (Melbourne swells from January to March) but sure if it takes a while that's more time on the beach.

Maybe the weather is a big factor in Melbourne too. Speaking from my own experience it was certainly one of the main reasons I embarked on the move, then it turned out to be only marginally better than southern england (better but not an improvement worth moving 10,000).

Apart from the lack of work, one thing I was suprised at was how well paid seemingly unskilled work was. In the UK I earned £40k, where I last heard the average salary is about £26k. In Australia I earned $68k which I believe is bang on average. I had friends on WHV's working in call centres and restaurants earning only a couple of dollars less an hour than I do in my profession with a degree, professional qualifications, and eight years experience. Needless to say most of those guys love it there and are keen to stay. I know we don't want a race to the bottom, people being exploited or others with a sense of entitlement, and it was nice to go to shops and be served by people that are seemingly quite happy. But you want some reward for if you make sacrifices by working hard to build a career.

I never said that I hated Australia, my comment that in many ways it is the same as Britain was intended as positive. By that I mean I was working in both, commuting in both, paying taxes and bills in both, had access to fantastic public services in both. It sounds obvious but those facets of life are important. I didn't bother to mention friends and family in the uk as that's fairly obvious and applied to most people. I had a good life in England and a good life in Australia (I especially enjoyed playing more cricket and living next to the beach), but my uk life was better. Everyone is different though and I could see how if I didn't live in such a nice part of England, wasn't that close to family and friends, or had a job that paid more or was working outdoors I might have preferred Australia. Of all the points I raised it was probably the feeling of isolation that ranked highest. It took me 4.5 hours to fly to Perth and it was just like Melbourne just a bit warmer and a bit smaller. Two weeks ago I went to Cologne and am going to Paris in a few weeks for the weekend both of which are an hour away. As with the last point I realise that doesn't matter to a lot of people but I found it did to me.

As it is in the UK!? It took me six months to find a permanent job in Melbourne, I recently came back to London and have already been offered four in three weeks. I had forgotten what the luxury of not having to take the first thing that comes up feels like. I very nearly went home after 4-5 months but am so glad I stayed and got to live a settled life. I decided to come back anyway but at least it was an informed decision as opposed to being forced and never knowing what a normal life in Australia is like.

I found this a real shock too. It took me six months to find a permanent job in Melbourne, since getting back to London three weeks ago I have been four already and have the luxury of being selective. Sadly we have not helped ourselves as poms have a reputation for going home after about two years. My boss in Melbourne was a pom and admitted that he immediately discards any CV's of people that have not been in the country for at three years, although accepts it is hypocritical of him. I got lucky as I started as a temp and they liked me, everyone gets that break at some stage it#s just a matter of how long. I hope you are not waiting too much longer. As mentions by an earlier poster I found that once settled life was much the same. Both countries are safe and speak english (important to me as that is the only language I speak), and you have to work 40 odd hours a week in either to pay rent/mortgage/bills etc. Essentially the only thing better in Australia was the weather, and the difference between London and Melbourne was not significant enough to be worth living on the complete opposite side of the world, miles away not only from home but anywhere.

I moved back to the UK three weeks ago and the main things I missed were: - English sense of humour, there's a reason I never saw an Australian made comedy series/show on TV it was all British or American. - Places to go in Britain and the proximity to Europe and even North Africa and America are as close as Bali is to SE Australia. - The Underground, I will never complain again after being restricted to buses and trams. - Summer evenings being light until 9.30pm. - Decent supermarkets (a couple of days after I got back I went to M&S and couldn't believe how cheap it was, imagine if I'd gone to Morrisons) - Decent TV - Live football being shown before 2am Australia is nice and is largely very similar to the UK. The main plus was the weather, however the difference between London and Melbourne is marginal and certianly wasn't sigifiant enough to keep me 10,000 miles away from home.

It depends how much you like your job and what the market is like here as to whether it is work the risk of giving it up. It took me six months to get a permanent job in Australia, I've since come back to London and been offered four in three weeks, every profession and location will be different.

You don't ask for much do you! Speaking from experience Melbourne can is great for tennis, I joined Tennis World which give access to the courts used in the Australian Open and has a brilliant indoor centre so you can play all year round. However there are no hills so that rules out mountain biking, very few cycle lanes (although roads are wide enough not to ever worry about them), a great prominade but without cafes along it and the water is only warm enough for swimming between January and March. From brief visits to the other capital cities, I would imagine you best bet is probably Perth.

Does he have many friends in the UK, especially any that might be going to the new school? He might not have considered that he could miss them. My parents nearly moved to New Zealand when I was ten and I was hugely keen but my mum didn't want to. Looking back I was too young to make an informed decision and my enthusiasm was based on a six week holiday we had there a year earlier. If you haven't already perhaps it is worth reminding him that, people aside, ultimately his life would not be all that much different to the UK. He'll have to do homework, house chores, the schools will have bullies etc and the schoolwork could be a real challange having missed the first seven years of Australian education. He wouldn't be spending all day at the beach, in the park, or playing baseball like he does when he visits. It's essentially the same mistake a lot of adults make. Would it be possible to arrange for him to go over in these summer holidays and spend a week of it in what is likely to be his new school. I expect he would feel like a bit of an outsider and not be so keen when given a taste of reality. Hopefully your ex would not hijack that in some way to be an unrealistic experience, or avoid doing it altogether.

Anywhere other than Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth as I would get bored. I might make an exception for Townsville and Cairns for the climate and I could probably live anywhere if I was being paid enough. I lived in Ballarat when I first arrived which was awful, miles from Melbourne and a climate identical to home.

That is the best attitude to go with, you need to enjoy yourself and be open minded but also limit expectations. It is also nice to think how lucky we are that we can comeback relatively easily if we decide to, either permanently or for a holiday. Ten pound poms aside, most immigrants spent their entire life savings on a one way ticket. Good luck to you all.