scuffythetugboat

You only need a countersignature if your passport ran out more than 3 years ago or if you are applying for your first passport.

The lending rules have changed through the years. Any older people returning to the UK nowadays with the intention of buying with the aid of a mortgage may find that they may not get a loan at all.

Plus we had a good credit rating before departure.

Surely you would only be of interest to a taxman if you were currency speculating. I wouldn't think that an individual transferring their life savings from one country to another would be up for any tax. If it were so then maybe you would be able to claim if you made a loss at some later date.

We kept our bank account and credit card active and use them from time to time buying things online etc plus some regular payments. We have a UK address at our daughters place. I checked my credit rating with Experian about 6 months ago and I was given the top mark.

Fair enough. We renewed ours but I don't think it's too much of a problem to get a new one when it's over 3 years after your last one expires, providing that you have all the required paperwork to go with the application. I'm pretty sure the cost is the same as well. You will need an Australian to sign the form.

We had no plans to return to Australia when we left in 1995. 15 years later we did. You never know what lies ahead in life. 10 years from now who knows what the rules or cost will be?

I sleep at night. I have no intention of committing fraud but l wouldn't have thought that any lending institution would let you off scot-free no matter what the law of the land may be. If what has been said on here is true then maybe fleets of container ships full of goods obtained this way will be heading to and fro. What's to stop them? As soon as crooks realise there's a way to make easy money, they're on to it.

Wow. So anyone can borrow a load of cash then leave either country and if they don't return, they get away with it! Doesn't seem right to me, but it's food for thought.

Just a thought. If it is true that they may not come after you for the money after 6 or seven years, wouldn't your credit rating in Australia make you an untouchable? I can't see the system letting anyone off with no consequences.

The project is in Gladstone and if it's given approval construction will start next year. Gladstone is a 7 hour drive north of Brisbane or an hours flight.

Death and taxes.

There was a reciprocal agreement between the UK and Australia which ended in 2001.

From next April it will be 35 years. The OP will have about 20 years prior to 2001 that will count towards a UK pension. Add to that the future years of working and paying N.I. contributions and you can also make back payments for the last 6 years as well. Not far off 35 years in total. Contact the UK Future Pensions Office to get your pension forecast, then you'll know for sure.

My brother's got more tickets than Transperth and he's sitting on his a**e trying to get the dole.

Think about the many hours and days you will spend looking for everything and then the hassle of arranging and waiting for deliveries. Most houses are furnished over time, not overnight. Have a good clear out but keep what you can, we've done it more than once.

We rent, but it's only temporary, so we'll grin and bare it for now as there will be an end to it. We could have bought initially but paying $18000 in stamp duty made us decide not to as we won't be here long enough to make it worthwhile. Renting is convenient in some situations but it must be regarded as a stop gap only in Australia.

My daughter came to Australia for a holiday and entered with her Australian passport. When she left 3 weeks later she showed her Australian passport again. After looking at the passport the Immigration Officer then asked to see her other passport. How did they know that she had another one? Probably because the information is linked.

Ask Centrelink about the Australian Pension, it's better than the guesswork you'll receive on here. You would get some UK pension for your years prior to 2001 in Australia. Contact the Pension Centre in the UK.

No one knows how long they will live. Australian banks have and are lending a lot of money over 30 years no matter how old you are. It will be a big problem in the not too distant future as they've been doing it for decades. There seems to be this assumption that everyone retires debt free. It's a financial time bomb in this country but no one wants to talk about it.

Amen

If it were me in your position, I would sell up and go and whatever the exchange rate is, change all my money and get on with my life. Where the pound is now is not a bad rate historically and who is to say that the Australian dollar may go down further. Your money sitting over here in a bank may well go down in value by the day while you wait, and add to that, you may be paying rent for a lot longer than 6 months. 67p for the $A days are long gone.

Love conquers all, but not the Australian Immigration Department.

I wouldn't live in one. There are a few articles on the problems with the cladding on these buildings and the risk of a major fire occurring in the next couple of years. Have a read and make your own mind up.

Hi Mark, It is valid all over Australia. I obtained mine in NSW and I've worked in WA and Queensland as well as NSW. You don't transfer it, you just show it.