Alaska

I would say Shorncliffe too for commuting distance but yes, it's not a surf beach. Shorncliffe has an excellent state primary too.

I would really recommend talking to GM Tax. They have been very generous with advice in the past and I have no hesitancy using them now my situation is a bit more complicated.

I was told that if you say sell when the exchange rate is 1.85 then bring the money over when it's 1.95 for example, then that will impact the tax too.

We are using GM Tax for the tax for this next year as we disposed of 2 houses in the UK as well as getting our PR which changes the taxes so will use the experts for this one year!

I believe it will be the value from when you obtain your PR in Australia so this is the time to get the valuation done. We have been through similar recently and this is the advice that we were given from a reputable source.

Did they make you redundant? I think I have read on here that you are only eligible if they terminated the contract but hopefully someone with more information will follow up for you.

As someone who has gone on a 457 and then from a 457 to PR I can tell you our experience. For the 457 we didn't have a medical but we did have to answer a variety of questions. To go from the 457 to the PR visa we had to have EXACTLY THE SAME MEDICAL as anyone else applying for a PR visa. The visa that you apply for isn't a continuation of the 457 it is a separate visa entirely. I think that you definitely need a second opinion from an expert. Have you talked to George Lomard? I believe he is an expert in medical issues. I have heard of people will children will autism getting PR visas before so I am wondering if the information you are getting is accurate.

Very true. I already know people who go to A&E at the drop of a hat for things that could wait for the Dr, sure this will make it a lot worse.

I would be very cautious about going on the 457 route as, as the others have said, you will have to pass the same medical. It seems that you may get the initial 457 visa but might never progress to PR. We did this route but only as a last resort and a completely different situation and the 457 did bypass the problem we had (DH being unable to pass the skills assessment for PR) and we were able to apply for our PR on this route. Regarding the support side in schools - I worked in a primary school with absolutely fantastic support for the additional needs kids. Absolutely outstanding. It was run by a manager who chose to use the budget for staff rather than other resources.

I would say that the thinking is that that you are less "shut in" in Australia because it's warmer. However that theory doesn't really hold up as people are often, especially in offices, shut in with the air-con on. A lot of people I know actually got a lot MORE colds and viruses in the first year or so - as someone else said maybe different germs? We actually didn't - hardly any illness in the first year. However the second year seemed to get every bug going! Definitely a lot of sickness bugs go around the school in the winter. Also both my kids have had croup since living here (mildly and just once) but neither had it in the UK. The only colds I have had in the last 18 months were during the 3 months I was a gym member - got 4 colds and none for the other 15 months. Does make me wonder about the air quality when you are shut in somewhere.

I found one in my daughter's beach bucket. I tipped it out and killed it with a shoe. No way was I leaving it around my children. We had one the other week in the garage, same fate.

That is a lot to put on a 12 year old. I think, whatever they might say now, there could be resentment and upset down the line when a father isn't there during the teenage years. Obviously the OP is putting a lot of thought into it - good luck as it's not an easy situation to be in.

I had a free initial consultation with them (a couple years ago). It confirmed that we weren't eligible for a PR visa at that point - only the 457. I would give them a ring to ask.

Go Matilda are very well regarded and I have had some invaluable information from them in the past (I have no affiliation with them!).

Our appliances fridge/freezer and dishwasher were integrated so we bought new here. Most houses seem to have dishwashers anyway from what I have seen in my time here. We did bring our washing machine so rented one for a month or so when we arrived until our container arrived. It does get expensive to rent. I wouldn't buy them especially to ship over as like Peach said you will be without for a while anyway.

Think very carefully before taking this kind of advice. Skype and Facebook have been a lifeline for us and the grandparents. It didn't work for Quoll but it does for many other families. It is hard at first but we have settled into a really good routine of Skyping once or twice a week with the grandparents and they love it - even if the kids don't stay still for long! There is no need to go the "out of sight, out of mind" way. I think it's important to keep your history but create new memories. It is really hard at first - I found 3-6 months pretty tough but we are very happy and settled now. It takes time to build new friendships and get a support network around you but, as long as you put yourself out there, it will come. Good luck. x

I wait until they are still and put a large cup over them and slide cardboard underneath and deposit them outside. I don't particularly like them in the house as they are so noisy and poo down the walls on occasion. I am sure they prefer being out with all the bugs too.

If you go into your doctor with all the information then they will advise you. Coming from the UK, most of the vaccinations were the same but we had to catch up on others. It was all done for free on Medicare even in a private doctor's surgery.

Oh yeah, I think it's very common. I certainly had it and actually had a freak out on the day we left, and when we arrived. It is a massive thing! We have been here 2.5 years now and pretty much love it. There will always be moments, such as when something happens back home and you can't be there, but overall we are very happy.

Flip a coin and see if you are disappointed or relieved with the result! Sounds silly but often works.

We are using GM Tax (Go Matilda) for the first time for the 2014-2015 tax returns. They have given me lots of advice in the past and I am confident that they will know a lot more than me. Up until this year we were on a 457 so pretty straightforward but this year we got PR and also sold 2 properties and had a little rental income so I think it's worth getting a professional to look.

Unfortunately it might be a case of getting used to them. They have just started reappearing back our way and in the summer we have dozens of them around. Or find a way to dispose of them and keep the population down very slightly :smile:

I think Masons are a different company to John Mason. We used John Mason when we moved over. We did have a problem as they forgot to send us the info about what we could/couldn't take, but can't fault the guys on the day. I don't have such positive things to say about Wridgeways on this end though.

They gave us a free assessment when we were looking to see if we were eligible for anything other than a 457 visa initially and they were straight up with us in telling us we weren't. They have also given us accurate advice via this site on various occasions. We are going to use the tax branch - GM Tax for our tax returns next year (we usually do it ourselves but are selling 2 houses, as well as getting our PR in July means it's that bit too complicated).

I don't know if there is an answer, we struggle. Are they independent - could they break it up with a long weekend/week somewhere else? Better still - could you use it as an opportunity to go away as someone is around to look after the house/kids/pets* (*delete as applicable)!