Fisher1
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Everything posted by Fisher1
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I feel sorry for you because I have been in a similar position and it isn't easy. I can only echo what Quoll says about shorter visits. Even if you can't move back to look after her, maybe spend what time you can in the UK between your mother - in - law's visits to Australia? The emotional upheaval of moving to Australia as an older migrant shouldn't be underestimated either - the loss of everything familiar could make MIL's depression worse ... Hope you manage to sort something out that helps the situation - and I would be yanking the chain of both the Dubai brother and the younger sister in the UK to do their bit as well - even a fortnight's visit from each of them each year would relieve you of four week's worry. Good luck with it all.
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Blue rinse brigade?
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I think you are splitting hairs for no good reason. The parents who babysit do so voluntarily while here as tourists - so why would it not be allowed?
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ooops!!! Hordes. Not Hoards. From an ex teacher too - shame on me !?
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More unfairness!
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I agree with much of what you have said. I still find the attitude of the Aus govt to parent visas a bit strange though. Okay, so they are terrified of being swamped by hoards of elderly migrants - but they have the power to alter the system in a way that is efficient, fair, and above all transparent. Few people would make a decision to migrate in later life without at least considering the cost and the waiting time. The Au gov, in making arbitrary and retrospective changes in the process are playing with people's lives in a seriously unpleasant and expensive way. The practice of taking a big deposit for something and then changing the rules of the deal is the sort of sharp practice I would associate with a used car dealer rather than a serious government. Private health insurance? What if your government has a reciprocal agreement with the Aus. Government? Finally, and it's just a small point, but Australia encourages our sons and daughters to come and live here as skilled workers. Perhaps they might remember - just occasionally - that Australia has contributed nothing to the upbringing, education or training of those people.
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My husband was already taking medicine for high blood pressure when we went for our medicals. The doctor took his blood pressure and then five minutes later he took it a second time - he took the lower reading, which passed and ignored the higher one which he said was bound to be caused by stress.
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I should tell you thqt i now use transferwise because I thinm the exchange rates are marginally better - but for the bigger transfers, i was much happier using a bank. Westpac is near Threadneedle street, is on a street named for a spice but I can't remember which one - Cayenne street, something like that.
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Hi,. I also opened my Westpac account in London and used it for five years before we made the move over here. We called in to Westpac when we were in London eighteen months ago and asked about transferring money when the time came to sell our house. They opened a sterling account for us so that we could pay money in in sterling which they then transferred to our dollar account at a decent rate without charging a fee. Very helpful staff.
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As I have said, we were aware of the pitfalls, having paid for the advice of a professional (that would be you) well in advance of our move. Rest assured we treat your report like the Holy Grail, and refer to it often. My point was that the UK tax office are infuriating primarily because they offer advice that you know to be incorrect! . I also think that sending confidential information to the incorrect address twice in three months is unforgivable, particularly when they are constantly reminding their clients to be careful with personal data! Professional tax accountants are, as we all know, invaluable.
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Thanks Alan, we have this well in hand, having been very well advised at an early stage in our planning you may well remember us! The frustration has all been caused by the UK tax office behaving in a fairly inefficient and inconsiderate way. It is totally irritating to be advised to file online by the very people who have decided to prevent you from doing so!
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Whatever your dealings with you do with the UK tax, document everything, with copies of anything. I have my 143 and moved out here in August 2017. I wrote to inform them of my intentions, I wrote to tell them my temporary address, then again to tell them my permanent address. In October I received a letter telling me I would need to fill in a tax return. I stupidly assumed they meant at the end of the tax year. In November I received a letter demanding a tax return within a month of the letter date. As it had been incorrectly addressed, I had two weeks left to comply before incurring a fine. I wrote pointing out that I couldn't complete a tax return until April, but enclosing form 85 on my own initiative. No response. In February I began the process of claiming relief from dual taxation, by sending a form to the UK tax office via the Aus authorities. Australian tax office wrote confirming their official acknowledgement of my request had been forwarded to London. No response. In March the UK tax office sent me my coding for 2017-2018. Not only was there no mention of my application under the dual taxation agreement but they proposed to charge me income tax of 1200 pounds on the buy to let property I had sold last October! The letter was also incorrectly addressed. The two letters they have sent me have both exhorted me to file my tax return online. Unfortunately the UK tax website does not allow you to file online if you live outside the UK ... The one bright spot in all of this is that you can usually get them on the phone - unlike in the UK - and it is very cheap on Skype. ........
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I'm wondering about Medicare. I thought the UK and Australia had a reciprocal agreement on health care?
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Disgusting situation. I just hope that, like the decision to discontinue the 103 visa a few years ago, that they think better of it.
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I dont know if this will help, but my daughter was our assurer (at the old rate). She was on mat leave at the time, and got her income counted by submitting a statement from her accountant stating her 'usual' income.
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Hi Gafuk I only come on here occasionally now, as I all moved and (?) settled, so forgive me if Ive already mentioned this to you. I notice you are using PSS for you removal and although we used them without any problems or breakages when we moved over eight months ago, the whole process took a lot longer than they estimated (19 weeks instead of 10-12). So this is just a heads up to take a minute for a last rethink about what you are taking - if there's anything you aren't sure about. Example - we dithered about bringing our fridge freezer, eventually deciding against, and were so glad because we couldnt have managed without one and would have had to buy something small to tide us over while we waited. We did bring our washing machine as it was only 18 months old and while Im glad Ive got it now, if I had added launderette costs to the cost of removals, I think buying new would have been marginally cheaper. When the men arrived on the day, they would have been happy to add any last minute stuff - they said that it was all in the overall amount and it would just mean an adjustment in the price. This is all probably irrelevant to you, but I try to pass on anything I can from my own experience as a pay back to all the help I had from people on here during the three plus years we were waiting ... Try not to get blown away by the stress on the last couple of days and good luck with it alll! PS we wish we'd brought the plastic shelves out of the garage now !
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To be honest i think there isnt much difference between the online companies. I went with XE for a while then they were taken over, rates didnt seem so good after that. I'm currently using Trwnsferwise and would reccomend them - the process for ordering and paying is really streamlined and their rates seem a little better than some. Plus the money arrives really quickly. Let us know if you find anyone offering two dollars to the pound won't you
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Thats wonderful news, so pleased for you both. Good luck with it all :-)
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Fabulous. Congratulations.
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I am sick to death of hearing about the uselessness of parent migrants. We are paying Australian taxes and spending our money in Australia as soon as we arrive. We are also handing over a great deal of money to the Aus govt for our visas. Many of us will provide free child care enabling our sons and daughters to work and provide a good life for their children. i think the whole idea of Assurance of support is ridiculous, stressful for all concerned and a real time- waster. They should just check into parents income and increase the size of the bond (what exactly is that for???) if they must, but leave the kids income out of it.
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When we were in the 103 queue I used to check the electronic queue calculator all the time (despite being in no position to make the move at that time). During that period I noticed that the number of places we moved up per year were greater than the number of visas issued - presumably because people switched to another queue, or dropped out for whatever reason. This gap between visas issued and places moved up got bigger over time. I tried using the electronic calculator and entering a queue date that was one year earlier than my actual date, then two years, then three and so on, to see how the figures stacked up. Eight years seemed the likely wait at that time, yet when our 103 application was acknowledged we were warned that it could take twenty years. So it all depends on the drop out rate. The big unknown is the health check. I think people really get the wind up about the possibility of waiting years and then failing the health check - I know we did - and this probably induces some applicants to move heaven and earth to find the money for a 143 application.
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We applied for a 103 visa back in 2013 because we wanted to get our names on some sort of waiting list but were looking after my mum and couldn't envisage a time line for that. When our grandson was born in 2015, it coincided with a downturn in my mum's health so we decided to switch to the 143 visa. We finally applied for a 143 early in 2016 and the visa was granted that April, because they counted the two plus years we had already been waiting in the 103 queue. Someone said something earlier about 103 visa applicants 'slotting themselves into the 143 queue' - maybe that is the case, but don't forget that if you switch queues you have to pay the first vac all over again. As to where people get the money to switch ... well I know of some people who have sold their houses to raise the fee and then bought smaller here, or just rented.
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Keep going, it's worth it. You WILL get there in the end.
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maybe this is the aim?
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Thank you! I'm going shopping tomorrow so I'll look for them.
