Bridgeman

Yes, I quite agree and in fact we are not entitled to an Australian pension till we have been here ten years, but due to means testing we are unlikely to get anything as we draw most of our pensions from the UK - another factor which affects us is that we are at the mercy of the exchange rate.

Yes, that's true, you aren't eligible for the Australian pension till you have been here 10 years and then it's means tested. Another disadvantage we have found is that since we are not eligible for the Oz pension we are also not eligible for the Seniors Tax Offset which would make a huge difference to us.

Mmm yes, we are thinking about Buderim.

We have family both in Perth and also in Queensland so do need to factor in travel costs. Also if we went back to the UK would want to visit often.

Thanks everyone for your replies. As I said we are finding it very expensive here in Perth and were just wondering whether it varied from state to state. We probably won't stay in WA in the long term.

Not sure if this is the right place to post this but am sure someone will move it if not. I have just been reading a thread about bringing parents over to Australia and there was some discussion about how expensive it is to live in Australia for retirees, We certainly find it so, and often think whether we would be better off returning to the UK. Has anyone ever done a comparison for cost of living for retirees in Australia versus UK or even a comparison of which is the cheapest state to live for retirees, apart from maybe Tasmania? I assum probably not as most parents would want to live where their family are. We are in WA and have always had a general impression that it might be cheaper in Queensland, but find it difficult to compare as the state Seniors Cards give different benefits. For example we get free travel on all Transperth Services and discounts on longer distance transport, whereas I know Queensland only offer a 50% discount on fares. We also get a discount on the rates, but I don't think you can get such a good deal in Queensland. Anyone have any informed opinions?

You will be entitled to full Medicare rights on grant of the permanent visa.

Means tested for the parent. I would assume that anything that is not a disability payment or an aged pension and comes from Centrelink would be classed as a social security payment. However, this lists the type of payments which are deducted from the AOS. I am not sure which of these a parent might want to access: http://www.dss.gov.au/about-the-department/international/policy/assurance-of-support#9

It means you can't get a disability pension or the Australian aged pension (which is means tested anyway) for ten years.

I don't think he will be able to claim anything at all until he has been in Australia for at least 2 years. Hence the undertaking of the sponsor to be prepared to support the person they are sponsoring for two years.

It looks like it. This link will take you to a page where you can access the correct form 47PA: http://www.immi.gov.au/Visas/Pages/143.aspx

Yes, we intend to do that anyway. Thanks for the reassurance.

Yes, they do, but I think more in jobs which don't compete with the general workforce, eg leaflet and local paper delivering etc. There is quite a lot of age discrimination in Australia, especially in WA.

I can confirm that dental costs are exorbitant here, an absolute ripoff I believe, so it would be a good idea to get any major dental work done before coming over. You can take out private insurance, but unless you have the highest level of insurance it will not cover all your dental costs and you will usually be left to pay the ‘gap’. You will also need to pay for any prescriptions, however, after 2 years as a permanent resident if you are over 65, you can apply for the Commonwealth Seniors Health card and then you will pay about $6 for a prescription I think. You also pay for visits to the GP so to avoid this you will need to find a doctor who bulk bills, at least bulk bills for seniors. Having said that Tony Abbot is trying to bring in a charge of $7 to visit the GP for everyone. I think in general the health costs are much higher than in the UK. Your living costs will also depend on whether you want to rent or buy. Rents can be quite high – have a look at realestate.com.au for rental and house prices. If buying you will have to pay council rates and water rates. You can look up the rates for your desired area online. Then there is the cost of water used and also electricity which is quite expensive. We find we have to ration our air-conditioning in the summer as we find the cost too high. We are currently in a rental with a garden and pay quite a lot of money for reticulation in the summer, so we won’t be making that mistake again! On the plus side, you may be eligible for a state Seniors Card, depending on which state you will be in. The concessions vary from state to state so you will need to check out what you can get. We are in WA and you can apply for this if over 60 and working less than 20 hours a week. We get free transport on buses, trains and ferries, however, I know that Queensland only give a 50% discount on fares. In addition we get a discount on rates if a home owner. I think Queensland also offers help towards dental costs. Also many businesses will offer discounts for seniors. As for general shopping, things like white goods are expensive, so bring all those with you if you can. Cosmetics, toiletries and herbal remedies are also quite expensive but there are a few discount chemists around. With regard to everyday food items, you can save a lot of money by shopping around at local markets, rather than buying everything at Coles or Woolworths. There are also ‘bargain shops’ where you can get household essentials. So the rule is definitely shop around. Eating out is also quite expensive we find, although petrol is cheaper than the UK but we find we need to drive longer distances to get anywhere. You need to bear in mind that if you receive a state pension then this will be frozen forever at the rate at which you start to draw it or are drawing it when you move to Australia. Plus you will be at the mercy of the exchange rate. Fortunately this has improved slightly since we came over here and so we have more Australian dollars at our disposal. There is a lot to weigh up and it is difficult to know how much it costs to live here until you are actually here. It also depends on your lifestyle. Although written a couple of years ago you might find this useful: http://myob.com.au/blog/how-much-do-I-need-to-retire-at-60/?utm_source=outbrain&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=article64

Yes, the onshore version is the Aged Contributory Parent visa but the parent needs to be over 65 to be able to apply onshore. The costs are roughly the same.

It's just the 600 visitor visa. You just ask for a three year visa, but it still only allows 12 months stay in any 18 months, it just saves the bother of having to keep applying.

I am not really an expert on CGT but am just going by friend's experience and the following although this may be for people who acquire assets abroad when they are already in Australia: You need to work out the amount for each element, then add them together to work out the cost base of your CGT asset. An amount paid in a foreign currency that is included in an element of the cost base is converted to Australian currency at the time of the relevant transaction or event. https://www.ato.gov.au/General/Capital-gains-tax/In-detail/Guides/Guide-to-capital-gains-tax-2012-13/?page=10 I seem to remember that Alan Collett has also mentioned this on this forum. Maybe wait a while and keep an eye on what happens in the UK.

It's difficult to predict. As I the said the rules on CGT in the UK are changing so you may well end up having to pay CGT in the UK. Here's the link to what's being proposed. I don't know how far this has got yet: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/implementing-a-capital-gains-tax-charge-on-non-residents But also bear in mind that there is the allowance, before you need to pay any CGT - not sure if this will change or not. As Australia and the UK have a double taxation agreement you may not have to pay CGT in Australia. If you do end up paying in Australia rather than the UK you should be aware that they take the value of the property at the time you acquired it and use the exchange rate that prevailed at that time to calculate the Oz dollar value. The proceeds from the sale are then worked out at the exchange rate which prevailed at the time of the sale. You can get all these official rates from the ATO website. It depends how long you have owned the property. You may find you have actually made a loss in Oz dollar terms as happened to a friend of ours.

In response to your first question, No, you do not need to pay tax on any foreign exchange gains made my leaving your money in the UK and bringing it over when the exchange rate is better as it is considered of a 'private and domestic nature'. In general you do pay tax on foreign exchange rate gains, however if this is from the sale of your house then you do not need to declare it. Many tax professionals will tell you that you need to apply for a private ruling to the ATO. We have just gone through this process and applied for a private ruling ourselves as we had recently brought over some of the money from our house sale. We received a call from the ATO explaining that as the money was from the sale of our only main residence in the UK it was considered of a 'private and domestic nature' and that we did not need to declare it and that we should withdraw the application. https://www.ato.gov.au/rba/content/?ffi=/misc/rba/content/1011645656132.htm With regard to paying capital gains tax on your house and your rental it's a bit more complicated. The laws are about to change soon. I believe that the UK government may charge CGT on properties which are the main residence. If you do a search on this forum you should be able to find some information. However, if you have already sold the house, then I assume the new laws won't apply. It may apply however to the rental property as this is an investment.

The way it works is that you can delay moving over to Australia permanently until just before the end of the five year period. However, it is advisable to move over before the end of three years for reasons explained as follows. Your right to come and go on your visa expires at the end of five years. So, if after these five years you want to leave Australia for any reason, eg holiday, and you are not a citizen (which you won’t be as you won’t have spent the requisite four years in Australia) in order to get back into Australia you will need to apply for a Resident Return Visa. In order to get this you will need to have spent at least two years in Australia. Hope this makes sense.

Just be aware that dentists are all private here in Australia, so you might want to get some basic cover for that. We have just a basic HBF Essentials cover for things we personally might need and this includes dentist. But we are over 60 so will probably need to use the services more. We do not have private hospital cover as we can't afford it and if you don't have this and earn over the limit mentioned you will have to pay an extra Medicare supplement on top of the 2% everyone pays. I agree with the 'gap' system being ridiculous. It allows private doctors etc to charge what they like.

We are looking at options for moving to Queensland maybe next year and quite like the look and feel of Buderim. As a retired couple we feel it would offer us a community with a social life. However, after doing more research we have seen a couple of reports suggesting that the area around Buderim is a high bushfire risk area. OH has a great fear of fires and I am concerned that we may have to rule out Buderim if there is any risk at all. Any opinions on bushfire risk or comments from retired couples in Buderim would be greatly appreciated.

I have this year begun drawing payments from an Oz super which I transferred over from the UK. I understand that the payments are tax free. Therefore my question is: On my tax return in the section which asks about what your taxable income is for the income test for the Medicare Levy and the Medicare supplement, do I include the super in my taxable income or not? I am assuming not but don't want to get it wrong. Also on my spouses tax return when she enters spouse's taxable income, does she include the super payments or not?

http://guides.dss.gov.au/guide-social-security-law/9/4/3/60

How do you add attachments to your e-tax submission, eg a property valuation for CGT purposes? Or do you just fill it in and assume they will ask for it if needed?