Bridgeman
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Everything posted by Bridgeman
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When you apply all you will pay is the initial VAC. The Assurance of Support is not paid until just before visa grant, followed by the second, final visa application charge. If you have applied for a 103 and then decide to apply for a 143, then you will need to cancel the 103 and make a new application for a 143 and again pay the initial visa application charge. Unfortunately the initial visa application charge for the 103 will not be refunded. However, they will take into consideration the time spent waiting on the 103 when they process the 143.
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There used to be a separate thread on this somewhere on here, but it would be a bit old now after the visas were withdrawn but may have started up again when they were reinstated. If you do a search on here for 804 or aged parent visa I am sure it will come up. I assume you are aware that there may only be a small window of opportunity to apply for this visa as the government will probably try to withdraw them again in a few months.
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They take the time you have been waiting in the queue for the 103 into consideration - hence the seemingly shorter wait. They did this with us as well.
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http://www.taxpayer.com.au/KnowledgeBase/10121/Individuals-Tax-Super/Senior_Australian_and_Pensioner_Tax_Offset
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We have also discovered that there are other subtle ways in which we are penalised financially for not being able to draw an Oz state pension at the moment. There are various household and medical rebates which are only available to those drawing an Oz state pension, although this does depend on the state. In addition we have discovered that Seniors drawing an Oz state pension are entitled to a larger tax allowance, which of course we currently are not. An expensive business this parent visa lark!
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It does depend on where your Assurer lives as to how long the AOS process takes. Different states/places seem to process at different rates. In our case it took 10 weeks in Queensland.
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Not sure if you know but a CPV holder cannot sponsor a partner for 5 years. Also you need to live with your partner, or any separation needs to be temporary. Not sure how this would work if one was in Australia. With regard to the remaining relative visa, it doesn't look like a partner can sponsor another partner: http://www.immi.gov.au/Visas/Pages/835.aspx. Also there is an extremely long waiting list for this visa. If it were that easy I am sure more people would be doing it!
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Yes, it is partly due to the exchange rate, but the cost of living is quite high here. Your state pension is frozen of course and you pay tax here on all your income. Health care costs are quite expensive. You pay to see a doctor, unless you can find one who bulk bills and you pay for your prescriptions which would be free for us in the UK of course. Dentists are all private and seem to be able to charge what they want. Electricity is very expensive, also eating out and cosmetics and toiletries in particular. Also any services, such as window cleaning - we were quoted $400 for cleaning ours outside! Renting is very expensive and house prices are over inflated for what you get. Financially I think we would be much better off in the UK but it's the price you pay to be with family. Also of course, you can't claim any Oz pension for 10 years and then it is means tested so we wouldn't benefit from that.
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We moved over here about 3 years ago and unfortunately we are still not settled as it is not clear whether our family will be staying put or moving to another part of Australia due to work so we still feel we are in a state of limbo. That said, we have found it quite difficult to find like-minded people here. It does seem easier for the young ones. Yes, there is a lot going on for Seniors as they are known here, but we have found that they seem to be so much older than us. You do need to join things related to your interests in order to meet people and we have made a few friends this way. Maybe those in their late 60s are still having to work as there are problems with the Oz super not really being enough to last for people's retirement. Also intended to work over here as we retired/ were redundant before 65 but Australia is a very much a young person's country and there is a lot of age discrimination, hence it is quite difficult to find work if over 50. We are finding it quite expensive as most of our money comes from the UK and we are at the mercy of the exchange rate which fortunately has bucked up a bit recently. I think you are right in that you need your own lives. Other parents I have spoken to say that the biggest disappointment for them is that they do not see as much of their offspring as they had thought. They have their jobs and at weekends of course have their own friends to socialise with so it can be difficult. We also have another son who we left behind in Europe and miss him very much so that is difficult. That said, we consider ourselves extremely lucky to be able to spend time with our grandchildren here and be part of their lives. We love the weather and the outdoor lifestyle and fortunately we live not far from the beach. It might be an idea to do some research and find out if there are particular areas which are popular with retirees and with a community spirit with lots going on. We have such a place in mind, but unfortunately it is on the wrong side of the country to our family! Good luck with it all.
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Hi Piramida I am so sorry to hear about your problem. You probably need some professional advice on this from an agent. I believe George Lombard is very good with regard to health problems. http://austimmigration.com.au/site/?q=node/21
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Yes, we did this. The exchange rate was fixed every 6 months and when we paid the 2nd VAC it turned out that it was cheaper to pay the High Commission in London. There used to be a currency converter on the immigration website, which gave the equivalent in pounds sterling which was payable in London. From this you could then work out the exchange rate and whether it was cheaper to pay in London or not. However the link I have doesn't seem to be working any more and I can't find anything on the website. Might be an idea to contact the High Commission before paying there, as the rate may not always be better. If you were paying today for example, I would think you would get a better exchange rate with one of the foreign exchange companies than the rate which was fixed in July - if this is still what happens. Another way of doing it is to transfer the money to your son/daughter's bank account in Australia using one of the companies such as HiFx and get your son/daughter to get their bank to issue a bank draft.
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I am not sure that anyone n here has experience to help you with your query. Have you thought about maybe consulting a registered migration agent who might be able to advise you?
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You should also let immigration know that you will be in Australia so that they don't grant your visa while you are there which would make it invalid. Not sure when you applied so don't know when your visa would be granted, but as it is an offshore visa, you must be offshore when the visa is granted
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Here are the links to the parent visas: http://www.immi.gov.au/Visas/Pages/143.aspx http://www.immi.gov.au/Visas/Pages/173.aspx http://www.immi.gov.au/Visas/Pages/864.aspx http://www.immi.gov.au/Visas/Pages/884.aspx Unfortunately the only route now for parents are the Contributory visas which are quite expensive as the government removed the other visa options, Check out the charges here: http://www.immi.gov.au/Help/Pages/fees-charges/visa.aspx - don't forget the second large VAC under the notes, The only other alternative is a long term visitor visa where parents can visit for up to 12 months at a time.
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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
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It means you can't get a disability pension or the Australian aged pension (which is means tested anyway) for ten years.
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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.
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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.
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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
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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.
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Since you are allowed to submit your application for the 143 right up until your 173 expires I would assume that you would be granted a bridging visa while your 143 is processed. Just to be sure I would contact the Parent visa centre for confirmation
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We weren't told anything about the medicals, the next thing we knew we got the request for the AOS. I presume you would hear something though if they were not successful.
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We cancelled our 103 and applied for the 143 and had to pay the initial VAC for the 143. Sometimes the immi admin staff don't always get everything right, but good luck.
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Sorry, no, if she cancels the 103 she will not be reimbursed with the initial VAC and yes, she will have to pay the initial VAC for the 143 - this will not be waived unfortunately.
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I don't think that getting the medicals done again after visa grant will change anything. When the visa is issued it will state a date by which the visa applicant must first enter Australia. If he were to redo the PCC this would have to be done before submitting them to DIBP, ie before visa grant. They would then probably go by the date of the medicals. Don't forget he can validate the visa with a holiday visit, it doesn't have to be permanent.