catlover1

I have 3 traffic offences - 2019 Feb went through red light camera and then speeding 30k over and Feb 2021 10 over - been in oz since Dec 2011 but worried if I apply I will be deemed bad character and have my pr cancelled….

My oh is oz and I'm irish. We hired a migration agent who charged £200 about 3 yrs ago n i got my residency visa after 3 mths. She's an aussie so knows the forms n paperwork inside out. I can pm you her details as I'd highly recommend her.

I'd miss: Chicken Salt Lamingtons Price of train travel ($8.60 from the Southern Highlands to Sydney) which is about 170km! And less than a fiver! Reversible train seats! More Sunshine! Bird life and I am talking the feathered kind! Choc tops. I definitely would not miss: The xenophobia Parochialism Attitude that it is the BEST country on earth! AFL/NFL which they call FOOTBALL but the ball ain't round?!!!! I still miss a lot of things about the UK such as friends family, TV, British Café and long summer evenings but there are pros and cons to wherever you are! Utopia doesn't exist unfortunately.

Hi there, I would thoroughly recommend an agent. We paid about 200 for ours and it took all the hassle and worry out of the application and knowing that it is done correctly as if it's not it will be sent back to you to start again. I personally think it is really worth that little bit of money as the application I filled in to get my permanent residency was over 70 pages long! Cheers and I can pass you on my agent's details if you need them.

We rehomed two cats when leaving London; one to a friend of a friends and the other to a good friend. It was the hardest thing I ever had to do particularly with my older cat Winkles. I still remember the feeling I had giving her to Cynthia. She is now very settled and happy mind and has her own garden which she didn't have with us. When I went back to the Uk in October though I couldn't bear to see her as it was going to be more upsetting for me than her! However, I know she is very well looked after as is our other cat which makes it way easier. I would however never want to have to give a pet up again. We now have a lovely black and orange cat which we are taking with us if we do ever go back there! :wink:

Hi there. I got my permanent residency and did all of it through an agent and would highly recommend it. For a nominal cost it takes all the stress out of the application process and ensures you are answering everything correctly.I can pm you the details if you likelike :biggrin:

Go to flight scanner and put in your dates etc you want to travel and if you want stop overs etc and it does all the leg work for you. I got mine for 1700 last year.

HI there, we live in the Highlands and are both in our mid 40s with no kids but there are a few medical centres here that bulk bill so we've not found that a problem. However, the dentist is another story! $80 for a check up and $165 for a clean! And I used to pay about 25 quid for a clean! The NHS is really one of it's kind and again something you don't appreciate until you have to start paying for services. I dread to think though if you have a lot of health problems how you would afford it here! I hope to go back to the UK when I am older though as I would be worried unless I had private health insurance in Oz!

Mopping up drunks can be fun though :-) I wanted to apply for the AFP but I'm only on my green ps so can't. Roll on next Friday when I start my nsw police application! I've waited a bloody year! Mad or what :-) yeah pay is good in the police and unless u are a complete idiot it's a steady job and good salary. :-)

Hi belaroy, sorry to hear about your situation. I too am an ex officer but only of 3 years experience that being in Brixton mind so longer in real terms due to the amount of crap u deal with :-). Prior to that I worked as a senior level PA in London and I've applied for admin jobs here and not even had a bloody reply! I'm now just waiting to apply for the nsw police force as I missed out on the recruitment date last year as they closed recruitment. All going well I will be back in training this year/next year. I personally think it's a lot to do with being an ex copper . That's all I can put it down to as I never had any problems getting work in London and always had temp work in between my permanent jobs prior to the police. Would you ever consider going back into policing or are you over the politics of it all? As Churchill said "if you are in he'll keep going" :-)

Just wanted to say thanks for all the replies. It really helps knowing others have similar experiences and to get a different perspective too :-)

I can't understand that she'd get so wound up over something so minor :-) the lady needs to get out more me thinks ;-)

I've used fishpond since moving to oz and find them reliable and you can track your purchases. I've only bought books and CDs but they have numerous departments and deliver Australia wide so you may be able to find what you need. Do a search on google and they'll come up :-)

Hello all. Well I just arrived back in oz from Dublin. I'm feeling mighty strange about being back and very out of sorts! I visited friends in London and my family in Dublin and I missed aspects of oz but am starting to feel like I don't belong anywhere or have that place I can call home which was first Ireland and then the uk fir 20 years. This was my first trip back in 2 years so pretty emotional too as my little sis had her 4th child whilst I was there. Has anyone else had similar feelings when they've gone back to visit? I feel like in belong in three places with parts of me in Ireland, England and Australia!! Maybe I just need a lot of sleep!! :-) and will feel better when I'm over my jet lag.

Hi there, I'm going back on holiday to the uk and Ireland in two weeks. Yyyyaaaaahhhh :-) can't wait to see friends and family. 2 years since I've seen them all. Any advice on the best way to take money? I've got a uk Bank account still. Has anyone used the 28 days credit card? I've heard this is the best card for use overseas. Cheers, marie :-)

Thanks everyone for your replies. Yes my status is on my passport electronically. Looks like flight centre don't know what ther are talking about :-)

Hi there, I've booked some flights to Dublin for oct and am a permanent resident having been here almost 2 years. My oh who is Aussie and sponsored me. I have an Irish passport n flight centre said I should check with the Irish consulate if I need will need a re entry permit?!!!! Don't understand as I am a pr!!! Any other Irish folks who are prs had issued when coming back to oz? All advice gratefully received :-)

Hi there, I too would recommend migration angels as we used them prior to moving to oz. She is very helpful and knowledgeable and takes all the stress out of the application.

Look, let's respect we are all different, with different expectations, skills etc. Fryertuck is talking from experience and his opinion is just as valid as yours and I think his post could be helpful to some people and encourage them to research the situation before they get here. You obviously have had a very different experience and good for you. I thought the point of this forum was to help/support/encourage each other particularly when times are hard! Good for you that you are doing well but please respect that we all have different views and we are all entitled to express those views in an open and transparent way!:biggrin:

Hi Jez, All of the different states have different requirements and I know that the NSW police have put a hold on recruitment due to the no of candidates in the pool. I am an ex met police officer from Brixton and I hope to gain some credits once I've applied here for the NSW police but it looks like I may have to still do all of the training (even though I worked in one of the most challenging boroughs!). I would advise your friend to check out all of the police force website individually as it also varies as to how training is financed (In the NSW police you can apply for scholarships/grants but don't get paid till you finish the 8 month course but in the NT and South Australia you are paid in training). Also, the process here seems to be a lot more long winded than it is in the UK. I applied for the Met in February 2008 and was in training in October. My OH applied for the NSW Police here, passed everything February 2012 and has just had a training date of May 2013 confirmed! So, lots of patience is needed. Hope this helps. :-)

Hi there, every second day I feel like going back but I resigned from the Met so can't unless I went back to rejoin and that is not currently happening. Could you stay here for a few months with your current employer and then maybe think about going back in a few months again and take a rain check? Having a full time job you enjoy is a big part of your life. I am currently waiting to apply to get back into policing here and know once that is happening that I will feel a lot happier as my job is very important to me. We don't have kids but your job is very important for lots of reasons I think; social reasons, sense of pride/job satisfaction, sense of purpose etc etc. It still sounds like the job market in the UK is under a lot of pressure. i wouldn't want to go back to nothing unless one of us had something lined up. It would be too risky in the current climate and could be very pressurised. Is there the likelihood that you would be struggling finding work? Does your hubbie want to stay? It's very difficult and must be even more so with children involved. Here's sending you some happy thoughts and hope that you receive some clarity! I saw a great quote on here on a post the other day where some Yorkshire lass said her grandma used to say "When in doubt do nowt" :laugh:

Hi all, I moved from the uk 14 mths ago and it would be great to meet up with anyone from there! The gals I work with are all early 20s and the ladies in my yoga classes all early 60s! I'm a very young 44 and enjoy movies, cycling and good coffee. If you are in the moss vale/bowral/mittagong areas and fancy a coffee to chat pls drop me a line as I am sorely missing the British and Irish sense of humour! :-) Cheers!!

Hey there, you just have to give it time. When I first moved to London from Ireland it took time to settle there too. So you have to give yourself time and patience. I spoke to a Scottish guy a few weeks back and he said that he has never got over the feeling of being homesick and he's lived here for 6 years! Maybe it never goes away or just goes in waves? Yes, it's nice and comforting to know that there are others out there who feel the same. That somehow makes it a lot more bearable :-)

Yes you are in an amazing place but it makes no bloody difference if you are really unhappy! Has your partner asked you to leave? Is he also from the UK? Being able to support each other emotionally is very important and it seems like he can't give you that support that you need... and it is even more important if you are here together. How long have you been together?

Hi Gemma, I'm sorry to hear you are feeling homesick and I know what that feels like! I've had days like that myself! I moved here from London in December 2011 so we've been here for 14 months now. I have days where I could get right back on the plane too! But we've moved to the Southern Highlands in NSW which is a beautiful part of the world but very different from living in a huge city like London. My other half is an Aussie and I am an ex PC but just missed the recruitment deadline here so i've been doing bar work until I can apply for the police here. I know it's hard but you have to try and stay positive and busy! I've joined the gym, am doing yoga and have met some lovely ladies at my yoga class. I am now just waiting to apply for the police here as that is all I want to do again. I am also doing voluntary work at my local Salvos. I've applied too for a lot of jobs as prior to being a police officer I was a senior level PA but i've had no luck there but you just got to keep going. I think it's very hard for other people to understand how you feel somedays unless they are in the same boat. I feel sometimes like I have disappeared down a rabbit hole. Australia is a wonderful country but not for everyone and that's okay. I've decided to give it another 2 years and if I still feel this unsettled will have to think about moving back to the UK. Just talking on this forum helps and I sometimes freak out when I look at the world map! I used to go back and see my family in Ireland every 3 months when I lived in London but I obviously can't do that from here. But staying in touch via skype and facetime does really help. have you thought about going back for a holiday to see what it's like in the UK? Where are you living in Oz? The feelings will pass and hopefully you will start to settle as time passes but if you don't you may have to think about moving back. My sister's boyfriend lived here for 7 years but eventually moved back home as he couldn't cope with being so far away from his family. It's not for everyone and that's okay. And remember that good old British saying "Keep Calm and Carry On!" Hope this helps! :-):biggrin: And that is a wonderful quote from your aunt. I've not heard that one before. Is she a northener?