RowleyRocket

Hi Nuttynan this is good news for you when did you lodge your application and have acknowledgement?

 

I submitted our application and had acknowledgement on 29/05/2012 and have heard nothing yet

 

regards seems to take forever

That seems a very long time. Our 143 application was acknowledged on 12.4.2012 and the visas granted on 13.8.2013.

Our shipped goods arrived last week. The only box that had been opened, presumably by the Quarantine lot, was the one marked shoes and boots on the inventory. So make sure yours are all very clean.

Regards

Rowley

Hi,

Many thanks Mmant, Mike and Durhamlad. Between you all you have clarified the situation. Key is to get citizenship within the five years that the CPV13 is valid to avoid the faff of the Returning Resident visa and the citizenship qualification is on the DIAC website (as quoted by Durhamlad).

(Carob - CPV143 grants permanent residence and multiple re-entry into Australia for five years from date of issue. After five years, if you wish to leave Australia for any reason, eg hols or visiting UK rellies, then to get back into Australia you need a Returning Resident visa for which you need to have spent a cumulative 2 years in Australia out of the previous 5, unless, as stated above, you have citizenship, in which case you can come and go as you please.)

Regards to all

Rowley

ps we are now at the stage where anything not bolted to the floor is getting de-cluttered.

Hi,

Our 143s were granted in August and we will soon be leaving.

The visa grant notice states that the visa is valid for 5 years and in that time we are allowed multiple entries, with 'Conditions: Nil'.

My question to the forum (I guess addressed to those who have gone through the process and are now in Australia, or advisors) is:- are there any limits on the amount of time you are allowed out of Australia in that 5 years? (Not that we are intending to leave Oz for extended periods, but it would be nice to know if there are any limitations.) I have searched the immi website with no success.

Regards

Rowley

ps good luck to all of you still in the process.

Well after more than 14 months of waiting (date of acknowledgement 19 June 2012), my parents got a case officer this morning!! No previous requests for documents, assurance of support etc. And it happened strangely: after reading how many people on this forum have had AOS etc requested before getting a CO, I suggested to my parents that they send a query to the PVC enquiry form asking for the AOS request letter so we can go ahead with doing that for them. They have already submitted medicals and police clearances a couple of months ago. My dad did it on Monday, and 36 hours later, they got an email from their new CO asking for Form 80 and the AOS!

 

Just sat on the phone for 45 min on hold to Centrelink to arrange to bring in the AOS documents. the consultant told me that once they have been processed, they were do a telephonic interview with my husband. And they can't tell me how long the AOS process will take from start to finish - from the tracker, it looks like about 6 weeks or so. Does anyone know any more about the time frame?

Learjet,

Our daughter lodged the Centrelink documents for AoS on 28.05 and received the Centrelink letter accepting AoS on 02.07.

Regards

rowley

Hello everyone again. Having now had a look at the paperwork, I think it a good idea to tell you what it actually said.

 

Yes the dreaded form 80 is to be done as soon as poss. How on earth do you answer 37, that asks for proposed arrival date in Aus with the time frame being so far ahead, any ideas?

 

Police Clearance - "commence 10 months from 11 June 2013. RETAIN until requested by your case officer".

 

Permanent Residence Health Assessment - "commence 12 months from 11 June 2013". RETAIN etc.

 

AOS same as above - 12 months etc

 

all the best, Carolyn

Carolyn,

For question 37 of Form 80 I put ' Dependent on granting of CPV 143'.

Rowley

What wonderful news for you RR. When do you hope to move, and to where? Decluttering is quite therapeutic, we have started VERY early, due mainly to stuff inherited which we should have disposed of in previous moves, but sometimes there is an emotional attachment to things, and you have to just let go.

All the best of luck. Caro

Caro, thanks for your good wishes. Date of final move is dependant on sale of the house. Housing market is perking up a bit so hopefully we can sell ours with not too much stress.

Our decluttering is going well. I'm now on nodding terms with the boss of the local tip, and soon I guess we'll be discussing the weather and the cricket (hasn't it gone well?) I have sworn that I will never, ever put anything in any loft again. A complete waste of energy. Apart from suitcases and Christmas, decorations which I could reach without getting into the loft, we have never brought anything down from the loft and used it again. (The only possible exceptions being children's buggies etc, and we are well past the time when they were needed.)

Regards

Rowley

Hi,

Just to let you know that our 143s have just been granted. De-cluttering has now gone into overdrive.

Regards

Rowley

Congratulations Rowleyrocket! We were watching you on the tracker and could not figure out how you did not have a CO. Great news and not so long to wait till you get over to see your family.

Kev,

Thanks. Yes, we have not followed the usual pattern on allocation of COs, or perhaps they have changed their process. Also on the Electronic Queue Calculator on the immi.gov.au site we have been 10th in line on the 143 queue since our application was acknowledged, and in fact we still are 10th. Maintenance of that queue seems suspect and is not to be trusted. Chireckles is a far more reliable guide as to what is going on.

Regards

Rowley

Thanks for your reply Rowley. See what you mean about form 80!! And a lot of the info.has already been given. I notice you say your acknowledgement letter was DATED the 12th so maybe ours is in the post somewhere. I did read somewhere a few weeks ago that acknowledgement letter were in the process of being sent out, so will have to wait and see. Sometimes there seems to no regular pattern. Regards Caro:smile:

Carob,

Our acknowledgement letter was emailed, as have been all communications from PVC.

Regards

Rowley

Congratulations Rowleyrocket! You must be delighted! We have finally decided to take the plunge and have submitted the application today. Now we sit and wait! Can I ask you if you went through an agent or did you do it all yourself?

Petina,

I did it all myself. Well, not quite all. I had a lot of help from people on this website. Between us we seem to be able to answer most, if not all questions. I also found the Australian High Commission helpful in the early stages, don't be afraid to give them a call.

Regards

Rowley

Hi,

 

just wondering if anyone has had any difficulties with regard to the medicals. My husband has had two hip replacements and we have been told that it could ​ be a problem.

Petina,

Obviously can't really comment on your husband's medical, but my hip replacement was not a problem. I declared it on the form you complete to take to the medical and it was simply noted.

Regards

Hello rowleyrocket. What good news for you, apart from having to fork the money, but we are all in the same boat! Please can you tell me when you actually lodged your 143 application? I am finding the 'timelines' people put on very helpful. I just wish I knew how to do it!! Showing my advanced years I'm afraid. Thanks C.

Carob,

Our application forms for our 143s were posted on 3.4.2012, and the letter of acknowledgement was dated 12.4.2012. (I'm afraid I can't offer any explanation why yours has not been acknowledged, although they have clearly received it because the money has come off your card.)

The Form 80 - which is on the DIAC website along with all the other forms - is a character assessment which everyone has to complete. It is a bit of a faff, quite laborious and lengthy. It requests details of travel to other countries, and where you have lived with dates for the last 10 years, a CV covering all employment, a list of all education, some detail on your parents etc. You will be told when you have to complete and send it.

Regards

Rowley

Hi,

Just to let you all know that the 2nd VAC payment for our 143s was requested by email to-day.

Interestingly we seem to have got this far without being allocated a named case officer. Our key dates were:-

12.4.2012 - application acknowledged

25.4.2013 - so-called 'prep letter' received from PVC requesting health and police checks, AoS completion, Form 80 etc.

2.7.2013 - AoS acceptance letter from Centrelink

30.7.2013 - request for the 2nd VAC payment which was sent by a person rather than a PVC Team, so I suppose to-day must count as the day we were allocated a case officer.

Regards

Rowley

ps ... and yes, we are both delighted

Regards

 

Rowley

Hi,

 

I understand that the exchange rate for payments is fixed for six months at a time half-yearly. What is the current fixed rate for the pound against the Australian dollar? (I can't seem to find it anywhere.)

 

Hi, the information is usually here:

 

http://www.immi.gov.au/fees-charges/converter.htm

 

although when I just checked it said they were having technical difficulties. Normally, if you key in the dollar amount you should be able to get the amount in pounds and you can work out the rate from that. Alternatively you could try contacting the Australian High Commission in London, who may be able to give you the information.

Linday,

Thanks for the reply - as you say the Currency Converter is not working at present. I'll try the High Commission in London.

Regards

Rowley

Hi,

I understand that the exchange rate for payments is fixed for six months at a time half-yearly. What is the current fixed rate for the pound against the Australian dollar? (I can't seem to find it anywhere.)

Regards

Rowley

Btw, which amount of 2nd vac charges are followed? is it the current year or the published fees of the date of acknowledgement?

Ginny,

As I understand it, the 2nd VAC is at the published fees at the time of acknowledgement.

​Mike

Congratulations Cath! My parents' date of acknowledgement (for a 143) was the day before yours so I am hoping that something will happen soon for us!

 

Did you receive anything from DIAC before hearing from your case officer last week (as some people were notified to get medicals etc done as they would have a CO within 4 months)? And did you get an email or a physical letter from your CO, please?

 

I note there are a lot of gaps in the visa tracker - am hoping that this doesn't mean that Cath's isn't an isolated case of early CO allocation for the sake of the rest of us who are waiting...!

​Michelle

Michelle,

Our 143 acknowledgement was on 12.4.2012. We had an email from PVC on 25.4.2013 stating they had 'commenced processing our CPVs' and requesting Health & Police checks, progress on AoS and form 80s. We were given 28 days to respond. The email contained an attachment purporting to come from 'the officer responsible for processing this application' though this, as the email, simply came from PVC TEAM 2.

Regards

​Mike

That's plenty for me to chew on, thanks!

 

Btw, I see my CO letter states that my 2nd VAC (Visa Application Charge) will be $40,015. With the Ozzie reputation for being laid back, and their nice minimum 5 cent coins, I would have expected them to round it down to $40,000.:wink:

 

Thanks,

Andy

Andy,

Agreed, there's not a lot you can buy for 15c in Oz these days.

Regards

​Mike

G'day

 

In summary, for current rates payable overseas, see http://www.immi.gov.au/allforms/990i/converter.htm.

 

In London, currently (until 30 June 2103) you have to pay 65p for every $A1 of fees – ie, a current exchange rate of 1.5385.

 

Until recently, this was a much better rate than you'd get from FoxEx specialists, let alone High St banks, but with yesterday's drop in RBA interest rates (3% to 2.75%), the Ozzie could continue dropping – watch that space!!

 

​Good luck, Mike (another one!)

Mike,

Thanks for the enlightenment .... it appears I was talking a load of cobblers. The rate we would get at the Australian High Commission for the 2nd VAC in London is what is the fixed rate in force at the time, and nothing to do with what we got when we paid for the 1st VAC. Actually we will almost certainly be paying our 2nd VAC in 2H2013 so the drop in RBA interest rates to 2.75% could help us to pay more cheaply in $AUS in Oz.

Regards

​Mike

Andy,

 

My understanding is that for UK residents payment can be made in sterling to Australian High Commission in London. The exchange rate you would get is that at which your initial application was converted. (In our case on 12 April 2012 our 1st VAC was converted at 1.4855.) When I last looked quite recently it was less than this, so it we were asked for the second VAC now it would make sense to pay in sterling at the High Commission.

 

Perhaps someone can confirm this for us?

 

Regards

 

Rowley

Andy,

Correction - I believe the theory is still correct, but have just checked the exchange rate on Moneycorp and as of the above date and time the rate was 1.5198 - so, at this moment it would be better to pay in $AUS in Oz.

So, in addition to everything else, we all have to be currency exchange experts with fingers poised on the enter key, waiting for the exact right moment, or not .........

Regards

Mike

... my brain is beginning to hurt, time for a beer.

I'm planning for when I hopefully get asked to produce the dosh, and can recall some discussion in this thread many moons ago, about making the large VAC payment to the Embassy in London, instead of the PVC in Perth, when this made financial sense, depending on exchange rate fluctuations since the previous "fix".

 

I'm probably just being thick but am afraid I cannot get the search function to find anything of this nature. Does anybody perhaps have any info on this please?

 

Thanks,

Andy

Andy,

My understanding is that for UK residents payment can be made in sterling to Australian High Commission in London. The exchange rate you would get is that at which your initial application was converted. (In our case on 12 April 2012 our 1st VAC was converted at 1.4855.) When I last looked quite recently it was less than this, so it we were asked for the second VAC now it would make sense to pay in sterling at the High Commission.

Perhaps someone can confirm this for us?

Regards

Rowley

Hi,

Last April my wife and I applied for 143s, application acknowledged on 12 April, 2012.

We have just received an email from 'the officer responsible for processing this application' requesting that we proceed with Health Checks and Police Checks; progress the Assurance of Support, and complete Form 80 - Character Assessment. Am I right in assuming that this is prior to a Case Officer being appointed, which I would expect to around August given the current timings on the progress checker?

Over the last 10 years we have spent more than a year cumulatively staying with our daughter, so we need an Australian police check. Advice please on how we complete Section 5: Current and Previous Residential Address of the application form. By current address do they mean our UK address and use previous address for my daughter in Oz? Or the other way around? Do people attach a simple note explaining stays in the Oz address were for periods up to 3 months spread over 10 years?

​Rowley

You would need to live here for 2 years (in total)to get a RRV and 4 years (you are allowed 1 year out of the country) to get citizenship.

 

After the 5 years you can still live here but would not be able to leave without one of the above if you want to retain the right to residency

 

You may be able to get a RRV if you can show substantial ties to the country but that may be for just 1 year

 

A RRV usually lasts 5 years

Thanks Flathead, is this documented anywhere?

Rowley

Hi,

My wife and I have applied for 143 visas. If we are successful in our application, hopefully towards the end of this year, then I understand that we have 12 months to 'validate' the visa, ie enter Australia.

What restrictions, if any, are there on our future movements in and out of Australia? Obviously it would allow us to spend all 12 months of any year in Australia. Are there any minimum requirements for living in Australia? Is travel in and out of Australia managed/controlled in any way? For example, do we have to spend at least 6 or 9 or (whatever) months in Australia in any one year, or number of years?

Regards

Rowley

Just wondering if any of the newer applicants for the CPV could tell me what date applications are being dealt with at the moment. It would be in the Acknowledgement letter. Tks.:arghh:

Daisy,

Our recent 143 application was acknowledged on 12 April. It stated that case officers are currently working on applications received on 17 March, 2011.

Regards

Rowley