JoannaAch

We had our 1 year old sitting on my lap duirng the speech, then I just held him for the pledge and took him with us to pick up the certificate and get the photo taken. Lots of families with small kids did the same. Also - we gave him a iPhone with Wiggles vidoes (muted) to keep him occupied during the very boring and long speeches.

I wanted to change test location (just within Sydney as we moved to a different suburb since submitting application) and the guy on the phone said that they can only change test locations if someone moved to a different state, not within the same state. So definitely call the help line and they should be able to swap it for you.

We were only asked to show drivers license and passport. But when I called the call center before they advised to bring the originals of all documents that you submitted with the application - so might be good to get a new 1195 signed as suggested just in case...

I would guess so as your application can only by approved if you are in Australia.

I logged online to check. For me it was right after the test. For my husband the status changed to Approved in the afternoon on the day of the test. You should also get a letter information that the application is approved. I guess in principle after you pass the test, your application (in most cases) is done and just waiting for formal approval. But sometimes it takes extra long and that delays your ceremony even further...

You don’t need to do anything about it and you didn’t make an error. Everyone can see that in their application and I think it’s a bug in the system. You might also see “bringing visa application” tab which is also a bug.

I think it depends if they have done all the checks before inviting for the test. We waited almost a year for the test, so all processing must have been already finished.

Just came back from the test and my application is already approved. Applied: 3 Feb 2018 Test: 31 Jan 2019 approval: 31 Jan 2019 Hopefuly we can get the ceremony before May elections!

We both requested Sydney CBD as we live 15min from there. It will take me extra time to get to Parramatta... it’s funny as the case officer must have specifically select for us to have the interviews at the same time - but missed the different location? I called to check if I can change the location for the test, but there is no option like that. The guy on the phone suggested we had different addresses when we applied, but that’s not the case (have been living together for 10 years). We’ll keep these appoinemts as they are, just to not delay this any further...

Finally got the test appointment for my hubby. They gave him the same date and time for the test - but at a different office... His is in Sydney CBD and mine in Parramatta. Both our timelines are: applied: 3 Feb 2018 test: 31 Jan 2019

Hi, I need to wait for my husbands appointment letter to arrive first... But that's a good idea if he gets it before my test, I will reschedule both of us for a later date.

Both my and my husband applied on 3 Feb 2018 from Sydney. I got a test invite already, but nothing for him so far... It’s a pity as it would be easier to do it together with arranging day care drop off/ pick up. Especially that we need to travel all the way to Parramatta for the test. my timeline: applied: 3 Feb 2018 test invite: 4 Jan 2019 test: 31 Jan 2019 Sydney Parramatta office (requested CBD as Parramatta is quite far away)

The 190 visa does not have any conditions, so that's not exactly correct. The obligation comes into place with the agreement that you sign with the state where you certify that you "intend" to live in the sponsoring state. That is where I think it gets tricky - intend is a very vague term? Even though your example where someone never goes to sponsoring state is reasonable, I'm not sure if that is something that can be proved e.g. in court? What if that someone intended to live in the sponsoring state when signing the agreement, but changed their mind 2min or 2 months later? How do you prove that they never planed to go there? Just to clarify - I'm not actually encouraging people to ignore their obligation to the state that sponsored them, I just really don't like fear mongering. Might be related to being a scientist in a world running on fake news and anecdotal evidence...

It would be quite interesting to know how the department can justify cancelling someones visa based on not meeting this obligation. How can they show that someone provided false information about the intention to move to sponsoring state? What if someone sent one job application or even just googled their sponsoring state - couldn't that be considered a genuine intention to move there? Intention is not really something that can be that well defined and can be very subjective in my opinion... Another thing would be the logistics of cancelling a visa of someone already in Australia. For example what about their children that are Australian citizens or loans/mortgage/other obligations that they took?

Hi, I will be having the same problem when my son is born in October. Have you tried submitting an application without the additional photo ID? On the actual paper form it is written: "1. Identity documents that show a: birth name and date of birth photograph and current name, if available." Based on that, if the other photo ID is not available (like in case of a newborn baby), it won't be required? At least that's what I think...

Thanks Roberta2! The birth certificate seems to be very straightforward, my main worry is that they won't accept citizenship evidence application without "Another document showing a photograph and current name, for example a passport or a student card"... I guess most people arriving in Australia would have a second passport when applying for that document, which won't be the case for a newborn. I guess we just wait and hope that the rules are not ridiculous and take that into consideration...

Hi all, We are PR and are expecting a baby in October. As I need to get his passport ASAP to go on a family holiday, I started looking at the documents needed for the passport application. I have two questions regarding the form 119 Evidence of Australian citizenship and I would really appreciate if someone could help: 1. In the "Identity documents checklist" for Children it lists "Another document showing a photograph and current name, for example a passport or a student card". However, a newborn won't have such a document yet - Should I just ignore it? 2. In the "Citizenship details" section, question 12 is: Do you hold the citizenship of any other country?. Should I select "No" as he baby won't have any other passport at the time or "Yes" as the baby will have a right to citizenship in our country of birth? Thanks for any input in advance, Joanna

Doesn't criteria 190.215 need to be true only at the time of the visa application? That is stated in 190.2 "All criteria must be satisfied at the time a decision is made on the application." Doesn't that mean that it does not apply for after the visa is granted?

Hi, I'm not familiar with immigration law, but I can't see how not fulfilling the moral obligation to stay in the sponsoring state can be a reason to cancel visa under section 116a - circumstances to grant visa no longer exist? I would guess it relates more to, for example partner visas when the relationship breaks down or a business visa where the business no longer operates? And in general for temporary visas only? What circumstances/facts would no longer exist in case of 190 visas?

I agree with blosssom, it might be the case for you, but it is quite rare in science and so may raise questions. Also, you are not actually considering putting "bilingual" in the job advert? Do you speak a very rare language that is needed in your job? I am pretty sure quite a lot of scientist are bilingual...

I did most of the things myself for shipping my cat (like all the documents, applying for Import Permit, booking quarantine etc.) and only used a pet shipping company to book flights and manage that - and I only paid around $3500 for the flights (including transfers and crate). The rest I paid myself, which was also not too much (although the quarantine prices went up recently...).

I think that if you are a citizen/PR you can buy anything you want in Australia as long as you don't need to borrow any money (I am not sure banks can borrow money to non-residents?). Only people on temporary visas need to get the FIRB approval and can only buy off-plan. I know a few people that bought houses before arriving after getting PR and they used buyers agent to check the property and organize eerything. They are usually very good, but can be also expensive (I heard they charge around 1-2% of the property value). From what I know - buyer's agent is basically a RE agent, only working on the behalf of the buyer and not the seller...

Hi, I think for shared accommodation most of your calculations are okay. Rent, gas and electricity would be much higher in case of a normal apartment. The salaries you put there are very low (are these even above the national minimal wage?). What do you consider as "medical"? If your salary is very low, I think you are exempt from medicare levy. For groceries I would double that and if you like nice food and don't like Aldi, even triple it... 108$ for "data night" would mean you only get one per month with drinks, or two if you don't buy drinks or go to byo restaurants.

Hi, You will need 1 year work experience to get a positive skills assessment from Vetassess to apply for SS and visa 190. Have you considered applying for 485 post-grad visa? This will give you some time to get the required work experience. Although, I am not sure if that would be enough time to apply for 190... In my opinion, the easiest option would be to get some postdoctoral experience on 457 (most contracts are for 2 years) and after 1 year apply again for skills assessment. This will give you some extra time to apply for your visa later. You might also consider asking a migration agent for an initial advice - there might be some visa options that you haven't considered yet.

It is also very easy to just put the tag on your windshield (it's free) and you don't have to think about it at all:) I tried calling ones and the first question they ask is which road you used. It was my first week in Sydney and I had no idea where that was - I was just following the navi... For M5 you can claim back whatever you paid if you are resident in NSW and own a private car. We go quite frequently south (like Wollongnong or National Park), so it's really great for us.