BeeBoDee

Thank you very much for the reply, I will endeavour to be a bit more patient! I just thought it was a bit odd with both of us specifying we want to have our ceremony together and my husband hearing but me not. We have RRVs sorted so no problems there xx

Hi, My husband and I both applied for citizenship last March and both specified that we would like to have our citizenship ceremony together. However, he received a date for his test which he sat a couple of weeks ago (and passed!) and I haven't heard a thing. On checking my immi account, it still states my application has been "received" but I'm a bit concerned that after 13 months of no contact from home affairs, somehow it has been lost. Has anyone else had this happen at all? I also wondered if anyone knew of a way to contact Immigration to query this? I can't find an email address online that accepts messages. I live in WA and have previously called Immigration in this state, but the recorded message states they are unable to discuss visa / citizenship applications over the phone. Any help or advice gratefully received. Thanks so much x

That's great, thanks so much for your help. Looks like I misread the information - for some silly reason I was thinking it was every country since the age of 18 that we'd spent more than 90 days in. Thanks again x

* shamelessly bumping my post up * x

Hi, this is my first post in a while. I'm currently applying for citizenship and wondered at which stage the UK police checks were done? I couldn't see anywhere on the application where this would be uploaded and I couldn't find this information on the Immi website. I called the immigration helpline but after 55 minutes in the queue where I ended up as caller 55 (from 105!) the phone signal dropped and I thought I might have more luck here! I'm guessing the checks from my PR visa application almost 5 years ago would be too out of date? It also looks like I may need a Greek police check after spending 7 months there some years back and my husband an Italian one for the same reason. Does anyone have any experience of how long these take to process? Thanks very much in advance for any help x

I haven't read it for a couple of years, but there was a good to-do list in the back of Australia and New Zealand magazine which we found handy when we emigrated x

Hi Loulou, There was a post some time ago about public and private hospitals which you might find useful: http://www.pomsinoz.com/forum/jobs-careers/248739-nurse-private-public-sector.html If you decided on the 6 month contract you could always stay with the agency as well so that you have back up work if it does end x

Whereabouts in Australia are you planning on moving to? Some people find agency work helpful when they first arrive - that way you can 'try out' a few hospitals and find out if you'd like to work in any of them. I don't know much about Ramsey, but Healthcare Australia seems to be quite a large agency whom I know a few people that found work through them. Do some research and look at where you'd like to work and contact managers directly. When I found work at an Adelaide public hospital (mentioned in my post above), it helped a lot that I had been in touch with them beforehand. Also, the job application for the private hospital I worked at had closed, but I emailed the manager and asked her to consider me for any future positions and received a phone call offering an interview within a few minutes of contacting her. Good luck! x

Hi, I moved to Australia in February 2014 and soon afterwards started working at a private hospital. I thought staffing levels in the UK were bad enough, but was amazed to find out they were worse in my new job! I had already applied for casual work in a couple of the public hospitals, so chased these applications and was able to drop my hours at the private hospital and picks up shifts in one of the these. Although still very busy, I found the staffing much better and felt more supported. I can't speak for the whole of Australia as this was in Adelaide, but after this experience I definitely wouldn't chance working in the private sector again. That said, someone I worked with at the public hospital had previously worked in the Mater Hospital (private) in Sydney and found the staffing levels good, so it sounds like it varies from place to place. Here's (from my experience) some advantages and disadvantages: Private hospitals - advantages - Didn't take long to get the job. I applied, had an interview shortly afterwards and started at the next available induction day. It took less than a month from applying to starting the job - From what I can gather, there is more chance of obtaining an employer sponsored visa than from public hospitals Private hospitals - disadvantages - Lower paid - Worse staffing - Less teaching. I was told early on that CPD was done mainly in our own time as they couldn't spare us the hours Public hospitals - advantages - Better staffing - More teaching - Better pay Public hospitals - disadvantages - It can take a long time to get a job from applying to starting (although this may vary from state to state). I applied for 2 hospitals in March 2014 and had to chase the applications as I hadn't heard anything. I had interviews in May and June and started working at one hospital in August. It helped that I had contacted one of the managers before I left England. I ended up withdrawing my application from the other one in August / September as I had enough work and was still waiting for a start date. We moved to WA later that year. I had a phone interview for a job there in September, and was offered a start date in January. Keeping in contact with potential employers and chasing applications seems to help move things along. - They can be subject to job freezes. I live in WA so can't speak for any other state, but there is one here at present whereby only short term / casual contracts are being offered. This may change at the end of the financial year (beginning of July) - Unless you live in rural areas, I think you're unlikely to obtain an employer sponsored visa If you have any other questions please don't hesitate to ask x

Letterboxes being outside your house and knowing that whenever it rains, your post will ALWAYS be left half hanging out of them. Fuse boxes are on the outside of some houses which I find strange. Automatic cars being so common here, and often little difference in price from a manual. I don't know if this is just a WA thing but if I'm put hold when I'm on the phone to someone, when they pick up again they always say "Are you there?".

It doesn't sound like you're being unreasonable at all, especially after you've already paid him some money. I would definitely give him a ring and speak to him directly as you've been waiting a while. Good luck!

Hi Paul, If it's IELTS you're sitting, I would definitely do some practise tests first. I sat mine a couple of years ago and didn't find it too difficult, but within the writing section there's a specific format you should be using. If I hadn't have done some revision beforehand I definitely wouldn't have got the results I wanted. Good luck

I haven't been to the Sunshine Coast so can't comment on whether you'd need a car if living there or not, but one of the things that stands out in your message is that it's been your dream to emigrate. If this is the case then I'm sure you'll make it work even though it may be difficult not having a car. At 42 your time's starting to run out if you want to emigrate and it sounds like you could have a good opportunity if a large company may be interested in you. If you delay it, it may be more difficult further down the track as they may no longer need employees. I'd speak to them about where the job's based etc. and double check whether you need a driving licence for the job as many employers want you to have them. I moved to Australia 2 years ago without a licence. We've lived in Adelaide and Albany, WA and I managed okay without driving - getting to work and back and to places local to those towns has been relatively easy. I'd taken lessons in the UK, hated driving, gave up and swore blind I'd never drive again. That changed when it dawned on me how huge the distances between some places are. I was lucky as my husband drives so we were able to get to places we wanted to see without public transport. I've now learned to drive and although I'm not fond of driving in cities I love being out in the country on the long roads. You say you'll most likely learn to drive - I'd definitely recommend it whether it's in the UK or Australia. Best of luck whatever you decide x

So exciting! Congratulations on finishing your nursing course, I'm a nurse too and still remember how long and stressful the course was at times! One thing I would suggest is getting your AHPRA registration sorted soon if you haven't looked into it already, as it can take a few months to come through. The last I heard (and this was a year or 2 ago so may have changed) was that you need a minimum of 3 months qualified experience before you apply. What state are you moving to? We moved to Adelaide when we first emigrated. My husband had 8 months experience as a Mental Health Nurse and he had no problems finding work there. Best of luck! x

Are you planning on using your phone just for the internet or to make calls? If you're using it to call the UK on as well, bear in mind that Telstra's rates aren't cheap - last I saw was $2 per minute.