patsmb

I had a friend with 2 children born here in Oz -she took off with them home to Scotland without telling her hubby -they were seperated Got on flight etc ok but was pulled at Heathrow and interviewed for several hours as her kids had one way tickets to the UK on Australian passports They were allowed to continue thier journet and did get UK passports but it took her some time to get things sorted

Ah -sorry I maybe took that out of context as I took it as having a go !

Not sure if this is the right spot to pots but here goes Reading the Daily Mail shows the following =I understand where they are coming from as they need pension reform but would not like to think I had been termed as a backpacker just because I emigrated to Oz ! I am retired and did work for more than 10 years in the UK but think this could impact in later years ? Mr Webb said an example of those affected would be 'Aussie backpackers' who only work for a few years in this country but are eligible for a pensionAccording to official figures, around 400,000 people - almost all of whom live overseas - receive a British state pension while having paid National Insurance contributions for fewer than 10 years

Personally I think its best not to convert as in Oz you live in $ so think of it really as £ if you were in the UK ie petrol is $1.45 a litre dont convert it and say the UK has dearer petrol Yes it has if you convert but you normally travel further in Oz so use more petrol anyway Work out costs in $ against an expected wage then to me that puts things into perspective

Hi again -re Mums Aussie pension I have just spoken to avery helpfull lady at Centrelink International who has confirmed that Ceentrelink pensions are in our case portable Hubby will get 258/300ths or 86% I will get full pension it depends on what working life you have had in Oz a With your Mum would a flight buisness class be out of the question my friend flew with her Mum who lives in england but had an accident here and she said the assistance was marvellous -worth a thought

If your talking about claiming Centrelink pensions in the UK when you do retire you would not get one as to claim the Centrelink pension you need to be resident iN Oz at the time However a super pension or payment would be payable as its 'yours' The Uk and Oz no longer have a reciprocal agreement either as it ended around 2002 Does your Mum claim a UK pension as there does seem to be plenty of care homes there -my Mum was found a place very easily I understand the carer burnout so good luck with your plans

I am a Mackem and am delighted when i ring Newcastle as they understand my accent nee bother LOL

We do get a UK pension now £54 for hubby £27 for me as his wife but when we have been on holiday in the UK we get an increase of around £!5 a week The UK pension however is not means tested like the Centrelink one is However if your pensions either UK or Oz leave you under the income threshold you would get Pension Credit I have asked Centrelink for confirmation of what percenatge of our Aussie pension we will get but still would like that in writing which as yet is not forthcoming But we have time so i guess it will get sorted

Oddly enough I have just received a taxation form from the UK as I turned 65 last year - over 65 you do get a higher allowance

Yes you probably will have to apply for residency –we hadsold up in Oz bought a house taken our car and all household possessions butwere still told NO at first The reason given was that we had left family (40 years old kids!)and a bank account still open because our Australian pensions were still beingpaid into that account That despite the fact they had all of my Mums details and Itold them I was an only child (aged 55 minds) One of the questions asked of us was why you bought a housewhy did you not live off the money and we had to justify every penny we hadspent i.e. carpets curtains etc for the house we bought That despite the fact we had money in the bank and were notclaiming benefits just a rates rebate I was incensed when the letter came saying we were refusedresidency and had another interview where I said that we might close the Aussiebank account and stop the pension and maybe have to claim some benefit from theUK The letter saying we were granted residency was mailed 2days later!! I must say that even the lady who did our firstinterview was embarrassed and kept saying sorry as i was so upset

I worked for a housing group in the North East between 2001-2005 and they did have a 'homeless ' unit -if your sister takes as much information as possible with her I am sure most areas have a similar system Depending on where she is going back to if its anything like the NE there is a huge number of private rentals to be had

When we went back in 2001 we had to fight to get habitual residency as in show we had severed ties with Australia - we had family here in Oz but went to look after my Mum in the UK We did not claim any UK benefits but needed a rates rebate because of a lower income - we had the right of abode because we still have UK passports but residency was only given after protracted interviews etc Make sure you take as much paperwork as possible -at the time by hubby was on Australian disablity quite legitamately ( thats changed now and not payable o/s ) but we were made to feel we were doing something wrong by relevant UK authorities Centrelink International were very helpull luckily and sent us both letters to the UK showing we were being paid 'legally ' No credit rating made things difficult as we paid cash for the house we bought having sold up here in Oz so copies of bills paid might help It took about 6 months to sort it all but we got there in the end !

We are thinking of taking our Sharpei with us to the UK but wondered if there is a company that would 'courier' her from Heathrow to the North East or would we have to pick her up ourselves Seems as if the process of vacinnes etc is not hard its the how to get her bit that might be We would leave her with family to give ourselves time to arrive etc then have her sent on When we emigrated to Oz we brought our cocker spaniel and he had to be bathed before and after the flight plus quarantine was 3 months does anything like that still occur going the opposite way ( our Sharpei HATE water with a passion )

No we have not paid either 30 years or 45 my hubby was 38 when we emigrated so had about 22 years worth of 'stamps' he will be 70 when we go back Our Australian Centrelink pensions will be paid in the UK I am still trying to ascertain how much that will be as the way of working it out is complicated Financially though with both pensions we feel we will be better off in the UK as the cost of living is now cheaper than Australia

Justa question to see if anyone has any ideas on UK pensions if we do go back tothe UK to live Ihave made enquiries with the DHSS based in Newcastle and they have informed methat we will get full UK pensions if we return to live in the UK Iam going to write again to query that answer as I am not sure it’s correct Hubbycurrently receives £54 and I receive £27 paid 4 weekly in arrears into ourAussie account –when we have been on holiday in the UK we get a slight increase(that happens if you inform the DHSS that you’re in the UK) but it has not beenanywhere near the full pension amount which I believe is around £107 a week Hasanyone had any information on this ,just wondering as letter take ages to beanswered I know I can ring but much prefer any information to be in writing ! ThanksPat

We have lived here 30 years ,we went back in 2001 until 2006 to look after my Mum but came back to Oz as there was the pull of grandchildren here However the cost of living has risen so much that we now feel we were better off in the UK -simple things like a bus stop close by for a trip into town means that its so much easier to get around with no petrol costs to worry over Our long term friends are there and its like putting a pair of comfortable slippers on when we are 'home ' Ideally we should be able to live there for say 9 months and here for 3 each year so probably at the end of this year we might be off As I have got older the heat gets to me and its 45 today so I have barely poked my head outdoors -bit like and English winter really TV on a DVD watched !

Be carefull with Xmas decs as I had a wooden wand taken from Santa by customs her in Oz plus an ornamental Holly decoration as it was also made of wood -they would have fumigated the items but the cost was far more than the value

Matt we took our car back in 2001 if you can prove ownershipfor over 12 months there was no duty to pay However it would need to have aspeedometer in miles per hour and fog lights –often Australian cars don’t havethem Make sure too its rust-proofed as the wet conditions andsalt on the roads in winter make it look like is been in the sea ! The link below might help https://www.gov.uk/importing-vehicles-into-the-uk/overview Cheers Pat