JonnoA

Sorry to hear about your sister. Not the same at all, but I moved here after learning my uncle had cancer (we are very close as he’s been like a father to me) - that being said I’ve seen him 4 times since I moved 5 years ago and he and my Aunt are considering a once in a lifetime holiday this year they’ve wanted to do for years. He still has the dreaded C but is currently stable. The fact is, whilst we are far away geographically, depending on where you are you can be in your front door within 26 hours - I actually came back for 2weeks to look after my mother when she had an operation and it really isn’t that far, more so in your head. Skype is also a wonderful thing that means you can be in touch daily at a reasonable hour to you both. Of course, family comes first, don’t have to choose between one and the other in my experience.

Hi all, i have a friend who has had PR for over a year. He is finding it difficult to find work over here at the moment and considering heading home to the UK for a while to earn some cash and then come back. We've looked everywhere for terms and conditions and can't find any on the immi.gov.au website and asking immigration lawyers has provided different answers from 24 months out of 60 to maximum of five years. does anyone have a clear idea of how long you can leave Australia and live overseas before returning, so as not to lose your PR? Thanks loads! Jon

Welcome! You're almost there, just make sure you get all the information possible (signed passport copies, 5 year work history, CV, proof of earnings) and it will be an easy process. Good luck! Jon

Hey, will probably be there on time...may have one or two in tow depending on state after the super XV final!

I'd be keen! Been here for 3/4 months now (though currently in Melbs for work!). Places I've found to be good are Surry Hills and Paddington. If anyone's new and up for a thrill, would suggest the Ivy pool bar, but its pretty pricey. Agree Slip Inn is a good place, but would suggest getting there early as it packs out and gets difficult to move around if you don't get prime loitering spots!

At the end of the day it all comes down to demand and supply. If the government don't want to amend interest rates, then the other monetarist measure is to flood the market with AU$ thus reducing their relative price. Otherwise, can look at fiscal measures. Giving people more disposable income means they would be able to naturally increase money supply in the market, though would reduce government income. Otherwise they could limit the amount of dollars on the foreign exchange market and try and control demand. That being said, all these come with negative effects and keeping the currency artificially low would come at a huge cost to the government, probably increasing national debt - so they would need to make a call on whether they are able to change the natural exchange rate or whether the cost of keeping it at an unnatural level are too high - in this case probably is too much cost to reduce the price, but who knows...we did a lot of it in the UK in the 80s and 90s and it came at a lot of cost

So far, Cheers, The Morrisson, Marble Bar

Yup, but they sometimes quote it as a combined package...one of my mates down here had a nasty surprise when he thought he was getting $75k and ended up being like 68k...should be clear in the contract though

Fair enough...I meant to say that the finest stuff in London is in a league of its own, but I haven't tried the "finest" in Sydney so can't compare it...maybe I've just been lucky in where I've eaten? Yep, staying central-ish, but may look at Surry Hills too - seems close enough to walk to CBD and a lot of good bars etc on Crown Street and there abouts. one thing I forgot to mention was customer service - kind of lacking in most places even compared to the UK...lots of standing around chatting when you're waiting - both in restaurants / bars and shops

Hi all, Been here a week now and thought I'd give my 2 cents on my thoughts of the place... 1st day, managed to sort out a bank account with Commonwealth, Credit Card with a very generous limit despite no credit history in Oz, Tax file number, which arrived in 5 days, mobile phone, accommodation. Everything is very efficient here from an admin perspective and was so easy to get done. the food...wow! I used to eat in some of the best places in London, and I haven't had the chance to visit Sydney's "finest" as I can't afford it yet, but pub food here is 1,000% better than British pub food, Beef is all fresh and beautifully prepared / cooked, seafood is so fresh. Then there's the variety...Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Italian, Australian, Thai...all within 100 metres of each other and all fresh and delicious! Only food I haven't liked is the Yo Sushi style places with the moving plates. Price, around $50 gets you a great meal (equivalent really of £20 in UK, which would not get you the same standard on average - there are exceptions of course!) but a good meal is around $30. Saving money, you can find $10 steaks and I've even seen places that offer $5 steaks! Not bad either! Drinks are expensive - average around $8 - $10 for a schooner (3/4 of a pint), but happy hours reduce this to $5. Some places I've found pints for $5 and schooners for $3! Travelling is fairly cheap, and travelling internally to Melbourne and Brisbane looks like easy jet prices! only negative I can find is the housing market - it's a huge sellers / renters market, meaning you need to be prepared to part with around $4,000 to initially get a place and $500 a week thereafter (again there are exceptions). There is also a serious lack of affordable short term accommodation if you needed time to settle in and earn money. I'm staying in the Meriton, which is $1,500 a week and only places I've found cheaper are hostels! But all in all what a place...truly breathtaking, friendly people, great food and are ally growing culture...would highly recommend! one thing though...be prepared to overhear some extreme view in bars and pubs...just the way it is here, not a huge culture of "PC". Not saying you're going to encounter a huge number of anti Semites of bigots, but there are some strong opinions expressed regularly! Anyway, that's my 2 cents Jonno

Hi Charlie, I think you are the exact candidate who would benefit greatly from a move here. I've been in Sydney now 1 week and can say that I've loved every second of it and really looking forward to the future. Money is a concern, but as people have said, 70k is more than enough to live on! You will find that your UK money won't go far over here, so try and conserve cash til your first paycheck, but then it will be fine...works out at around $4,500 a month or $1,050 a week after tax (unless you've got superannuation to come off at 9%? In which case it would be more like $4,200 and $920 respectively). Rent is the main expense, but you can get a decent place in Surry Hills for $300 - $400 a week, or a good 1 bedroom for $500. Eating out is actually very reasonable and public transport is very cheap! As an aside, Surry Hills seems like it could be the kind of area you're looking for Best advice would be to go for it 100% and not think about converting $ to £ when you get here! good luck Jonno

Hey Eat Static, welcome to Sydney! ive been here a week, 29, just moved from London and am working at The Rocks in the CBD. Congratulations on the best decision you'll ever make I'm keen for some drinks if you're still arranging...got a couple of other Brit mates here too who might also be keen. let me know your plans, but can generally do most nights bar Friday and occasionally Wednesday Jonno

Oldest clubs have to be Notts County, Preston North End and Notts Forest right? Arsenal are mere babies, being formed as the woolwich in 1886... though if I was being pedantic, Oxford and Cambridge first played football in England. Not something they shout about now! And even before then it was played in China and Middle East...great modern footballing cultures of course

Yeah, it was sad to see Shef Wed go down...too much history to stay out. Teams like Shef Wed, Forest and Wolves should be in the prem on their history alone...also, forgot to mention Chris Waddle, one of my fave players of the era and Chris Woods, England's no.1! Great team agreed...have loved the last 20 years at Arsenal...part of me once to see a change though, something's not right. Fans are deluded if they think we should be champions...but a club like Arsenal should be de facto top 3. Hopefully the billionaires will get bored soon and buy some 20 20 teams...

Haha...well you should be having a bit of champers to celebrate then! Doubt we'll make the top 3/4 now...unless Benitez unleashes the red mist and keeps being himself.

I guess I don't count as will be working and living in the city (Kent street initially) I too remember the "glory" days of Shef Wed John Sheridan, Mark Bright, Des Walker et al! Pfirst game I ever went to was with my Dad at Stamford Bridge, Chelsea vs Shef Utd - the game where Hoddle scored to send the Blades out of the Prem in 93/94 .... Sorry for bringing up painful memories! but my team has been Arsenal since 92

'Gratz! Seems like a good place... Having done research etc, once up and running etc and moving into a good 1 bed flat, you can get one for only AUD1500 a month really...not bad at all! Good luck! Jon

Hi, I was in the same boat as you coming over. Are your employers willing to give you a relocation budget? My first 2 weeks will be in serviced accommodation, though some of it can be fairly pricey and is charged as a daily rate: https://gc.synxis.com/rez.aspx?Chain=12196&template=MSAFlex&shell=MSAFlex2&start=availresults&locale=en-GB&dest=NSW&arrive=13/03/2013&depart=22/03/2013&promo=&adult=1&op=Check+Availability&form_build_id=form-Id9sZ-cRhy0MMyDcC04fRRbXz6hrrlWC2ymrviV7TCs&form_id=meriton_availability_form But you could also try http://www.furnishedproperties.com.au/ not as reasonable as flatshares etc but you're safe and can live fairly comfortably. I've been advised to take up to 2 weeks in serviced to make sure you get the right place permanently. If you're happy taking a punt, gumtree could be a good shout or lalastminute if price is the determining factor, maybe a private room in one of these? http://www.hostelbookers.com/results/loc/dd/dst/1120/arr/2013-03-02/ngt/14/ppl/1/#/rating_min%3D0/rating_max%3D100/price_min%3D0/price_max%3D41/shared%3Dfalse/private%3Dtrue/hos%3Dtrue/hot%3Dtrue/apt%3Dtrue/cam%3Dfalse/gue%3Dfalse/suburb%3D/campaign%3Dfalse/table_sort%3Dprivate_asc

Try Charterhouse - they recently set up a HR Recruitment team http://www.charterhouse.com.au/

Hi all, so as I'm officially moving over in 3 weeks, I'm looking at places to live. finances are no longer an issue, so not worried about prices (unless ridiculous of course!) but as I'm working n George Street I wondered where are the nice places in walking distance (20 mins)? dont mind flat shares or own flat, just so long as they're near bars, shops, restaurants and in walking distance... any help fully appreciated!

Think it entirely depends how quickly a case manager is assigned to your application, which in turn depends on the current backlog...imagine there would have been a few aps after Christmas, new year and all that, but hopefully should take 2 weeks if not less...but again, entirely depends how diligent your agent is in managing the process and how quickly someone can look at your case. good luck!

Thanks Rupert, they are giving me 2 weeks serviced accommodation, which is nice. Also found out my work are going to give me my bonus as we're parting on good terms - so financially that will mean I can pay off all uk debt before I go and live comfortably for a few months even if I weren't receiving a salary! Already looking at going to a few socials and the outpouring from friends and family with introductions in Sydney has been astounding - seems everyone knows a few people I'm Sydney! Lugee, I started talking to my solicitor on 25 November 2012, but for various reasons I don't fully understand they didn't fully submit my application until 19th December. From there it took 3 weeks to get my employer accepted as a sponsor and I got my Visa on 24th Jan. interestingly, it only took 2 days once a case worker was signed to it - think a lot of the extra time was due to the solicitor having time away due to the Christmas period and there being some bureaucratic mix ups with the immigration department. i think, if you officially submitted the application in early feb and your employer is a company who have sponsored before, you should be looking at 2 to 3 weeks.

Thanks for the response. Not looking to get a car initially, ideally looking to live near CBD and work etc. Not £5k though, AU$5k, which appreciate won't go far. Just really excited to get over now! How did everyone meet new people...was it hard / easy? Gonna have a few friends over there, but imagine I'll still want to branch out into new social circles, meet both expats and locals...

Hi all, So I had an email from the lawyer...fairly precise and no thrills...simply saying "you are now free to make your arrangements to relocate to Australia" So, 457 is approved! Took an hour or so to sink in as I was at work, but having spoken to my boss and the new company, it truly has now! Im moving to Sydney! Good news. Plan to be there in early to mid March and have been given a $5k budget for relocation...including flights, shipping and accommodation. Im assuming that won't go far? But having just received notification of inheritance (about £80k some point over the next few months) I'm not too worried...plus seem to have a good job that will afford me decent living once get going. Questions are: - how far will $5k probably go? - is there an easy and cost effective way to transfer large sums over without getting stung by the exchange rate? - how has everyone met people in Sydney (going over on my own so will have a fairly bare friends base) and do people here meet up regularly? Cheers, Jon

Hey all cheers for the comments Celt, sorry, not Murphy here! Newjez, job wasn't hard to find, they approached me on LinkedIn, but it's a good role with lots of potential to build a new division in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Singers, Hong Kong and Dubai... I need to resign and work out a compromise with my current business (am a junior Partner)...so may have another couple of months here to see what happens. The job wouldn't be hard to ifnd, but the business would...they are large, stable, great infrastructure and offering an exceptional expenses budget Melza, no, it's not love...we've been seeing each other casually since November but it's just recently gotten more serious and these ones don't come along that much (genuinely fun to be around, makes you feel like an achiever etc!) She's said she'd consider moving for career purposes over, but probably couldn't be for a year Visa 457 Was just having a moment of rhetoric but thanks for reading!