BadgerLady

Already failed skilled migration... is it really fraudulent though? That seems a bit extreme! My employer is happy to let me go at any point as long as I repay their costs for nomination. In actual fact, they're not even covering my costs - I have to give them $8,000 for the privilege. I'm reading the DIBP website and as far as I can tell "two years in a single occupation with a single employer" is the equivalent to "a skills assessment"... otherwise the Direct Entry and Transition are identical. I can't see anything that asks you to promise you'll continue to work with that same employer..?

Hey - follow-up question: How soon after getting nomination from my employer can I leave? Do I have to wait until PR has been granted, or can I bugger off the minute that nomination arrives at DIBP? There's a chance now that I might be able to start the process in 7 weeks time... and my dream job has just come up in Sydney with an application deadline of 5 weeks time...

Maybe I've just been lucky! My first full-time employer (14 years ago) I would book a one-to-one with an HR rep every 6 months to discuss how I'm doing and where I feel my career is going. Occasionally to request an evidence-based pay rise. In fact one of my best friends now was on that team :wink: Here we're expected to 'counsel' one another. Each person is allocated someone to be their 'counsellor' and I have three people that I'm 'counsellor' to. But it's just on top of your day job - there's no time set aside to do it, you receive no training and none of us really knows what the company policies are or how to make things happen...

I've had no problem buying the same sizes - standard King, Double and Single. I did buy my quilts in Asda and fly home with them the first winter here, just because they seemed to be shockingly expensive in Sydney! If you can compress it (vacuum?) I'd say it's worth bringing. Assuming you're not moving to Queensland or somewhere where it'll be too warm.

Aah, it was only since the launch of MyGov - a security requirement. So just us in-betweenies affected then!

Thank you I think I can hang on - I've processed this latest kick in the teeth and relaxed a bit now. After all, there's no need to work HARD, just stick it out as peacefully as possible. Haha, how's that for a motivated employee?? Unfortunately this employer has the worst HR support I've ever come across. Each department is supposed to have a rep they can go to, but the turnover is massive - I had to scroll past 5 different people who've been 'our rep' in the last year before finding the right one! When I did finally contact her she refused to reply directly, instead having a conversation with my boss. The majority of the department is offshore in China and they therefore stick rigidly to policy regardless of whether or not that policy makes sense in an individual situation. Even my Managing Director has made direct appeals to HR on my behalf and hit a brick wall. There's absolutely no human empathy. Rather than the 'counselling' type role that I might have expected in UK companies they're more like traffic wardens. "Sorry luv, I've already written the ticket."

Fair enough! Must be new. It was September last year I was working with the ATO and they confirmed it wasn't possible, but that they were working on a solution ;-) I had no choice but to use a tax agent my first year, did it online the second and third...

There's a monetary tie, yes. It's on two tiers: 1. The level that I've been working at for the last 18 months, despite not being formally promoted, the company will cover the cost of nomination but I'll have to repay 100% of the costs if I leave within 12 months; 50% if I leave within 2 years, or 33% if I leave within 3 years. 2. The level I'm actually still being paid at, they'll do the nomination as long as I pay the full cost of $8,000 up front. But a signing bonus would more than cover that anyway, so no probs ;-) (they've promised to give me the official promotion at Christmas, but I really need to see more change than just that to stay for more than a year!)

Good choice! It's actually not possible to do it online yourself the first year anyway... you can register, but it won't let you submit until you've got at least one tax return already under your belt. So go to a tax agent this year, then do it yourself next year when you have more confidence. Don't worry - it's much simpler than you think it will be

This is what I investigated a couple of years ago. At the time, I knew I would be disqualified because I would on occasion be out of the country for more than 12 weeks. I found that there are a lot of possible exemptions, such as military work, but that my circumstances wouldn't qualify for an exemption. Since then, wherever possible, I've turned down overseas assignments in favour of domestic ones. It sounds like under the new rule (no more than 1 year out of the last 4), I'll get away with it anyway :cool:

I stumbled across this article this morning on the kind of work we do, in case it appeals :-) I absolutely love it. In one year I've worked with luxury brands in Paris and coconut farmers in the Solomon Islands... and a helluva lot of government work that actually makes real, speedy impact on people's lives:http://www.themandarin.com.au/67749-podcast-mike-bracken-on-reforming-an-institution-from-within-using-internet-era-skills/

Should just about get away with that then :-) Citizenship application target: winter 2018! (if I stick with this job)

Ah! Fair enough. Last time I looked, it said you couldn't have "more than 12 weeks overseas out of any 12 months" during your 5-year residency period...

Yeah, I do work overseas a fair bit though (as part of my Australian job), so will probably never be eligible for citizenship... unless I take and stick to something like a government job that doesn't need foreign travel.

Service Design. Best way in is to study Human-Computer Interaction, Industrial Design or Anthropology / Psychology, then to pick up an internship with a design consultancy. You've gotta love it though! What's he into?

I'd go eBay every time. Go for quality. Cables in-store in Australia are way overpriced, and very often are just cheap imported goods anyway - I got an adapter from Coles supermarket a while back that was $15 and clearly just cheap and nasty :-/ If you're willing to wait until you arrive, I second the charity shop idea. If you need to be prepared, there really is no good alternative to Maplins.

Pole dancing :jiggy: I used to teach beginner's classes back in London, but since I came here I've become very fat and out-of-practice! When I first got to Sydney I joined a school in Surry Hills and loved it, but started having to miss blocks of terms, meaning I couldn't move up to the next level. And at $50 a week, when you miss 5 weeks it seriously hurts! I tried a couple of other schools nearer the CBD but they both gave the same story - I'd have to buy a whole term in advance. And I can literally be sent to a different state/territory with less than 2 weeks notice (last time I was sent to Canberra long-term it was on 9 hours notice). You guys have inspired me though! I've just found a French conversation meetup this weekend in Melbourne, so I've signed up for that ;-)

Wholeheartedly agree! It's tough though - I never know where I'm going to be more than a couple of weeks in advance. Last winter I found myself in Canberra for a few months, and we were about to sign another Canberra-based contract so I auditioned for a local theatre company and got the part in a musical. After two rehearsals, I heard that the contract had changed and I'd have to divert to Brisbane. Gyms usually require some kind of commitment, as do dance classes (I inquired after several). I love spending time with animals but can't commit to keeping and looking after them so I occasionally visit a disappointing Cat Cafe. I have gone along to random Meetup groups like "Under 40's Barefoot Bowls" - in fact my 30th birthday when I first got here was a karaoke night with strangers! - but lack of regular contact means we just fall out of touch again. Don't get me wrong - I am truly dedicated to my work and love what I do. But you're right: one needs another way to be happy when things aren't going so well...

Yeah - he dedicated his whole life to working hard, paying a mortgage and raising us kids. By the time we left home he'd never travelled outside of Europe. Since I moved here and he's come to visit, it's opened up a whole new world for him... as a man going through divorce this is where he wants his real life to begin!

Do you mean Dad's visa? I never assumed it would be easy. It can take up to 30 years, assuming he doesn't meet the love of his life in that time. Meanwhile he's doing perfectly well on 12-month tourist visas, going back to Europe in our winter. But it's his dream and I have to fulfil my obligations to help make it happen!

Parent visa (subclass 103): https://www.border.gov.au/Trav/Visa-1/103-

No. Literally nothing. I don't know a single person in this country beyond my colleagues (and ex colleagues). I have no hobbies that I keep up with any more... My work is project based so I travel domestically * a lot * and therefore can't commit to anything

Thanks! I genuinely don't know how long I want to stay in Australia. I don't feel I'm 'done' with it yet, but the visa restrictions cloud my judgement. Personally I think I'll live in a few more countries along the way to 'settled' - have some friends in Cambodia I'd like to join at some point. One extra pull is that my Dad, who's visited me every year so far, is really keen on moving out here one day. And he's too old to do it through work (61). So I do feel an obligation to get PR so that I can sponsor him...

The degree doesn't count for anything in my career. It was 14 years ago and academia values my Advanced Diploma at the same level anyway.... but also with that amount of work experience and a great portfolio no-one even looks at the qualification. It's ONLY DIBP that cares! P.S. Actually there is a massive shortage of my skills in Australia - the last report I read concluded that 72% of the workforce would have to come from overseas.

Mmm. Well, we'll find out about the government job today... I am pretty unique :-P And it's no ordinary role. I guess I'm looking for personal stories where someone really felt a positive impact from getting their PR. My visa status has felt like a hanging weight for the last four years. It seems like every time I try and do something to build a personal life, it gets in the way. For example I've always wanted to foster children and had some great conversations with the NSW fostering agency who suggested doing their training programme with a view to taking on respite care... but I couldn't even apply to begin the training without PR. Termination from my current job, although technically possible, is extremely unlikely in the next 6 months. I'm one of their top performers and am consistently profitable, despite the pain I've had. And tonight I've had another job offer from a rival agency in London. 50% pay rise if I take that one :-O So I really need to be talked into staying in my current job!