Marisawright

I'm sure you and @calNgary both had a good experience. Most people do. But just because most people drive on motorways and don't have an accident, doesn't change the fact that lots of accidents happen on motorways. Same with shared containers. The risk is higher than with a dedicated container or Movecube. It's up to the individual to balance risk vs cost.

Most of those stories come from people who book space in a shared container. And yes, that does happen, and it's inevitable if you think about it. Your stuff is loaded into a huge container with stuff from three or four other families. The shipping company has processes to keep them all separate, but the container is likely to get unpacked and packed again a few times before your shipment gets to you. Customs may decide they need to inspect something in the middle of the container and your stuff is at the front, or the company might unload the container onto smaller trucks for final delivery. The more handling, the more chances of things going missing or getting broken. That's one of the reasons the Movecube became so popular so quickly. You get to pack your own stuff into your own cube, which gets sealed up. Having said that, I think you're doing the right thing. I recall you're likely to be in the country, and the cost to ship your goods from the arrival port to a country destination are likely to be eye-watering and not worth it.

TBH, from your previous comments, I think you'd be better off with a shared container. Movecubes are best if you have a lot of boxes and small to mid-size items to ship. If you're shipping large furniture items like beds or sofas, they'll fill the cube inefficiently and leave you with odd empty spaces that you can't fit anything into. If you've looked at examples of how to pack the Movecube, the whole reason it's worth using is that you can use every inch of space by packing all the crevices and gaps with small items. However here are some considerations when making the comparison. Firstly, make sure you're comparing like for like. Different shippers deal with the arrival charges differently. NO ONE can tell you what the customs/port charges will be when your shipment arrives in Australia, because it depends entirely on customs/port authorities. Some shippers don't mention them at all, some mention them but say, "we can't tell you what they'll be". Movecube usually includes an estimate of those costs in their quote. If you check the small print, it will say it's just an estimate. Therefore, I'd be going back to Movecube, and ask them to clarify what that customs charge is. Remember that with the Movecube, you're paying for extra security: your goods will be shipped in a sealed box which will be opened only by customs. A shared container may be packed and unpacked several times during its journey, (as partial shipments are added and removed), increasing the chances that your stuff will get lost or damaged.

Petair -- run by vets.

Round my way (in Melbourne), some kind of -doodle is compulsory, or a French bulldog. Greyhounds are still 'in' but not sheepdogs so much.

If you are an Australian citizen, you won't lose your citizenship no matter how long you're overseas for. My understanding is, it doesn't matter what date you leave Australia and move to the UK. Whatever day you leave, that's the day you stop being liable for Australian tax and start being liable for UK tax. So if you leave in, say, December 2024, you'd be liable to pay Australian tax for the period from July to December, and that's it. Whatever you earn from that date on in the UK has nothing to do with Australia, and vice versa. I should say, that assumes you haven't left kept any investments in Australia.

Are you aware that if you leave Australia before you reach pension age, you won't be able to claim your Australian govt pension? Do you have enough super that you won't need it? Are you eligible for the UK pension instead? Also, be sure you look into the best way to collect your super. If you wait until you've moved overseas and then claim your lump sum, you'll lose a huge chunk of it to the British taxman. So if you want a lump sum, it's vital to withdraw it well before you leave Australia. Once it's landed in your Australian account, it's just 'savings' and you'll be able to transfer it without tax implications.

Are you sure it's a partner visa you want to apply for? It sounds like maybe a Prospective Marriage Visa would be a better choice? For a partner visa, you must already be in a 'de facto' relationship for at least a year. That means you've already been living as if you are married for a year. Dating or being engaged does not count. I'd recommend a consultation with a MARA registered migration agent to make sure you're applying for the right visa.

However do check whether there is an outlet in the city you're moving to...

Not saying they are. In fact, that's the point. I remember being struck by that when I first arrived in Sydney. Sydney has its Little Vietnam and Little China and Little Lebanon. Yet try to find a suburb where Scots or English or Welsh people congregate and you'll draw a blank. Presumably because we're English-speaking and mostly white, we tend to just become part of the larger community. I've observed other Australian cities are the same -- except Perth. I have relatives in Perth and was surprised at how many of their friends are other Scottish migrants who live in the same area.

It's on the record. Of course not ALL British people move to be in a community of Brits, but in Perth, it's FAR more common than anywhere else in Australia. The statistics prove it. Look it up.

No one said it was like Benidorm. What we said was that when they move abroad, many British people prefer to live in a community of other British people, rather than become part of a melting pot. Benidorm is an example. Perth is the only city in Australia where that happens. The five most British suburbs in Australia are all located in Perth. For some migrants, that might be exactly what they're looking for. Others (like Steve) prefer a multicultural experience.

The most sensible way to find out is to book a consultation with Paul Hand (above) who is a qualified migration agent. The employer-sponsored visa is a 482 visa and there is no age limit. It's the new version of the 457, basically. It lets you work on a 2 to 4 year contract for an employer, with the possibility of renewal for another 2-4 years. I notice on another thread you were asking about parent visas. The wait for parent visas is extremely long, so the 482 would offer you the possibility of filling the gap. There is also the possibility of a bridging visa if you then apply for a parent visa. It's important to get the strategy right, so I would strongly advise you to consult a good migration agent (like Paul Hand, who posted above), to work out the best combo of visas to achieve your goals.

The slow one takes 30 years. The "quicker" one takes about 12 years.

In that case, why are you being given a tax code?

To be specific nowhere is going to be a bad commute to Deer Park/Caroline Springs because he won't have to enter the city. It's just a case of deciding how long a commute he wants. However Quoll makes a good point. If, as you say, your visa will "move quickly" it must be a 482 temporary visa, in which case you won't be able to access the apprenticeship scheme. I'm sure your husband will want to apply for a more permanent visa asap, but that can take a year.

Do you still have other investments in the UK? I'm wondering why you're still doing a tax return.

What about Newcastle (NSW)? Could DH get work there? I know Sydneysiders rubbish Newcastle but it's based on a very outdated concept of the city.

Sunbury is a suburb these days, not a rural area, but (like Caroline Springs) it's right on the very outskirts of Melbourne and still has a country-town feel about it.

He'll find work, he may just not get the chances at promotion that he would in the UK.

I know about the exemption, was just trying to keep it simple. Anyway, I thought that if he bought another property and has been living in it, the UK house can't be claimed as his main residence any more?

Did you sell your own home, that you were living in before you moved, or was it rented out? If it was your own home, then there are no Australian tax liabilities. If you rented it out, even for a short time, then it's an investment property and you should've been declaring the rental income already. I'd advise using a tax agent to work out what your liability for tax would be, but bottom line is that it doesn't matter because how or when you transfer the money won't make any difference to the tax liability.

Actually, beds are the one thing I wouldn't be taking. They cost a lot to ship compared to what they're worth. Also, mattresses, sheets etc are not the same size in Australia.

At your daughter's age, it's going to feel a bit frightening at first, but she'll soon adapt and is likely to find it a wonderful adventure, whether it becomes your forever home or not. In fact, I'd say it's a good time to give it a try, because you certainly wouldn't want to be moving her once she's 14 or 15 and about to enter her most important years at school. Right now you have a window where she can recover from the double upheaval if you end up moving back again. However, I am a little worried about this idea of "work out a schedule where she would come and visit for extended periods". The Australian school year runs from February to December. The only opportunity for an "extended" stay would be the summer holidays. I guess it could work if you both fly back to have Christmas in the UK, then you go back to work and she stays until school starts in February? It would mean she'd miss out on most of summer in Australia every year and that might affect her friendships here, since she'll miss out on all their summer activities. The cost of living in Australia is higher than in the UK, especially housing if you have to live in one of the capital cities. That's offset, in some occupations, by higher salaries -- but it's not the case for every occupation, so check out the salaries in your field and make sure you would be earning more, because you'll need it. Also research the cost of childcare (before and after school care, holidays etc), which I believe is higher than in the UK.

Ah that makes a huge difference. Caroline Springs is right on the very outskirts of Melbourne, almost in the country already. https://www.homely.com.au/caroline-springs-melton-melbourne-greater-victoria