Minch23

The adventure race is great, good on you for competing! It's nice when things like that are on, as it brings the town to life. We enjoy living in Augusta, mainly because of the weather (you get used to the wind). The kids absolutely love it, most of the time we usually have the beaches to ourselves. Not many of the older locals tend to venture out much.

Augusta. We have been here for nearly 3 years.

I'm very lucky and live in this area, and still never get bored of seeing it. Great pictures!

We moved to Australia to 3 years ago to give our 2 kids a better childhood then what we could offer them in the UK. And for us the move was worth every penny. We didn't move to a major city, but to a small coastal town in WA. The education that the local school gives to our sons is excellent, our eldest has learning difficulties, and they have progressed him so far with his learning you would be hard pushed to know he has any. Our children are thriving here (they are 10 and 11), and they have kept some of the innocence about them, that I believe they would of lost long ago in the UK, and are just happy to play rather then want things constantly (which was what they were like before we moved). Our kids will no doubt be exposed to drink and drugs as they get older, it's everywhere. But for us, where we are in Australia, we feel safer bringing our family up here.

5. After getting TR, can apply for both Cook and chief skill assessment? Also, you can only be assessed as either a cook, or a chef, not both.

To be assessed as a chef by the TRA you need at least a cert III in commercial cookery, plus 7 years experience in a commercial kitchen and be working in senior role, ie chef de partie and above. To even be assessed as a cook with only 360 hours of experience behind you, could be tough. You will need to prove your employment through payslips etc, and give very detailed job descriptions. It is not an easy process, and can be very costly!

I live in a small town in WA, but it has everything you need, shop, doctors, school, service staion, great beaches. But the job prospects are not to great if you work outside of hospitality/tourism in this particular town. However, the next biggest town is 50k away, and that is not a bad commute (no traffic jams). The houses are cheaper to rent, and we do fortnightly food shops in the big town to save money, as the smaller supermarket tend to be expensive. The local school is amazing, only 70 kids, so the kids get so much more attantion, especially if they have learning difficulties. The community spirit is definately tight knit, but can be hard to break into, just gotta keep showing your face around town. Once you get used to everyone knowing your name well before you know theirs, small towns can be great to live in! We are 4 hours from the major city, but never really have a need to go there!

To travel south of Perth, there are 2 bus companies, TransWA and southwest lines, both have various routes and not badly priced. To see other things north of Perth there are tour companies that do tours for under $1000, I know a few people who have used adventure tours and were really happy with their trips.

Yes, you can apply for some visa's whilst on a tourist visa, but it can be alot harder then just turning up, finding a sponsor and applying. My whole process from start to finish took 22 months, that was from the time I finally found a sponsor to being granted my visa. The TRA process alone could take up to 6 months. Be prepared for the long haul. You cannot apply for certain visa's without passing the TRA skills assessment.

I think this is correct, but a AQF III is the same as a NVQ level 2. It is really just a matter of getting your wording correct when describing your previous jobs and duties. What classification you choose to apply to the TRA to be assessed under is up to you?! But you would qualify as a cook already. Cooks are also held in very high regard in Australia, so if you do choose to be assessed under this, I don't believe it would harm your chances are finding a sponsor, being assesed is just a part of the immigration process to prove you have the skills they need.

Be persistant with applying for jobs, have a really good CV written up and be patient. If you have a particular area that you want to move to, you may see the same jobs being re-advertised a few months after you first saw them, and just keep applying. Have a really good cover email to send with your CV and good luck! As with the TRA, they do not regard you as a chef in Australia until you have worked in a commercial kitchen for at least 7 years, before this you are regarded as a cook. A chef in Australia is someone who holds resposibility in a kitchen, ie, senior chef de partie or above! If you do not hold a qualification higher then a AQF level III, then I would apply to the TRA as a cook.

Hi Azh, finding a willing sponsor as a chef is very possible, but it is quite a hard process. Along side finding a willing sponsor, you will also need to get your skills assesed by the TRA. This means proving all your work history and qualifications as a cook\chef. Some jobs will advertise that they are willing to sponsor, these are usually on a temp 457 visa or a permanant RSMS 187 visa.

The bridging visa will only kick in once the tourist visa expires. Your Husband should be granted a work permit with his bridging visa, but again this will only be valid once the tourist visa expires. Your husband won't have work rights for the 12 weeks that the tourist visa is valid for. Applying for a permanent visa, will not cancel out the tourist visa he will arrive on.

Before my visa was granted, my sponsors leased out part of the business that I was working in, the new management decided to honor the sponsorship as it was already in the process, and they did not have to do a thing. However, once my visa was granted I was released from my contract by the new management, as my job role was no longer needed. I contacted immigration who told me unless a complaint is made against me, my case with them was closed. However, I have stayed in the same area, and have also remained in the same job role with another company for my own piece of mind, (I was also advised to show in-case any complaint was made against me to show that I have made all efforts to comply with the RSMS guidelines). My advice if your visa is not granted by the takeover is to ask them to honor your sponsorship.

Be patient, finding a willing sponsor can take time, especially if you are looking in largely populated areas (cities). Have you considered living in regional WA? I wouldn't recommend coming out here on a tourist visa to find a sponsor, especially if you are giving up a job and home. Has your partner considered becoming Australian qualified via a RPL (recognition of prior learning)?