kmmr
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Everything posted by kmmr
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Once the baby is born, does it need a visa? Might be a good reason to be there, rather than wait to get it added to your visa.
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I was in a similar position last year, and realised it would be much easier to adopt in the UK than in Australia, even as an Australian citizen. We were very lucky and the last chance saloon IVF worked in January! However, I am not sure how the UK authorities would react to you saying you plan to move immediately, as they can't assess your situation re family support etc when you move. It was a real catch-22 for us. We have wonderful family and friends support in Australia, but nothing here - so we would probably not be assessed as suitable in the UK, but would be fine in Australia - yet they strongly discourage adoption there. I read there were about 70 adoptions in NSW a year, including inter-family adoptions, overseas adoptions and the odd local one. Plus there is a strong emphasis on maintaining a link with the birth parents. One positive is that IVF seems much cheaper in Australia. With the medicare rebate it is a few thousand dollars, as opposed to £3-6k in the UK. We are bringing over some frozen embryos too in the hope we can use then at some stage. Best of luck!
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p.s. you can travel to Australia while waiting, but you must inform your case officer. You must be offshore when the visa is granted, so if that happens to be when you are in Australia you will have to leave quick smart. Processing time was 8-9 months recently, not sure if that would have changed. Don't do medicals and police checks upfront, wait for the CO to ask for them
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I am not an expert at all, just someone who has been through the system recently!
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Just thought I would update to say my husband flew out on Wednesday and is now a fully fledged Aussie resident! I'm so pleased. He has left me here in London, and is doing a reccie for 10 days. He spent today with my Mum going to lots of different Northern Sydney suburbs and loved some of the (expensive!!) houses he saw on open days. It's great in Sydney that you can just drop into a selection of houses which are open that day. He is a journalist and actually has a small freelance job tomorrow, so may pick up a few contacts. Very jealous of him seeing all our friends and family, but we will both be over there at the end of the year. Can't wait.
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My husband loves the flying part! He would happily spend the whole trip staring out the window at the terrain. Night or day he loves seeing the world go by below him. He keeps poking me (I get the middle seat!) to show me something! I switch off my favourite TV shows to say 'yes dear'. He is off by himself next week for a 2 week trip to activate his visa, and I think the flight is the best part for him. He also loves planes, so I have managed to get one leg upgraded on points, so he has spent the last week investigating all the features of his seat and the service to expect. It's quite sweet really. I don't mind the trip. I've done it at least 20 times return, although recently more often at least one leg up the front of the plane. I don't love it, but with a relaxed attitude, a pillow, a change of clothes and lots of TV to watch it passes easily enough. I've recently got my hands on some proper sleeping pills, so next time should be even easier (although... hopefully will be with a newborn.. so maybe not!)
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Aussie who made the journey in reverse and back - desperately seeking advice
kmmr replied to backpack's topic in Aussie Chat
I'm an Aussie heading back to Sydney from London after 8 years, for much the same reasons. Family and also because many of my friends have gone back once they had their families. I have to say I'm very apprehensive about it. I love London, I love the buzz and excitement, even though these days I rarely go out in town. Local garden pubs are fantastic, shopping is great and at least in my area the open spaces and housing is wonderful. And it's all so local and easy to get around. We have a car but just use it for the odd big shopping trip, otherwise I love taking the buses and the tube is very functional. I also love the work opportunities, and the fantastic multiculturalness of London. In my industry I'll have to take a big pay cut, and fight for a smaller number of jobs. I know it's minor, but another thing is that after a number of years you have all the minor irritations of life sorted out. I'm comfortable where to go to get a good tradesman, or to buy whitegoods, or how to get my SkyTV/Boiler/garden wall etc fixed. All my bills are direct debit, and I've got good credit if I want to borrow money. All that simple stuff needs to be re-learned, and you have a whole new world of bureaucracy to understand. And that's before you look at medical stuff. I'm a heavy user of medical services (for a variety of reasons) and I'm not looking forward to re-finding the right specialists, and going through all the tests that every doctor seems to want to do when they start looking after you. Plus paying each time!! The NHS is wonderful in that there really is no cost, and once you work out how to manage the red tape, it's efficient and effective. Anyway! I'll be back later this year, and just have to look at it as a new adventure! -
No, but still buzzing after getting it yesterday! Have booked my husband's flights and I've even been extra nice and let him use my frequent flyer points for upgrade on one of the legs. While I stay at home to watch the rain!! I feel I have the raw end of this deal.
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Kempy, I think I mentioned last time that your husband really needs to just get his foot in the door, and then things will improve. It need a 2-3yr plan, but the good thing in Australia is that you can progress without a degree, but it will be harder to get started. I've noticed that non-Australian experience seems to be largely ignored, so just be prepared to be patient. I'm accepting that we will have to cut down our lifestyle when we go there. Although I'm quite happy with that, I think I've had my fill of city jobs. I just need to find someone who is willing to pay me a lovely high salary to stay and home and do a bit of craft - ideally beside a beach!! *lives in hope*
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Woohoo - grant today! Lodged 25 June in London. And they confirmed my husband got his 100 visa. We have been together for 8 years. Ironically we can't go right now. But hubby is preparing for a nice holiday in Sydney with my family to activate it in a month or so. Then we will move over later, hopefully around Christmas. Very pleased!
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Hey all - does everyone know about this spreadsheet? Very useful if you want to obsess further, and helpful to others if you put in your details.. Removed: See Snifters post on next page for correct link.
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Good news SJN. You are about 2 weeks ahead of me, so hopefully mine will appear too. Who is your CO?
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Have they done a Sydney one yet this series? I can't watch it everyday, but I keep an eye on their FB page and it's not always clear where the episode has been shot.
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We are off to my hometown Sydney. My husband is the one waiting for a visa. I sort of wish we could go somewhere else as it looks so expensive!! But there is no point in going back for family reasons and then moving to another city.
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I never email her. I always write, but she emails back usually. But last time we were told not to get in touch again until the Vida was granted! So we are quietly waiting.
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We have just hit seven months, so fingers crossed from here on. Lodged 25 June.
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I'm really not sure how restrictive the market is there to people without degrees. In the area I was in (a more techincal area) we didn't really consider people without finance degrees. But things may be different on the trading floors, especially on the sales side. I'm not close to salaries, but a pretty wild guess would be around $100k. Banking isn't a well paid in Australia (relative to other people) as it is here. Conversely very low paid jobs here (tradies, nurses) appear to be much higher paid. I guess it means there is more equality, but it does result in higher prices, and more competition for nice houses etc. I would think that on a single salary you may struggle to get that Sydney lifestyle you describe, especially being close to a beach. Remember the Northern beaches are very expensive, and the commute quickly becomes unmanageable to the city is you go much beyond Manly/Curl Curl. And all banking is in the city. Sorry, not the news you want I'm sure! I'm thinking of leaving banking, so we can live somewhere cheaper, and find a new way to live a cheaper life with a lower salary.
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Does he not have any qualifications?
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I'm in banking, similarish sort of area but much more senior. I've been told the market is very tight in Australia. There are really only 4 banks, and 1 investment bank (Macquarie). For senior roles I have been told there is a major oversupply of people coming from the UK, and to expect to wait 6 months for a role to appear and then compete hard for it. There are FI desks I'd expect in all the banks. There is also a major emphasis on local experience, rather than transferable skills. So I'd suggest he try to get any role in banking, and then after 12 months start to look for a more career job. Also focus on learning about the local regulatory environment. I find in any bank there is always demand for regulatory people (I think the liquidity space is growing in Aus) and it's a good way to get started.
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I think you will find the construction industry anywhere near London is either highly skilled, or poorly paid. The non-skilled stuff is mainly done by cheap Eastern European labour, and those guys work HARD!! I couldn't cope with that level of work. I paid a poor group of guys £80 each per day to basically dig out my entire garden and carry it one little bag at a time through the house... I gave them a bonus as they all looked so depressed! (apologies for the broad brush strokes - just my experience) Normally WHV Aussies work in offices these days. Receptionists, data entry type jobs if you only have a high school qualification. I came in 1998 on a gap year and temped for a range of companies. Do you have any work experience at all? Weekend jobs etc? I suspect the lower end of the market is pretty competitive.
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I'm moving back for family. It's different as I was raised in Australia, and moved to the UK 8 years ago. But last year I was quite ill, and realised that while I love so many many things about living in London, in the end nothing is as important as family. But then we are a very close family, we talk almost every day on whatsapp which helps keep up close, but for the smaller kids that just doesn't work. So we are heading off! Hopefully there by the end of the year once we get a visa for my husband.
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Renting our house in uk any implications please help
kmmr replied to tracybayliss's topic in Money & Finance
So, having a look at the Australian CGT rules, it looks like you get 6 years on top of the time you actually lived there, but no lettings relief. Plus there are differences in how the actual capital gain is made. I'm actually in the same situation, so thanks for the guidance. -
Renting our house in uk any implications please help
kmmr replied to tracybayliss's topic in Money & Finance
I can only tell you the UK rules sorry. But this will get you started: Capital Gains tax is payable on the gain in theory, but there are significant exemptions. If you sell within 3 years of it being your primary residence then you are eligible for Primary Residence Relief. If you sell after that, then you only pay CGT for the time when you were not living there. Plus you get further relief. An example may help: 1. Work out the total gain For example, you live in the property from 2008-2014. Then you rent it out until 2019, and sell it in 2020. Lets assume your capital gain (after some allowed expenses, like selling costs) is £200,000. 2. Work out the primary residence relief exemption You have owned it for 12 years. You lived there for 6 years + add on 3 years free and you have 9 years exempt. You therefore only have to pay CGT for 3 of the 12 years. So take the £200k and multiply by (3/12)= £50k 3. Reduce by Letting Relief If you let out all or part of a property that was your principle primary residence, then you can get up to another £40k relief for the time when you were renting it. I don't fully understand this exemption to be honest, but lets assume you get another £20k allowance. This step could actually remove all your gain, but for the purposes of this example lets assume it simply reduces your gain to £30k 4. Reduce by your Annual CGT allowance If you were in the UK the first £10,900 (2013) is exempt from CGT. And if you own it in two names then you can use both peoples allowances. Assuming there are two of you. £30,000 - 10,900 - 10,900 = £8200 5. Pay tax on what is left You then add the gain (£4100 each) to your incomes and you pay for it at your marginal rate. So if you are both high rate taxpayers it is 28%. So total tax paid on a £200k gain is £2296. Less if one or both are lower rate tax payers. -
I think it has been said on here that moving to Australia shouldn't be done for financial reasons. It will be costly, but you have to want to go for the other reasons, broadly referred to as 'standard of living'. Having said that, I wouldn't be comfortable leaving with not enough money, and it sounds like things are a bit tight for your family. We are planning to spend 6 months unemployed, and with higher costs than we have here due to all the setup costs, travel, shipping, deposits for rentals etc etc. Moving is stressful enough (I've done it a few times) without adding in unnecessary financial stress. Sorry to be negative. If you really want to go, then you will find a way, but if you have doubts, remember that the UK is wonderful too!
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Great news! That's less than 8 months, so a great sign. Would you mind saying who you CO was? Also, can you confirm that the first entry date is 1 year after the medicals? Congrats!