Sugarcane

Hi My wife went to RMS (or RTA) office to swap her British licence for a NSW one. Her surname on the British passport is different from the one on the British licence. And they are both different from my surname. So RMS officer told either to first change surname on licence OR apply for a learning licence. Has anyone faced similar situation? Any help / tips are welcome and appreciated.

Good news and relief. RMS in central coast gave me NSW licence a month before I was eligible. They said I was exempt from the 6 month clause as my photo licence would run out.

Did they mention any special clause that they might have used to give you licence? Or was it just some special consideration. What was the loophole?

Thanks for the ray of hope Peach. Can you kindly elaborate? Or a link to previous discussion will be a great favour.

I'm on 457.

Hi People, We migrated to Oz in Feb. My UK driving licence will run out this month (10 years from last issue). RTA (now RMS) told me I'm not eligible for NSW licence as I have to be continuously in Australia for 6 months. I last went on holidays in May, so can't get NSW licence yet. There is an option of renewing british licence online. But it clearly says one has to be resident of UK at the time of application. Also on last page of online application they say they will check data with few agencies. So I stopped my online application there. Any help/tips/ information on this urgent issue will be highly appreciated. Thanks in advance SC

We are both not UK born but we are British citizens by naturalisation. So we do not have British birth certificates. Are you aware if that changes the process?

I think khalliballi meant application reference number OR a full birth cert will be needed. E.g. I've the reference number right now but the birth cert will take 6-8 weeks to arrive. My daughter was born in UK and getting her birth cert was a doddle. I'm not sure why they have to make every paper work so complicated here. Anyway have to sit and wait now.

Hi all, Can you kindly guide on the process of getting British passport in Australia for a baby born in Australia. We've only filed for birth registration today. It might take 6-8 weeks before we get the birth certificate in hand. We only have an application reference number yet. Do we need the birth certificate before we apply for the passport? Thanks in advance Bal

In that case they'd have returned me the deposit. Anyway I went and told them that I have been in touch with NSW Fair Trading office. That seemed to put them on the defensive a bit. They agreed to cancel the deal and return the deposit without much fuss after that. Happy endings...

At the same time a few other people are saying since I didn't put pen to paper, they can't force me to buy the car.

Thank you The Pom Queen. The fair trade office advised me that it's a grey area. Paying the holding deposit itself might be equivalent to signing a contract. However to look into the matter fully they want to me lodge a formal complaint. That would take about 3 weeks. I wonder if anyone knows more into the legal side? Or any alternatives to get the first dealer to cancel whatever they call a buying contract.

I need a little advice here. I paid $500 holding deposit to buy a car for $44000. While looking for finance the finance company put me through to a car broker who got me a deal for the same car for $700 cheaper with added accessories worth $2000. So the broker's offer is about $2700 cheaper. But the first dealer whom I paid the holding deposit is trying to force me into buying the car. They are saying by putting the holding deposit in, I'm obliged to buy the car even though I haven't signed a contract on paper. To complicate the things a bit I'm buying the car in my company name. I did give my company name and ABN to the first dealer so that they can put it on the contract (that I officially didn't sign on paper). So what do wise people think about it? Am I obliged to buy the car from the first dealer as I paid the holding deposit?

Thank you Wozziegirl. That's great piece of advice. Someone else suggested Hamlyn Terrace and Lake Munmorrah earlier today to me. Your post came in just in time to confirm that. It's reassuring to see many properties advertised on Realestate in these areas. I'll probably go for Hamlyn or Woongarah. Thank you for adding Wadalba but that'd be tad bit further from work & school. And many thanks for adding areas to avoid. Is your mother still in the area? @TheEscapePlan I love your screen name. Norah Head looks good but again a bit further from school.

Thank you northshorepom. I'll try pm. Much appreciated. Someone mentioned to me Hamlyn terrace and lake munmorrah are good areas. Anyone with further info?