Beffers

6 hours ago, mext60 said:

Hi, asking on behalf of a friend, as he is quite worried and want to launch a review with migration tribunal.

He was granted PR in 2014 and did his reccie trip immediately afterwards and is still living outside Australia (though was planning to move now). After which he got married and in the last four years had two kids, he applied for partner visa last year and got it rejected this year due to a medical finding for one of his child. The finding was Mild Developmental delays, on the background of childhood epilepsy. He raised a request for health waiver which was rejected and thus the visa was rejected. My queries are as follows:

1. Anyone with similar circumstances can please elaborate or guide what did they do?
2. If he moves to Australia alone and find work and starts living here, what are the chances that in the next one or two years he can apply and get the partner visa (spouse & Children) for his family.
3. Any migration agent here with experience of challenging such circumstances in migration tribunal and what are chances for success. My friend wants to have professional help on this if the advice is to challenge it with the tribunal. In such case, I will forward contact details of such RMA to him.

There's no guarantee his partner and kids would get a visa after he moved here, but he should contact George Lombard, who is a migration agent who specialises in dealing with medical obstacles. 

http://austimmigration.com.au/

On 3 September 2018 at 04:19, JetBlast said:

You should have had all these before you applied?

Yeah I thought the same, that you go thru your skills assessments first, and then you progress application with the code from VETASSES?

5 hours ago, The Pom Queen said:

You could look at the Dandenong Ranges https://visitdandenongranges.com.au/

Macedon Ranges https://www.visitmacedonranges.com/village/mount-macedon/

and out Warrandyte way. 

‘The Mornington peninsula is also lovely and has a mix of new builds and acreage 

 

 

I live in the Dandenong Ranges and it's a great area. It takes about an hour to get to CBD on train. Our township is green and leafy, and it feels more rural up here but we are still classed as Melbourne Metro, but the city is a world away. 

In terms of regional Vic, I loved Ballarat and could quite happily live there, and I like it out Gippsland / Bass Coast way too. 

21 hours ago, Sharon said:

No I want to do it the correct way I just don’t know how to go about it ..... and being naive we have planned the wedding date .... nothing that can’t be undone but it just postpones things .... can I put in prospective marriage visa and travel on it whilst waiting ? Help .... we have already been apart for over a year and it’s so hard xx 

Prospective marriage visa is the right way. If you do come over on a tourist visa, then make sure you have a return ticket otherwise Immigration may not believe your story should you get stopped, and if they discover otherwise, then it's a 3 year ban with no guarantee of a visa after that ban period.  If you travel on a tourist visa, and then apply onshore for the 820 partner visa, just be careful on arrival. 

1 hour ago, aconcannon said:

 

My husband & I have been happily living in

Sydney (no kids) for the last 3 years. During that time we’ve been back to the UK to visit twice (once on a planned trip & once for a funeral). No family have been over to visit us, only friends. We’re currently in the UK & have been for the past 8 weeks! We are inbetween moving from Sydney to the Gold Coast which is how we were able to have the extended trip home.

 

We fly back to Australia tomorrow and the guilt is already eating away at me, and has been for a good few days!! Why do the goodbyes never get easier? Will they ever get easier?

 

I sit & look at my parents, with their new wrinkles & ailments, their older faces from the last time I saw them & I wonder what they’ll be like next time I see them? I wonder will I ever seen them again? My mums had 2 cancer scares recently, amongst other major health concerns & I worry will there be a day I get the dreaded call & have to give up my life In Australia to come home to look after them? My brother also lives abroad & im the only girl so this would be expected of me. I see the sadness in their eyes that our time together is coming to a close. I’ve promised I’ll be home Xmas of next year, but I know they worry they may not be here & maybe this is the last time they’ll see me. I can’t help but to break down in tears when im out of the room as the guilt of leaving them & knowing that I’m hurting them overpowers me.

 

I would never willingly give up my life in Australia. My husband & I love it there & we know it’s where we want to be. I have days when I’m in Australia & the guilt pangs hits me, but generally its far & few between - unless of course when they’ve been sick or we’ve had a death in the family.

 

I just struggle immensely with the goodbyes, as I’m sure everybody does. I’m borderline depressed in the build up to leaving & due to feeling so low I’m generally quieter & deep in thought which in effect puts a downer on the final few days..but I can’t snap out of it. My mum tends to be the same & seeing her be so quiet & sad makes me feel even more sadness & guilt as I know I’ve caused it!

 

It also doesn’t help that my parents won’t fly to Australia so the pressure is always on me to return to the UK to see them! My husband is less enthusiastic about coming home & would happily only come once every 5 years, which also puts me in an awkward position as I feel like I have to choose between my husbands happiness & my parents as I’d like to come back to see them at least every 18 months...and I worry that’s leaving it too long!

 

If anybody has any coping strategies or words of wisdom please do share them! Thanks

I don't think it does. It's the flip side of migration. Big hugs xxx

8 hours ago, Jojoe said:

I'm not sure but as far as I am aware you need to be residing in Australia to put in your application for citizenship , The time frames for test dates  are uncertain  and so are the ceremony dates . A guide line at the moment has been suggested to be  at least a year plus from application to gaining ceremony depending on which state you live in . The important factor for those who can gain citizenship and those wanting to travel outside Australia who haven't gained citizenship or have one pending   is to ensure they have the correct visa to travel . The PR visa doesn't expire but the right to travel outside Aistralia does . My advice would be to ensure you have a residents return visa in place if you are wanting to travel outside Australia or are outside Auatralia  if the right to travel on your PR visa is due to expire . I would strongly  advise you to ensure you have the correct visa to travel and then when you are ready  to commit to go for your citizenship then put  in your application . The reason being you could put in your application and get a test date within a few months and then have to wait many months for your ceremony date or vice versa and you have to be present for both . Also please  make sure you ensure you look very  deeply into the travel periods regarding your citizenship application as  travel above a certain period before putting in an application may mean your not eligible at that time . We gained citizenship last year but it was straight forward for us as we hadn't travelled outside Aistralia since we gained our PR 

Such an important point regarding travel within the period immediately before application is submitted and assessed. Double check this very carefully, with an agents help if needs be as you wouldn't want to submit, then disappear travelling, to find that you're ineligible or something and come back after 6-12 months to find no citizenship and eligibility down the loo due to this particular trip. 

1 hour ago, brownsuger said:

I voluntarily returned to my home country.So Why would a case manager try to misguide me over the matter as if I was refusing to leave??

I thought they were trained to give guidance to people in situations as I was before??

You say you voluntarily left as tho you were doing Australia a favour?!  You were being held in detention for a serious visa breach and you asked to leave to return to your home country. Therefore Immigration escorted you to the airport. Why do you think they did that? To make sure you left, and didn't 'escape' en-route to stay in the country illegally. Immigration files aren't just erased, nor are people who breach their conditions done any favours. I'd be very surprised if you were ever allowed to enter Australia again (even if you did apply for a visa after the ban, it's not guaranteed and many applicants who have flouted the system before are often refused as they fall down on the character requirement amongst other things) and as such, please - if you and your wife want to be together - it will probably need to be in a country other than Australia.  And that's all that @Nemesis meant. It's highly unlikely you would secure a visa any time soon and so you either accept the separation from your wife which is obviously far from ideal, or you make arrangements to be together elsewhere. @Nemesis is right when he says other couples before you have been faced with similar situations. This forum is designed to assist, but also the hard cold facts of Immigration can't be watered down or tweaked to make the outcome more palatable. Your situation is unfortunate, but you must've also known you were breaching your visa for every day for each one of those eight years, and that's the hard truth.

4 hours ago, brownsuger said:

I overstayed in Aus for 8 years that is way over 28 days.I was in detention for a month until i decided i had to return back home to Namibia.

But before i returned, i voluntarily,bought my airticket and I  was given visa E to allow me to fly.I was also given two immigration officers to escort

me up to the airport departure lounge and the condition was that they wear plain clothes as a special special agreement with me.I was also told by my immigration 

case officer that NO ban would apply on me and my history would be erased  from the immigration records.I was even advised to reapply for a new visa

as soon as i returned to my home country.When my superannuation fund was ready,the Aus government deducted $10,000 in taxes.

BUT was  my case manager telling me the truth??  My wife is still in Aus and she is on 458 graduate visa and she wants to put me on it.PLEASE advise.

I  really need  to be with my wife.

 

I would be very surprised if you don't have a ban, especially after immigration agents escorted you to the airport etc. Consult with a migration agent who can work with you to see if there is any way you can be with your wife, but I would agree with Very Stormy, you would surely have a ban? 

On 24 August 2018 at 07:30, Phil & Vikki said:

From some of the posts that we have read in the past our understanding was that the three year rule had been scrapped now. Every student had to pay the same fees to go to uni these days and there was no special reduced rate for local students as apposed to international students. That may be wrong and we hope it is, as we are moving back and want our kids to go to uni if the choose to, without high costs. If the three years rule has been scrapped then you could go at any time.

A friend of mine returned to the Uk last year otherwise they would've been outside the 3 year residency rule and would've been stumped with international fees as not entitled to home fees or student loans if non resident for 3 years immediately preceeding university entry.  So unless it's changed in the last year, there is still a habitual residency requirement. 

Every firm is different. Sometimes they have an agent like Crown who book flights, find your accommodation, organise your container all up front with no expense to yourself.  Others will book your flights but then you pay for container and say accommodation for 2/4/6 weeks on arrival and you keep receipts and claim it back, with agreed expenses limits. Depends on the relocation policy of your new employer. 

4 hours ago, Marisawright said:

Apart from the cost of housing, everything else will cost the same whether you live in the inner city or in an outer suburb.  Bear in mind that Australian cities are very sprawling, so if you do live in an outer suburb, you're going to have a long commute and expensive fares.

Although this depends on where you love and work. We live outer suburbs Melb and pay 1700/month rent. We don't work in CBD, but each have a half hour drive so not a long commute or expensive fares. Although train fares in Melb from outer suburbs are only 40 bucks a week anyway which I don't class as expensive, having lived in outer suburbs of London and that was an expensive commute!! 

18 hours ago, Dominc said:

Hi Guys

Needing some advice. I'm moving out to Melbourne in early January 2019, on a four year TSS482 skilled migrant visa. I'm moving from the UK. And whilst we have reciprocal health care arrangements with Oz Medicare services. As part of my visa it states I need to maintain adequate health care cover/insurance whilst in Australia.

I'm having some problems getting MediBank, or similar companies, to insure/proved a quote, as I don't have a permanent Oz address yet. I'm staying in a hotel for the first three weeks upon arrival, until I find an apartment to rent. Can I just use my work address (I know that) temporarily for the first few weeks in Melbourne?

Has anyone else experienced this? Either on the new TSS482 to the older e457 visa? How did you resolve this? I've already opened a migrant bank account. That was so easy. I can't understand how sorting health insurance is causing more issues!

Any advice would be appreciated.

Dom.

We had travel insurance for the first two weeks and then used our AirBandB address for our insurance (with permission from AirBandB host).

3 hours ago, Pakaus said:

We haven't applied as yet. Have to wait 28 days after sending money to agent. My husband is Pakistani and im Australian (born here). Previously we applied for onshore partner visa using schedule 3 criteria, the visa was refused jan 2017we went throught AAT, hearing was jan 2018, They agreed with immi. He had  leave. I cant libe there with him mainly because i have 2 children from a previous  marriage.  I just went and visited him in Pakistan. We miss each other terribly. We have been married 5 years but the issue is we eloped and my family think we've been married 3 years. I am planning on being upfront with immi about this how they dont  know but im worried this will look bad, any advice. We have plenty of proof to proove our relationship is geniune. The previous one was refused mainly cos he worked for a very short time (so stupid i know) when he didnt have work rights. Any advive would be much appreciated 

You need an agent to guide you through this.  Lying to Immigration would be taken very seriously and would possibly mean he couldn't get another visa.  An agent will help you navigate the landscape and give you some honest advice about the best pathway to take.

On 15/03/2018 at 04:49, kazb67 said:

Myself, OH, toddler & dog will be moving to Melbourne on a PR visa.

We’ve been to WA a few times & were all set to go there however jobs for my OH seem more plentiful in VIC. Unfortunately neither of us have visited before so are just researching online.

We THINK we’ve chosen Frankston as the suburb that we’d like to rent longer term, however we’ll have a good rummage around when we arrive to see how it feels.

 

When we arrive we’re thinking about finding a house closer to the CBD for approx 1 month. This allows us to be close to the city so that OH can get to potential job interviews without travelling too far & allows us to explore suburbs round about. We had initially thought about a holiday caravan/cabin park so as there were plenty of things to do literally on the doorstep for our toddler whilst my OH is out job hunting, we also won’t necessarily have a car right away either.

 

Id appreciate hearing your experiences .....

Where did you stay when you 1st arrived, location/property type? 

Anything you’d do differently if you had to do it again?

We had a 3 weeks in an AirBandB on arrival in St Kilda, handy for jumping on a tram and going to the CBD, but also handy for beach and chilling.  We arrived 16th June last year and had our rental to move into by 3rd July, and that was with a change of preferred area in between (we had chosen Seaford - just north of Frankston - to start with and had a house and school place sorted, then had a change of heart, and ended up in the Dandenong Ranges which suited us much better, more trees, less people)!

We hired a car to get out and about after our first week and then on week four, purchased a second hand Holden to get us about for around the $2K mark.

The funny thing is that we wanted to be near the CBD for the same reason but neither of us work in the CBD, so it kind of cancelled itself out!

If you want to go down the holiday park route, think there's a Big4 around Seaford/Frankston area.  If you go down the AirBandB route, negotiate a better deal for anything longer than one week.  We got our second week discounted and paid about half price for our third week, and was offered a fourth week at a discounted rate as well but didn't need it in the end.  Our AirBandB landlord also provided a reference for us, for our real estate agency for our long term home rental, which was really handy, and said we could use his address for post so our medicare cards and TFN were registered there initially until we found our feet.  Our AirBandB was a two bedroom ground floor fully self contained ArtDeco apartment, literally five minutes walk from Botanic Gardens and Barkley St in St Kilda, and about a 10 minute walk to Luna Park.  Very handy.

Good luck!

9 hours ago, xxcat91xx said:

hi I am looking into possible move to the gold coast in 18 months on completion of my nursing degree with my 6 year old and partner. I am just wondering if people have moved there is it beter quality of life and worth it as looking at areas the gold coast attracts me more than other areas and what are schools like over there for 6 year olds thanks

Do you have a Visa sorted?  Have you visited Australia/Gold Coast before, and do you have an idea of what area you'd be looking at?

People move for all kinds of reasons, and in terms of better quality of life, only you will know that once you move - we all have different values and requirements for our lifestyle, and what suits one person won't suit another.  Maybe a recce would be good idea?

On 22 August 2018 at 07:28, sianyo said:

It was a letter on Immi file which also got directly emailed to our email address. It was definitely requesting medicals to be done so that they can continue with process. form 80 most likely required but I have seen some instances where people don't need them. wow 3 months! lucky you! It didn't happen to be applied from Canada? 

We also had a letter on our Immi automatically which shows up in an email, it's standard procedure. But then a week after applying, we had a separate official email from our individual case officer (with their name and direct contact details) asking for both meds and police checks to be done (COs will generally ask for both).  

That's why I asked for clarification as lots of people are mistaking the standard letter/email on Immi as an official request.  The risk of this mistake is that you jump to do your medicals but as its not an official request from an Individual case officer, there's a risk that they will expire before the visa is processed, if you understand what I mean.  

And no, not Canada.  We we applied from London! 

3 hours ago, Maximoo1991 said:

Hi,

My partner and I have been in relationship since 14 February 2015, and we lodged our partner visa in march 2018. That's 3 years, 3 weeks.

From what I understand from the screenshot, it's 3 years before you lodge the application, then visa 100 will grant immediately after visa 309 (gotten last week).

How can I prove this?

 

It all depends on what evidence you provided with your application, and whether the case officer deems this adequate enough to prove you're in a genuine, committed relationship. I've seen occasions where they have granted this without issue after three years, and other cases where they've granted the 309 only as they have t been satisfied by the evidence presented. There's no automatic assumption that the 100 will automatically be granted. 

Do the WHV and spend some more time together. Immigration would be unlikely to accept an application for PMV based on two weeks of face to face contact. When you come over on WHV, can you register your relationship with the NSW authorities? Also if you are going to want to be considered a defacto, then you will both need to accept the fact her Centrelink payments will probably change once that happens. You won't be able to have it both ways, in terms of becoming defacto AND keeping her welfare payments. 

17 hours ago, maxia066 said:

Hello all !

It’s been an emotional rollercoaster for the last 2 years since applying and finally getting granted our 189 visas in April (2 days before my birthday, Amazing present!). 

 

However now the time has come for the wobbles.... we are flying  1 week tomorrow to Adelaide, have said goodbye to 80% of family and friends (which has been awful), and are now selling cars, getting houses on the market, stopping nursery, handing over our business which we built from scratch and moving in with my dad for the last few days.

 

it is so hard saying goodbyes- to friends, family, the area we live, and our house, which both our children were born in and we rescued from a hideous wreck to make a beautiful family home, Which we have been camping in since June when we sent our container.  we’ve just had word the container is 1 week out, which gave us the massive morale boost we needed at the weekend after just saying goodbye to very close family-it’s not sunk after all!!

 

We were over in oz feb/March, have a fab Airbnb to stay in for our first month which we stayed in for our first week in adelaide in February, and are so happy with our decision to move...but his part is so bloody hard! Australia has been a dream of ours since we first went 7 years ago, and has since become the most amazing reality, but wow it is hard the last few weeks!

so, apologies for the pity message and it’s length, but if you have time, I would be so happy to read your tales of moving and the first few weeks, and suggestions of fun things to do in the first couple of weeks ( 1 and 3 year old, moving to Adelaide) We are so excited and looking forward to it all, and to coming to the end of years of wondering!

 

thanks all!

 

 

I'm in a different state so can't comment on Adelaide specifics, but all those feelings are perfectly normal. I'm just over a year in and I've never looked back. I was told to buckle up and brace myself for the ride. I've embraced everything about Australia, worked hard to forge friendships and make a life for our family here. It's been bloody awesome and I wish you every best wish in making this beautiful country your new home.  Saying goodbye is sooo hard, and it's hard to camp out for the first few weeks. But container arrival day is like Christmas and you'll find your feet soon enough!!! Enjoy!!!

2 hours ago, dii said:

There are two of you. Thats two incomes and I am pretty sure you would not be concidered on a low income?

Yes there are two of us but I could afford to rent my house here on my salary alone, and I am not a high income earner, regardless of whatever assumptions you make, and that's in addition to Childcare costs which I'm sure you don't have. Granted, I don't live grandly but I can live here and I haven't got millions!!

The reason I commented is that because OP said you need millions to migrate, and that's categorically untrue. OP also said there's no jobs if you're over 40 and that's untrue otherwise I'd be unemployed! 

10 hours ago, dii said:

Hi. I really think that there should be a big notice put up for anyone coming out here to Oz -saying- DON'T DO IT UNLESS YOU HAVE MILLIONS. Australia has become a two class society. The Rich and the poor. No in between. I do know since I am an Australian brought up in the SE of SA! I went to the UK when I was 21 and returned (my family is here) when I was 51. I was so unprepared for what had happened to my Homeland. There is NO affordable housing here. The rentals are dire! Medicare is good but very limited. And anyone over 40 struggles to get work! The ageism here just doesn't exist in the UK. I have now had to dip into most of my savings to survive  and found the horrible future that awaits all over 55, single, low income women here in Australia. Homelessness. The Govt will not build the units needed for low cost living and the private sector simply want as much rent as they can get. Plus my pension is frozen.

So incredibly disappointed in Australia. In my youth it had such potential.

It has clearly changed a lot since you left. BUT I migrated to Melbourne last year, and I don't agree with all what you've said. I understand you speak from personal experience but your statement could put others off, when it's just a single viewpoint.    We moved last year and have a decent enough rental for $1700/month, We both secured good jobs and we are late 40s/early 50s. Housing is fairly expensive compared to most of UK, but I am from London and so Melbourne doesn't seem that pricey to be honest. If you want a modern house in the perfect suburb then yes you're gonna pay top dollar, but we don't have millions at all and we are managing just fine. 

My husband was away from Oz for 26 years and got his original one back so they're definitely for life!!

8 hours ago, Robbo1 said:

Do you think it’s a good idea to rely on wife’s skills? 

If she been in same trade for a long time then you may stand a better chance with her as lead application. I don't think you'll have enough experience in electrical industry and your age may go against you by time you qualify. At the moment cut off is 45 but you could get half way thru your degree and the age may be cut to 40. 

Speak to an agent for an assessment of your best chance for visa now. PR is a must as you wouldn't want to uproot your family for a temporary opportunity only. Good luck!

Our Australian stat Decs were witnessed by a notary etc. Our UK ones were witnessed but not by a notary. In terms of our own statements on our relationship, we typed up separate ones and signed and dated these as individuals. We were advised by Australia House to do separate ones last year but that may have changed.

We also then wrote a joint supporting statement for each bundle of evidence we uploaded, so our numerous pages of financial evidence had a cover sheet breaking down what pages constituted what evidence, and how this supported our application (I.e. Pointing out joint expenses etc), for social, we put in a statement as to what evidence we provided and cross referenced this to our Stat Decs by witnesses where appropriate, and also to annotated bank statements to show expenditure relating to social activities, so all out evidence and statements were all interlinked across different evidence types to prove we were genuine, in other words, it wasn't just words on a page, it was supported by evidence to prove it was real.  Basically we didn't leave any wiggle room for Immi to doubt the genuine nature of our relationship. 

15 hours ago, sianyo said:

Medical test was asked to be done once we applied. Didn't actually look like from a case officer but it was asking for medical to be done so that process could continue. I have just read in different places that one doesn't have to do form 80 unless asked.. 

I have also now heard that we have to go off the new processing times, however I will keep optimistic on these wait times. 

Was it a letter that was showing on your Immi file or was it an email request from the Department? 

As I say, last year the Form 80 was showing on the list I was sent of documents requested, but that may have changed. 

As for processing times, I was told 12-18 months last year and got it in 3 so I've never really understood how they work lol