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I'm not sure you need 'register' your marriage in the UK. Your Australian marriage certificate should be sufficient to evidence a name change. However if not you can change your name by deed pool. There are loads of companies online, quite cheap about £25, they send you all the documentation to sign and have witnessed. You then just send the deed poll document to the DVLA or passport office along with the other documentation required and they change your name accordingly. HTH

I called the ATO and asked for an extension to lodge my tax return. I too am waiting for some UK stuff to be sorted out which. They granted the extension over the phone.

I spray water around the inside and let it sit for a bit then use one of those eraser block sponges. You can get them at Bunnings and it comes up a treat. Like new with hardly any effort at all.

No I arrived in September 2013. Sorry my original post is confusing!

Thanks, yeah I might have to do this. Thanks Cez, might crunch the numbers to see if it's looks like I'm going to be in a refund position!

Thanks Blossom. I have the complication of being paid some money from my UK employer after I arrived in Australia. I left the UK while I was on my notice period so received some salary and annual leaving owing for a couple of months after arriving. So in that case I think I need to have the UK side sorted as I will need to declare the portion of UK income received whilst in Australia on my Australian tax return? Is this correct?

Hi, I'm hoping someone might be able to provide some insight for me. I arrived in Sept 13. I filled out the p85 form and sent it to HMRC to close off my UK tax affairs earlier this year. In June they wrote to me and asked for my P11d, which I had to obtain from my previous employer and I sent to to HMRC in Aug. I am still waiting to hear from them in regarding to any tax due back to me, etc. but I now have to do my Australian tax return by the end of this month. My question is do I need to wait to hear back from HMRc before I can do the Aussie one? if I simply wait until I do and are late submitting my Aussie return what are the penalties, etc? has anyone been in a similar situation and if so what did you do? many thanks.

I grew up in Victoria and definitely had composite classes at my primary school. That was a couple of decades ago though so not sure if it's still commonplace.

Hong Kong is fab. We stopped for 4 nights on our way over with a 3 year old and 10 month old. We stayed in the central district near Hong Kong Park. The park was great with the kids for playgrounds, etc. it also has a really good walk through aviary. We got the Tram to Victoria peak near the park which I would highly recommend for the amazing views. HK is not very stroller friendly so I would recommend a back pack style carrier if you need something.

Yes you can ship everything in the one container, if it all fits. Whilst I do not know prices for back t the UK I do know that you can fill up the car with whatever household items you can fit in to save in space.

Generally when travelling with babies yo need to bring your own milk and food. The airlines carry a small amount for emergencies only. Singapore airlines were more than happy to heat up bottles and wash them for me. Baby milk is not subject to the 100ml rule but you need to declare it when going through security. When you get to Australia you will also need to declare it as you must declare any food items you are carrying. If commercially produced baby food and formula is all you have then it will not be an issue and you will be let straight through. I brought in a full tin of formula in my luggage plus the ready made cartons in carry on for the flight. Take more feeds than you would normally need over that time as I found my son had 2 extra bottles than normal just because of the travel.

There is no concept of registering with a GP, you can see whoever you like provided the practice is accepting new patients. I haven't come across one so far that I couldn't get an appointment with. Some GP bulk bill which means that you won't pay for the consultation but others charge more than the set Medicare fee for a consultation so you will have to pay the difference. For example if a GP charges $50 for a consultation, Medicare only funds approx $37 for a consultation so you have to pay the difference. Hope that helps.

If you need treatment or to be referred to a specialist then your GP can refer to into the public system where your treatment will be provided free, however depending on your condition you could be on a long (think years in some cases) waiting list. If you have private cover you can see whichever consultant you like, be seen & treated pretty much immediately and in a private hospital. Medicare unlike the NHS does not cover cost of GP visits (unless they bulk bill) or prescriptions, the cost of which vary greatly depending on the particular drug.

Best part of 12 months here. Seems to be all about who you know, what you know is secondary.

Yes you can but it will be harder. You will need to show bank statements, etc showing that you have enough funds. We prepared a covering letter to go with our application explaining our situation, etc and also offered to pay 6 months rent up front. That did the trick and to be honest if you don't have jobs might be the only way to secure a rental.

Highly unlikely customs would be interested in beauty products unless it looked like a commercial quantity for resale. I brought over about 12 months supply, only because I had it all in my cupboards anyway. Damn those Boots 3 for 2 offers. The customs guys will be more interested in checking out your Christmas decorations for a stray pine cone and shoes and outdoor stuff!

I would say it's travel insurance that you need not private health insurance.

Australia has stricter rules on its passports for the location of birth. My children who were born in London have place of birth as London on their UK passport. The birth certificiate states the hospital name and the London borough of.... even though I entered London for place of birth on their their Aussie passport applications when I went to lodge the form the guy who checked it changed the location to be the Name of the borough the hospital was in, they are both in London but the Aussie one needs to be more specific apparently.

Unless you already have jobs, there is probably no chance of getting finance for a car or credit card, regardless of how much cash you might have sitting in the bank. We tried to get a credit card when we first arrived but the bank said unless there is a regular amount, I.e salary being deposited into your account each month then no chance, even though We had a substantial amount in the bank that we transferred over for our arrival.

Yes she does

Ha ha, do not worry, you can simply exchange your UK licence for a Victorian one......for a 'smallish' fee of course. Just make an appointment with a a VicRoads office near you when you arrive to do the paper work, etc.

My sister lives in Parkdale, it's a good family area, with some good schools. It's on a train line so easy to get into the CBD for work. Added bonus of being close to the beach in summer.

I would think about a little closer to London whilst not being dead central, maybe Putney or Wimbledon or Richmond? Clapham was the place to go when I moved, but that was in the mid 90s and I was a 25 year old so I hesitate to recommend that now. I too would recommend SW London. Clapham is still a good place to be has a large antipodean contingent and there is plenty of nightlife. Find a share house round there and you will be set.

As pp suggested you can apply for a partner visa once onshore, it just requires the applicant to leave Australia and re enter to validate the visa once it's granted, I think.

Bridgeman - you have actually made my year! My husband and I are in a very similar situation and have just spent the last week researching and reading the tax legislation to try to figure all of this out. Thank you for sharing your experience, it has meant we can now breathe a sigh of relief.