Australia Bound

Hi folks, I am due to arrive with my wife and kids in tow in Brisbane on the 12th Nov, and plan to stay with friends for a few weeks while sorting out a rental, however i am a bit worried that it will be getting close to Christmas and we might struggle to find something. Any advice in this situation? Am i right to be worried thanks AB

Such kind words, very encouraging. Thank you.

She sounds identical to my MIL, who has also said she'll never visit and also thought (very briefly i think) about emigrating many years ago. She was/is a very controlling figure in the whole family. As simple as it is to try and ignore the negativity, my wife has been indoctrinated with this all her life, which is why her "advice" is actually having an effect. She was down again today.. What if you don't get jobs? What if the kids don't settle? What if you need to come back? You'll not get the kids into the same school You'll not get back on the property ladder You'll have spent all your money for nothing ad infinitum I just wish they would see us for what we are, responsible adults who worked very hard to get to this point, and planned very carefully. I sometimes think she thinks we are arriving with suitcases and a few hundred quid!! Such is the lack of involvement she's had in our life, she has no idea.

thanks for replies folks, time for a sit down chat i think.

My mother in law, who has never took an active interest in ours or her grandchildrens lives is making our life hell with regards to our move. As the move is approaching it seems she finds new and messed up ways to screw with our heads. She used to be supportive of the move and has now decided we are going to fail and it will all be a huge mistake. It started a few months ago, when i was working abroad she came to visit practically every day to instil fear and doubt in my wife, which has largely worked, my wife is now struggling with anxiety and its affecting me as well now. Now she has recruited her sister and a cousin and aunt we hardly see. They are now getting in touch with my wife telling her its a bad idea, we're making a mistake etc, etc. All of this is hard enough without this constant passive aggressive emotional blackmail and we still have 6 weeks to go. I would understand this behaviour if she was a model grandparent and was hurting because she was losing us, but she has barely took an interest in our kids in all these years, never even had them for an overnight. Sorry i just need to get that off my chest, i am at the end of my rope with everybody telling us we are doomed to fail. We don't have much in the way of positive support at all apart from a few friends already in Australia. AB

thanks for all the replies folks, lots of helpful info.

Hi folks, we are flying one way to Brisbane on 4th November or thereabouts. I was thinking about laying over in Singapore for a weeks holiday, but it appears to almost double the flight cost For a family of four GLA-SIN - £2190 1 week layover SIN-BRI - £2000 total £4190 GLA-SIN-BRI - £2600 Does this sound normal or am i missing something daft? cheers

We actually had a bad experience on our validation trip, we had renewed passports and took along our old ones (with the electronic visa on them) but try as we might to explain this to the girl at the desk, she was having none of it, and told us to we were not flying. Another check in agent overheard the situation, stepped in and got our visas transferred to the new passports with zero fuss. It was after that i sent our passports away to get the visa label evidenced in them, you cant beat seeing that physical proof.

I sometimes worry that somehow our visas have expired or been cancelled and that i will sell my house and when me, my wife and 2 kids are standing at the airport check in desk with the one way ticket and our house contents bobbing along on a container ship the girl will turn round and say we've no right to go. :confused:

Interested to see some replies on this. We were gonna do the same, we are over a 20ft container but would be rattling around in a 40ft and were thinking about a movecube. £3250 is a cracking quote for 20ft, do you mind if i ask who that is with? We were quoted £4100 for a 20ft, and an additional £1500 for shipping the remainder in a shared container.

thanks everyone for the great advice, i can speak to my boss now and go in to him with a solution to my departure.

Hi Alan, Thanks for replying, what are the options in the case where there is no local (Aus) payroll? Isn't what northernbird is saying is true? That's the way I thought it worked. cheers steve

Looking for a bit of advice. I am moving out to Brisbane from the UK before the end of the year and there is a possibility that my current employer will keep me on, working from home in Aus, however my company does not have a presence in Australia that i know of, so i'd assume my earnings would continue to be paid to my UK bank account. I'm wondering if anybody here has done this or knows someone who has? I know there is a tax treaty between the UK and Australia that might allow me to avoid being taxed twice, but i don't know if there are any other potential pitfalls surrounding the transfer of funds on a regular basis, or anything else i would need to think about. Any advice is welcome. cheers

Hi folks, Does anybody know what would happen in this situation. I have a 175 PR visa that expires May next year. I am planning to come with my wife and kids to Aus in Sept/Oct timeframe and stay for good. What would happen if my work asked me do do some travel and my visa was expired? Would i be right in saying i could return on a resident return 157 visa or is there another procedure for short trips out of the country? thanks AB

Hello, i decided to join this forum just to say that my wife and i (38 and 41) and our 2 boys (8 and 5) are moving from Glasgow to Brisbane on a PR visa near the end of the year. I am a Network Engineer and my wife is a Mental Health Nurse. Plan is to get a holiday rental near the Gold Coast for 3-4 weeks, before moving up towards Mount Cotton, Thornlands, Cleveland for a longer term let. None of us have a job lined up and are bricking it