Catlady2014
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Everything posted by Catlady2014
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Don't use banks, they give rotten exchange rates and charge transfer fees. Your own links that you posted were pretty good. I've found that the dealers give far better rates, but you need to be sure they are regulated/authorised so that your money is kept separate from theirs. There is one on pomsinoz that I regularly use but I also use another who is not on here. I'll pm you with my advice for what it's worth, but you need to research the best deals because everybody's situation is different. What works nicely for me may not be so good for you, and vice versa.
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Don't use banks, they give rotten exchange rates and charge transfer fees. Your own links that you posted were pretty good. I've found that the dealers give far better rates, but you need to be sure they are regulated/authorised so that your money is kept separate from theirs. There is one on pomsinoz that I regularly use but I also use another who is not on here. I'll pm you with my advice for what it's worth, but you need to research the best deals because everybody's situation is different. What works nicely for me may not be so good for you, and vice versa.
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I'll private message you as we're not supposed to link to companies on here.
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One of my dealers gives me a great rate, whether online or on the phone, and that rate does not change once it's booked. The second one (that I also use regularly) is one I only deal with by phone. No charges, except for the phone dealer if it was a smaller transfer. They both give very similar rates, varying by maybe only a quarter of a cent. As I say, there's not much in it.
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I get the rate quote and "book" the deal at that quoted rate, then it doesn't change; and I have either 24 or 48 hours to pay for the booked deal at the booked rate. I haven't experienced the rate changing. But that brings to mind another point - make sure your bank know what you're doing, because the last thing you need is for your bank to block online access to your account if it looks like "suspicious activity" - and then you have no means of paying for your booked deal.
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In all honesty, the rates differ very little between the currency dealers - at least that's been my experience and I've used three different ones. But you really need to register with one or two or even more, so that you're ready to do the transfer as soon as the rate is at a level that you want. Otherwise, by the time you've gone through all the formalities with your chosen dealer, the rate will have changed again. The dealers I've used make no charge (although one of them charges £8.50 on smaller deals), but I've found that the banks at the other end take off $15 to £25, but that's no problem really.
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If you want to keep an eye on rates, you could download the XE currency app. It will give you the mid-market rates (which are not available to personal customers); if you deduct about $1.25 from the rate shown, that will give you a good idea of what you would get from a currency dealer. Most dealers will give rates around that mark.
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That might make things a little more complicated but I can't see that it would affect the CPV decision. Might be a good idea to consult a MARA anyway.
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I would say something that has been successfully treated and now under proper control, and not expensive to continue to treat, should not be a problem, but keep any letters/reports safe and take with you all the info you can for the medical exam. Just my opinion, but at our ages we probably all have some sort of condition.
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I lodged Oct 2014 and was "invited to prepare documents" at the beginning of this year and didn't get my visa until end September. I'm not really sure what the system is or whether it depends on individual case officers. Maybe some work on their files faster than others?
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Two steps forward, one step back. Hoping you are sorted by now?
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I didn't receive an invoice though, Fisher1. Apparently, DIBP only include an invoice if your file is a BCC file (no idea what that means!), and not if your file is an OSF file (that might be offshore file maybe, but I'm only guessing). So I wasn't able to pay by the method you suggest, it had to be either bank cheque by registered post, or credit card with a surcharge, and I opted for bank cheque.
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@Nicole Eire, payment instructions will be included in the email from DIBP when they ask your parents to pay the 2nd vac, but here is an extract from the email that I received from DIBP (you can also pay by credit card but there's a surcharge for that). My daughter got the bank cheque from the funds that I had previously transferred to her, and sent it by priority registered post. Payment by Bank Cheque Bank cheques should be made payable to the Department of Immigration and Border Protection and sent by registered post to the following address: Parent Visa Centre Contributory Parent Section Locked Bag 7 NORTHBRIDGE WA 6865 AUSTRALIA Please note that we do not accept personal cheques. IMPORTANT · The file reference number must be included with the payment · Payment by international bank cheque will delay the visa grant for a period of 28 days afterpayment has been receipted to allow the cheque to clear.
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Woohoo, exciting times for you.
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In the past I've tried Currencies Direct, Foremost Group, and Moneycorp. No fees with any of them, unless you're buying a small amount of currency and then there might be a small fee if I remember rightly, but certainly nothing on larger amounts. I currently use both Foremost and Moneycorp. I get a very slightly better rate with Foremost but Moneycorp is good because I could if necessary quickly take advantage of a temporary hike in the exchange rate "out of hours", using the online account. But everybody's circumstances are different and what suits one person might not be so convenient for another.
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You need to log into the Visa Tineline, create your profile and then add your details to the Profile, and you'll then appear in the table. But the table isn't showing correctly at the moment. There is a special help/problems thread running for the visa timeline.
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I just tried - same result as you. It doesn't appear to load all the pages, so you just get page 1 all the time. I think there is a special thread for problem with the timeline.
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Messaged you.
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Coincidence or what! Mine is a Mazda 2 Maxx.
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Ordered my new car, but the insurance and roadside assist are different from UK, so it's a good idea if a little boring to try to familiarise yourselves with them while waiting for more exciting news. Does that help, kimboslice?
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Yes, that was my typical day up until very recently!
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Sounds like a great idea! It would be lovely to see everyone.
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Yesterday I presented my ID at the local bank branch and collected my bank card. Today I went back to the bank and asked them for a letter addressed to me at my Australia address; armed with this, plus my passport, UK licence and two bank cards (which do not have to be Australian) I set off to the local Translink office where I filled in a form, had my photo taken, and was given a temporary drivers licence to cover me until my proper licence arrives in a couple of weeks. Next up was the local Human Services Service Centre office where I produced my passport and visa grant letter and was issued with a temporary Medicare card to cover me until the new card arrives by post in a few weeks. Everything has been reasonably straightforward and is gradually falling into place.
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Congratulations! I can appreciate everything you say. For myself, I weighed everything up and decided to wait it out in the UK, although in the final few months I did start to reconsider going on a 600. I think it's a really difficult decision for everybody and they can only take full account of their own circumstances and plans. It's a very stressful experience, whichever way you jump. I hope you can put it behind you now and enjoy your new life, at long last all the uncertainty is over - very pleased for you. I've often wondered whether all the stress has ever got the better of anyone!
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Hi Ian, I'll private message you.
