Miley123

Ha ha yes you are quite right Que Sera, I am do get very worried about the snakes, my dog is so dopey he would just play with it until it bit him. He has come out of a bush before with an angry blue tongue hissing in his mouth, being a retriever the lizard wasn't harmed at all, but our dog was very proudly bringing it to me to show me what he' got and I ran a mile :laugh:

Hi there, I didn't say they were 'ridiculous' dog laws I understand the need to contain dogs. I was just using a relaxed form of conversation in my post about my own personal opinion and said 'crazy strict' as in very strict to what I have been used to growing up with dogs all my life in England. For me, the only place in our area I can let my dog off a lead is the odd park which is mainly grass and quite a sterile place for a dog, I would love to be able to take him for walks freely in a more natural environment like the woods and forests that I have done in the past living near the New Forest, hence this was my point about things I was looking forward to on my return home. For me it gets a bit boring walking around the same park all the time as that is my only option to let him have a bit of a run everyday, its no life for a dog to be on a lead all the time.

Oh dear I see I have offended people with my dog rules comment, I apologise, but these are my personal views and as others have also mentioned having come from the UK and been able to walk dogs through fields, woods, country parks and into pubs, to me people seem more dog friendly in UK in MY experiences. I have a golden retriever who is the friendliest dog there is, where we live there is only one small area we can let him off lead and even then people tell us to put him on a lead even though he is just minding his own business... quite often I get informed he is not allowed off lead in this place even though he is and one person started throwing stones at thim because he happened to walk past minding his own business. I have never experienced anything like this in England and it is just my personal thoughts that I can't wait to take him for lovely wooded walks and let him run free and let his senses go mad and afterwards have the opportunity to finish up in a pub on a summers day for a drink after.

Much the same as the others really, we head back in July after 7 years out here. For me the reasons were that I missed the friends who we grew up with. I never had a sense of belonging and fitting in Aus - even though I lived here as a child too. We are in the suburbs of WA so there is not much going on so I really miss the fact we could jump on a train and go to London for the day/night or anyway else for that matter without having to get on an expensive flight. It's things you won't even realise at the time when you're in England that you'll miss, little things like the dog laws out here are crazy strict and I can't wait on our return to head to the woods and let our dog off for a proper walk. Also strangley enough I miss the seasons, its pretty much constant out here in WA, just the temperature drops a bit in winter but I do miss all the Christmas cold weather and build up. Good luck to you Mazza227, everyone is different and for 5 years I was content and we have been very happy here it's just got to the stage where I can't see us spending the rest of our lives here but don't regret coming out here one bit, we have had a an amazing time and seen parts of the world we never would have done if we'd never come. We've always said never say never, and it helps to adjust and know England is still there. Enjoy your new adventure and at the end of the day if it gets too much you can always go back knowing you have been brave enough and experienced things you never would have otherwise. :smile:

Think I've just answered my own question with help of the ATO website, please find instructions on how to claim early, and all you need is a payment summary from your employer in any form but not a payslip if it doesn't have year to date information on it. https://www.ato.gov.au/Individuals/International-tax-for-individuals/Going-overseas/When-you-leave-Australia/Lodging-your-tax-return-early/?anchor=P788_51528#P788_51528

Hi marisawright, could you not submit your final salary slip, which would show the total amount of tax paid year to date before leaving employer/Australia? In the UK we used to have a P45 upon leaving a company which would show the same information regarding tax paid for financial year, don't know if that happens here too as we haven't left a job over here yet. On the ATO website it all seems quite straight forward and early claims are something that is seen as the norm so hopefully it will be easy to claim before next end of financial year, with the dollar dropping like a stone sooner rather than later would be better, fingers crossed.

Hi Huggy I think from looking into this for when we leave, if you are no longer classed as a resident for tax purposes then you can put in an early claim when you leave the country. Your tax free threshold is slightly lower and pro rata depending on how many months out of the tax year you were a resident. This is from the ATO website https://www.ato.gov.au/Individuals/Ind/Tax-free-threshold-if-you-are-leaving-Australia-permanently/ Hope it helps

Please don't get me wrong Chortlepuss, I am a British girl through and through and love the British seaside and coastal towns. I lived in Devon growing up in my teens and lived in such a seaside town and had a great time. I can't wait to get back

Hi Jeremy, its funny but my husband could have written your post word for word... We are heading back to the UK in July, my wishes not his. We are from the Southampton area so have been keeping an eye on IT roles/opportunites for a while now and from what I can see there seems to be plenty locally around Southampton and Fareham/Havant way, I think there is the MoD down there which recruits a lot of IT bods. Then also from Winchester 22 mins by train is Basingstoke which is a big commercial hub and on the same line further up is Reading which again has a big IT hub without the need to go into London itself though it is only an hour from Winchester by train. Beaches, well they will never compare to Australian beaches I must admit but there is the coast nearby not sure about surfing qualities though but you can go either west or east and find the beach within half an hour.... Christchurch, Bournemouth west, or the Sussex coast on the east. Best of luck

Thank dom, I hadn't heard of these guys so will look into it! If we do have any room spare I'll let you know, it will be around May time, although we're having to leave stuff behind to fit our stuff in so if we get too carried away chucking stuff out I will let you know Cheers!

Hi there, could I just ask which company quoted $5000, as we will be using the same route for our container and are currently getting quotes but so far they have all been $8500 upwards... Many thanks

Thanks Rinkie66 for your post, it was so encouraging to read as the emotions you describe are exactly how I'm feeling as we make preparations to leave Oz. It's good to know that it's normal to feel worried about leaving an area you like but also that by staying you feel you are missing something important in your life. I'm so happy for you that you followed your heart and it has all worked out so far and don't regret your decision. My excitement at our new chapter is now winning over the anxieties, thank you!

Hi there, this is the information I was given from the Vet travel specialist we will be using for our dog when I asked him the same question: "The Rabies vaccination needs to be given at least 21 days in advance of travel. The 6 months figure comes from the previous import requirements where a Rabies vaccination and blood test was required at least 180 days before travel. The vaccination remains valid for 3 years so there is not too much risk of giving it 'too soon'." Hope this helps, if you are in WA I can give you the details of the Vet/Travel specialist we are using, it's not a company but a Vet that deals with it all as a onestop system, we liked the more personal touch of knowing exactly who would be dealing with our much loved family member and responsible for all the paperwork, blood tests, crates etc. Not to say using a national company is a bad thing, we just preferred this option.

Hi AA, thanks so much for your reply, yep my hubby does the exact same in IT so good to know there is work about. We are heading back South where we originate from so am hoping the IT hubs around the south will offer him opportunities without having to do the dreaded commute to London. Ha ha good to know I'm not the only one who is all over the place emotionally. It's so hard to uproot ones family but at the same time I know staying here doesn't feel 'right' anymore, its very difficult to put into words. Thank you so much for sharing your journey, for those of us following in your footsteps it helps to know we are not alone :smile:

Brilliant news, and very happy for you all I have been reading your posts for a while now as we are in the process of moving back in July 2015 and you have always posted with very good advice so am very happy to hear things are working out well for you. I just wondered if I may ask what industry your DH is in, my hubby is in IT and is worried about job prospects going back (he is less keen to leave Oz but will do so for me) and the nature of your DH's work in your post sounded a bit like my hubby's. Just trying to prove to hubby that he will get another good job in UK, and that things have picked up since we left 7 years ago. It's all a bit of an emotional roller coaster this moving country malarky isn't it.. excited, scared, excited, scared... Best of luck to you x