CJT

If you are planning on selling the property at a later date be carefull of the Capital Gains changes for non residents which come into effect From July 2020. Suggest you get some advice on implications of this.

Good luck with the move, people only pointing out pension thing as we would hate for you to have an oh sh!t moment in the future. As long as you know where you stand then all good. FYI I felt the same way as you and moved back to the UK in 2016 - the thought of getting old out in Australia filled me with complete dread. Fitted straight back in and loving being back.

Your entitlement to the UK pension will be based on years of NI contributions - the maximum you can get is 36 years which would give you the full state pension. If you get 25 years of contributions then you will get 25/36 or 70% of around £150pw. This would be the maximum UK state pension you can get. Your mum should be able to purchase some years to fill gaps - and she might be able to do this at a reduced rate as she was overseas. If she can get the state pension from Aus BEFORE she leaves she will be able to get that paid to her when she lives in the UK.

You cannot get your NI history credited for years prior to 2001 if you did not have a NI number when you left. It will start from when you actually get your NI number - you also will not be able to purchase years for the same reason. Make sure you know how you will be able to fund your retirement.

People and circumstances change in particular their health. What might seem like Utopia to someone at 20 might seem like hell on earth when they are 50/60/70. And that applies to both hot and cold climates.

I'll agree with this and also add that it infuriates me with programs like Wanted Down Under. If you move over there and there is a problem with the marriage you cannot go back to the UK with the children Unless your husband agrees to let you take them and visa versa. I know people who effectively got stuck somewhere they did not want to be because of this and it is extremely unpleasant situation to get into.

Just picked up on this thread and wondered if anyone else has renewed passports in a similar situation. My wife and I were both permanent residents (living in Australia) when our two children were born in Australia in 2000/2001. They obviously have Australian birth certificates. We became Aus citizens in 2003, but decided to move back to UK in 2016. Our sons are looking at doing a trip back to Aus to visit friends so I was just looking at renewing their passports. Going round in circles looking at the forms, but it states you have to prove your Australian Citizenship when your children were born - we weren't citizens then but Permanent Residents. Any clarification anyone could give would be hugely appreciated as my brain is now officially fried !!!!

You can't have a SMSF if you are a non resident as it will be non complying.

I will agree with VERYSTORMY here. Saying that your son will have a 'fantastic life' - that is not going to happen by just moving somwhere. He could have a fantastic life in any first world country. While he is young a fantastic life will be to have a loving attentive family who spend time and do things with him and keep him safe. I would also add that if you want to live by the sea it will be expensive and prohibitively so in somewhere like Sydney unless you are seriously cashed up. Good luck with your future plans - whatever you decide to do.

I'd rather have four seasons thanks. I can get out way more in the UK than I could in Australia and my skin won't turn to leather and be covered in cancers when I'm older. As lots have also said I found I was way colder in Australia during the winter - our house got down to 13 degrees and it was insulated. If the kids have such active outdoors lifestyles in Australia why is childhood obesity such a major problem over there ?

We came back to UK with two sons, one 15 and one 16. Timing from a schooling perspective would be considered awefull especially for our eldest, but he was not doing particularly well in Australia at school and what he would have then gone on to do I have no idea. Our youngest dropped back into year 10 and will be doing GCSEs this year, also did work experience with employer who is keen for him to apply for an apprenticeship with them. Eldest did resit of GCSEs in first year at college plus BTEC in sports, this year he will complete that plus is doing 1st year in another two subjects at college. So by the end of next year he will have the equivalent of 4 A Levels and could go on to Uni if he wanted. From our experience I would have thought with the ages of your children they should have no problem fitting in educationally.

How do I put this tactfully ?. I suppose it depends what you are used to. But personally I would not consider that area.

Please make sure this is something you all want to do, as your post had the feeling of someone who is not keen on making the move. Especially as you have children, the implications of him loving it in Australia and you not settling are horrendous - particularly if your family are in the UK.

That is a bit harsh having your pets shot ?

We had lots of our furniture damaged by that shipping company so I would not use them again.

Sounds like a similar situation to mine. Our boys are 15 & 16. The eldest went into college (no fees for this if they are UK citizens, uni has a 3 year residency requirement). The youngest had to drop into year 10 to do GCSE and has settled in well. Your children can always go anywhere they want to and that would be their choice, as long as they are happy that is the main thing. I lived in Australia for 23 years but the pull to come back to the UK became to great. Ultimately no amount of money can buy you time back, so you need to decide if material things outweigh the remaining time with family. Hope it all works out for you.

If your parents aren't completely thrilled to have you back then I would suggest that either: a) They don’t like you or b) you need to get new parents.

We flew our cat back recently from Brisbane to Heathrow using Jet pets. They were the best priced for the companies I contacted and I could not fault their service.

Don't forget the other extreme though. The winters will be nice but working outdoors in Summer in 35+ degrees and high humidity can also be challenging.

Thanks for the comments/suggestions. I will get on to someone first thing on Monday morning.

We have up until recently been planning to head back to the UK and had originally thought that it would be kinder to re-home our cat in Australia rather than taking her with us due to the upheaval. This has been immensely stressful time for us all :arghh:due to the fact that we were selling our house in Australia with the intention of getting settled prior to the start of the school year in September. Our house sale has fallen through on a number of occasions and we had resigned ourselves to staying in Aus for the next few years, but we have now had an offer on our house which we are prepared to accept. The problem is that our timeframes are now really short for getting back and my wife and boys would now desperately like to take the cat with us (I think the realisation of leaving her behind is now sinking in). What is the shortest timeframe for getting everything done that is required - she has not had any Vaccinations etc. I feel that we probably could not get it done as we would be looking to leave in 3-4 weeks. Has anyone got any experience of doing this sort of thing hastily, and any recommendations for companies would be really appreciated. We are in the Brisbane area.

Blankets are provided for everyone and they have spares so I wouldn't worry.

You might want to take another look at that story..

Canada is already queuing up to make a free trade agreement with the UK.