ABG

We're in Melbourne so its a coin-toss if you can hang your laundry up outside and leave it there whilst at work and not have it rained on (with rain full of desert sand)

We shipped everything that we could survive without for 2-3 months whilst the container was on the ship - if it was essential we decided to replace. Things worth looking at buying if you don't already have (and quickly use so they appear used) is energy efficient washing machine and tumble drier. They are expensive here, and electricity is also very expensive. We had a fairly inefficient drier in the UK so upgraded to a heat-pump drier which is super efficient. In the UK we paid £350, in Oz they start at $1400. Things we took with: 1x TV, + TV storage unit, Fridge/freezer, washing machine, tumble drier, quality kitchenware (my wife loves to cook so we took the expensive stuff with), 1x bunk bed, tools, memorabilia, clothes, bikes, 2x good sofas Things we would need immediately and replaced on arrival: 1x bunk bed (we have 2 kids - they shared bunk until the 2nd arrived and then each got their own bunk bed), bed & bedroom furniture for us, 1x sofa, cutlery, crockery, pots and pans, 1x TV & storage unit, office furniture (I work from home). We also bought cheap washing machine and fridge off Gumtree ($50 each) to see us through until our stuff from the UK arrived. KMart is a good place to get stuff relatively inexpensively. The rest of the household/garden furniture we replaced slowly over 6 months.

My understanding of it is that the skills assessment assessed you as having sufficient skills due to work experience to perform the occupation. They considered 8-years experience equivalent to the learning you would have received at a training college. However, the 8-years does not equate to a degree/diploma for points purposes. If you want to claim points for education you have to provide evidence of that education. So the RPL bridged a gap of a requirement for a degree/diploma, which allows you to apply for the visa, but it does not allow you to claim any education experience. Your work experience for points will also only start after the deduction of those 8 years. So if you have 10 years work experience, only 2 years will be eligible for points. I could however be wrong and as others have suggested, it might be worth it to get an agent to give you professional advice so you aren't leaving points on the table, or even worse, over claiming points you aren't entitled to.

I did the IELTS test (general - academic is only required for certain occupations and would be requested in skills assessment). If you google "IELTS practice tests" you'll find plenty. Doing the practice tests is important so you get used to the format. The advice I can give is answer the questions, don't infer anything or extrapolate an answer outside of what the question is asking. When you do the practice tests you'll understand what I'm getting at. Also, in the listening test stay focused. Its easy as a first language speaker to not concentrate as it seems so basic and then you can end up missing the answer as you're not paying attention.

I showed my commitment to the State by showing I had family living in Melbourne and that satisfied them. On the finance question, it is not raised in the visa application. WHen I applied to Victoria for sponsorship I list how much cash/cash equivalents I would have by the time I moved rather than at the time of the application. You have to provide all the same evidence you used for your skills assessment to demonstrate employment when you apply for the visa. They do not take a positive skills assessment as proof of relevant employment, they make their own determination based on the evidence you submit in the visa application. They still want to see the skills assessment, but also all the evidence.

A lot of people don't 'need' to take the test because they have a degree taught in English or passport from recognised English speaking country. However, most people take the test anyway as they need the points in order to get invited to apply for the visa. The only way you can claim points for English is by completing a recognised test.

I think it is Aldi policy (at least here in Melbourne) to check all bags (even seen baby strollers getting checked). We were taken aback first time it happened, and my wife was fuming. But they do it to everyone so there is no profiling involved.

We're in the SE suburbs (Mentone) and we like it, but I housing is expensive. We drove out to the Dandenong Ranges last weekend and it was beautiful. It might be a bit too far out for me, but when you get about 40km out from the CBD you suddenly start running into open spaces and the types of houses that I imagined before moving here (larger plots). We're renting right now, but as I work from home, we will be looking at moving further out when we buy to get a bigger property that either comes with a pool or has the room to put one in.

When we first decided to move, I went to an immigration fair and booked a free appointment with a migration agent. They looked at my particulars and gave me some valuable top line info such as what visas I would qualify for. Once you know what visa you can get, you can then answer the question about needing a job or not before applying. I can't help with suburbs in WA, I'm living in Melbourne and haven't been here very long. The cost of living varies based on a number of things. Our rent here is more than in the UK, but then we chose to live near the beach and CBD, and our house, whilst having the same number of bedrooms, has 50% more square footage. If we lived 20 min further away from the city, our rent would drop about $250 per week for a similar sized house but with a bigger garden. Gas and electricity are definitely more expensive here, and some grocery items are more, some are less. We've found though we spend far less on entertainment as we spend our weekends at the beach or parks. We moved for related reasons to yours - moving for the kids. My wife and I grew up in South Africa and wanted our kids to the outdoors lifestyle that we did. I think work opportunities are similar in both UK and Oz, but our kids prefer it here to the UK. Their school is bigger with more facilities, and they love being able to play outside and that it doesn't rain all the time. I've also found that the work/life balance (at least for me) is better here.

We’re in Melbourne and our youngest is a similar age (turned 5 in Nov). He went to Kinder 3 days a week last year and starts Prep end of the month (age 5 before end of May). I’d definitely recommend him going to school as he’ll make friends (as will you). You’re only here 6 months but always better having people to chat to. Schools here (where I am at least), are much more laid back than the UK. Only thing to be aware of is vaccinations. There is a no vaccine no play rule. NHS doesn’t include all the mandatory jabs, so he’ll likely need the chicken pox jab, Hep B (2x), plus the DipT booster that Australia gives at 18 months.

Good old Melbourne temperature swings: 21C in a couple of hours.

Pure curiosity; why do Cairns and Mackay have lower temperatures than the surrounding countryside?

I work for a UK company but am based in Oz. Because they don’t have a corporate presence here I am set up as an independent consultant and am paid in AUD. I pay all my taxes here. For me it was the simplest solution and might be something worth considering.

Yip. Got a Dec '16 model (Exceed spec) a month ago. Very happy with my purchase

Was warm today in Melbourne SE suburbs, but nothing like that. 41C driving around at 3pm, but cooled off to a balmy 38C by 5pm

I’m not sure if you’ve talked finance terms yet but with zero credit history you’re likely to get the worst terms on offer. I was in a similar situation, could have put a big deposit down and tried to finance, or buy a run around out right and wait until I could show positive cash flow through my bank account over a couple months. We decided on the latter and bought a small run around (which we needed anyway), and then a family car after a couple months when we had established ourselves. The guy who I went through for finance reckoned I saved 3% interest and dropped required deposit to only 10% by waiting a couple months and being able to show income in Australia. Considering how much it costs to get set up in a new country (we dropped about $30k in our first 2 months here, including the run around car), it might be something to consider to preserve your cash flow

Pretty warm driving around Melbourne (Mentone) today...haven’t felt heat like this since my last trip to India!

I ended up going Pty Ltd for liability reasons. I’m not yet out of the PSI trap so not getting any significant tax advantages. But I’m working on it! The advice my accountant gave me is that once I’ve escaped PSI, the optimal structure is to establish a family trust, and have the Pty Ltd as the trustee. The trust reports to tax office, but contracts etc go through the company. Eligible family members are set up as beneficiaries of the trust to get the most tax benefits. TBH, I didn’t really follow him but apparently it’s the best strategy [emoji38]

Thanks!

Am I interpreting this correctly? Commonwealth Supported Place (CSP) is available for all permanent residents at eligible/qualifying universities, regardless of how long the person has been resident in Australia, provided the student is remains permanently resident in Australia for the duration of their study. Residents (apart from long-term NZ special category visa holders) are not eligible for HECS-HELP loan to pay for their student contribution.

I applied in a different field, but also assessed by Vetassess. I didn’t want to tell my employer of my intentions and so used a Statutory Declaration instead of reference letters. I told Vetassess that speaking to my employer before securing a visa could negatively impact my employment. They were happy with that as I provided other documentation to back up what I said in the Stat. Decl. That could be an option for you too, provided you can demonstrate in another way that your are qualified and have the relevant experience

I got it instore. It may have been a ‘special’ from the assistant as I asked for the 80GB which had 40GB extra (ie 40+40) but my account shows 80+40.

Optus have a sim only deal on right now, $35 gives you 30GB data, unlimited local calls and SMSes, unlimited calls and SMSes to international numbers (35 countries), including UK. I got the bigger package as my home broadband is rubbish, 120GB plan for $55 a month.

We also get the big pump one from Woolworths. Goes on really easily and isn’t greasy.

We’re now living in our 3rd continent (South Africa, UK, Oz) and despite only being here 5 weeks, we feel very much at home. As a perpetual expat, we’ve found Australia far more welcoming than when we first moved to the UK. We’ve however been away from our homeland for more than 12 years so have long since acclimated to expat status.