Island

Yes sure am.  I'm sure they are doing their absolute best but Qatar are no longer flying pets so its just down to emirates and London aren't accepting many pets so the whole thing is a nightmare for all concerned. If anyone has any bright ideas or ways around this I'd be so grateful as I miss my family and am desperate to get back to the UK to be with the kids during this huge life transition. Does anyone have any advice?

Nope, rest of family has moved but I can't get our dog on a flight... its awful

HI Everyone

We are in the middle of a move back - Sydney to London.  We fly back in one week.

Just a warning - it is an ABSOLUTE nightmare to try and get your dog on a flight in my experience so far.

We booked in over a month ago with request to fly early September - rabies done, deposit paid, TOR form filled in, etc - but still haven't heard if we have a flight.

If you are thinking of doing this - it is better to wait and get your PET ON A FLIGHT FIRST - because Qatar will not fly an animal back to the UK unless owner flys back within a few days too (fine if different airline).  Otherwise considered commercial.

Emirates are the only other airline flying dogs at the moment - and whilst they don't have the same rule about people flying back at the same time - its hard to get a flight.

This is a stressful situation especially if you don't have friends/ family this end to look after your dog till it gets a flight (if you have gone earlier than them).

Good luck, and hope you have a better experience than me!

I think about ten days. TOR took us longer because kept asking for more information.

HI, yes we have been given exemption.  We are moving back permanently - I guess they just want you to show you aren't going to try and come back in six months. 

For shipping - we used Chess and pet transport we are going with Pet Traveller.

The TOR forms are very pedantic - so do this well before you try and leave - the shipping and pet travel need it before getting you on a flight.

Thanks 

Yes - we showed we were moving back permanently - sold house, new schools for kids, shipping dog and life belongings, have UK passport as well as UK, etc - it was accepted first try.  Good luck

Oh My Goodness, this is amazing and invaluable advice that I would never think of - thank you so so much 

Fair point about ensuring we are not spreading it and therefore going into quarantine...

I think Hong kong is actually on the list of exempt countries, so I think flying from sydney via HK would be ok?

Hi S713

How soon before the flight did you get confirmation your dog could fly?

Did you have to go into quarnatine when you arrived back in the UK?

Which company did you go with?

A transit stop is a stop where passengers can get on or off. It can apply to coaches, ferries, trains or flights. Your ticket should show if a stop is a transit stop.

If your journey involves a transit stop in a country not on the list, you will need to self-isolate when you arrive in England if:

• new passengers get on
• you or other passengers get off the transport you are on and mix with other people, then get on again

You don’t need to self-isolate beyond normal timescales if, during your transit stop in a non-exempt country:

• no new passengers get on
• no-one on-board gets off and mixes with people outside
• passengers get off but do not get back on

HI,

We have permission to fly...

Just wondering if anyone has any recommendations of who to fly back home with during this time to avoid quarantine?

It is a nightmare at the moment.  We've been talking to a couple of different companies.  Basically - most flights are just taking one passengers pets - so much reduced capacity, and no weekend pet arrivals in the UK. We wanted our dog to fly out on 1st September - you need to pay upfront a month prior in order to get on a flight - and they are saying the airlines are not releasing flights till sometimes a few weeks prior.  It is very hard to get your dog on a flight basically.  If anyone has any different information or tips please do share!

What a. nightmare - so who can we fly with to avoid this happening??

Have you made any decisions? It is such a hard time and life changing decisions are stressful at the best of times... Good luck

In terms of the stats comparing countries - think it is almost impossible to get a real idea as different countries have different testing capability...  Will definitely be an interesting study when this is all over, but for now, think its best to think of us all in the same boat no matter where we are - this isn't something that is going away so we will have to learn to live with it.

Thank you so much for all this fantastic advice - have made some notes!

Have given Chess removals a call too - thanks for that!

Thank you, will add them to my list!

Far from it - I'm a bag of nerves.  Can't think there has been a worse time to move to England in the last century - but oh well, life moves on and you only live once! We are now officially ping pong poms!

Hi 

We are moving from Sydney back to the UK as soon as possible.

Postponed due to Covid & now we are in a bit of a rush as hope to arrive before start of September so kids can start school on time.

Have only had a quote with Allied Pickfords - about $14,000 for 4 bed household move - would love suggestions of other companies to get alternative quotes.

My other checklist (what am I missing???)

Dog vaccinated and Pet Traveller crate - conditionally booked

TOR form

Application to leave Oz via Dept of Immi

One terms notice to schools

Flights to book

Cancellation of all direct debits

THANK YOU

Hi Amber - you are so right, the decisions are the hardest!  Are you happy back in the UK?  Do you think your son will stay in oz long term (I guess impossible to know!). If you move back to the UK whilst he is at uni in Australia, I'm presuming he still qualifies as a home student in Oz?  Was this situation his preference as well?  I know my older child would definitely want to stay here...Aged 13 he was already planning which mates he could live with so he could go back to Australia if we'd decided to stay in England last year!  Sorry if these questions are too personal, just ignore if so!

Marisawright - yes we have thought they might want to stay if don't move back till after they complete their edu, or else they may move back later anyway - but we can't live by those fears as even if we lived in the UK our whole entire lives, they might fall in love with a Japanese, or American and move to the other side of the world anyway!  But yes its been in the back of the mind how to minimise this!!!  

To be honest we haven't considered pensions at all - so thanks to you both for bringing this up, wasn't on my radar.  So if we leave Australia (after having worked here 15 yeas plus) will we be able to access our Australian superannuation from the UK?  (but not aged pension)?  Is the aged pension in Australia comparable with UK version?  The problem is that right now we are much better off earning and working here (& private schooling is half the price compared with what we were paying in the UK)...  We also have the issue of schooling years as kids are in year 5 and 7 in Australia and 7 & 9 in the UK.  Eek, its all become a bit of a nightmare.   We thought we could just move back to Oz for a couple of years and then moved back to England again but now feels full of hurdles.  I really don't want to feel I'm stuck here and definitely can't imagine retiring here forever.  England is still our home and where all our family and old friends live.

Eera - thanks for your input about uni applications - very good to know, and so think we need to live by the 3 year rule.  And not leave it till university...instead move as a family for 'family reasons' to avoid the last point you mentioned...

Thank you everyone - so helpful... Any more of your experiences would be so welcome!! Going to uni in Australia with parents in the UK...how does that work - do they fly home for holidays once a year or something?  I guess they are effectively adults by that age...

Oh thank you so much for these replies - Amber, did you find Australia uni prices cheaper, compared with national UK fees?  Are you planning to move back after kids finish uni?  We have lived in Australia for 13 years, then in 2017 moved back to England for 1.5 years and now we are back in Oz for I'm not sure how long!!  We either go back in 3.5 years for kids to do A'levels in UK and then gap year, then uni or else we move back in 10 years when they've both finished school and uni (if they go).  It seems far away but we need to think ahead to avoid feeling trapped in a situation... But the thought of leaving the kids if they want to stay - aghhh!! Love to hear your thoughts and experiences with this..

Kids are dual citizens but currently at secondary school in Oz.  Am I right in thinking we have to live in the UK for 3 years before they would qualify as home students (not paying international fees).  Are there any ways around this?  We have property in the UK still and pay tax there still... Thanks!!

HI Everyone, thanks so much for your replies, very helpful and I can now see the gravity of the situation so will have to have a very serious discussion about the move and his intentions. Really would hate it to ever get to that but to be honest I've never felt more at home than I do here.... although I'm English, I had a nomadic childhood and so although I'm open to making a new life in the UK, I'm not quite sure its what I want long term or what I want for the kids. The only thing is, whatever our intentions, we will never know till we go over there and give it a go... He might say he's prepared to give it a go but then never want to come back or the other way around - I might settle and love it and he want to return. Such a horrible situation and I've seen couples struggle with it the past. Anyway, fingers crossed we'll be on the same page... Thanks again, appreciate your advice.

HI there, just after some advice. I've seen similar threads, but this is kind of a legal question. We are dual nationals. After living in Oz for 15 years my husband wants to move back to the UK, mainly for work. I don't mind going back for a year or so but Australia is definitely home and the kids are 100% Aussies and love it here too. We have a great relationship and this is absolutely a worst case scenario, but if we go and kids and I hate it... but husband wants to stay... and it becomes a stale mate - what am I options? Do I have any legal ground on being able to come back to Australia and bring kids? Will I just have to stay in UK? I know the law is strict in Australia about taking kids away, just wondering which laws would apply to us since we are both dual citizens? Thanks for any advice.