palmtrees

Hi all, thanks again to everyone who’s given such fab advice, it’s so appreciated as you can imagine it’s all we talk about at the moment trying to make a decision. Doesn’t help we’re both so damn indecisive I’m personally struggling with the fact that we really like our house/ area we’re living here for the first time ever… it kind of feels like home. I haven’t written where we actually live in the UK just to avoid giving away too much, but we live in what I feel is a (pretty nice) holiday destination in the UK and have good beaches, lovely scenery etc (for the UK anyway). The house we’re renting will be going up for sale some time in the future and while it’s a stretch I can see our futures in this house or nearby, at the moment I am so struggling to see our futures in Aus and I wish I could! Maybe as we haven’t been there for a while now. Not too long ago we’d of sold our kidneys and done just about anything to get back down under! I do miss a lot about Australia, the gorgeous scenery, generally more positive and lovely people, the smell after it rains, the weather, the birds, the coffee (!!), the beaches and bush trails, waterfalls, being able to get a doctors appointment without being number 387 in the queue at 8:30am, and McCafe/ being able to get McDonald’s breakfast all day, lol. Re. the replies on earning potential- money, possessions and a house to us are certainly not the be all end all in life but we both grew up in struggling families and this has driven us to want to do our best for ourselves and future kids. We are keen to get a mortgage sooner rather than later. Overall money and what we’ll earn is not that important to us- but I do appreciate how money can buy freedom in some ways and would like to be comfortable. If I’m completely honest with myself rightly or wrongly, if we got settled in Aus and in the end could only afford a unit in an area we weren’t keen on, I’d be a bit sad we gave up what we had/ could of had in the UK, even with the better weather, lifestyle and beaches in Aus. The house prices/rent in Sydney are terrifying at the moment! Not sure if it’s due to drop like is predicted in the UK coming years… more research we need to spend some time on for sure. We are going to think it over for a little while longer as we have some wiggle room before we jump- just feel so incredibly lucky to have been given this opportunity and trying to think about our future children and the lifestyle Australia could give them. Either way we’ll update this forum with what we decide because you’ve all been amazing with the advice

Thank you, I’ve had a read through and it looks like a really interesting role but I think I’d need to have done some further cyber security study / gain some IT knowledge to get to a role like this one unfortunately. I have worried/ noticed a lot of the jobs in DP in Aus atm look to be quite broad with it incorporating IT, data management etc., potentially as DP isn’t ‘currently’ such a huge task for businesses as it is here with our legal response timeframes, responsibilities to keep records and conduct assessments etc. For reference the type of role I do is something like this: https://www.reed.co.uk/jobs/data-protection-manager/49770531 which I was thinking might not have a huge calling for in Aus at the moment as a lot of these responsibilities are due to GDPR laws and guidance we have to comply with or risk legal action/ huge penalties. Without this to worry about I think my current team could be a one/two man band/ or mixed into IT or Legal’s remit. Anyway I digress! I’m aware I’m going way too far into my work side of things and don’t want to bore everyone with my worries on it, I’ll have to do some more research Thank you again for the link, it’s really helpful as it’s definitely where I’d like to be going long term!

Ausvisitor, thank you for your advice with the demand for DP roles at the moment, it has been on my mind as I’ve heard this from others- apologies if I’m asking for too much information but a big blocker for me in getting on board with the move is fear of giving up my UK job that pays pretty well and has progression for the uncertainty. I have an unrelated degree and no masters (although I am looking at cybersecurity or law, probably cybersecurity) masters, this will take a while though so I’d hope to find a DP role beforehand. I have about 4 years DP exp but well distributed across NHS, government agencies and private companies so like to think I’m ‘relatively’ in the know, obviously no where near at the top of my game though! I know you said a lot of ads aren’t online- but all the ones I do see want 10+ years experience, or law degrees etc. which I don’t have. I’ve seen the proposed reforms and the plan to introduce data subject rights amongst other changes which is exactly what I do here. With the headhunting would you suggest just calling around agencies on arrival if we make the jump? Just really unsure where I’d start as all my contacts are in the UK, I’ve never done DP while in Oz unfortunately. And thanks again everyone for all of your advice so far, we are leaning towards going I think! Even though yesterday it was the opposite. It will probably change tomorrow- oh the joys!

It was just missing the UK and family I think, missing the food, kidding ourselves with rose-tinted glasses that the UK is great etc! The UK is great in some ways but I guess we are more outdoor people which suit Australia, we currently live in Scotland so it’s beautiful but very cold to do much! But a big one was that we never had PR so it just felt so hard to do a lot of things. We’ve come to the conclusion there’s pros and cons to both but really worry about turning down this opportunity. I think we’ll be worried we’ve made the wrong decision either way but ideally would have liked to of waited a few years until we made the move, it’s just the risk of not being able to get PR again later on.

A question I do have which I’ve read mixed answers for is is it harder to get a mortgage when on PR than when you are a citizen, and would it likely affect maternity leave etc. not being a citizen? I’ve done lots of googling but have read mixed answers! This would be a big decider for us I think.

Hi everyone thanks all for your advice, it’s really helpful when we’re trying to weigh everything up. It’s really reassuring to hear of the demand of data protection professionals in Australia at the moment- I agree that online there are barely any job ads in comparison to absolutely loads in the UK but the headhunting explains it. We have spent a few years living in Sydney Western suburbs, we liked it in the areas we lived, but I think a few here are right that we potentially couldn’t afford the house etc. we had pre-kids when the time comes, (unless the Data protection roles do end up paying as much as advised on here!). But then could be in the same situation in the UK with struggle financially after kids. With coming back if it didn’t work out in Australia, realistically partner can’t get anyone to run business in meantime and couldn’t pick it back up so would be a no-go, I don’t think he’d go back to working for someone over here as it would feel a bit like a lose-lose. We’ve packed up and done this move a few times. Each time it didn’t stick for one reason or another- but not always our fault/choice and due to sponsorships ending etc. Every time we are in the UK we want to be back, when we are there we love it but miss the UK. The classic!

Steve, thank you so much for your time reading and for giving your advice and insight. . Your reply has definitely given us some great thinking points and is incredibly helpful. I think we are definitely placing a lot of importance on stability, which I agree that whilst we have that in the UK, it does not mean we won’t achieve this in Australia if we take this visa with future opportunities after we’ve settled in. We’ll keep this post updated with where we are in a few months!

Apologies in advance for the long post but after some advice or people’s opinions, in case we are missing something or being crazy here. Myself and my partner have been back and forth from Australia for the last 7 years or so, probably have spent 4 years total over there. Currently back in the UK, have a permanent visa application approved (186) and when we applied for said visa, intended our current life in the UK (jobs, house etc.) to be temporary until it’s granted. We’ve unexpectedly been doing ok and are reasonably happy. Would we rather live in Australia (we love the country, weather, outdoor life etc), sure…. but we both earn quite well and are comfortable in the UK at the moment, partner has own business where he’s earning what he’d earn in a week in Australia in a day in the UK, I’m on 40k at 28 which I never thought I’d earn right now, and have some promising further career progression in the next few years. We are renting a nice place in a nice area and could probably buy in a couple of years. Our end game is to be in Australia, but if we had it our way we’d do it in a few years once we’ve had a baby in the UK (with family nearby), got in a better financial position and felt completely ready, and maybe got an investment property in the UK under our belts for back up in future if ever needed. Unfortunately the visa won’t wait longer than a few months from now. For a bit more context we are both wanting to start a family soon due to age (28 F and 37 M) of my partner mainly. Also keen to get a house and settle or make a base somewhere. Our permanent visa application was successful as partner’s old Aussie job agreed to sponsor the permanent visa, but if we reject it now it will be on me and some further education/ work to apply for a permanent visa in a few years when we’re ready, as all his Aussie work experience we used to get the visa will no longer be valid by then. Of course a risk exists that if the skilled lists/ anything else changes before I have everything needed, we might not tick the right boxes in future and lose the chance altogether. The other factors we are considering are that the work I do is quite niche and isn’t really a big thing in Australia at the moment (data protection), and the company he has to work for for a couple of years as a condition of the permanent visa, isn’t great so it will be a bit of a slog until he can leave and until Australia catch up in data protection to create more jobs in the field for me. In the meantime I’d most likely have to pick up unrelated work or struggle for a while to find something. I also love working remotely which I do currently, and heard this is much less common in Australia compared with the UK. The big question is, do we throw this visa opportunity away, which has taken years to get and is notoriously hard to get granted and stay in the UK with the risk of not being able to apply again in future, but be able to settle for a while, have a child and get in a better financial position- or- do we say ‘you only live once’ close partner’s business, quit my job and move to australia with unknown job prospects and feeling not quite ready but loving the country we live in? If we had it our way, we’d put the visa ‘on hold’ for a while as our end game will always be to end up in Australia as we simply love it, as it seems crazy to jump right now but also a risk to wait and throw away this visa. I know only we can truly know all the ins and outs and make the decision, but opinions are very much welcomed as we are totally stuck and worried we are missing something or the bigger picture! To jump or not to jump? Thank you for reading if you got this far

Hi thanks for the reply, as mentioned we already check VEVO and it’s still effective thanks anyway, fingers crossed it will be sorted soon. Sasha

Hi all, Just wondering if anyone has been in the same boat or knows any information to shed any light on our situation. Me and my partner were on a 457, his job ended December 2018 and we returned to the UK a at the end of January this year (within the period allowed). We would like to claim super, but know we have to wait for the 457 to be cancelled first (ATO state must not have a valid visa to apply for DASP) except our visa is still showing valid on VEVO, despite the 60 day stay limit already elapsing in February this year. We understand you can write to Immi and request to cancel the visa yourself, however have been advised it will cause any future applications for temporary visas in the next 3 years to Australia to possibly be declined. We are considering going back and do not want to take this route just in case we do. We were then advised by Immi just to wait for them to cancel it automatically, but were told it could take some time for them to get around to. Has anyone else been in this situation/ know anyone that has? I can’t find anything online but would be great to find out how long others have been waiting for automatic cancellation/ if anyone has any idea of timelines. We really want to claim DASP as the cash would really help right now Any advice greatly appreciated! Thank you

Hi all, Its a bit of a long shot but I’m wondering if anyone on this site know anyone or them themselves have successfully applied for permanent skilled migration under Drainer, or who have worked as a Sewer Technician (unblocks, cctv, repair and maintenance work etc) My partner has worked as a sewer technician for 10+ years in the UK, we are currently in Australia on a 457. We are looking into PR via subclass 190 visa but it seems to apply as a ‘Drainer’ you need to have experience and qualifications in Gas and Plumbing also? My partner doesn’t have any gas experience but has some minor plumbing experience but no qualifications. He has qualifications in Jetting and CCTV work etc which we believe aren’t enough for the skill assessment. Any personal experiences from anyone who has been in a similar situation/ any other visa recommendations would be much appreciated!

Hi all, Just wondering if anyone on here has had their 457 visa priority processed recently and if so how long it took to be granted from the time the priority processing request was accepted? My partner has been sponsored by the business he works for and we submitted our 457 application back in the middle of May 17. We put in for a priority request just over a week ago due to circumstances that have made our application more urgent, we had the priority processing approved, but still haven't had the visa granted. Just looking for other people's experiences/ timelines. TIA ?

Hi all! My partner is being sponsored by the company he works for and we are still waiting for a response, submitted in May, status is : 'assessment in progress' or something similar. Just wondering if anyone would be able to help with how the sponsor would go about putting in a priority request for it to be processed urgently? It is getting very urgent and we would love for it to come through this side of Christmas! Are there certain forms that can be found for the sponsor to put the request in or does the sponsor just contact immi? Any help would be much appreciated!!

Hi all, Thanks for the advice. Unfortunately I have worked all of my budgets on the amount I'd take home with 15% tax (as I've always been taxed before) so it's difficult to work with around a $400 shortfall each month right now. I know it will go up eventually, but for now I'd prefer it to be 15% and not have to wait until next July. Luckily I got more info from the ATO, they advised it is correct to tax at 15% UNTIL $37000 has been earned, and my payroll are changing it over. It is a little backwards but I am starting to understand it more now. Thanks everyone for your help

Ok thanks I understand that now. The only question I have left is how come my partner always gets taxed 15%? And in my previous roles I did also get taxed 15%, but this new role is different?

Also when I put my monthly salary amount into the ATO tax withheld calculator, it also comes up with the amount of tax to pay each month as exactly 15% of my monthly salary

Hi NicF, Thanks for your reply. What makes me so confused is prior to this- in my previous employment I was always taxed 15%, as is my partner who is on more money per year than me, and he is also on a 417. When I looked at the ATO website, they have an example: 'Gorge is on a 417 Working Holiday visa and has started work for Paul's Pickles. As Paul is a registered employer of working holiday makers, 15% tax will be withheld from Gorge's pay. Gorge earned $500 in the first week and had $75 tax withheld.' Going from the above example from the ATO website, and other information I've seen, it seems to suggest that the tax is supposed to be 15% flat rate, until you have physically earned $37000. Please let me know where/how I'm going wrong- this is seriously confusing me! Thanks

Hi everyone, Just looking for some advice and hoping someone can help me with income tax while on a 417 visa in Australia and how it works. I understand there is information online but it can be quite unclear so I wanted to see if someone can help me- I have started working for a company and get paid monthly. I received my first pay last Friday, but I was taxed more than expected. My understanding is the income tax for people on WHVs changed in Jan 2017, and we are now taxed 15% on every dollar earned, until we have earned $37,000 total and then the income tax increases to around 32%. The payroll at work said my tax was higher than expected because they put me down as a 'resident for tax purposes' and overlooked what I had actually written on the tax declaration form. They are now telling me I should in fact be taxed more than I have been already, as they said the 417 tax is split throughout the year so are saying because they will eventually be paying me over $37000 total, my tax is not 15%. I was under the understanding that it isn't worked this way, and it is a flat rate 15% tax UNTIL you have earned $37,000? Please could someone help clear this up for me? I'm quite sure I am right however payroll are now ignoring my emails after saying it will be set up how they have suggested (which I believe is incorrect). And it's a few hundred dollars different for me so can't really afford to wait until next tax year end to claim it all back Thanks NB: I have called ATO as my employer wanted an exemption letter (I'm sure this isn't necessary as it's not an exemption- it's how the tax works?!) but the ATO said they can't supply this and that they cannot help anymore as it's personal tax advice