Jon the Hat

On 21/04/2024 at 06:22, Madworld said:

On the document upload, there is a restriction of 100 docs - I know that seems a lot but once you get the evidence together it all adds up - is it ok to pdf iscans of cards (birthday, Christmas, wedding etc.) as send it as 1 doc (with lots of pages) or do they all need to be scanned individually?  We don't have joint bank accounts/mortgage/utility bills so will have to scan individual bank statements, utility bills etc. showing transfers/payments between us and the bills as well as travel docs etc instead to show joint evidence.  Am I right in assuming if they span the years we've been together it will be sufficient evidence?

Thanks for any suggestions/help!

Absolutely - group all like documents, and call them B Jone Bank statement.pdf, Pics of joint travel .pdf and so on.  Will speed things up too!  Imagine you are the person reviewing all this and make it as easy as you can for them.

Hi Geraldine

Your main concern seems to be whether if you sell your house here the proceeds would be taxed in the UK.  Generally speaking they would not be, providing you sell while you are resident in Australia.  If you were to move first and then sell (because you were in a hurry for some reason) then the rules are different as you will I think not be able to claim it as your primary residence so may end up with a Capital gains tax on the profit - but when that gain is measured from will need to be calculated.

It has been hard I won't lie, especially for our now 15 year old, who was about to turn 13 when we arrived.  She did 1 year of high school in the UK then we moved.

Social media means they know exactly what their friends back in the UK are doing - ie what they are missing, and schools can of course be cliquey especially for girls.

That said I am glad we did it, and she is doing better now

30 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

Not saying they are.  In fact, that's the point.  I remember being struck by that when I first arrived in Sydney.  Sydney has its Little Vietnam and Little China and Little Lebanon.  Yet try to find a suburb where Scots or English or Welsh people congregate and you'll draw a blank. Presumably because we're English-speaking and mostly white, we tend to just become part of the larger community.  I've observed other Australian cities are the same -- except Perth.   I have relatives in Perth and was surprised at how many of their friends are other Scottish migrants who live in the same area.

I think there is certainly familiarity factor, and the fact that a lot of the suburbs when you get away from the city are pretty similar.  Also the land estate type development has meant a lot of people could buy / build in the same area at roughly the same time.  

Top Public Primary Schools in Perth - 2023 (bettereducation.com.au)

This shows you a ranking of Perth primary schools.  As you will note, there is a strong correlation between socio-economic score and school performance.  As noted above, find a nice suburb and you generally find a nice school.  Big factors then are how far from the city you want or need to be, what your budget is, and what you can find.  For Primary school we had to show a 6 months+ lease in the catchment.  In demand High schools seem to ask for 12 months minimum.

Edit: Having said that about catchment, worth checking the rules for temp visa.  Enrol at a public school - Department of Education

Do check your employment contract to make sure you are allowed to take on additional work.  

1 hour ago, Ken said:

There is no NI or UK tax on employees who are permanently overseas so no loss to the exchequer either way. 

Where the Contractor is both tax resident outside the UK and performing all their services outside the UK, there are no PAYE or NICs liability in respect of that individual. The employer does not even need to carry out an IR35 status determination. There could be an issue if the employee travels back to the UK and does work there as you'd need to prove it was "incidental", but Australia is a long way from the UK, so the employee isn't likely to pop by the office.

It's the UK company's responsibilities under Australian employment law that would be a nightmare for them to comply with, which is why they should have them as a contractor.

Well put Ken, none of the points above are relevant for an overseas contractor.

2 hours ago, Marisawright said:

It would make a massive difference, and it's a good idea.  

We've had people try to stay working for a UK employer before, and it's a bureaucratic nightmare which results in you having much less in your pocket. That's because there are all kinds of complications in setting up a UK employee to work in a foreign country.

Setting yourself up as a contractor in Australia is easy. You set yourself up as a "sole trader" and get yourself an ABN (Australian Business Number).  That makes you an Australian business.   So long as you're doing the work while you're actually in Australia, it doesn't matter whether your clients are here or overseas -- you're doing business in Australia so you'll be taxed only in Australia.   

When you do the work, you'll invoice your employer at your agreed hourly rate. They don't deduct tax, they just pay your bill.  You don't need to declare anything to the UK taxman because you haven't done any work in the UK.   At Australian tax time, you don't have to do a separate business return.  You just declare your income the same way you do your salary.  

The contractor route is a much better plan.  Your employer will probably change their view as well once they realize the implications.

Worth noting when you do find somewhere you want, some higher demand schools may require a 12 month lease to allow a child to be enrolled , to avoid people renting a second house to get in.  We had to lease a furnished house for 12 months when it only suited us for 6 and then store most of our stuff for the second 6 months.  Worth checking before you sign for 6 months.

I should say I am in a similar position but 3 years on, kids now 10 and 14 so a little younger when we moved.  Yes there were tears and a few bumps along the way but you can make it work if you and your wife are aligned and want to make it work.  If only one of you is really keen it will be much much harder.  Every little thing you dislike will be her fault etc.  It can be very hard.  Also note that if you move to Australia, it doesn't work out and one want to return to the UK and other does not, the one who wants to stay has the power as you cannot take your kids out of Australia without both parents' permission.  

I would budget for 3-6 months to hit the ground, get schools and accommodation sorted and both find jobs.  Anything better than that then is upside.

How long it takes of course depends on your job level, experience and salary expectations.  Plenty of business between Rockingham and Perth including logistics companies.  Around the airport seems to be another big hub.

Based on our then 8-year-old moving two years ago, it takes them some time to get used to the new environment and make some friends. You might even choose to try different schools as we did, moving after a year to a school he is happier in.  Honestly the last thing you will worry about is which school year they are in at that point.

2 hours ago, Simontucks said:

That's my reckoning on the white goods

All the other white goods are standard sizes so bring them.  If you have a fridge already might as well bring it even if for drinks fridge in the garage or laundry if it doesn't fit in the kitchen.  That 400 quid will only buy you one decent appliance to be honest.

That is complex.  Yes you will need to complete a self-assessment, and everyone has to submit a return in Australia.  I would definitely be getting professional advice and I am an accountant.  ON reflection I should have when I moved as it took me ages of research to get the tax split right.  You also cannot file the UK self assessment online from overseas without buying software so you might as well use a pro. @Alan Collett is well recommended.

16 hours ago, bluequay said:

I am in a very similar position in that we will be leaving my mum behind. There were lots of factors in the decision including the fact my wife moved to the UK to be with me and has spent 15 years here, and that has clearly been a one-sided family based sacrifice on her part. The overriding thing for us though is that we feel Australia is the best place for our children to grow up, and as a parent that is something that my mum not only agrees with but can understand. Not that it will be any easier when the time comes of course.

Same here, unfortunately then you have to be in one country when parents get old.  You have to be a bit selfish, and I hope like mine your parents always knew you might go back, and will be grateful to have had you for the 15 years.

8 hours ago, Raul Senise said:

Best comment ever 

I was pretty proud of it myself

1 hour ago, bluequay said:

That last one is mine. Even with Alan's team help it is still a lot of work. You have lengthy statements to write and lots of documentation to gather. We calculated that we spent 60 hours + on our application and that was with their help enabling us to focus on what was needed in the application, rather than what we may have thought was needed if left to do it independently.

I can happily recommend Alan's team if you do choose to go with an agent.

I have no doubt he is a fantastic choice - he is certainly extremely helpful on here and deserves a lot of credit for that.  For many people using an agent is the right thing to do to help get it right or to just not stress about it for 5-6 months. I just wanted to make the point that is it not always a requirement.

2 minutes ago, InnerVoice said:

 

It's not hard as in 'rocket science hard' but I remember there being a number of questions which I found quite ambiguous, and back then there was nowhere near as much information online as there is these days. In fact I don't think it was possible to submit the application online because I remember completing all the paper forms. I paid for a consultation with an RMA to establish what evidence was required and he was very helpful. He even showed me one of his completed applications and he had a tonne of evidence compared with mine, but then you can't just make up stuff so I had to roll with what I had - and fortunately it was enough.

The advantage of the online application is there are effectively folders in the portal in which to submit your evidence which I think makes it a lot easier - You can setup the same folders on your PC and get all the scanned docs together.  Nothing needs to be certified these days, just good quality scans which you can do on a recent phone easily enough.

Just now, Alan Collett said:

How do you know what evidence to gather?

How many partner visa applications have you lodged previously?

Lodging with the support of an experienced advisor improves the likelihood of getting it right and securing the visa outcome you want, in the timeline that suits your circumstances (eg if you want to migrate to Australia by a date in the not too distant future).

Onwards!

I have a 100% success rate in a situation similar to the OP - long relationship, from the UK, plenty of evidence.

There is plenty of content on the evidence required on the IMMI site, and forum such as this are very helpful.  I posted a list of what I provided at one point.

I don't doubt the reassurance of using a professional, or the need for the expertise when you have a difficult case or anything borderline around health or criminality for example.  If you have a simple case though, there are plenty of people who have successfully done it, and I don't recall reading many who failed.

41 minutes ago, InnerVoice said:

Having done one myself I would say they're both hard and complicated. Let's put it this way, if I ever get divorced and remarried I'll not be doing another!

I don't think it is that hard, many people do it without help.  What it is time consuming, but then you have to gather the evidence whether you use an agent or not.

2 hours ago, Fazor said:

Hi thank you for your time in replying.

In my scenario which would be the correct visa for my partner? 

Can you recommend a immigration agent? 

There is a single application for the 309/100, and if you have been together long enough - as you have - then you get the 100 straight away.  If not then there is a second step after 2 years.

Our finding so far is that Public High School in Perth at least seems rather more relaxed than in the UK, and this is good for some kids and not for others.  If you want a different academic approach you may need to look at private, or state selective, which can be much more results focused.  

7 minutes ago, Fazor said:

My question is regarding supplying a TFN.

Yes I know, just thought I would mention it as you said you were out of the country for over a decade, and the rules changed in that time.

According to the ATO the bank should only be deducting at 47% if they don't have your overseas address.  

Investing in bank accounts and income bonds | Australian Taxation Office (ato.gov.au)

Are you aware you are supposed to either file a tax return or a declaration that you are out of the country each year?

1 hour ago, BendigoBoy said:

Heaven only knows, but if Uluru, the Great Barrier Reef, or the Great Ocean Road aren't making the list for most tourists, it says waaaaaay more about the tourists than it does about Australia.

Tourists have to start somewhere, you can't do it all in one holiday.