Madis

Cambridge English C2 level is achived with this exam: http://www.cambridgeenglish.org/exams-and-tests/proficiency/ I'm not actually sure if Cambridge English was the right path. Do you think IELTS is easier? I can also do IELTS exam here.

Thank you for your input. English is actually my second language, I'm from Estonia ? But I will most probably do the C2 level Cambridge exam in 2 weeks and I have already contacted a migration agent. And thank you everyone for your information. I will let you know how it goes.

I share you opinion. To be honest, the C1 test for me was pretty difficult as it required that mindset for exams which I last time had maybe 10 years ago. I was surprised that I even did that well, but now I discovered that I need to do even better. The average result I got was 197 points, but to get full 20 points for SkillSelect I would need to have 200+ points. I am now investigating next exam dates and if I should take the C1 test again (which I am familiar with and which has potential for C2 level (200+ points)) or do the C2 test right away. People in the exam center told me that the C2 level is extremely difficult.

My points breakdown for 189 is as follows: Age - 30 English - 10 (got level C1, not C2) Qualification - 15 Work experience - 5 Total - 60

Hello and sorry for a long post. I'm new to this forum and after about 9 months of trying to deal with the visa details I have realised that it can be even more complicated than I previously thought. I would like to ask some advice and tips from this forum. Thank you for any help! But before, I would like to explain where we are currently: 1. A little bit about our family: Me - 32y old (33 at 29.03.2019) Qualification: Bachelor degree on ICT Project Manager (graduated in 2009) Masters degree on ICT Business Analyst (graduated in 2011) Job experience: Different positions in IT sector (mainly Software Tester) - since 2008 Product Analyst in IT - since 10/2014 My wife - 33y old Qualification: Bachelor degree on Marketing (graduated in 2008) Job experience: Different positions in journalism and HR Manager/Owner in her own company specialised on event planning - since 2011 1st child - 5y old 2nd child - 1y old 2. Where we are in visa process so far: I have finally got all the papers together and applied for EOI, as ICT Business Analyst (261111) my skill, with following points: 189 - 60 points 190 - 65 points 489 - 70 points For that I: Got my diplomas and latest employer referal translated to english, signed by a laywer and applied for assessment by ACS Got my successful qualification assessment by ACS Took Cambridge English CAE test - scored 194 points and C1 level, Proficient level for SkillSelect Applied with that information for EOI 3. Our plans: We are planning to move to Australia for at least 4 years, most probably permanently. I was planning to move to Australia and start working in the end of this year (2018), followed by the rest of my family after about 2 months or so, after I've had time to settle in and prepare everything for my family - settle in with new job, get familiar with environment, find a place to live etc. Our first child would need to go to school in the beginning of next year so time pushes us. We have planned that my wife would take some time off from work for the first year or two to help children settle in to different environment. And so I could concentrate on my work. We are currently leaning towards Perth, Brisbane or Melbourne. Most probably Perth, but it all depends of what job offers are on the table. 4. My concernes and questions: I have realized that 60 points for 189 is currently not enough to get invited, the current cut off seems to be 70 or even 75 for my profession. I see that I might be able to get more points from: 5 points - getting my wife to get her skills assessed as Marketing Specialist (currently in the list) and do her English exam aswell; 5 points - add more work experience. I have currently added only my recent Product Analyst work experience to my assessment (as it's the only closely related one for ICT Business Analyst, the rest of my experience is also IT related, but mainly in IT Quality Assurance). I currently have 3-5 years of experience which gives me 5 points. Getting my work experience to 5+ years would give me 10 points. What do you think - would that be possible?; 5 points - come and work in Australia with another visa, get work experience for 1+ years and add it to my EOI; Minus 5 points - in about 9 months I will be 33 years old and I will loose 5 points instead. Meaning that all above would be pointless if I don't get an invite within the next 9 months. Am I right?; So here's my question - given my timeline (work in Australia by the beginning of 2019), do I have a shot to get visa though 189, 190 or 489 by that time at all or should I start looking for alternative ways (482 or other)? I've tried to get everything set up on my own, but I hear and read warnings that people might get rejected for silly mistakes. I have quite a lot at stakes here, due to my whole family needs and plans. Should I use help from a migration agent, based on my situation? How much would that service cost me about, given the fact that I've already got so far? Can you recommend a good migration agent that would suit my needs? Should I find a job first, get 482 (or something else), work and live in Australia for a year or two and follow another path for a permanent visa? My end goal would be to apply for citicenship and stay in Australia permanently. What would that path look like? Finding a job. I've started looking around and I have a few questions: Should I use a recruitment agency that is specialised on expats or it doesn't really matter? If yes, which recruitment agency would you recommend? If I apply for a job as an expat, are the employers generally up for sponsoring my visa? What should I pay attention to? What should I keep in mind getting visa for my family members aswell? As I've understood so far, all the visa forms I've been interested to (189, 190, 489, 482) give me the opportunity to include my family aswell Any other thoughts/ideas? I will be very grateful for your input, even the smallest ideas and suggestions.