FirstWorldProblems

My gut reaction is that your £35,000 is a healthy budget.  But there are some variable elements that will make quite a difference, so if you can share some more details it will help people to answer your question.

For example visa type - my partner visa cost me £5,415 last year.    In your £35k are you including the costs of selling your current home and renting somewhere for 6 months in Australia - or is that out of scope?  Are you shipping a full household of furniture, or need to buy?  Does your budget include provision for being out of work for a couple months, or is that out of scope?   

The two different school systems do not line up neatly.   Whereas in the UK A-levels are taken in years 12 and 13, the Australian school ends at year 12 and Aussie kids going to university do so in what would be year 13 in the UK (the final year of A-levels).     

Transitioning to an Australian school after GCSE straight into year 12 is probably going to be quite challenging as the foundations of the syllabus are laid out in year 11 and that syllabus is different to the UK.   Purely from an academic perspective, the best time to move her is after A-levels.

15 minutes ago, StevenP said:

Can you kindly send me a link as i must be looking in the wrong location. 

I did this last year from the U.K.  if you search the forum for “HSBC” you will see my post covering how.  You do need a U.K. premier account with HSBC though. 

 

9 hours ago, tahm563 said:

My four siblings live in Sydney.  (sydney south west).  

Do you know how much they budget for tolls?  We clocked up $500 in two weeks last month during a visit based near castle hill.  

12 hours ago, Blue Manna said:

The thing I've never really understood about private health insurance is that when you have private health insurance in the UK it pays for everything. You do have to check first, but I've never been recommended for any treatment that wasn't fully covered.

When you have private health insurance in Australia, you still seem to pay an awful lot of money for treatment. And I am talking quite significant sums for major surgery. It can be quite staggering. So don't think just because you take private cover you are done and dusted.

You should expect this to change in the U.K.  unfortunately.  As access to care becomes harder via the NHS more of us are turning to private cover.   At the company where I work our insurer has increased our price because in 2023 we used 1/3rd more private health than prior years.  
 

If premiums go up, then it’s possible (probable) that deductibles enter the mix to bring the sticker price down.  

12 hours ago, Marisawright said:

We've had an agent say that applications from the UK are being processed very fast currently, so I'd go ahead and apply now. 

A spouse visa application isn't hard to do yourself, but it is very complicated and requires a ridiculous amount of proof.   The fees are too high to risk rejection for a minor mistake or missing documents, so I'd recommend engaging a migration agent to make sure every i is dotted and t crossed.  

Here's how I did it.  It was right for me but might not be right for you.

- engaged a migration agent for upfront advise - super helpful, made me aware of things I previously wasn't and helped me make decisions on timing, approach and undoubtedly avoided some delays down the line

- submitted offshore a fully loaded, very comprehensive application.   As a former project manager I tend to build a plan around things like this and keep track of my time - it was 65 hours (of which 7 were by my sponsor wife).

- there were zero questions and the application was approved 6 weeks after submission (timeline in my footer)

Mine was a simple case.  Over 20 years of marriage, unbroken co-habitation, shared finances and a couple of kids together.

16 minutes ago, InnerVoice said:

That doesn't sound encouraging given that you've only just returned from Sydney, and you're planning to move there in a couple of years.

Nope.  But it’s not necessarily a Sydney thing.  I think I’d struggle with the same things in London.  I’m not a big city person but I will give it a genuine good effort.

5 hours ago, pinkpom said:

For those who NEED to live in Sydney due to jobs/family support/just damn familiarity it gets a bit depressing and samey, tbh.

 

Yep.  I’m afraid I have to agree 

In Sydney, a drink or snack at Opera Bar is a favourite. Great views of the bridge day or night. 
 

Bridge walk, try and get the sunset if you can. Have done it twice and it’s great. You go up in daylight, watch the sun come down and then see the city lit up. 
 

Dont bother with the aquarium.  We’ve probably been ten times over 22 years. This year was v disappointing. It’s tired, tatty and needs a refresh. 

Taronga Zoo is a great location. But don’t go on a very hot day.  Not much shade and it’s hilly and hard work.  The new Sydney Zoo out blacktown way is very well done.

The manly ferry is one of the best views you can get of the harbour.  Manly itself is ok to potter around for an hour.  The Parramatta river cat also offers great views of the inner harbour and Paramatta itself has a vibrant cafe & restaurant scene these days. 

The jet boats (circular quay or darling harbour) are awesome fun  

Bondi is iconic and the beach is nice but it’s very busy, hard to park and the town itself is edging Blackpool way with more and more tat shops each time I go.  My girls enjoyed spotting the lifeguards that they see on the TV show! 

A walk around the botanical gardens (next to the opera house) is always nice.  I like pottering around the shops on the other side of the harbour (The Rocks) where the independent shops are - that’s where you will be for the bridge climb. 

West Head Lookout is closer to the city than the blue mountains, is photo beautiful and has a few nice but short trails to walk.  We saw a metre long goanna (spelling?) ambling along which was a treat. 
 

The new development at Barangaroo is really nice. Would be a good dinner location one night. It looks to have hurt Darling Harbour/Cockle Bay which had been a really popular bar & restaurant area for 25 years but was quiet this December. 
 

Balmoral beach is one of the prettiest beaches I’ve ever seen.  You can rent kayak’s and single sail toppers.   The fish and chips at the boat shed is always good. 
 

Clontarf beach is my pick if you want somewhere relatively quiet, plenty of shade and free public BBQ’s (a great Aussie favourite). 
 

I am aggrieved that they tore down the old IMAX building as I had my wedding reception at their function room…..but  the new IMAX is a stunning building. We didn’t get to watch a show there but I am sure it would be amazing. 

 

This year I tried home made games that I had seen online and they were a big hit.  Things like

- taping a large plastic cup to your waist and hanging a ball underneath and thrusting with your waist to get the ball in the cup  2 or more players compete

- using coloured tape to create a large circle on the floor, spread 6 of the large cups out and have the player stack them in a pyramid whilst keeping a balloon up in the air.  Balloon can’t touch the ground and your body can’t go out of the circle.  players compete against the clock

- use a balloon to move cups from one place to another using only your mouth (blow up the balloon in the cup to grab and let air out to release). If cups fall over move them back.  Two players compete. 
 

- tape out a 9 box grid and use kids ball pit balls (2 colours) to play 3 in a row (noughts and crosses).  Players play in a team and have to run from the balls to the grid (it’s better if they can’t see the grid clearly from the balls). 
 

there are loads others but these went over well. Lots and lots of laughing. 

5 hours ago, InnerVoice said:

You've raised a very good point. Most banks now require 2FA to login in and there's no longer the option to disable it like there was in the old days.

HSBC AU accepted my U.K. number.   For large transactions they send a one time passcode to it.  This is different from HSBC UK who authenticate large transactions via the app. 

6 hours ago, StevenP said:

I have just been invited to apply for my 189 and wondered if it was possible and worth setting up an account. We are travelling in November to look at Schools, areas to live and will be in Perth for 3 weeks. Not sure if their is any benefit on having an account pre travel?

I think there are a couple of small benefits.  
 

Firstly you can monitor the exchange rate and send money over in advance of your trip when the FX is favourable. 

Using your U.K. bank card in Australia will likely attract a foreign currency fee each time along with a poor exchange rate. You can mitigate this with a Monzo card though

It’s one less thing to do when you arrive - you’re going to have lots and lots going on. Having a bank account already sorted is one less thing to do. 

12 minutes ago, InnerVoice said:

You're absolutely right, but how unfair is a system that allows one person to gobble up so much property, leading to an over-inflated market, and putting homes out of reach of so many others. I've always felt uncomfortable with just how 'okay' Australians are with this - they just can't wait to get a slice of the pie themselves. They never stop to consider that communities need workers in low-paid jobs - postmen, cleaners and care workers. Where are these people going to live?

It’s awful.  Ruining the basic lives of the many to fuel the greed of the few.  

3 hours ago, Marisawright said:

To be fair, the same thing is happening all over the world.   I don't think Australia is faring any worse than anywhere else.   It does seem like a lot of people in other countries think that for some magical reason, Australia has avoided it

I think there is one key difference (compared to the U.K. at least) and that is the negative gearing ability. 
 

We visited friends last night who have built a stunning ~$10m Sydney north shore home.  All paid for by having 4 investment properties for over 20 years. 
 

Combined with low interest rates, so long as you could get on the ladder 25 years ago it seems to this overseas observer that it has been very easy to keep drawing down equity and adding another property to your portfolio. 
 

Thought I would share my experience in case it was helpful to anyone else. 
 

As a U.K. HSBC customer I was able to set up a HSBC Australia account from the U.K.  I did it online from my phone in 15 mins. 

Very easy to do.  You need a form of ID that you can take a photo of, your employer address and your UTR (UK unique tax reference - this will be on your tax return or tax code document).

Your bank card gets send via the post - I think it took about two weeks to arrive.  You download the HSBC AU app to manage the account but I later found it was possible to link your accounts so you can see them all in one place (it works both ways with the U.K. and the AU app). 

The rate to transfer money was rubbish so I used TransferWise (now called just wise.com) which was much better and instantaneous (surprisingly).  

Am currently in Australia visiting and have been using the bank account for everything.  I was pleasantly surprised to see that I am getting 2% cashback on every transaction. 

I am sure other options are out there and some might be better but as a HSBC customer this was very convenient for me and I would recommend.  

7 hours ago, Blue Manna said:

I do too, but the hassle of collecting bags and going back through check in is a turn off. Did someone mention airport pods? Would be interested if people have experience of those.

I think the hassle factor is maybe influenced by  how many of you there are and easily they travel (young kids etc). 
 

My eldest and I broke up our journey this week with a Dubai stop for 36 hours whilst the wife and the other two wanted to power thru and spend more time with the family down under.  We found it really easy- no hassle at all.  
 

- haven’t flown economy in some years but prices were bonkers this year and was really impressed with the comfort and space on emirates. That helped.
- exiting Dubai was a 15 minute process

- 25 min taxi to hotel and half the U.K. cost

- 5 star hotel with a big, big room for the cost of a shoebox in London 

- packing cubes made it super easy to get things I wanted out of the suitcase  without hassle

- check in back at the airport was a 5 min wait

- I picked up some current generation noise cancelling headphones cheap in Dubai to replace by 13+ year old ones - what a difference that made to the second flight.  I still don’t sleep but cutting out all that background noise was great. 

On 01/11/2013 at 23:26, newjez said:

Why do they sell you water bottles in dubai transit and then take it off you when you try and get on the plane? I'm sure they just resell it to the next mug. Next time, I'll take an empty bottle on board with me and fill it from the dispenser.

I fell for it again.  I asked the cashier in the shop if you can take bottles onto the plane these days -“yes of course you are already past security”

Grrrr

Only thing I am aware of with an age change to 35 is the working holiday visa and that’s an increase not a decrease.  

You know, it's not always "wrong" to be selfish.  There's definitely a healthy selfishness - your own happiness and your own needs are important and putting them first sometimes is now wrong.  As others have said, balancing your needs with the needs of others is very difficult and highly personal.  Personal to you and the circumstances of your parents.  And of course the needs of your wife.

There probably isn't anyone on the forum who hasn't had to make that difficult decision.  Their circumstances aren't yours, but they are a sharing bunch and hopefully hearing their experiences is helpful to you.  Ultimately emigration is a compromise in many areas of life and if you are fortunate enough to have parents still alive and parents that you are close too, this can be one of the tougher ones.

51 minutes ago, Parley said:

People have no idea how this actually works.

The Ni contributions received from all workers this year need to cover the pension payments for all those receiving pensions this year.

So to make it simple if you have a million workers and 100,000 pensioners the NI contributions made by the million workers only need to be large enough to pay for the 100,000 pensioners claiming this year. That is how the system has always worked.

You are not contributing the full amount to cover your own pension as many incorrectly assume. Just contributing to a pool of money to support the number of pensioners claiming.

One minor correction.  Pensions are funded by NI and general taxation and not NI alone. 
 

But the essence of your post is quite correct - a persons NI contributions are not being invested somewhere in an effort for the fund to grow by the time that person retires. 

2 hours ago, bluequay said:

Just think of it a bonus holiday in the country you have decided to move to. That's how I'm looking at it when we head over in December to meet my first entry by date. We won't be making the move proper until the end of next year.

unless like me your activation trip in December will be spent visiting your mother-in-law.....for the 'bonus' 20th year running   

4 hours ago, Cheery Thistle said:

I’m sure people wouldn’t mind so much if they weren’t already getting hit with the double whammy of highest-ever taxes and declining services. Pay more, get less left right and centre. 

Contrasting Australia and U.K. highlights the root cause of the problem and shows why it’s not going to be something that can be turned around quickly.  
 

Australia annual cost of servicing national debt = $17.7 bn or 2.6% of total government revenue 

UK = £117bn or 10.4%

Many people visiting this site are trying to weigh up if their future will be better in Australia or the U.K.  We dont have a crystal ball to know the answer but as an indicator of what we can expect in the future, these are two very telling data points. 
 

Yes that's right.   For advice you can rely upon I'd advise engaging a migration agent, but I can share my understanding of how it works based on my own partner visa experience.

You apply for a 309 and 100 together.  The 309 is issued as a temporary visa whilst the 100 is being decided.  Once the 100 is issued it supersedes the 309.  If like me you've been in a relationship for a long time and it's very easy to evidence, then you get the 100 straight away.

The visa grant letter sets our the conditions of your visa.  Amongst such things as your work rights there are some details on entry and stay

• It states when you must first enter by (normally 1 year from grant date). 
• It also states a data after which you must not arrive.  On mine (and what I believe is typical) this is 5 year from the grant date. 
• It says that I have unlimited travel until this "must not arrive after" date.
• It further states it says my length of stay is indefinite

So if you take all of these things together, then in my case (and what I believe is typical), I have a visa that allows me unrestricted entry and travel up to a certain date.  The visa itself never expires but my ability to re-enter the country does expire.   

As with the condition that you enter within 1 year of grant, the purpose of this is to weed out only the serious people.  They want us to have strong connections to Australia, to live there and be making a contribution to the country.  The idea is that you will have applied for and received citizenship within 5 years.

If for some reason you haven't been able to do that (perhaps because you didn't spend enough time in country yet to qualify) then you either don't leave the country until you do, or you obtain a Resident Return Visa.

Hope that helps.   If any of that is unclear let me know and I will try to clarify.

The activation trip isn’t by design, rather it’s a workaround for people who aren’t quite ready to move.  
 

Competition for visas to migrate to Australia is fierce - far more demand than supply and so they only want people making the application who are serious and committed, therefore you get a year from the grant to get yourself organised and make the move.  
 

For some (myself included) who need longer, they realise they can just make a visit to fulfil that requirement and return at a later date for the permanent move.