Robert Dyson

That would be it Yes, i remember when i started paying mine (years ago) i had to prove that i'd gone straight from UK employment into Australian employment to be allowed to pay C2. Otherwise it would have been the more expensive C3. https://www.gov.uk/voluntary-national-insurance-contributions/who-can-pay-voluntary-contributions#:~:text=You can pay Class 2,least 3 years of contributions Living and working abroad Class 2 - but only if you worked in the UK immediately before leaving, and you’ve previously lived in the UK for at least 3 years in a row or paid at least 3 years of contributions Living abroad but not working Class 3 - but only if at some point you’ve lived in the UK for at least 3 years in a row or paid at least 3 years of contributions

Is there any difference between registering from Australia or from the UK....ie if i setup in Australia then i get a UK account added? I'm thinking of setting one up to help my Dad deal with transferring money over here. Given that i'd have to do everything for him anyway, I might just set one up in my name with my Australian mobile for the 2FA, and get a physical card sent here so he can use it.

There is something to be said for creativity and personality being stimulated from difficult circumstance, hardship and desperation. Treat em mean, keep 'em keen. Australia doesn't have as much of that as the UK does, but it's been cultural and economic policy in the UK for years to try and drive efficiencies through the class system. From that comes humour, character and personality as a defence mechanism. It's no secret that Liverpudlians are known for their humour, but it doesn't come from everybody being rich and living in comfort....it's been a mechanism to cope with life. The London Olympic's opening ceremony was perhaps the best description of British life I've ever seen, no other country on earth could have produced a demonstration of historical culture like that, but most of it came from ordinary people's creativity, experimentation and invention. The UK, certainly the music industry, isn't mostly populated by rich kids with the luxury to make a choice, it's dominated by people who had nothing at all and had to fight for everything they've had. Australia could never produce a Sex Pistols or a Beatles, because there is no cultural base born out of deprivation to enrich it. Australia is a wealthy country and people are overall, far more comfortable and secure than counterparts in the UK. It does lead to a sanitised, dull as dishwater atmosphere at times, because there is nothing really pressing that needs worrying about. Australians are generally well provided for, their societies are not overridden with crime, the provisioning for public spaces and facilities is generally excellent. They do not have much to complain about at all. That can actually become very boring and less stimulating than developing your character in much more difficult circumstances in the UK.

same reason as the Saffers, closest place to home. I would live in Perth if i needed a base for Asia, but why you would otherwise choose it over the East Coast is beyond me.

India is a different world, there's nowhere else like it. Following the first visit, we never again booked a traditional "english style" holiday to the usual European beach places..I mean why would you? Ended up doing India multiple times, then reached out all over the Asia Pacific and eventually we just decided to move to Australia after seeing a job advert...it was a 30 second conversation and we never looked back.

"My occupation is only eligible for the temporary skilled shortage visa route, meaning my employer renews it every two years and there's no path to permanent residency"

Shepherd's Bush used to be full of Saffa's and Aussie's, but they could earn enough from bar work and a good exchange rate to take enough money home with them to put down a house deposit. They can't do that anymore, so i read that most Aussie's now look for professional jobs in the city and have just elevated themselves above the old backpacker scene.

It would be a good base to explore from, you don't appreciate that when you live there. A lot of Aussies i know have amazed me with the breadth of their travel in Europe, far more than the British people i know. I guess that's because a lot have close family all over Europe..Italy, Slovenia, Greece, Croatia etc. The willigness to travel is also an Aussie thing, distance is no problem...they will hop in a car wearing a vest, shorts and flip flops and drive the equivalent of Birmingham to Glasgow to go for a meal. It's amazing. A bloke I worked with flew out on a Thursday to surprise his wife who working in Amsterdam. He was back at his desk on Tuesday morning. Spent 2 nights there ! The UK car thing is interesting....car hire prices have trebled in 2 years, am trying to book one for the new year and i cannot believe the prices they're asking for these tiny cars.

We have blackbirds on the south east coast, it appears to be very different from Perth, a lot more history and culture though nothing on the UK scale....4 very distinct seasons, currently you can hardly tell the difference from the UK, green and wet, misty mountains, rivers overflowing....though i guess why that's why they call it NSW. We have a lot working over here from WA, they won't go back until they retire when they want a more sedentary lifestyle. At the beginning of the pandemic a mate living up on the coast near Coffs Harbour got out and went back to the UK and has just spent 18 months in Presteigne, not far from Gloucestershire. Although he was locked down for an awfully long time and has been unable to return to his home in Australia when he wanted to, he's had a whale of a time immersing himself back in English pub culture, done lots of walking and retraced the Bruce Chatwin travel books, he's spending money on nice meals and generally reconnecting with an old culture, even if it had been forced upon him. He is now desperate to get back to Australia for the summer though, he doesn't fancy being stuck there for another winter. There is something to be said for taking long breaks...places can't make you happy if you're unhappy, they can relieve symptoms.

In ACT they're often the same person, especially for surgeries.....they just turn a different direction at the end of the corridor on some days. They even have private offices on the edge of public hospital campuses, and bridges between the public and private part of the hospital. One you get free, the other you pay for but they give you an extra biscuit.

I've never paid for pathology or blood tests from any referring doctor, or anything for ultrasound or CT scans....but when i went private for an invasive procedure (to save a 9 month wait), i had to pay for everything, there were various bills coming through for months from people i didn't even know had been involved. Insurance covered about half, medicare paid 25%, I paid the rest.

So does the label "everything" which you used in the previous sentence.

They're not people

Good news. If anything it's good because you'll get an automatic letter next year reminding of any available outstanding voluntary contributions to make. If you don't contribute for 2 years, they stop sending reminders and then you have to through the rigmorale of getting in touch with them again for an update..

It takes ages, and the pace of communication if you need anything is glacial.