BendigoBoy

As far as I understand it, there's no age limit for a 482 visa - so an extension is feasible; however, as you will be over 45 at that point, unless you work in particular fields (academia, medicine, sciences, I believe are some of those which are given exemptions to the age limit) a transition to a 186 visa with permanent residency is likely out of the question. That said, if you were only planning on a temporary adventure here in Oz, there should be nothing stopping you seeking 482 sponsorship with another employer.

Crikes! There's an accomplishment. Well done, mate. Hopefully things pan out just swimmingly for you from here on out.

It's not an easy thing making the move; as I think some on the forum will agree with me, we need a little of the selfish gene to do something like moving to the other side of the world. That doesn't mean you don't care for, love, or miss the ones left behind by any means: even if it is natural for us to question ourselves on that front from time to time. We had a very shocking death in the family within seven months of moving out here permanently. And the truth is, the why and the how of it meant that even if we had been living next door, there would have been absolutely nothing we could do about it. Despite Optus' best efforts to the contrary, we're fortunate that we have modern communications systems that allow us to keep in touch with those back home. And flight prices are slowly coming back into sanity. China Southern, as an example, pretty decent airline (my wife raves over the experience, actually, she loves them), have return flights from Melbourne to Heathrow for $1200 next May flagging up now. Alright, it's not exactly an EasyJet fare, but it's also not overly expensive in terms of making those trips back to Blighty every once in a while. (Although if it's just the one or two family members and they're capable of making the trip, more affordable holidays out to Oz to see the family, sure). Whatever you decide to do, short and long term, very best of luck. It's not an easy thing to do: it takes a fair bit of courage to up sticks and shift halfway around the globe.

Not me, I'm afraid. I could point you in the direction of three universities in Australia that are worth a jot in my opinion, but I doubt that'll be much help to anyone. I've become somewhat disenchanted over the last twenty years by academic standards globally, but that's a rant for another time and another place. Hopefully someone will be able to give insight into useful resources for that sort of thing. What I _will_ say is that TAFE is way beyond anything equivalent in FE in the UK. If your daughter is more inclined towards vocational studies, the support and investment out here certainly trumps what relatives and friends have experienced in the UK over the last ten years.

If you're on a 191 by then, she'd be eligible for a Commonwealth Supported Place, and as it'd be a permanent residence visa, youth allowance as well, if she met criteria; however, HECS loans to cover the cost of tuition would not be available until (if?) she took citizenship: https://www.studyassist.gov.au/help-loans/hecs-help

Have you checked if your application is within the standard processing times? As the department mention on their website, if it is within those timeframes, they cannot assist even if you call them.

Can't stand the snow, either.

We don't all cope marvellously with the humidity, mate. Also, too many bloody expats whenever I'm up there.

Just to follow on regarding the account front of things, you could also set up a Wise account if you needed a UK sort code / account number

The wife's 5'4. I've never been more terrified of a small person in my life... Grand Central? That's not, by any chance, either the old crappy Yates' wine lodge rebranded, or they turned that hotel they had there into a wine bar, is it? Been donkey's years since I was in there. Used to work on Gordon Street for a while back in the day and catch the evening train to Killie every night. Starbucks must have made a fortune out of me. Thankfully, Melbourne taught me what coffee actually is.

This is very true, about a wee bit scary. We get on splendidly well with our neighbours. To our left is the most dear-hearted woman you could imagine. But, and I revert to my Classicist tendencies here, she calls a spade a spade (this was originally a fragment of poetry attributed to Sappho [I think it was], and the particular dialect of Greek used, spade and penis are interchangeable). Last year, I was watching Castlevania on Netflix in the living room, and suddenly saw this reflection in the TV screen... Seemed odd. Turned round and looked out the window to the nature strip past our front garden. Our neighbour was weeding out there. Turned to the wife: Love, could you go out there and tell her to bugger off and stop weeding our nature strip? I'm too bloody scared... A lovely personality coupled with a bit of putting the fear of God into people... Not a bad thing.

https://metro.co.uk/2023/11/29/man-rescued-getting-stuck-glory-hole-19900585/?ico=related-posts This could very possibly be the BEST click bait link EVER. It was so good that I actually got a phone call from the boss at work when I posted it in Slack and explained: Look, mate. Click on the bloody thing. It's not dirty. It's just your mind that is...

Hell, @Cheery Thistle, nobody's even bothered calling my references for the last four or five gigs here in Oz. Which, to be honest, is a bit disappointing. The dinners and drinks I've taken those buggers to so that they'd talk me up...

Yeah, just down the road. Dumbarton's had a rough run of it. Nice and close to Loch Lomond - and that's about all you can give it credit for, sadly. Fair shout on the semantics, mate. I completely agree with you on soft skills and *ACTUALLY BLOODY DOING SOMETHING* as means of demonstrating your worth. Let's just say my engineering lizard brain kicked in and had to make the point for the sake of clarity. There was no offence intended - and I certainly hadn't meant to troll you.

That's the spirit, old boy!!! (Edited to clarify: regardless of the 71 genders, I always say "old boy". I reserve "old girl" for the TARDIS)

If you have a MARA registered agent, they should be your first and trusted port of call.

Good shout, @Toots That'd be this one here. Well, if it's Oz or Blighty... there's a hard 'un.

Ah, my wife is very partial to picking up yarn at the Woollen Mills; and it's nice for a wander around, too. There are a few good ovals up here, that's very true. Fair bit of everything sportswise for those so inclined, to be honest, mate. Oh, I'm with you on the Boardwalk. Andy & Co rock up some mean numbers there. That brisket benedict they've had on recently has been top banana.

See Steve Elliott's response at the bottom of this thread for a reasonable hypothesis on how it could pan out.

Depends on your subject, as well. I've a couple of mates who are teachers up here in Bendigo. They're crying out for STEM teachers up here: and a teacher's wage will go a lot further in terms of a decent home here than even the outer suburbs of Melbourne. I always get the "Oh, my goodness! You're up in Bendigo, what a long way for you to come" when I nip into Melbourne for an arvo or a show. It's less than 2 hours on the train. The train's less than $10 return. And I'll be in and back faster at rush hour than a lot of folk who spend a fortune to live in the outer suburbs and commute in. Just wish the council would yield up some money to me for promoting the place so damned much, to be honest... Also, Omari at the Botanical Gardens up here does an absolutely cracking brekky beside the little pond they have.

Truesay, but in a few years' time, it could very well be far more appealing for someone jumping back to the northern hemisphere to settle in the EU rather than the UK - something that's lost if that Lithuanian citizenship was to be yielded up.

I thought it was maybe down to those who work in finance avoiding the number 3 like the plague when writing any bullet points down. If you had someone pronounce three as 'free' (all too bloody disturbingly common in Ayrshire), this could *very* well lead to a stampede in a room full of bankers as they try to grab the point and sell it on for a profit.

Your degree certificate.

Not talking about the class of the degree. Talking about the transcript.

Never been asked for my transcript by anyone other than universities I went on to do further study at, or the ACS/DIBP for immigration. The hell kind of weird job interviewer wants to see a transcript!?