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Me and my boyfriend have been together for a little bit more then 1 year now. Lived with each other ever since day one, have mural bank account etc. Im born in Sweden and my partner in Brazil. He has been here for three years on STUDENT visa and myself two years WH visa and now first year STUDENT. His visa expires in July 2020 and doesn’t wanna go back on student visa and mine expires July 2021 (what’s gonna happen after that is another mystery lol). So our little plan is that he jumps on my visa which I assume would work?!?! Correct me if I’m wrong. BUT. We are having a wedding to attend on in Europe in August and I’m a bit worried if he’s gonna be able to go since he will apply for student with me in July and can he travel and leave the country while he’s waiting?! Some Bridget visas doesn’t let you leave the country u til you’ve got it approved. Please help! Cheers

Hi all. My wife is currently studying master degree by coursework and holds a VISA subclass 500. I hold a dependant visa with the same subclass 500 with my visa condition 8104. As quoted in the VEVO website on my VISA Detail Check (September 2019): 8104 - Work restriction: 40 hours a fortnight: You can only work up to 40 hours in a fortnight. A fortnight means the period of 14 days starting on a Monday. If you are a member of the family unit of a primary student visa holder, you must not work in Australia until they have started their course. Family members of students studying a masters or a doctorate degree can work unrestricted hours once the primary student visa holder has started their course. Note: This applies to family members of students who hold subclass 500 visa. Unrestricted work rights also applies to family members of subclass 573 (Higher Education Sector) and subclass 574 (Postgraduate Research Sector) visa holders studying a masters by research or doctorate degree. Can anybody please help me understand whether I can work unrestricted hours or not. I did not get any clear information also from the education agent that helped me applied my visa. Thank you.

(First time poster) Hi, just putting this out there to see if anyone is in the same boat as me.. i moved here nearly two years ago to be with my husband who is Australian, I left a fantastic network of friends, great job which I loved and my parents who I’m so very close to being an only child.. I moved here in good faith that this would be a better life for us to bring up children (no kids yet) etc but I really can’t help feeling it isn’t, yes the weather is lovely and all that but I am personally struggling so much to fit in I live in a suburb outside of Sydney and it is very hard to explain this feeling of being a fish out of water and feeling on a completely different wave length to everyone, I work with all girls, a real mix, only one Australian all others have foreign backgrounds.. I haven’t been able to make friends and as a result feel completely lonely and lost.. I’m so disconnected. I just seem to work all the time and sit at home (cook/clean) and repeat. My husband works away quite a bit at the moment and has distanced himself from friends as they weren’t for him anymore (let’s just say they like to party hard- another Eyeopener here is the drug scene!) so we both are struggling to make friends, which he feels guilty about, we’re 27. I am out here completely alone and it’s changing me from a bubbly person into someone who is confused, sad and at times bitter. I don’t have anyone I can talk to or lean on other than him and he is sad his family aren’t there for me too, He of course loves his country and is very patient when I say it’s not for me so far, I do seem to get down an awful lot about even the small things- I miss English food so much, it just isn’t the same here (I’m a real foodie!) and I’m a real girly girl who loves to shop and I have tried so hard but cannot stand the cheap crappy shops here, I even miss how the birds would tweet and chirp on a fresh british morning. ANYWAY we’re desperate to get our own place and a mortgage as our living situation at the moment is really spiralling me into depression on top of everything else.. am I making the wrong decision getting something as serious/ permanent as a mortgage? Do I move out have our own place and see if this is when my true aussie life begins, or am I someone who is a true home bird and will forever feel England is home? I just feel I’m missing this aussie dream people talk about.. So sorry for the long first post I feel I’m just letting it all out in hope for Someone to relate or give advise or something! Thankyou in advance xxxx

Hi there, I've always come to this site for wise advice from time to time so thought I'd finally ask for some specific to my situation! If anyone could advise, provide suggestions it would be much appreciated :) Current situation: I moved from the UK to Oz on Working Holiday Visa in 2016 and 9 months in was fortunate enough to get sponsorship - i don't have a degree (I'm a ICT Business Analyst) so my company would need to sponsor me for residency (eligible in June) which take 1 - 1.5 years to process. At the same time i've turned 30 and a have a set of circumstances like many people here which feel like a tug of war between Oz and the UK! Oz situation: I never planned to move here but after being offered a 457 visa i thought i'd give it a chance. Here's the pro's/cons: I feel restricted on the Visa and as i need to go home twice a year it's become a big expense I've been waiting for the company to pay me at the salary level my Oz counterparts are paid at but still waiting a year after they said they would I have a chronic illness which has cost me nearly 10k in Oz to treat (that's after health insurance & medicare rebates) I can't afford to live alone so have been flat sharing On the PLUS side... Best boss and team i've ever had I live in Melbourne and love the culture, food, coffee etc. Health wise i get seen very quickly when i need to I'm so close to residency and that may give me more freedom in Oz Situation in UK: Since I've left the UK, my parents have moved to the Isle of Wight & my brother is having a baby. Here's the pro's/cons of going back: I'd be cutting an opportunity short to stay here in Oz Brexit, not sure what to say about this one as I'm still not clear what the impact is :/ The lifestyle isn't as easygoing The NHS is struggling, and I've been told already I'll need another op and fertility treatment (subject to meeting a man, having a baby etc) On the PLUS side... It's family and close friends (my mum is disabled and dad is 75 this year) Freedom to buy a house, choice over jobs, no visa complications I love the British culture and humor I want children and i want to be near my parents, so meeting a potential partner in the UK seems a better option The education and lifestyle for children (depending on where you live) I can have a second job again (use to sell art in the UK) Having more annual leave and going to Countries nearby i can take my family too Being there as family gets older to look after them and seeing the younger ones grow up It comes down to this - i need to start a family soon and have parents whose needs are only going to increase over the next few years. If i was in my early 20s i would stay and get residency as the goal in Australia has always been to have choice. On the other hand there's the present, and some of the wonderful people in my life who i want to be around when i start a family are in the UK. So it really comes down to timing. I can see from these feeds people feel the struggle of making the right decision and more importantly how they live with those decisions. So bring on the wise words! Many thanks, Amelia

Hi all, I'm exploring the options me and my partner have with visa's at present - we are both so confused! We would like to look at permanent residency, we are both skilled workers; I'm a social worker (2 years post qualified with a Masters degree, 8 years experience in the sector) and the Mr is in environmental health and safety (one year left on his degree studying whilst working full time but 10 years experience in development chemistry prior to this). There are so many visa options; 457, 189, 190 etc, the Mr has used his working holiday visa already but I haven't. I am looking at agencies that could help us distinguish the right pathways for us - we are leaning towards the 189 but it's a lot of money wasted if it is the wrong one, and I'd need to apply for AASW prior to applying for an EOI. Has anyone worked with a good agency they could recommend? We are in North West England at the mo! Thanks All,

Hi All, My wife and I got married recently after my Prospective Marriage Visa was approved and we moved from the UK to Sydney in December 2016. My wife is an Australian citizen and I'm in the process of applying for my Partner Visa 801 from Australia. My question is about documents and evidence. We submitted documents for the PMV online and will do the same for the Partner Visa. I kept copies of my submitted evidence for my PMV and had it all certified in the UK. Can I just use a lot of that again or do I need to get it all certified in Australia now? I know we'll need new declarations and the wedding certificate will need to be certified, but copies of my ID documents and all other documents just seems like so much work, when I could just upload what I previously submitted. I think my police check will be over 12 months very soon too, so I'm hoping they won't ask for a new one. I hope this makes sense. Thanks very much, Greg

hello, I am looking for some advice from people that have moved from the 457 to the 186 transition stream. I will be 2 years on my 457 in febuary 2015, my visa runs out a month after in march 2015...so I have a timeline to work with. my employer is willing to do the nomination..can the nomiation be lodged before the 2 years is completed on the 457??? How much is the nomination? I have been in contact with some migration agents and to work on my visa..i've been quoted 10,000$$$ +++ (my partner is de facto on my 457 so to lodge the visa is 5,280 anyway) how complicated is the visa application itself?? i know its online. and i am cpmpetent on computers. I think if the nomination is approved thats the hardest part?? am i right in thinking this. I would love to chat to someone who has been in my situation before. any info would be greatly appreciated!!:confused::confused:

Hi I am facing a dilemma and it's making me sick to my stomach at the moment. I apologize in advance for my ramblings but my thoughts are all over the place at the moment and I am hoping to get some advice from people who made the move. Bit of background on me: I am originally from Cape Town, South African and moved to London 7 years ago on a working holiday via. I got sponsored, am now on PR and will be applying for my British citizenship next month. I should probably also mention I am single, 32 and work as a Software Developer. A few years back, when I was going through a really unhappy time in the UK, so I applied for my Australian 175 visa thinking moving was the answer. My visa got granted in June 2011 but I wasn't ready to move to Australia yet, as I wanted to get my British citizenship in case I wanted to return to the UK. I am now due to move to Australia (Brisbane initially) in April, and although I have not booked flights yet, my employer knows I am leaving and so does all friends + family. The dilemma I am facing is that I am not sure if moving to Australia is the best thing for me any more. I am in such a different place that I was when I applied for the visa, so it really breaks my heart to think I have to leave a life I love behind. Especially since I have done this once before I know how hard it is to move to another country, it takes years to find your feet! Another concern is I love England and South Africa almost equally now, so I want to spend time in both and not sure how I am going to be able to add Australia to the mix. I also like Australia and the idea of living there, because it would offer a similar lifestyle as I the one I had while growing up in South Africa, something I really miss. But I am worried that living in London for so long has changed me too much to appreciate that kind of lifestyle. I have a good life in London, with great friends, get to travel loads and go home to South Africa once a year for a summer holiday. I just don't know if I am chasing pipe dreams by moving to Australia. At the same time I don't want to regret not moving to Australia because I am too scared, I have worked so hard and dedicated so much time and energy to moving to Australia it would break my heart to just let the opportunity pass me by. Any advice or insights would be greatly appreciated :-)

Hi everyone! I am new here so be nice please Ok so my situation.... My boyfriend is Australian, and I am English, we met and began a relationship in June 2011 whilst he was over in England playing cricket until sept 2011. Since then due to university commitments we have continued a long distance relationship. I have visited him in Australia for one month last year 2012, and for a month this year, and he was in England one month of 2012, and he has just spent the summer over here (5 months) living with me whilst playing cricket. He has just gone back to aus and now I am travelling over on a WHV and living with him for the duration of my stay. I will enter aus on 31st October. I feel we meet all the criteria for a defacto visa, we have proof dating back to 2011 of ongoing communication, holidays together, all flight details, tax records showing he lived at my house and many many pictures as well as friends and family who can support our application, also when i get to aus we will open a joint savings account together, therefore proving a genuine relationship is not my issue. However, due to my boyfriends current pursuit of a professional cricket career his working background and finances are a worry. When he plays in England he gets paid, and he plays cricket for tasmania 2nd team for which he gets paid too. As these are quite large payments he just does casual work to get by in the mean time and as he lives with his mum he doesn't have many large outgoings. He also has very good future prospects with his cricketing career but that is just a waiting game. I am very financially stable and have £5,000 saved. I also have a job lined up for when I arrive in aus. So my first question is... As he will be my sponsor what financial proof do we need/ can we include his mum in the application in any way as she is willing to support me in any way? My second question is... We will possibly be leaving australia next April so he can return to play cricket in England... As long as i go with him and we are living together in England am I right in assuming this will not inhibit our defacto relationship status? We will return in September so I will still have 2 months of working holiday visa remaining. Am I right in thinking if we lodge out application at the end of October 2014 I can then get a bridging visa that will allow me to stay in aus till defacto is granted? Sorry for the long post!!! Any help appreciated as tonight it has all hit me like a ton of bricks and I it rather emotional about the whole thing. Which is not great as he is not here to comfort me! 22year old wanting advice xxxx

Hi There I’m wondering if any of you clever people could lend me your brains for just a min.. So, Iwant to live and work in Australia. I'm not sure if I want to go permanently or for a few years... but i think the process won't be that different?? Anyway I work as an electrician and have scored the relevant points to apply. soo.. Can anyone inform me of list of things I need to do, for example. Do i need to express my interest first or shall get my skills accessed by the TRA?? I’m ready to get things moving but im not sure where to start!! Please help : ) Alan

Hello everyone, I am looking at the ENS requirements and this particular requirement is a bit unclear: You must also meet one of the following requirements: you must have your skills assessed as suitable for the nominated position by the relevant skills assessing authority. A list of assessing bodies can be found in the (ENSOL) you must have at least three years full-time work experience in the occupation before the visa application is lodged or have been nominated to fill a highly paid senior executive position with a salary of more than AUD250 000 per annum (excluding superannuation or allowances). Am I interpreting the above as you should have a positive skill assessment AND at least three years full-time experience? What do you think? If I am understanding it correctly, I wonder how International students will satisfy the requirement? The maximum experience one could possibly have is 1.5 years provided they got their experience while on the Temporary Graduate visa after graduating. Thanks

The views of all you very wise ex-pats out there in Oz, specifically Melbourne, would be very much appreciated. My family (myself, husband & 14yr old son) have been flipping & flopping for the last 5 years about emigrating to Oz! We really like the look of the Mornington Peninsula. Every time the subject crops up (about once a year) we've persuaded ourselves that we're happy to stay here in UK but then each year the topic raises it's head again. This year's was just 2 weeks ago & we felt that it was different this time - we weren't going to be put off by the massive project of applying for the 176 visa, we were going to ignore & negative press etc & so we took initial steps for my husband to get his skills assessed - he's the main applicant as a Clinical Psychologist. However, 2 weeks on & despite the reasons for wanting to leave this country still being as strong, we are reading many, many reports from ex-pats planning to return to UK for various reasons eg. 'bored with OZ', 'bored of the same scenery, ie beaches & gum trees', 'no career pathway', 'no culture or history', 'fed up of being called a pom', 'expensive food' 'expensive house prices' - more comments also but I think you get the point! We realise that no-one can advise us as to wether it's the right thing to do but we would really welcome your valuable insights as ex-pats. :confused::wideeyed::unsure:

I have trawled the previous posts on LAFHA and I guess I am looking for some confirmation or contradiction of what info I have gleaned from reading the other posts.... The facts - I am on a 457, earning $78k + Super, in Darwin, renting on my own for $500pw (deemed to be suitable for job/location etc). My employer has agreed to arrange the LAFHA but I think what they have calculated is way too low. They have offered $13k taken off pre-tax, leaving a taxable amount of $65k - therefore only a $200-$300 amount different every month in my hand. Not much I don;t think. I calculate more like this: $2k monthly, (rent) + $350 ish monthly (food) = $28k annually taken off pre-tax, therefor taxable on $50k. This gives a significant increase in take-home pay. However, is this right roughly? I don't want to go to them demanding things I'm not able to claim and upset them but at the same time don't see the point on missing out on tax benefits if I am eligible. Any experts out there? Thanks

Hi Nurses I am a little confused can anybody help me? :unsure: I only work 19 hours per week - so I think I would not have enough points for a 175 or 176 visa (as it states 20 hours on immigration website) I guess they check your payslips for hours worked. (saying that I stay late most shifts!) If I have to go for a 457 sponsored visa what do I need to do 1st - register with nursing board of Oz? apply for visa? or find a job/sponsor? :confused: I need to save up so am looking at leaving end of the year or early next year. When do I need to start the visa process please? To save costs I would like to do it all independently (rather than through a visa or nursing agency). I am a single parent to a six year old girl hoping to take a career break from NHS and do a year on the Gold Coast and rent out my house - incase it doesn't work out...but secretly hoping it will :biggrin: Thank you very much any advice gratefully received :notworthy: nurse pom xx

Hi There Im hoping someone could help. Is Medical Laboratory Technician on the skills list? I thought i saw it but now think ive been reading an old list as i cant find it. Thanks Kate

Basically i have no clue how to start the process to get my trade skill recognised. While im on a WHV. Vetasses say they only do it for migrants and not WHV people. any phone numbers or people personal experiences would be appreciated thanks jake

I'm sure this has been discussed before but I was wondering if anyone who has put their application in can confirm. We are applying for a 176 and are just waiting for our SS to come back before we put our application in. My confusion is that someone put the online list of documents on a thread on here which said you needed to upload your medicals and CRB checks with your application but I thought you were supposed to wait to get these done? Not sure whether to book the medicals now or not. Can someone help please :biggrin:

Hi I desperatley need some help. I will give you some background as i need as much help as possible. Im 23 years old and live in north east england. My boyfriend lives in Sydney, and i want to move there as early as April next year but i just have no idea where to start. Please please someone help me.. i need to know everything, and i mean everything. even the smallest detail. if you need any information (im sure you will) please ask.. this is giving me a headache xx

So long story short.... Husband is a Project Quantity Surveyor has had 2 offers fall through in Perth due to contracts being shelved.... both were offering sponsorship. Now we have decided to apply for visas ourselves as we have been advised he will have more job opportunities by having his own visa. I have been trying to work out which visa we should be applying for? We want to live and work in Perth please can somebody advice on which has the shortest timeline. I am Irish husband from the UK, spent 3 great years in Dubai but now very unhappy living in Jordan and desperate to get to OZ:-) Have my beautiful english bulldog staying in Dubai waiting to go to OZ as Jordan is not AQIS approved and it is breaking my heart. I work as a stylist and makeup artist and am officially cracking up in Jordan now. Keep getting let down by people so time to do things ourselves. Thank you in advance.

Hi, Me and my husband are due to move to Melbourne in February 2012! we are extremely excited. We are going through the paperwork and I'm totally confused about medical insurance. could someone please help? As a Brit, I understand I can register for medicare, however I feel I should have private too. If you have specific health concerns, where can you go to ask specific questions to get the right cover, and what exactly is excluded, and what the waiting periods mean? I don't want to get stuffed by the medical companies themselves by asking the questions and I can't find anywhere that states this. In brief, I'm mildly asthmatic (taking seretide inhalers) and I may need some hormone investigations for polycystic ovaries / potential fertility problems. Can anyone help advise what this means - I see that existing conditions have a 12 month waiting period - so in the meantime what do I do? If you go to see the doctor to get an asthma check, how much does this cost? As a brit I know I can register with medicare - what does this mean and will it help with the above? Thanks in advance!

Hi Guys please could someone giv this dumb bunny some advice please? :eek: We hav had our 457 visa application lodged today but we need to sort out health insurance for the application! :confused: I hav been told that we will be entitled to medicare once we enroll over there but what do I do in the meantime for the visa application? I'v been told that travel insurance will do for the visa to be granted but when I get quotes they want a return date and when do I start it from? :err: We are hoping that if all goes well then we want to leave the UK around the 8th Jan, do I start it from there? Our migration agent said 8 weeks should do but what if the visa takes longer to process and we dont get out there on the 8th jan? Please help for my brain really doesn't want to play any more! :wacko: Thank you in advance to anyone who can help! :notworthy: Cheers, Kim xx

Hi hope someone will be able to answer my query as I am a bit confused! I have my flight booked to Melbourne, leaving Heathrow this Sat 12th at 22.30. My employer booked the ticket for me and the e ticket states that I am booked with British Airways flight 7318, but the operating carrier is Qantas? does this mean that the plane will be Qantas? and which airline should I use to do online check in with and to check my luggage allowance? Sorry if this has been asked before but I am feeling stressed and confused!

Hi everyone, I swear the more posts/sites that I read the more confused I'm getting! :err: My husband and I are applying for the 309 Spouse visa and I'm wondering just how many stat dec's I need? My husband and I have done ours and two friends in Oz have done the 888 Form and are sending them over. Do I need anything else from other friends/family? Many thanks in advance AC Sorry I posted this on the wrong board, so have re posted.

Hi everyone, I swear the more posts/sites that I read the more confused I'm getting! :err: My husband and I are applying for the 309 Spouse visa and I'm wondering just how many stat dec's I need? My husband and I have done ours and two friends in Oz have done the 888 Form and are sending them over. Do I need anything else from other friends/family? Many thanks in advance AC

What does this mean? had my medical last Friday, nothing unexpected, Dr phoned yesterday saying that there was a problem (technical) uploading the information online, status this am 20/10/11 - health requirement outstanding 20/10/11 - further medicals required complete health forms for this applicant, and no messages at all, so I'm very :confused: Cal