BelgianBun Posted March 21, 2013 Share Posted March 21, 2013 Hi to all, a friend of mine and ex-colleague has moved to Oz quite some time ago. Initially via a UK company with a subsidiary in Australia and recently set up his own company active within the IT industry (insurance and banking). He's offering the option to work for/with him for 6/12 months (possibly longer) based in either Melbourne, Sydney or Brisbane, paying $700-800 per day + GST (not sure what that is); all of this on a 457 visa he's willing to sort out. In the UK, I am a self-employed IT consultant running my own limited company, with a family (wife and 2 kids). I have a turnover of around £100k and pay 20% corporation tax. I live in the south west, not London and would therefore consider life to be not as costly (compared to London). I'd like to have an idea on whether this is a decent offer, what I'd be expected to pay for living in any of those 3 cities quotes (which is best) and how this woud compare to UK standards. Also, my wife works part-time as an admin assistant for the LEA on about £13k. Will she be able to work? Whilst the appeal is there, I am a bit apprehensive about it all - what to expect? Will I actually improve my standard of living? Any advice welcome. Thanks! Steven. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lesleybruck Posted March 21, 2013 Share Posted March 21, 2013 Hi steven cant really help that much, but yes your wife can work. I dont think it should be just about the money as OZ is expensive, sydney especially but if someone offered me that sort of money i would consider it. The areas really do vary thou so you need to research them depending on the type of life style you want, for example do you want to live in a city, by the beach, countryside? can you leave you business running in uk while you try it for a while? Its a hard decision but it must be a family decision with your wife and at least you know someone in OZ to help you. Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickyNook Posted March 21, 2013 Share Posted March 21, 2013 $800 a day works out at $184k a year (assuming 46 weeks of work) which is a lot less than 100k UKP. It might look a similar amount based on the exchange rate but that would be a BIG mistake to make. You'd be paying normal PAYE tax on that $184k as there's no contractor loophole here to avoid it by keeping profits within your own company. Regardless of the financial aspect - would you really want the upheaval of moving your family across the world for what might be just a 6 month contract? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickyNook Posted March 21, 2013 Share Posted March 21, 2013 Sorry, forgot to include... $800 a day is a reasonable rate for an experienced Analyst, BA or Developer. It's not mammoth but quite respectable. PMs should get a bit more than that. I was on that rate in my most recent contract. I wasn't doing anything startling (test analyst) but I do have a lot of experience. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BelgianBun Posted March 21, 2013 Author Share Posted March 21, 2013 Cheers NickyNook... Just like the first post from LesleyBrook... it isn't all about the money. However, I somehow have to agree with you and appreciate your honesty... it's the response I was dreading to hear. Just like you I have quite a bit of experience (almost 20 years in the industry, 15 as a lead/senior BA). Live in the UK is very cosy and I can honestly say that I'm "content"... I'm not rolling in it, but very comfortable. What is missing is a bit of sun. I have travelled in the past for work: Belgiu, France, Monaco, UK and USA... would be nice to add Oz to the list, but not at any cost. What is the PAYG rate? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lesleybruck Posted March 21, 2013 Share Posted March 21, 2013 I think you have already answered your own question you are content so i dont think its worth all the upset and stress for a few months, sunshine doesnt make you happy, what you do makes you happy. I would stay put in uk and perhaps visit your friend for a while if poss and see where that takes you, you may decide yes its worth the move or no its nice to be able to visit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rupert Posted March 21, 2013 Share Posted March 21, 2013 Hi to all, a friend of mine and ex-colleague has moved to Oz quite some time ago. Initially via a UK company with a subsidiary in Australia and recently set up his own company active within the IT industry (insurance and banking). He's offering the option to work for/with him for 6/12 months (possibly longer) based in either Melbourne, Sydney or Brisbane, paying $700-800 per day + GST (not sure what that is); all of this on a 457 visa he's willing to sort out. In the UK, I am a self-employed IT consultant running my own limited company, with a family (wife and 2 kids). I have a turnover of around £100k and pay 20% corporation tax. I live in the south west, not London and would therefore consider life to be not as costly (compared to London). I'd like to have an idea on whether this is a decent offer, what I'd be expected to pay for living in any of those 3 cities quotes (which is best) and how this woud compare to UK standards. Also, my wife works part-time as an admin assistant for the LEA on about £13k. Will she be able to work? Whilst the appeal is there, I am a bit apprehensive about it all - what to expect? Will I actually improve my standard of living? Any advice welcome. Thanks! Steven. There might be other reasons, but there definitely is no financial benefit to the plan. Certainly the Australian salary will not go as far as your UK salary and especially when comparing SW England to say Sydney. As to any other benefits, will it seems like an awful lot of upheaval and disruption for everyone for such a short period of time and when you seem to be quite able to take it or leave it. I am also just wondering about the visa, there is a bit of increased scrutiny at the moment and visas for mates might be called into question when there are probably many local candidates around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BelgianBun Posted March 21, 2013 Author Share Posted March 21, 2013 Hi Rupert, Quite a few people seem to hint "if it ain't broke, don't fix it"... that's probably the case. I'd like to think that I'm quite well travelled and have worked in several countries, yet settled in the UK. Oz has been something that has always appealed, but was never a realistic option until now. It isn't all about money... but last thing I want to do is go somewhere else with the aim to make something of it (whatever that something is I can't qualify just yet) to then be worse off and having to struggle. I'm trying to get an honest view and not a rose-tinted version like on the various TV programmes... hence the need for advice. Need a comparison of cost of living for all 3 cities. My friend seems to struggle to find good BAs (his words)... so can't really comments about the available candidates. Also, it might be for a longer period... beyond the 12months. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chortlepuss Posted March 21, 2013 Share Posted March 21, 2013 Hi Rupert, My friend seems to struggle to find good BAs (his words)... so can't really comments about the available candidates. Also, it might be for a longer period... beyond the 12months. He will be struggling to find good BAs in Brisbane because there are literally hundreds of applicants for every position - I've picked up a couple of recent gigs (for govt BA rates are around the $500-600 mark here), and I've only been interviewed as people have put a word in. I have 20+ years experience, including 10 as a BA/PM in Financial Services and am told repeatedly that I'm too 'experienced' (old?) for positions. Living costs are cheaper in Brisbane, but employment opportunities are fewer than Sydney or Melbourne, particularly for experienced people. I would advise anyone in work on half your salary in the UK to stay put but at 100K it's a no brainer..... If you want the sun, why not spend more time in southern Europe, or go on long haul holidays (like we used to do when we could afford to in the UK?) I left a secure well paid job in the UK to come here, and after 7 years here, it would have been cheaper for us as a family to have taken 6-12 months off work and have a holiday in Oz! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BelgianBun Posted March 21, 2013 Author Share Posted March 21, 2013 Chortlepuss... if there are so many candidates, then they must be overpaying - unless they want quality, ie. me :biggrin:? The problem with the Mediterranean area: no english - unlike Oz. It has been an option to relocate to some of these countries, but I would still fly to and from the UK on a weekly basis. If you've been there 7 years and haven't come back then surely it can't be that bad? All the new here is that AUS economy is growing; no recession! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chortlepuss Posted March 21, 2013 Share Posted March 21, 2013 Chortlepuss... if there are so many candidates, then they must be overpaying - unless they want quality, ie. me :biggrin:? The problem with the Mediterranean area: no english - unlike Oz. It has been an option to relocate to some of these countries, but I would still fly to and from the UK on a weekly basis. If you've been there 7 years and haven't come back then surely it can't be that bad? All the new here is that AUS economy is growing; no recession! I'm stuck here for personal reasons otherwise I'd be on the plane tomorrow. I'm not sure if the Aus economy is growing (I think many states are in technical recession) but the spin of what life is like here does frustrate a lot of us (think wanted down under!). There are a lot of candidates in Brisbane because the major employers here are mining, health, government. Mining is shedding people, health is in serious trouble, Premier campbell newman has thrown thousands of public service workers on to the dole. The huge oversupply of quality and not so quality candidates in Brisbane has caused rates to drop dramatically - I used to manage a govt team responsible for all contractor engagement - and it was rare to see BA/Change Managers on $500-600 unless they were very junior - Now it is the norm. I have friends working in recruitment agencies - they tell me the market has never been worse. Paradoxically, there does seem to have been a swing from using independant contractors to consulting firms - perhaps it's a risk thing? and consulting firms will charge 1-2K per day for a PM, easy (although as a worker you won't get this!). when I came here as a consultant in 2007 the market was booming and I got some really great roles - Now I'm lucky to pick up junior BA roles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tickled Pink Posted March 21, 2013 Share Posted March 21, 2013 Can't comment on most of this, but thought I would say that we have come from the South West to Brisbane and have found cost of living to be comparable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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