Guest Nathan & Mandie Posted August 24, 2006 Share Posted August 24, 2006 Hi All Again. Thank you everyone who replied on our question on 'put house on market now or wait' topic. From reading many of your replies has lead us to stray onto another subject of medicals. I thought you had to wait to be asked by the C.O to get medicals done, but it appears many of you have already done them. How long should we expect to wait to be allocated a C.O our application was received 23 May 06. A bit confused and starting to get agitated!!!! Many Thanks Mandie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pesky Varmit Posted August 24, 2006 Share Posted August 24, 2006 Hi Mandie We too thought you had to wait for case officer but we had meds done on Mon, unrequested. In hindsight we probably would have done them earlier as Est, who had her aplication acknowledged same time as us just got her C/O on Mon and visa granted yesterday!! She had front loaded police checks and meds and therefore when case officer was assigned, all information was already there. We had police checks done in May so this will be the date our visa will be based on anyway, so therefore we could have done meds then. We decided at the beginning of this process to wait for C/O but have got very impatient so decided to frontload. House is alreay sold, so when meds are posted off in next two weeks or so, we''ll hopefully not have to wait too long for visa. It's entirely your decission on how to do things, we just got fed-up waiting!!! Good Luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nathan & Mandie Posted August 24, 2006 Share Posted August 24, 2006 Thanks Pesky Varmit. I think what you have said makes good sense and we will follow suit. I will arrange for medicals asap especially as our police checks were done in June and did not realise that the visa started from this date!!! I thought it was from visa approval!!! - Which is quite worrying. When did you get your application adknowledged? We are also going to put the house on the market in a few weeks, just getting round to those 'unfinished jobs' (like painting the back of the bathroom door which was hung nearly 2 years ago). Sounds like you could be on your way very soon - how exciting. Good Luck. Mandie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Est Posted August 24, 2006 Share Posted August 24, 2006 We wish we had put the house up for sale earlier. We are in the situation now that we have our visa and are held up with the house. Est x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gollywobbler Posted August 24, 2006 Share Posted August 24, 2006 Hi All Again. Thank you everyone who replied on our question on 'put house on market now or wait' topic. From reading many of your replies has lead us to stray onto another subject of medicals. I thought you had to wait to be asked by the C.O to get medicals done, but it appears many of you have already done them. How long should we expect to wait to be allocated a C.O our application was received 23 May 06. A bit confused and starting to get agitated!!!! Many Thanks Mandie Hi there DIMA prefer people to wait until Meds & PCCs are requested by the CO. The reason is threefold. Firstly, they will not normally ask for the PCCs & meds unless they are sure that the application is OK in all other respects - they are trying to discourage you from spending your money in a possibly fruitless pursuit. Secondly, the meds and pccs are usually only valid for 12 months from the date of issue. The visa must be 'validated' by everyone included in the application physically entering Australia (if only for the briefest of visits) within 12 months of the date of the earlier of the pccs and the meds. Consequently, if people frontload and then there is a delay with their application for any reason, they can either find themselves having to re-do the pccs and/or the meds, or they can find that they have maybe only a month post-grant in which to gallop out to Australia and then straight home again. Which is an absurd waste of money as well as a stress that nobody needs. Thirdly, meds done unrequested are all too frequently sent to the wrong place by Panel Doctors. That causes DIMA administrative hassle and costs in sending them on to the correct processing centre. The UK pccs only cost £10 each, so it is no big deal to renew those if need be. However the meds tend to cost about £200-£250 per person, so you wouldn't want to have to get those done twice if you could avoid it. What some people opt to do is to wait and watch the ASPC timelines via sending off a blank e-mail each week. They frontload the pccs and the meds about a month before they expect to hear from a CO. Cleverly timed, I think this strategy can often save 4-6 weeks on the overall timescale. However, tastes & preferences vary from one applicant to the next. Do whatever feels right to you, but do so in the light of understanding what the potential up and down sides respectively might be, I suggest. Best wishes and here's to your new lives in Oz Cheers Gill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pesky Varmit Posted August 24, 2006 Share Posted August 24, 2006 Hi Mandie What Gill says also makes good sense. By following ASPC timelines we reckoned we would get a C/O by 5/9 as we had our application acknowledged 4/4 so we may have saved ourselves few weeks, hopefully!! Lets see if we do get C/O by then, fingers and everything else crossed!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nathan & Mandie Posted August 24, 2006 Share Posted August 24, 2006 Thanks Gill you seem to have all angles covered from the sensible point of view which is what we should probably follow, but as some of the advice Pesky Varmit has given you cant help wonder if sometimes it may be worthwhile throwing caution to the wind as it were. Its a difficult one!! Like everything in life, nothing runs smoothly. Keep positive Est and things will work out soon. Well done with the Visa and Good Luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gollywobbler Posted August 24, 2006 Share Posted August 24, 2006 Hi again Any fool can give sensible advice. What I might do myself is another matter, however..... :wink: Gill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest spray21 Posted August 24, 2006 Share Posted August 24, 2006 It is true that you take a gamble by front-loading medicals and police checks, but it can undoubtedly speed up the visa process - assuming that visas are ultimately approved. We had our meds done today - the one bit of advice I would offer is to shop around and get some prices. We wanted to do ours this week because we are both off work so it's a good time for us. Our nearest panel doctor couldn't see us until mid-September, so we drove an hour to another one who could - in the end we paid £85 per person rather than £135, £20 each for blood tests rather than £25, nothing for postage - local place charged £15 (each). Also went further afield for x-rays (which you have to get done first and take with you to the panel doc), again to get seen as early as possible, and paid £60 each rather than £80. So we managed to do it all this week AND paid about £150 less than if we'd got it all done locally. Another problem we faced was that when we arrived to have our x-rays done they expected us to have all the forms, which we did not have as you do not get sent them until you have had the medicals requested. (In fact the hospital told us not to worry as they had some spares, but then it turned out that they didn't! So we drove home again and got on line...) On the immi website you cannot download basic P160 (which is the x-ray form) only ones for use within Oz or for doctors to use if applying themselves. But a google search turns up ones that you can download and print out. Same goes for the P26 which is the basic medical form that you take with you to the panel doctor. I've made it sound really complcicated but it's not that bad! Basically just shop around for prices and make sure you have the forms to take with you to save wasted journeys. Good luck with it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pesky Varmit Posted August 24, 2006 Share Posted August 24, 2006 These forms can be downloaded and printed from here http://www.uk.embassy.gov.au/lhlh/health.html V.good advice about phoning around. There is a list of Panel Doctors on this site too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nathan & Mandie Posted August 24, 2006 Share Posted August 24, 2006 Good idea spray21 I will shop around and see what happens. Thanks Pesky Varmit for the web site I tried to search earlier but couldn't get the offshore medical forms. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Est Posted August 25, 2006 Share Posted August 25, 2006 try this one, this is where we got both medical and xray forms. You need to have two passport photos each. http://www.australia.org.uk Est x Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ali Posted August 25, 2006 Share Posted August 25, 2006 Hi, Need to remember that the DIMIA do change the forms from time to time, so make sure you have the most upto date ones. Ali Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pesky Varmit Posted August 25, 2006 Share Posted August 25, 2006 Hi Cal Thanks for your help, have made us feel a lot better. Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gollywobbler Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 Hi Jo The Panel Doctor will send the meds off for you. The rules FORBID you from being involved in sending them off. (Too many applicants would tamper with the meds if they got half a chance.) Please see here: http://www.immi.gov.au/contacts/australia/processing-centres/lcu-sydney.htm Your visa is probably one of the ones that the LCU does the meds for, but check the list and make sure. Put their courier address on the forms and INSIST that the Panel Doctor sends the meds forms bu courier. The LCU is notorious for mislaying the documents, so you should be able to obtain independent verification of the delivery date quickly and easily. If you follow the link above, in due course you will be able to e-mail the LCU to obtain confirmation that your meds have been received and cleared. Give it at least 3 weeks from tomorrow before you chase the LCU (but definitely chase them in 3-4 weeks, just in case you have to kick ass and make them find yours.) The blood test takes 7-10 days before the Panel Doctor gets the results. Allow another 7 days or so for the courier to collect them from the doctor, send them off and then deliver them to the LCU. Good luck tomorrow. Gill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Missiemo Posted September 6, 2006 Share Posted September 6, 2006 Guys Just one point I think is worth raising, be careful with front loading medicals, as Gill so rightly advised, my mine concern is the outside chance of them changing the forms, which they do from time to time. When they emailed us asking for us to go for our mediclas they did send the medical forms as an attachment. Parts of these forms were already completed with some of our details. Take Care Mo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ali Posted September 7, 2006 Share Posted September 7, 2006 Hi, My friend gave her police checks to the doctor and he sent them in the same envelope with the medicals. The doctor sends your medicals off to the clearing house (usually a week after as the blood tests take this long to get back). Your origional acknowledgement letter would have contained a number - put this onto the medicals. Your visa, when granted will be dated from the date of your police checks or your medical whichever is the earliest - if there's only a few weeks difference in dates you may as well send them now, but if you got them months ago, then it gives you less time to validate your visa. If you don't send them, then irrespective of when your visa is granted you would have a year from today if your medicals go first. Ali Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Pesky Varmit Posted September 7, 2006 Share Posted September 7, 2006 Hi there We frontloaded our meds a few weeks ago and lucky enough we got C/O last week, so saved ourselves a bit of time. The C/O just asked us to download the forms so we had to fill in all details ourselves. Hope this helps. Good luck, hope meds went well! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Gollywobbler Posted September 7, 2006 Share Posted September 7, 2006 Hi, My friend gave her police checks to the doctor and he sent them in the same envelope with the medicals. The doctor sends your medicals off to the clearing house (usually a week after as the blood tests take this long to get back). Your origional acknowledgement letter would have contained a number - put this onto the medicals. Your visa, when granted will be dated from the date of your police checks or your medical whichever is the earliest - if there's only a few weeks difference in dates you may as well send them now, but if you got them months ago, then it gives you less time to validate your visa. If you don't send them, then irrespective of when your visa is granted you would have a year from today if your medicals go first. Ali Errrm. I wouldn't recommend giving the pccs to the Panel Doctor to send. The reason is because the LCU handles the medical stuff only. So if the Pccs are sent to the LCU, it simply leaves the LCU having to send them on to the CO in Adelaide. Which irritates DIMA because it simply means extra admin and cost for themselves. For this reason, I would advocate sending the pccs direct to Adelaide, either via International Signed For or by courier, as preferred. (Airsure is not available for letters and packages sent to Australia for some reason.) Apart from this small point though, I agree with Ali. For anyone considering frontloading their meds, be careful about exactly when you do it. The pccs are less important because they only cost a tenner each anyway, so renewing/replacing those if need be would not break the bank. For a whole family, the meds are a different kettle of cost-fish. Cheers Gill Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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