glenffidich Posted May 5, 2015 Share Posted May 5, 2015 Hi to one and all, we have recently started the ball rolling with the contributory aged parent visa (Oct 2014) and paid the first payment with an agent I am 69 and my wife 63. We have two married daughters in Oz and no others, our dilemma is can we afford it, we know our UK pension is frozen but we have a private pension and can afford to live comfortably in the UK, there's a lot of unanswered questions that we should know before we part with $95,000 ish. Our bond is frozen for ten years I believe so do we get interest on it, do we have to wait 10 years before our pension is topped up to Oz standards, do we have to pay for health issues (both well at the moment), some aged oz friends of ours gets concessions on living costs etc, will we get it if so and when, can we buy a property when the visa has been passed. We have been regular visitors to Australia for the past 8 years and have spent a fair amount of money here and have noticed the rising cost of living but the rise in the £ to the $ is helping at the moment but like in the UK you can shop around although you need more competition over here (come on Aldi & Lidl), UK residents have to pay for a TV licence Oz do not, UK have free NHS Oz do not etc etc Oz residents have to pay for a trailer license, a skippers licence, a fishing licence, you even have to pay a tax when you sell your home I believe. I could go on and on but you get the gist I need some straight forward answers from aged parents who have had to face this dilemma, I know this is a wonderful country, mainly because of the summers, but we need to be secure over here to see our 5 grandchildren grow up, 6 next week. We have approximately 18 months ish before the visa might be granted so need to know all the ins and outs. Please Help Kind regards to one and all Joy & Ian Warren,WA at the moment Kent UK in 3 weeks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bungo Posted May 5, 2015 Share Posted May 5, 2015 You can over analyse living costs and people often do, preparing detailed household bills and so on. We always found it swings and roundabouts really, with the exception of housing costs. So will you have enough money to buy a house with your house proceeds, that is the main thing I would look at. If you are selling in the north of England and buying in Sydney then you will have problems. If you are selling in SE England and buying in Queensland the it is not so bad. After housing costs, well if you are comfortable in the UK, I would expect you to be comfortable in Australia too. UK has NHS, Australia has Medicare which you would be entitled to use, it is not exactly the same and you should be prepared to maybe have to spend some money on healthcare, prescriptions, a doctos visit maybe. On the plus side, we always found it a lot easier to negotiate than the NHS, having to pay a bit at point of use seems to make things work better. I don't think you will get interest on your bond and the concept of "topping up pension to Australia levels" is probably flawed. Australia's old age pension is more akin to an age related low income benefit than a pension. If you have UK pensions sufficient to provide a comfortable living, then you likely will not be eligible for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted May 5, 2015 Share Posted May 5, 2015 My aged parents, back in the day did 6/6 and that worked well for them but at the end of the day they opted for UK and we are here caring for them in their last days. From where I stand, looking at the services they access (and comparing with my MiL in Aus) they are treated royally. Free, prompt and caring medical and support services have been second to none and they would not have done as well in ACT. What do you get for your $100k? Not much really - if you don't notice it going you'll be ok but if it matters to you then it might be financially tight. Your pension won't be "topped up" even after 10 years - it's not a contributory pension scheme but a low income welfare payment. if you can wangle a granny flat with one of your daughters you might be ok but otherwise living is expensive Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
juliew1499 Posted May 5, 2015 Share Posted May 5, 2015 Hi to one and all, we have recently started the ball rolling with the contributory aged parent visa (Oct 2014) and paid the first payment with an agent I am 69 and my wife 63.We have two married daughters in Oz and no others, our dilemma is can we afford it, we know our UK pension is frozen but we have a private pension and can afford to live comfortably in the UK, there's a lot of unanswered questions that we should know before we part with $95,000 ish. Our bond is frozen for ten years I believe so do we get interest on it, do we have to wait 10 years before our pension is topped up to Oz standards, do we have to pay for health issues (both well at the moment), some aged oz friends of ours gets concessions on living costs etc, will we get it if so and when, can we buy a property when the visa has been passed. We have been regular visitors to Australia for the past 8 years and have spent a fair amount of money here and have noticed the rising cost of living but the rise in the £ to the $ is helping at the moment but like in the UK you can shop around although you need more competition over here (come on Aldi & Lidl), UK residents have to pay for a TV licence Oz do not, UK have free NHS Oz do not etc etc Oz residents have to pay for a trailer license, a skippers licence, a fishing licence, you even have to pay a tax when you sell your home I believe. I could go on and on but you get the gist I need some straight forward answers from aged parents who have had to face this dilemma, I know this is a wonderful country, mainly because of the summers, but we need to be secure over here to see our 5 grandchildren grow up, 6 next week. We have approximately 18 months ish before the visa might be granted so need to know all the ins and outs. Please Help Kind regards to one and all Joy & Ian Warren,WA at the moment Kent UK in 3 weeks. Hello Joyand Ian Welcome to the site. First of all might I suggest that you look at the Contributry Parent visa thread that is on this site. You will get a lot of information about pensions, Medicare, senior passes etc. we are in our 60’s and 11mths into the process of applying for CPV143. As you say it's a lot of money to part with - but money isn't everything when you are away from your loved ones. The big sum Of money is basically giving you access to Medicare and then 10 yrs on access to the Australian aged pension if you qualify. Google aged pension and you will find the qualifying criteria. Also look up senior cards, there is one that you will get straight away which entitles you to a few concessions on public transport and some shopping and another that you will get 2 yrs from PR being granted, there are concessions for utilities, solar energy all sorts of things you just have to check that you qualify. The senior cards are different for each state. if you are already drawing your UK private pensions then they will be taxed in Australia, but you won't have to pay tax in UK as the pension company will be able to pay them gross if you fill out the appropriate HMRC paperwork. The ATO site shows the tax free allowances etc. we have been to Australia several times and looked at houses, talked to estate agents, conveyances etc. I guess you have already looked at houses and know what you can get for your money. We think some things like food are more expensive. It these seem to be balanced out by cheaper petrol, council tax and loads of free parking. The 2nd VAC is a big sum of money but no sum of money can compare with your kids just popping in to see you because they can! Good luck with your application, it's a long frustrating process. Julie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Collett Posted May 5, 2015 Share Posted May 5, 2015 Hello Joy and Ian. > Is there a reason why you went for a Contributory Aged Parent visa application (subclass 864) rather than a basic Aged Parent (s/c 804) application? > When was your s/c 864 visa application lodged with the Parents Visa Centre? In our experience these applications have not been taking very long to progress in the last year (3 to 4 months from lodgment to grant is not uncommon), and as you have to be in Australia for visa grant this might impact your plans for returning to the UK? Maybe discuss with your migration advisor? Best regards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bridgeman Posted May 5, 2015 Share Posted May 5, 2015 By bond I assume you mean the Assurance of Support. Although you will obviously provide the money it is your sponsor who has to pay it, I assume one of your daughters. It will be held in their name and the interest on the bond will be paid to them every 6 months ) currently around 400 dollars. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vava Posted May 5, 2015 Share Posted May 5, 2015 By bond I assume you mean the Assurance of Support. Although you will obviously provide the money it is your sponsor who has to pay it, I assume one of your daughters. It will be held in their name and the interest on the bond will be paid to them every 6 months ) currently around 400 dollars. Hi, I think, or at least my daughter informs me that interest on the AoS can either be paid out every six months, every 12 months or kept with the original bond. She said she chose to keep adding the interest to the capital and I'm hoping she isn't telling me porkies and is pocketing $400 every 6 months! Surely not! Hmmm............I feel a Skype session coming on! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenffidich Posted May 6, 2015 Author Share Posted May 6, 2015 You can over analyse living costs and people often do, preparing detailed household bills and so on. We always found it swings and roundabouts really, with the exception of housing costs. So will you have enough money to buy a house with your house proceeds, that is the main thing I would look at. If you are selling in the north of England and buying in Sydney then you will have problems. If you are selling in SE England and buying in Queensland the it is not so bad. After housing costs, well if you are comfortable in the UK, I would expect you to be comfortable in Australia too. UK has NHS, Australia has Medicare which you would be entitled to use, it is not exactly the same and you should be prepared to maybe have to spend some money on healthcare, prescriptions, a doctos visit maybe. On the plus side, we always found it a lot easier to negotiate than the NHS, having to pay a bit at point of use seems to make things work better. I don't think you will get interest on your bond and the concept of "topping up pension to Australia levels" is probably flawed. Australia's old age pension is more akin to an age related low income benefit than a pension. If you have UK pensions sufficient to provide a comfortable living, then you likely will not be eligible for it. I thank you Bongo for the info, we have already downgraded from a large bungalow in the S/E when the prices were high 2011 so have the cash to proceed its just the ongoing costs in Australia, I have to do some serious google searching again many thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manxhaven Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 Hi Julie, My wife and I have been PR for 3 1/2 years. We both have the medicare cards and the NSW seniors cards. You refer to another card for which one can obtain after 2 years of being PR. I have done a search but am unable to find any reference to anything simlilar. Will you be so good as to explain in detail please. My appologies to any one who I may upset by me asking this on another persons question. Regards Colin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenffidich Posted May 6, 2015 Author Share Posted May 6, 2015 Hi Alan We were told about 18 months from start to finish for the contributory parent (migrant) (class ca) subclass 143 visa and forever for the basic so will have to see what happens, many thanks for your input. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenffidich Posted May 6, 2015 Author Share Posted May 6, 2015 Hi there Quoll, thanks for your input, yes we've been down the road of the granny flat, hmm don't want to be too close, we then become a permanent baby sitter, parents keep them, grandparents give them back, sounds the better option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenffidich Posted May 6, 2015 Author Share Posted May 6, 2015 Nice one my sense of humour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Collett Posted May 6, 2015 Share Posted May 6, 2015 Hi Alan We were told about 18 months from start to finish for the contributory parent (migrant) (class ca) subclass 143 visa and forever for the basic so will have to see what happens, many thanks for your input. Ah - OK. So you have applied for the 143 Contributory Parent subclass, not the 864 Contributory Aged Parent. Best regards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glenffidich Posted May 6, 2015 Author Share Posted May 6, 2015 Hi Julie I thank you for all that info I now have a lot googling to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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