Diane Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 We hired a car on our recent visit to the UK - initially they said if we used our Aussie licenses they would have to charge us extra, so we took our old UK licenses with us (the old style green piece of paper ones, even though the address is obviously out of date) - they had to do online checks on these against our National Insurance numbers - luckily I still remembered mine although OH couldn't remember his. They booked the car therefore on my British license and his Australian one, but didn't charge us any extra. This was a small independent hirer. Don't know if this is any help at all, but if you have a note of your UK NI number anywhere, worth looking it up and taking it with you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbirdmoose Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 Inam probably going to post something in that section. Fortunately prices are by size of dog and he is about as small as it gets. I also have a dog I'm looking to take with me so any advise in this would help. (which section?) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 (edited) Well, it is looking more and more likely we will be moving back and it may happen very quickly as I am in the running for a few jobs. So, in preparation, I thought I would ask all those who have done it to offer any practical advice for the move. <br><br> I am am making this open to pretty much any form of advice and it will hopefully also help others in the future. Good luck with the job applications - will your wife be moving back immediately with you too? Assuming she is then I guess step one is deciding which assets to sell and which to ship back to the UK - if there are things you can sell now get started, otherwise get them on Gumtree as soon as you have a date. I found people were willing to pay deposits and collect closer to the day we were leaving - our bedroom furniture was collected on the day the shippers arrived for the stuff we were taking.<br><br>Your house I guess is the biggest difficulty if you need to move quickly, given the difficulties you're having is it worth starting the process now? Or would you perhaps rent it out? Would the rental value cover your mortgage? As well as your stuff, are you going to be taking pets? I can recommend this company in Perth http://www.sherae.com.au/petlink.html - if the move may be quick you need to think about the timing of rabies jabs.<br><br>British and Australian passports up to date? Will you need temporary accommodation in the UK - Airbnb is probably your best bet there, though there are plenty of holiday lets sites. Getting a rental can be tough for a new arrival as you will need to pass a credit check - having a job will definitely help though but if you have not kept UK bank accounts, credit cards etc. that can be difficult. As soon as you arrive get yourself on the electoral register as that affects your credit rating. It is worth joining Experian (30 days free) and checking what your credit rating is - I was pleasantly surprised at ours and getting on the electoral register was all we needed to get a mortgage. We did have bank accounts, credit cards and a mortgage in the UK whilst we were away though. Get a certificate of NCB from your insurer & make sure it states years not just a percentage - there are plenty of UK insurers that will take it - we're with Aviva. Still shop around though someone mentioned on here recently that Direct Line without NCB gave them a better rate than another company with it. Expect 'culture shock', you've been away a long time and holidays home don't prepare you for real life - there are things you will now take for granted that are different in the UK. Some things you will miss, others you will be glad to see the back of. Be prepared for people here to think you're crazy, even in your situation there are those that will believe that they'd rather be destitute in the sun! My answer when I'm asked is 'I prefer the weather in Scotland' - said in such a way that they think I'm joking (I'm not really!) but it seems to shut most people up. If I'm pushed I say I like the people better - that seems to appeal to most people's ego's I wish you the very best VS - it is a terrible shame that just as you started to actually enjoy your life in Australia - citizenship, your own home etc. things were to go wrong for you in this way. They build us tough in the NE though and pulling ourselves up by the boot straps is what we're good at. Anything I can do to help please shout - I have a house sitting empty in Middlesbrough at the moment! Edited January 27, 2016 by Lady Rainicorn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marenmatt1 Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 Can anyone direct me to info for EU citizens moving to/living in the UK? I have been finding so much conflicting info. Can I get an NHS number & insurance number? I have aus citizenship as well if that helps. Can you also hire a car without a credit card? I know a lot of places in Aus don't so was curious if it's the same in the UK? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johndoe Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 Can anyone direct me to info for EU citizens moving to/living in the UK? I have been finding so much conflicting info. Can I get an NHS number & insurance number? I have aus citizenship as well if that helps. Can you also hire a car without a credit card? I know a lot of places in Aus don't so was curious if it's the same in the UK? Yes, I only had a visa debit (Suncorp card) and on 3 occasions Budget hired me one no problem. I also only have an Oz licence and they didn't charge extra. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicF Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 Also any advice about council tax, electoral and TV licence? Will I get badgered to get a TV licence even when we wont initially have a telly? And another thing.. (sorry to be so needy..) If we need to book car hire when we get there for a few weeks - Is it OK to do this on our Aussie licences? Cheers for any replies.... We booked a car for a recent trip back to the UK through hertz.com.au which was about half the price of booking through hertz.co.uk. And also cheaper than any of the other places I had found cheap car hire previously. They had no issues with me using my Australian license. I used Enterprise car hire on a previous trip back and they were perfectly happy with an Australian license as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 I have a house in the UK and a bank account - will I have to wait to set up broadband/mobile phone until I get utility bills? Can you change the address on your UK bank account to a relative's or friend's, then ask for a paper statement? That's what I did, and used that bank statement as proof of address for my mobile phone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 Can anyone direct me to info for EU citizens moving to/living in the UK? I have been finding so much conflicting info. Can I get an NHS number & insurance number? I have aus citizenship as well if that helps. Can you also hire a car without a credit card? I know a lot of places in Aus don't so was curious if it's the same in the UK? There's very little info about EU citizens moving to the UK because it's so much easier than it is for Australians!! So no, your Australian citizenship won't help at all. You just apply for a National Insurance number once you're in the UK. When you go and register with a GP, you'll be allocated a NHS number. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 We booked a car for a recent trip back to the UK through hertz.com.au which was about half the price of booking through hertz.co.uk. And also cheaper than any of the other places I had found cheap car hire previously. They had no issues with me using my Australian license. I used Enterprise car hire on a previous trip back and they were perfectly happy with an Australian license as well. Yes, we used Enterprise a couple of times with our Australian licences, no problem at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 Also any advice about council tax, electoral and TV licence? Will I get badgered to get a TV licence even when we wont initially have a telly? And another thing.. (sorry to be so needy..) If we need to book car hire when we get there for a few weeks - Is it OK to do this on our Aussie licences? Cheers for any replies.... You are liable for council tax as soon as you get the keys for your new place - whether you move in straight away or not, although there may be a discount for the period until you move in. It's not a day 1 urgent matter, if you call up in the first week or two and tell them you have moved in they will sort out the bill for the year for you (may take them a couple of times to get it right!) back dated to the day you took possession. If you rent through an agency or even a private landlord it is likely they will inform the council anyway or you will get a letter to 'the occupier. You can apply for the electoral role here https://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote If you have mobile phones or laptops/PC's you have devices that can access live BBC TV I would not risk not having a TV licence unless you are absolutely clear that you do not watch or record live programmes - if you really feel you do not need one then you have to inform them you do not need one, not simply not buy one http://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/check-if-you-need-one/topics/telling-us-you-dont-need-a-tv-licence No problem booking a car hire with your Australian licence - assuming you'd book it before arrival you would book using your Australian address anyway - keep it simple and give that address when you take the car - that's will be the address on your licence. It seems daft but I was told I couldn't use my UK address as it wasn't the address on my licence even though if they'd wanted to chase me for anything i wouldn't have been there and I was perfectly happy to give them the address I was at! Car hire for a few weeks would cost more than a run-around though! Hire for a week and buy something dirt cheap to get you around until you're ready to buy the car you want - we did this at both ends - the run-around we bought on the way back is just about still going strong 2.5 years on! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 Can anyone direct me to info for EU citizens moving to/living in the UK? I have been finding so much conflicting info. Can I get an NHS number & insurance number? I have aus citizenship as well if that helps. Can you also hire a car without a credit card? I know a lot of places in Aus don't so was curious if it's the same in the UK? There is a wealth of information online - avoid forums (even this one!) where you will get conflicting advice as everyone's circumstances are a little different The Citizens Advice Bureau website is a good place to start Also the NHS website http://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/AboutNHSservices/uk-visitors/moving-to-england/Pages/moving-to-england-from-the-eea.aspx You will get an NHS number when you register with a GP http://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/thenhs/records/nhs-number/Pages/what-is-the-nhs-number.aspx - this does not entitle you to free healthcare though until you are considered 'habitually resident' https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/benefits/coming-from-abroad-and-claiming-benefits-the-habitual-residence-test/the-habitual-residence-test-an-introduction/what-is-the-habitual-residence-test/ Once you are in the UK you can apply by telephone for a national Insurance number https://www.gov.uk/apply-national-insurance-number You can't apply until you are in the UK but you don't actually need it to start work so long as you can prove you are entitled to work in the UK (an EU passport will prove that) Australian citizenship does not entitle you to less in the UK than EU so isn't relevant. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marenmatt1 Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 Thank you much lady Rainicorn & Marissa Wright. So much conflicting stuff out there it just does your head in! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marenmatt1 Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 Thanks Johndoe. Do you think it would be the same if I used a bank travel card in the UK? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 Thanks Johndoe. Do you think it would be the same if I used a bank travel card in the UK? Rental car companies won't accept bank travel cards, we discovered that on a previous trip. You either need a credit card, or some of them will accept a security deposit (which is a scarey amount). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosiehome Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 @Marisawright. I also had great difficulty opening a new bank account in my own name despite having kept a joint account with HSBC for over 30 years. I could only have a basic account and no hope of any credit facility for the forseeable future. It took weeks for my 17 year old to get an account as he and no proof of address and had to apply for a provisional drivers licence before they would accept him. As you say they are apologetic about the situation but their hands are tied by the legislation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bristolman Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 @Marisawright. I also had great difficulty opening a new bank account in my own name despite having kept a joint account with HSBC for over 30 years. I could only have a basic account and no hope of any credit facility for the forseeable future. It took weeks for my 17 year old to get an account as he and no proof of address and had to apply for a provisional drivers licence before they would accept him. As you say they are apologetic about the situation but their hands are tied by the legislation. How long ago was this may I ask ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 @Marisawright. I also had great difficulty opening a new bank account in my own name despite having kept a joint account with HSBC for over 30 years. I could only have a basic account and no hope of any credit facility for the forseeable future.. Yes, we were told that getting on the electoral roll would help our credit score a bit, but otherwise the only way to build a credit rating was to get a credit card and use it regularly for a year or so. We thought we'd have to apply to one of those credit card companies that specialise in people with bad credit, but as it turns out, Barclays have now allowed us to have one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bristolman Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 The great thing we found and it was very welcome and somewhat unexpected was just how easy it was to slip back into life and to get the 't's crossed and 'i's dotted. We had told ourselves that we had to expect some difficult hurdles but we found none. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rosiehome Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 @bristolman. This was approx six weeks ago. Maybe things have changed in the world of banking since you came back? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 @bristolman. This was approx six weeks ago. Maybe things have changed in the world of banking since you came back? Yes they have - we were trying to open our bank accounts back in June last year and it had already changed. In fact it must've been very recent at that time, because Citibank was still advertising that they could open a UK bank account for you in Australia, but when I rang up to check, they said that new British banking regulations meant they couldn't do it any more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 http://www.talentscotland.com/sitecore/RedirectUrlPage.aspx?ec_camp=245A7D71151D47A7A39288349402D64E&ec_as=D1D92429468F4DDD9A143947B1FCF44A&ec_url=http%3a%2f%2fwww.talentscotland.com%3a80%2fnews%2f2016%2f01%2fwood-group-to-create-150-new-jobs-in-the-scottish-energy-sector%3fsc_trk%3d%257b9F12E559-6403-441E-921E-FDF5D5C25C64%257d Could this be of interest VS? 5 mins from where I live Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bristolman Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 @bristolman. This was approx six weeks ago. Maybe things have changed in the world of banking since you came back? Yes apparently things gave changed in recent times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marenmatt1 Posted January 27, 2016 Share Posted January 27, 2016 At this stage we are planning on a may move but my oh's British passport expires in July. Are we better off renewing it before we leave? Finding the banking aspect annoying as our bank has said we can only cancel our accounts in person so at this stage we are going with just a travel card & cash which seems a problem as we want to hire a car at first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbirdmoose Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 At this stage we are planning on a may move but my oh's British passport expires in July. Are we better off renewing it before we leave? Finding the banking aspect annoying as our bank has said we can only cancel our accounts in person so at this stage we are going with just a travel card & cash which seems a problem as we want to hire a car at first. Just to clarify, your Australian bank accounts must be cancelled in person? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marenmatt1 Posted January 28, 2016 Share Posted January 28, 2016 I don't know if that applies for every bank & then it might also depend on your account but when I asked mine they said we could only do it in person Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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