Undecided about moving back to Oz after 5 years in the UK

[Wanderer Returns]

On 23/11/2019 at 19:59, Slean Wolfhead said:

Yes, the employer pays a minimum of 9.5% of your salary and then you can top up yourself to a maximum of 25,000 per annum at 15% tax.   As a teacher, you may get a little extra off the employer (10,11,12%) , especially if you contribute some yourself via your pay packet. 

The employer must set you up with their default superannuation fund on commencement of your job and start paying their own share into it, so it takes a weight off your mind.  You don't have to start paying any personal contributions into it immediately...you can take your time and fill a form in when you're ready.

The thing you can do with your British pension is ask them to provide you with a "cash transfer value" for information (if you haven't already).  As a teacher, I guess you may have been funding this yourself through a LGA scheme at around 6% maybe, with additional contributions from the employers?  The value is what you may be able to transfer out as a lump sum, and it may be a decent lump although not enough to sustain you as a life pension.

@Slean Wolfhead I previously worked for Education Queensland for three years, so I already have a few coppers in their Qsuper fund. If I put in 5%, they put in 12.75%, which seems pretty generous to me - it’s twice what your employer would put in here in the UK. Then you can ‘salary sacrifice’ if you want to put more in.

I also have a defined benefit pension from my years of teaching in the UK. However, my financial adviser strongly advised against a cash transfer because the benefits from the UK teacher pension scheme are extremely good, and it’s a guaranteed index-linked income for life from when you retire. The security from that is hard to beat when compared to a ‘pot of money’ which, no matter how big, may possibly run out one day.

 

On 23/11/2019 at 21:52, Marisawright said:

Yes, it's tax free in the UK but not tax free in Australia.    The same thing applies in reverse - if you've moved to the UK and take a lump sum from your super fund, it's tax-free in Australia but the Inland Revenue will take a huge bite. 

@Marisawright I'm guessing if I found myself in that situation it would be worth coming back to Australia for a few months to get it tax free!

 

On 23/11/2019 at 22:06, Marisawright said:

It may sound like a great idea to take the lump sum at 60 but the temptation then is to spend too much of it! 

I can see the temptation. I would like to retire at 60 – or early sixties – and then use the lump sum from the Australian super towards buying a small investment property in my wife’s name. This would provide her with an income and mean that she wouldn't have to work full-time, so we could spend more time together before she can retire. Well that’s the theory!

 

Edited November 25, 2019 by Wanderer Returns

[Marisawright]

13 minutes ago, Wanderer Returns said:

 

@Marisawright I'm guessing if I found myself in that situation it would be worth coming back to Australia for a few months to get it tax free

 

Sorry, that wouldn't work.  You can only get your super tax free if you're legally resident in Australia.   Just visiting isn't enough.

[Wanderer Returns]

4 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

Sorry, that wouldn't work.  You can only get your super tax free if you're legally resident in Australia.   Just visiting isn't enough.

But if you're a returning Australian citizen, aren't you automatically considered resident for tax purposes?

[Marisawright]

10 hours ago, Wanderer Returns said:

But if you're a returning Australian citizen, aren't you automatically considered resident for tax purposes?

It's nothing to do with citizenship and everything to do with whether you're genuinely resident in Australia in that tax year.   

[Wanderer Returns]

Thank you @Marisawright. After we sell the house here in the UK (which is our primary and only residence), will there any kind of tax on the proceeds when I transfer the money to Australia? It will be quite a large sum, so will I need to prove where the proceeds came from? I believe they're really tightening up on this kind of thing these days.

[Paul1Perth]

13 hours ago, Wanderer Returns said:

Thank you @Marisawright. After we sell the house here in the UK (which is our primary and only residence), will there any kind of tax on the proceeds when I transfer the money to Australia? It will be quite a large sum, so will I need to prove where the proceeds came from? I believe they're really tightening up on this kind of thing these days.

You won't be working or have a tax code will you? Also it's your money, not an income stream that goes into your account and the tax people start asking questions about.

[Marisawright]

12 minutes ago, Paul1Perth said:

You won't be working or have a tax code will you? Also it's your money, not an income stream that goes into your account and the tax people start asking questions about.

Whether it’s your money or not is irrelevant, lump sums are still subject to tax depending on the source. In this case it’s not taxable because it’s from the sale of his home, but if it was from an investment property or shares or a pension it would be. And even pensioners have a tax code

[Gbye grey sky]

Just seen this thread.  You mention between Brisbane and theGold Coast so are you moving to the Redlands?  Worth looking at and joining a large FB group if so Poms on the Bay.  Lots of support here to get you started with info on good local tradies etc.

Good luck with the move. 

[Wanderer Returns]

11 hours ago, Gbye grey sky said:

Just seen this thread.  You mention between Brisbane and the Gold Coast so are you moving to the Redlands?  Worth looking at and joining a large FB group if so Poms on the Bay.  Lots of support here to get you started with info on good local tradies etc.

Good luck with the move. 

@Gbye grey sky thank you very much. Yes, I will be working in Redlands and probably living in the area too as I'm not one for long commutes. In terms of affordability what is the area like, and are there any suburbs in that area that are best avoided?! I will check out the FB group...

[Jon the Hat]

On 26/11/2019 at 10:49, Wanderer Returns said:

Thank you @Marisawright. After we sell the house here in the UK (which is our primary and only residence), will there any kind of tax on the proceeds when I transfer the money to Australia? It will be quite a large sum, so will I need to prove where the proceeds came from? I believe they're really tightening up on this kind of thing these days.

I guess a copy of the completion statement showing your equity you get from your conveyancer would be sufficient to show where the fund came from.  No tax due.  Goodluck!

[Gbye grey sky]

10 hours ago, Wanderer Returns said:

@Gbye grey sky thank you very much. Yes, I will be working in Redlands and probably living in the area too as I'm not one for long commutes. In terms of affordability what is the area like, and are there any suburbs in that area that are best avoided?! I will check out the FB group...

There are no bad suburbs in the Redlands.  I have been here less than 5 years and there has been a massive amount of new build homes in that time (still ongoing) with smaller plot sizes and many retirement villages too plus ongoing subdivision of plots as older properties are vacated and bought by developers.

On the plus side this makes for more available ‘affordable’ housing.  In general the further north (closer to Brisbane) you go the higher the cost of an equivalent property.  The coastal suburbs are (north to south) Thorneside, Birkdale, Wellington Point, Ormiston, Cleveland, Thornlands, Victoria Point, Redland Bay.  Also the nearer you are to the coast itself the more you will pay (bay breezes are always cited by Estate Agents) and sea views are at a premium.

Inland a little are Alexandra Hills and Capalaba which are cheaper and which I would personally avoid unless budget-constrained.  I live a few kms inland from Victoria Point in Mt Cotton which I love.  Also elevated so I get that breeze too.  Just being 10kms inland means you get more house for your money.  But Redland Bay is excellent value in my view and would have been our 2nd choice.  Though I do love Wellington Point also.

Wellington Point is the best place for dining out.  Cleveland has the most amenities probably (and the upmarket Raby Bay area) but there is a substantial shopping centre, great value cinema and dining options at Victoria Point.

If you have any specific questions I am happy to try to help, send a personal message if you prefer.

David

[Wanderer Returns]

12 hours ago, Gbye grey sky said:

There are no bad suburbs in the Redlands.  I have been here less than 5 years and there has been a massive amount of new build homes in that time (still ongoing) with smaller plot sizes and many retirement villages too plus ongoing subdivision of plots as older properties are vacated and bought by developers.

On the plus side this makes for more available ‘affordable’ housing.  In general the further north (closer to Brisbane) you go the higher the cost of an equivalent property.  The coastal suburbs are (north to south) Thorneside, Birkdale, Wellington Point, Ormiston, Cleveland, Thornlands, Victoria Point, Redland Bay.  Also the nearer you are to the coast itself the more you will pay (bay breezes are always cited by Estate Agents) and sea views are at a premium.

Inland a little are Alexandra Hills and Capalaba which are cheaper and which I would personally avoid unless budget-constrained.  I live a few kms inland from Victoria Point in Mt Cotton which I love.  Also elevated so I get that breeze too.  Just being 10kms inland means you get more house for your money.  But Redland Bay is excellent value in my view and would have been our 2nd choice.  Though I do love Wellington Point also.

Wellington Point is the best place for dining out.  Cleveland has the most amenities probably (and the upmarket Raby Bay area) but there is a substantial shopping centre, great value cinema and dining options at Victoria Point.

If you have any specific questions I am happy to try to help, send a personal message if you prefer.

David

Hi David, that information is brilliant! - thank you so much. Yes, I will message you with more questions

[DukeNinja]

On 15/11/2019 at 01:55, Wanderer Returns said:

Hi everyone,

I've always found POI great for advice, and also very supportive when folks are in a bit of a quandary. I just wanted to put this out there and see what those currently living in Australia have to say based on their recent experiences. Especially if they're living in South East Queensland.

I'm an UK/AUS citizen and my wife has AUS PR.

My wife had been living in Australia for 3 years (not quite long enough for citizenship) when we moved to the UK at the end of 2014 to help take care of my elderly mum. She has been absolutely amazing, and I couldn't have done it without her. Mum lived for another three years, by which time my wife had already obtained her second temporary resident UK Visa (called 'further leave to remain' here). Having missed out on Australian citizenship before we left Oz, she's been very keen to obtain British citizenship before we left, so we've stayed here another two years. Our long-term plan has always been to return to Australia for a better life. I should mention that my wife is Malaysian, so travelling anywhere outside Southeast Asia has always been problematic and expensive on her passport. Fortunately we are almost at the end of this journey and she’ll be able to apply for 'indefinite leave to remain' (permanent residency) next month, followed by UK citizenship straight afterwards.

Now that my mum’s gone I no longer have any family left in the UK, and three of my closest friends have also died in the last five years (two from cancer and one from a heart attack). That said, we've adapted to life back in the UK, even though we both hated it at first year. My wife rather likes it because she found it too hot in Australia, but then we were living in Cairns. I am more fond of the pub than the weather, to be honest!

I’m a secondary schoolteacher and I've been keen to get out of the British school system before it drives me mad. I also enjoyed teaching a lot more in Australia. I was offered a job back in Cairns at the start of the year, but I knocked it back because neither my wife nor I were keen to go back to FNQ. Yesterday I was offered a position at a school between Brisbane and the Gold Coast. All the time we lived in Cairns I wanted to move back to Southeast Queensland, but there was never an opportunity to do so. I haven’t given them my decision yet (I said I would let them know by the end of this week), but now I’m feeling strangely ambivalent about going back to Oz. Maybe at 52, selling up here and shipping everything over to Australia doesn’t have quite the same appeal it did when I was 32 - the first time I came to Australia as a backpacker. There's also the fact that we have Europe on our doorstep here and once my wife has her British passport we can go whenever we like, whereas overseas travel from Australia costs a fortune, unless it's to NZ.

I haven’t really been following what's been going on Down Under for the last five years, apart from the various changes in government etc. To excuse the 'how long is a piece of string question', is Australia still as good as it was? I can see that the price of property is now very expensive compared with when we left (at least it is in South East QLD). For what we'd get for our house here (£250,000) it looks we'll be struggling to buy anything in Brisbane or the Gold Coast without a sizeable mortgage, unless it's way out in the suburbs. One of the things I loved about Australia is that there didn't seem to be any real social problems – at least not by UK standards – and I am wondering if this is still the case? I’m guessing that the cost of living is still a fair bit higher, but then I’ll be earning more than I am here in the UK so that’s not really a major issue.

Anyway, please excuse my extended ramblings - I'll leave it at that!

Cheers, Martin.

"Followed by UK citizenship straight afterwards" 

Not meaning to put a spanner in the works, but have you checked that this is accurate?

I remember that a few years ago, there was a requirement to be on your Indefinite visa for at least 1 year before being able to apply for Citizenship.

[DukeNinja]

On 27/11/2019 at 22:16, Wanderer Returns said:

@Gbye grey sky thank you very much. Yes, I will be working in Redlands and probably living in the area too as I'm not one for long commutes. In terms of affordability what is the area like, and are there any suburbs in that area that are best avoided?! I will check out the FB group...

We live in Wynnum, and we love it. We find it more."liveable" than Redlands. Our 3 bed, 2 bath 1 garage townhouse cost 440pw (it's only 4 years old). The seaside is a 10 min walk away, and the train station is 5 minute away. Driving to the city during off peak hours takes 30 mins.

Let me know if you need any help looking for properties around Wynnum/Manly/Lota.

[Jon the Hat]

12 hours ago, DukeNinja said:

"Followed by UK citizenship straight afterwards" 

Not meaning to put a spanner in the works, but have you checked that this is accurate?

I remember that a few years ago, there was a requirement to be on your Indefinite visa for at least 1 year before being able to apply for Citizenship.

That rule applies for applications where you are not married to or the civil partner of a British Citizen.  If you are you can apply the day you get ILR as long as you were in the UK three years before and have been resident for 3 years.

[Wanderer Returns]

On 03/12/2019 at 00:12, DukeNinja said:

"Followed by UK citizenship straight afterwards" 

Not meaning to put a spanner in the works, but have you checked that this is accurate?

I remember that a few years ago, there was a requirement to be on your Indefinite visa for at least 1 year before being able to apply for Citizenship.

@DukeNinja that is correct, unless you've obtained ILR via the partner route and then you can apply straight away assuming that the applicant was in the UK exactly 3 years prior to the date of the citizenship application (which my wife was).

[Wanderer Returns]

On 03/12/2019 at 00:16, DukeNinja said:

We live in Wynnum, and we love it. We find it more."liveable" than Redlands. Our 3 bed, 2 bath 1 garage townhouse cost 440pw (it's only 4 years old). The seaside is a 10 min walk away, and the train station is 5 minute away. Driving to the city during off peak hours takes 30 mins.

Let me know if you need any help looking for properties around Wynnum/Manly/Lota.

Yes, will do! Thanks very much for your offer of help

[Wanderer Returns]

On 03/12/2019 at 12:47, Jon the Hat said:

That rule applies for applications where you are not married to or the civil partner of a British Citizen.  If you are you can apply the day you get ILR as long as you were in the UK three years before and have been resident for 3 years.

Yes, indeed. Should've read this first be posting - sorry!

[Wanderer Returns]

On 03/12/2019 at 00:16, DukeNinja said:

We live in Wynnum, and we love it. We find it more."liveable" than Redlands. Our 3 bed, 2 bath 1 garage townhouse cost 440pw (it's only 4 years old). The seaside is a 10 min walk away, and the train station is 5 minute away. Driving to the city during off peak hours takes 30 mins.

Let me know if you need any help looking for properties around Wynnum/Manly/Lota.

@DukeNinja - as a matter of curiosity, what did you mean by Wynnum being more 'liveable' than Redlands? Were you talking in terms of amenities, or just that area is nicer?

[DukeNinja]

On 11/12/2019 at 20:12, Wanderer Returns said:

@DukeNinja - as a matter of curiosity, what did you mean by Wynnum being more 'liveable' than Redlands? Were you talking in terms of amenities, or just that area is nicer?

We felt that the area had a more family friendly feel to it. Plenty of amenities with a few hundred metres walk. The seafront is lovely, and the walk starts from the Mangrove boardwalk all the way to the end of Lota.

Regular small events held at the lighthouse park

Jan Power farmer's market every first and third Saturday.

[Wanderer Returns]

6 hours ago, DukeNinja said:

We felt that the area had a more family friendly feel to it. Plenty of amenities with a few hundred metres walk. The seafront is lovely, and the walk starts from the Mangrove boardwalk all the way to the end of Lota.

Regular small events held at the lighthouse park

Jan Power farmer's market every first and third Saturday.

Thanks for that - good to know