Ausimi Posted May 14, 2021 Share Posted May 14, 2021 Hi with the recent announcement of the borders closed until 2022 and Quantas pushing its flights to December, we are expecting our flight London-Perth direct, to be cancelled. I am wondering what to do??? 1. My PR visa entry limit is mid November, do we buy new tickets with an airline that is actually flying? And which one? 2. do we apply for repatriation flight? How does it work? My husband is Australian and we are relocating from UK with a 4 year old who needs to start school in January. 3. Do we just accept the fact that we are not going to get there until mid 2022 and continue living in Limbo here? We don’t feel we can faced an other long winter! any thoughts really appreciate! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lavers Posted May 14, 2021 Share Posted May 14, 2021 The borders are open for you, it's just a case of paying extortionate prices for the flights. We flew with Qatar as they have been the most reliable airline through covid. Your problem is that you can't be 100% sure that the borders will open then, so you could wait until the end of the Year only to be told that the borders won't open properly until mid 2022. If you are ready to come to Aus now and can afford the flights, I'd just be looking at now. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausimi Posted May 14, 2021 Author Share Posted May 14, 2021 Such an interesting point! If we were ready we should try to go now! Or at least ditch the fixed date to consider other options! thanks for your view! it is complicated with a house to rent out and jobs to give notice to…. But still it is time to re think! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacGyver Posted May 15, 2021 Share Posted May 15, 2021 Does this apply to you?: I think the two options are to try and secure a flight with a different airline, or delay (if this doesn't impact your visa) until mid 2022 when their might (emphasis on might) be slightly looser border arrangements. Personally I'd try to move as soon as possible with any airline that's flying, given the uncertainty around borders throughout 2022, covid variants and a very slow vaccine uptake by the Australian public. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cots Posted May 15, 2021 Share Posted May 15, 2021 I’d agree with the above; the borders are open for those who have the right visa. We’ve just made the j journey ourselves along with other families that I got chatting to on the flight. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulhand Posted May 15, 2021 Share Posted May 15, 2021 14 hours ago, Ausimi said: 2. do we apply for repatriation flight? How does it work? My husband is Australian and we are relocating from UK with a 4 year old who needs to start school in January. Register with DFAT and they will email you when repatriation flights are released. The last set from London took weeks to fill, so there seems to be no unfilled demand from the UK at the moment. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausimi Posted May 15, 2021 Author Share Posted May 15, 2021 1 hour ago, Cots said: I’d agree with the above; the borders are open for those who have the right visa. We’ve just made the j journey ourselves along with other families that I got chatting to on the flight. How was your trip? I’m glad you made it! I hope you have a non too difficult quarantine time! it's good to know that people is travelling despite the uncertainty! did you get your flight cancelled many times? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausimi Posted May 15, 2021 Author Share Posted May 15, 2021 1 hour ago, paulhand said: Register with DFAT and they will email you when repatriation flights are released. The last set from London took weeks to fill, so there seems to be no unfilled demand from the UK at the moment. Thank you! That’s a good idea, I haven’t really look into how those flights work and if one of those will be a possibility for us! I need to give 2 months notice at work, we are renting out our house, and haven’t done anything about that! I just feel we won’t be ready before September time, so with those flights can you choose when to go? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausimi Posted May 15, 2021 Author Share Posted May 15, 2021 3 hours ago, MacGyver said: Does this apply to you?: I think the two options are to try and secure a flight with a different airline, or delay (if this doesn't impact your visa) until mid 2022 when their might (emphasis on might) be slightly looser border arrangements. Personally I'd try to move as soon as possible with any airline that's flying, given the uncertainty around borders throughout 2022, covid variants and a very slow vaccine uptake by the Australian public. Thanks for the info! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted May 15, 2021 Share Posted May 15, 2021 28 minutes ago, Ausimi said: Thank you! That’s a good idea, I haven’t really look into how those flights work and if one of those will be a possibility for us! I need to give 2 months notice at work, we are renting out our house, and haven’t done anything about that! I just feel we won’t be ready before September time, so with those flights can you choose when to go? They’ll send you an email when flights are available and then you choose. However if they’re not currently getting many takers from London then they may not offer flights in September so you’ll have to go commercial anyway Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cots Posted May 15, 2021 Share Posted May 15, 2021 40 minutes ago, Ausimi said: How was your trip? I’m glad you made it! I hope you have a non too difficult quarantine time! it's good to know that people is travelling despite the uncertainty! did you get your flight cancelled many times? The trip was long, particularly as we started our journey in the Channel Islands, and included lots of form filling in and waiting around but there was loads of room on the flights for us all to spread out. The flight did not change at any point and left as scheduled. I met people who did have their flights changed and had to fly into a different Australian airport to the one they had booked but either way got here. There were a few families on the flight just like us. Quarantine is pants, particularly for my youngest who is soon to be 7, but we’re managing! We got an exercise bike delivered to pass the time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanderer Returns Posted May 15, 2021 Share Posted May 15, 2021 16 hours ago, Ausimi said: Hi with the recent announcement of the borders closed until 2022 and Quantas pushing its flights to December, we are expecting our flight London-Perth direct, to be cancelled. I am wondering what to do??? 1. My PR visa entry limit is mid November, do we buy new tickets with an airline that is actually flying? And which one? 2. do we apply for repatriation flight? How does it work? My husband is Australian and we are relocating from UK with a 4 year old who needs to start school in January. 3. Do we just accept the fact that we are not going to get there until mid 2022 and continue living in Limbo here? We don’t feel we can faced an other long winter! any thoughts really appreciate! What's stopping you from coming here now? A Queensland winter is better than most British summers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausimi Posted May 15, 2021 Author Share Posted May 15, 2021 -marisawright/ That sounds quite straight forward and a good plan b in case everything else goes wrong! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausimi Posted May 15, 2021 Author Share Posted May 15, 2021 59 minutes ago, Cots said: The trip was long, particularly as we started our journey in the Channel Islands, and included lots of form filling in and waiting around but there was loads of room on the flights for us all to spread out. The flight did not change at any point and left as scheduled. I met people who did have their flights changed and had to fly into a different Australian airport to the one they had booked but either way got here. There were a few families on the flight just like us. Quarantine is pants, particularly for my youngest who is soon to be 7, but we’re managing! We got an exercise bike delivered to pass the time! It must be such a relief to finally be there, for me it feels like a huge steep mountain to climb in front of me! we are also flying with a five years old! But I have so much to worry about getting ready to go that getting there and starting a new life there, is not on my radar of preoccupations at the moment! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cots Posted May 15, 2021 Share Posted May 15, 2021 5 minutes ago, Ausimi said: It must be such a relief to finally be there, for me it feels like a huge steep mountain to climb in front of me! we are also flying with a five years old! But I have so much to worry about getting ready to go that getting there and starting a new life there, is not on my radar of preoccupations at the moment! I totally understand, we did have some epic fail moments, like walking through security checks at the airport with bags full of liquids we had to down a bottle of water from a flask with the threat of a full body search at the end. All because I was too stressed to think about what we’d packed and where! We sold our home on the 23rd April, the movers packed our stuff that day but we rented the house back for another week before staying at a premier inn for 4 nights. We then flew to London and stayed in the Ibis the night before our flight. By this time I didn’t know what was where: We were 7 kilos over our baggage allowance at a cost of £43 per kilo but at that point I was so delighted we’d passed the check in process I’d have paid it twice! Due to all the space on the flight it was stress free. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausimi Posted May 15, 2021 Author Share Posted May 15, 2021 3 hours ago, Cots said: I totally understand, we did have some epic fail moments, like walking through security checks at the airport with bags full of liquids we had to down a bottle of water from a flask with the threat of a full body search at the end. All because I was too stressed to think about what we’d packed and where! We sold our home on the 23rd April, the movers packed our stuff that day but we rented the house back for another week before staying at a premier inn for 4 nights. We then flew to London and stayed in the Ibis the night before our flight. By this time I didn’t know what was where: We were 7 kilos over our baggage allowance at a cost of £43 per kilo but at that point I was so delighted we’d passed the check in process I’d have paid it twice! Due to all the space on the flight it was stress free. Wow that sounds epic! I’m very glad it’s all done and now you can start enjoying the new chapter! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rtritudr Posted May 16, 2021 Share Posted May 16, 2021 19 hours ago, paulhand said: Register with DFAT and they will email you when repatriation flights are released. The last set from London took weeks to fill, so there seems to be no unfilled demand from the UK at the moment. Perhaps everyone thought it was a scam 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cots Posted May 16, 2021 Share Posted May 16, 2021 Just a question, not a dig but if there are flights available, albeit pricey, why do DFAT need to put flights on? A number of people have said we were lucky to get flights but luck had nothing to do with it. Do people not look hard enough? Or do they not want to pay the prices? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nemesis Posted May 16, 2021 Share Posted May 16, 2021 3 minutes ago, Cots said: Just a question, not a dig but if there are flights available, albeit pricey, why do DFAT need to put flights on? A number of people have said we were lucky to get flights but luck had nothing to do with it. Do people not look hard enough? Or do they not want to pay the prices? Because the caps mean that there are very few flights available. Many people have been cancelled over and over again. Registering for a Repat flight is just increasing their chances of getting here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausimi Posted May 16, 2021 Author Share Posted May 16, 2021 Do you think if you get offered a repatriation flight, that’s it! No cancellations? No changes?. the only think is, it sounds like you need to be packed and ready to go because they give you a short notice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausvisitor Posted May 17, 2021 Share Posted May 17, 2021 On 16/05/2021 at 09:53, Ausimi said: Do you think if you get offered a repatriation flight, that’s it! No cancellations? No changes?. the only think is, it sounds like you need to be packed and ready to go because they give you a short notice! That's true, but if you are asking your government to repatriate you (rather than book under your own steam) you should be able to go at their timescale. Repatriation is a process to get people desperate to leave a country back to their own country; it isn't meant to fit around niceties like job notice peroids and a goodbye party. (Sorry if that sounds harsh, it isn't meant to be, it's just that repatriation should be a case of last resort) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausimi Posted May 17, 2021 Author Share Posted May 17, 2021 I understand what you are saying, it’s all a good point! Under normal circumstances I would 100% agree with you, on this weird times, I think repatriation could be a real possibility if your plans get disrupted by airlines or border changes, and you are facing being homeless as you were ready to go! I think due to the exceptionally difficult circumstances COVID has put all of us in, making such a big move (which under normal circumstances it’s quite complex and stressful) can get desperate very quickly due to the unpredictability of the flights and the constant changes in the immigration rules. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wanderer Returns Posted May 18, 2021 Share Posted May 18, 2021 On 15/05/2021 at 08:13, Ausimi said: Such an interesting point! If we were ready we should try to go now! Or at least ditch the fixed date to consider other options! thanks for your view! it is complicated with a house to rent out and jobs to give notice to…. But still it is time to re think! If your PR runs out mid-November then you should plan to return at least 3 months before then, given the current situation. I assume you have a first-time grant, so you'll not be able to apply for a RRV or extension? You say it's complicated 'with a house to rent and jobs to give notice to', but that doesn't sound complicated at all. You're leaving the UK so why are you concerned about what you're leaving behind? If you're serious about a new life in Australia then you should make getting back here your No.1 priority, and stop procrastinating. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cots Posted May 18, 2021 Share Posted May 18, 2021 I agree with the above. If you’re going at some point then just go for it! We decided in Feb and were here by May, house sold and packed up, my husband’s business was dissolved, 2 cars sold and 12 suitcases packed 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ausimi Posted May 18, 2021 Author Share Posted May 18, 2021 11 hours ago, Cots said: I agree with the above. If you’re going at some point then just go for it! We decided in Feb and were here by May, house sold and packed up, my husband’s business was dissolved, 2 cars sold and 12 suitcases packed Wow! And that’s how it’s done! This gives me hope and positive thoughts! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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