Looking to make the move - where do I start?

[MartynAndSam]

My wife and I have been talking for a while now about making the move from the UK to Melbourne. I’m an electrician and have been for 15 years now. Currently the QS at my company, basically the one with responsibility for all jobs done, signing them off, quality checks etc. 

I see that electricians are in the shortage category for occupations and hopefully this works to my advantage. Will I be better looking for a sponsored visa or just contact various companies about applying for jobs and then sorting the visa out separately myself?

If I did manage to get a sponsored visa, are my wife and children included in this or does my wife have to apply for a separate visa?

Thanks.

[Marisawright]

Yes, if you can get a sponsored visa, then your wife and kids are included.   

There is a catch, though.  Most sponsored visas are 482 visas.  They're just a temporary work contract, for 2 to 4 years and then you go home.  Employers will tell you that after you've completed that contract, you can transfer to a permanent visa and stay in Australia, but that's a con job.  It's more accurate to say that there is a possibility that you might be able to apply for a permanent visa towards the end of your contract -- and an awful lot of people don't succeed.  If you were single then I'd say, what have you got to lose?  But when you've got a family, it costs a fortune to move halfway across the world and back again, so it's  not worth it unless feel like an adventure and can afford to splash your savings on it.

There is an employer-sponsored visa that gives you a permanent visa.  That's a 186.  If you can get one of those, grab it.  You need to find an employer who's willing to offer it though, and that's not easy.

There's no point finding an employer and then sorting out a visa yourself.  The visas you can sort yourself (skilled visa 189, 190 or 491) take over a year to go through, and no employer is going to wait that long to fill a vacancy.  You need to go about it the other way around -- apply for a skilled visa first, wait until you get it, and then start applying for jobs. 

However, the first step is to work out whether you're even eligible.  As an electrician you should be, but things like age and qualifications are factors too.  The quickest, easiest way to sort it out is to have a one-off consultation with a good migration agent.  They'll give you an honest appraisal of your chances. Try Suncoast Migration or Go Matilda.

Edited September 3, 2022 by Marisawright

[MartynAndSam]

2 minutes ago, Marisawright said:

Yes, if you can get a sponsored visa, then your wife and kids are included.   

There is a catch, though.  Most sponsored visas are 482 visas.  They're just a temporary work contract, for 2 to 4 years and then you go home.  Employers will tell you that after you've completed that contract, you can transfer to a permanent visa and stay in Australia, but that's a con job.  It's more accurate to say that there is a possibility that you might be able to apply for a permanent visa towards the end of your contract -- and an awful lot of people don't succeed.  If you were single then I'd say, what have you got to lose?  But when you've got a family, it costs a fortune to move halfway across the world and back again, so it's  not worth it unless feel like an adventure and can afford to splash your savings on it.

There is an employer-sponsored visa that gives you a permanent visa.  That's a 186.  If you can get one of those, grab it.  You need to find an employer who's willing to offer it though, and that's not easy.

There's no point finding an employer and then sorting out a visa yourself.  The visas you can sort yourself (skilled visa 189, 190 or 491) take over a year to go through, and no employer is going to wait that long to fill a vacancy.  You need to go about it the other way around -- apply for a skilled visa first, wait until you get it, and then start applying for jobs. 

However, the first step is to work out whether you're even eligible.  As an electrician you should be, but things like age and qualifications are factors too.  The quickest, easiest way to sort it out is to have a one-off consultation with a good migration agent.  They'll give you an honest appraisal of your chances. Try Suncoast Migration or Go Matilda.

Thanks for the quick, in depth and detailed response. 

It seems like the first step is the consultation with a migration agent so I will look in to this for now, and then take on board your advice for the next steps.

Thanks again

[welljock]

On 03/09/2022 at 19:30, Marisawright said:

Yes, if you can get a sponsored visa, then your wife and kids are included.   

There is a catch, though.  Most sponsored visas are 482 visas.  They're just a temporary work contract, for 2 to 4 years and then you go home.  Employers will tell you that after you've completed that contract, you can transfer to a permanent visa and stay in Australia, but that's a con job.  It's more accurate to say that there is a possibility that you might be able to apply for a permanent visa towards the end of your contract -- and an awful lot of people don't succeed.  If you were single then I'd say, what have you got to lose?  But when you've got a family, it costs a fortune to move halfway across the world and back again, so it's  not worth it unless feel like an adventure and can afford to splash your savings on it.

There is an employer-sponsored visa that gives you a permanent visa.  That's a 186.  If you can get one of those, grab it.  You need to find an employer who's willing to offer it though, and that's not easy.

There's no point finding an employer and then sorting out a visa yourself.  The visas you can sort yourself (skilled visa 189, 190 or 491) take over a year to go through, and no employer is going to wait that long to fill a vacancy.  You need to go about it the other way around -- apply for a skilled visa first, wait until you get it, and then start applying for jobs. 

However, the first step is to work out whether you're even eligible.  As an electrician you should be, but things like age and qualifications are factors too.  The quickest, easiest way to sort it out is to have a one-off consultation with a good migration agent.  They'll give you an honest appraisal of your chances. Try Suncoast Migration or Go Matilda.

A lot of employer-sponsored visas are taking just as long; my company applied for two in November last year, one has been approved in the last couple of weeks with the other one still in the system

[Mcguinnessp1968]

Thanks for the quick, in depth and detailed response. 
It seems like the first step is the consultation with a migration agent so I will look in to this for now, and then take on board your advice for the next steps.
Thanks again [emoji846]

Be careful about reading too much into Marissa’s post.
If you are in an in demand occupation and are good at it then there is more chance than not that you will be able to transition to a permanent visa.

[Mcguinnessp1968]

A lot of employer-sponsored visas are taking just as long; my company applied for two in November last year, one has been approved in the last couple of weeks with the other one still in the system

My company applied for a 482 for one of our employees recently. Was approved in around three weeks

[Ausvisitor]

3 hours ago, Mcguinnessp1968 said:

Be careful about reading too much into Marissa’s post.
If you are in an in demand occupation and are good at it then there is more chance than not that you will be able to transition to a permanent visa.

I'd agree that it is often the case that people who have an in demand skill and are good at their job and liked can usually transition to a permanent visa.

The thing is not everyone is good, not everyone is liked and after three years maybe your role is no longer on the on-demand skills-list

Always best to go into these things knowing what might happen (or not) and then it's a choice from a position of knowledge rather than a surprise due to an unknown 

 

[Mcguinnessp1968]

I'd agree that it is often the case that people who have an in demand skill and are good at their job and liked can usually transition to a permanent visa.
The thing is not everyone is good, not everyone is liked and after three years maybe your role is no longer on the on-demand skills-list
Always best to go into these things knowing what might happen (or not) and then it's a choice from a position of knowledge rather than a surprise due to an unknown 
 

He’s an electrician

I think he’ll be ok

[Ausvisitor]

5 minutes ago, Mcguinnessp1968 said:

He’s an electrician

I think he’ll be ok

So skills wise I'd agree, but nomination and sponsorship can be problematic for tradies...

There are often news reports (including one about a Scottish air con guy who had been here over a decade) about tradies who come over on sponsored visas whose company liquidate (to avoid warranty claims) and they have to start again with a new employer.

The problem here is you need to do 3 years with an employer, so each time you restart (for whatever reason) the 3 year clock restarts...

[Marisawright]

35 minutes ago, Mcguinnessp1968 said:

He’s an electrician

I think he’ll be ok

That's a very Australian attitude.  "She'll be right, mate".   Bring the family over, disrupt the kids' education, give away all your possessions or sell them for a song, spend a fortune setting yourself up in a new country.  Sure, you'll drain your savings even more because you'll have to work for a year an an apprentice on poor wages before you can set yourself up as a sparkie, but it'll be worth it in the end.  Sure, it's not guaranteed you'll get to stay, but there's a bloody good chance. Worth risking the life savings on. What's the worst that can happen?  You end up back in Blighty, broke, but you can start from the bottom again, what's the big deal?

If he was a singleton or a they were a young couple with no kids, I'd say go for it.  But with a family, it takes very careful planning, not blind faith.  It works out really well when it works out, BUT it doesn't always work out, and it's a foolish person who tries to pretend otherwise. There are plenty of good examples right here on the forums -- people who ended up back in the UK with nothing. 

[Mcguinnessp1968]

So skills wise I'd agree, but nomination and sponsorship can be problematic for tradies...
There are often news reports (including one about a Scottish air con guy who had been here over a decade) about tradies who come over on sponsored visas whose company liquidate (to avoid warranty claims) and they have to start again with a new employer.
The problem here is you need to do 3 years with an employer, so each time you restart (for whatever reason) the 3 year clock restarts...

So one guy out of how ever many tens of thousands?

I don’t understand why people on here seem to actually want to discourage people from moving

[Marisawright]

Just now, Mcguinnessp1968 said:

So one guy out of how ever many tens of thousands?

I don’t understand why people on here seem to actually want to discourage people from moving

Because it's not one guy out of tens of thousands.  Like I said, this is not a big forum, and yet in the time I've been here, we've seen dozens of people for whom it didn't work out. It's not that uncommon.  

Also, who says I'm being discouraging?  I'm making sure people know the bald facts before they make a decision.  Would-be migrants are often starry-eyed about migration.  They're inclined to dismiss or underestimate risks and downsides anyway, so it's important to state them clearly and dispassionately.  That's all I do. 

[Toots]

I'm inclined to agree with Marisa.  I've said umpteen times on this forum that if you have a decent life in the UK, think very carefully indeed before migrating.  We came here just over 40 years ago and both of us had employment after the first of week of arriving.  The cost of living was cheaper at that time than the UK (not so now) and rentals were aplenty and not expensive.  Some people do slip into life here and settle easily but others find it a very costly and disappointing "adventure" and can't wait to return to their home country.

Not trying to be negative but realistic.

[Mcguinnessp1968]

It’s almost as if there are no success stories

By all means point out the pitfalls but not at the expense of the many positives

[Marisawright]

7 minutes ago, Mcguinnessp1968 said:

It’s almost as if there are no success stories

By all means point out the pitfalls but not at the expense of the many positives

Who said it's "at the expense of" anything? It's just facts. You're free to make a post highlighting the other side of the coin. 

[Nemesis]

2 hours ago, Mcguinnessp1968 said:

He’s an electrician

I think he’ll be ok

Mr Green is also an electrician

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-08-11/adelaide-family-saved-from-being-deported/101322350

[MartynAndSam]

Thanks for all the replies, there seems to be a few conflicting views on the subject.

I think (please correct me if I’m wrong) that the way to go will be the 189 visa. Sort out my skills assessment and get through that, then submit an EOI and wait for an invitation and go from there.

[Raplin45]

1 hour ago, MartynAndSam said:

Thanks for all the replies, there seems to be a few conflicting views on the subject.

I think (please correct me if I’m wrong) that the way to go will be the 189 visa. Sort out my skills assessment and get through that, then submit an EOI and wait for an invitation and go from there.

Hey, yeah 189/190 will both give you permanent residency. Check out the occupation lists for different states to see if your occupation's on there. They're the most secure options that don't come with uncertainties of other visa types, with the 189 being the most broad. Naturally though that's the one can take a bit of time to process as it's the one that most people are after.

The overall process can be a bit of a rollercoaster but if it's what you want and you make sure you're aware of all the intricacies then it can be figured out. A convo with a good Migration Agent can definitely help get you on the right track

[Marisawright]

2 hours ago, MartynAndSam said:

I think (please correct me if I’m wrong) that the way to go will be the 189 visa. Sort out my skills assessment and get through that, then submit an EOI and wait for an invitation and go from there.

The 189 would be the ideal.  It's the Rolls Royce of visas.  Unfortunately, you're up against thousands of other applicants.  Realistically, you'll be better off going for the 190 visa, which means you need to choose one state and commit to living in that state for at least two years.  A lot of people don't like that restriction so there's less competition, therefore you stand a better chance with the 190 than the 189.

For all visas, it works exactly like a job application. It's a competition.  Not everyone who submits an EOI gets an invitation.  Immigration cherry-picks the best until they've filled the quota for that year, then that's it.  The best thing to do is to get your applicatoin in quick-smart.

The other one to consider is the 186 visa. That would mean finding an employer first, who's willing to sponsor you to come over. Note this is not the temporary version (the 482), it is a permanent visa, you just have to commit to work for that employer for a couple of years.  Theoretically it should process a lot faster than the 189 or the 190 but the trick is finding the employer, of course.

[rammygirl]

Also note that despite passing a skills assessment for the visa, this won’t qualify you to work in Aus. You will be able to work under supervision until you pass additional courses covering Aus regulations and practices. These cost money and time.