smw Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 Hi, Im looking to apply for state sponsorship to Canberra and after reading the info pack they sent me and the after care to help relocate, we think we might use them for the visa application....but we have also been contacted by Australia house in London who said they could help us with the visa, but not sure if they have any migration assistance...any one used either of these?? Steph Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rammygirl Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 Sorry who exactly is offering their help? I wasn't aware that either the states or Australia house helped. Only agents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Collett Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 Steph, Can you let me know via a PM (click on my name to the left of this post) who has contacted you from Australia House offering assistance with your visa application? You are the second person I have seen on this forum indicating that the Department of Immigration is offering migration assistance - so I'd like to flesh this out to find out what is going on. Thanks! Best regards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smw Posted September 1, 2011 Author Share Posted September 1, 2011 rammygirl, Think Australia house must use an agent or something as we were advised to send our CV's with £1200 and they would assess if we are elidgible or not?!! The Canberra website asked for $250 to assess our detals and to advise if we could then apply for sponsorship We might be getting confused by all this, sorry if we are..could be us not understanding! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smw Posted September 1, 2011 Author Share Posted September 1, 2011 Hey Alan, Sent you a PM Steph Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoandJon Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 If anyone's pretending to be from the proper Australia House when they're not that's just plain wrong, (and I'd guess illegal!) I hope you get to the bottom of it, and make sure nobody's taking unfair advantage of people Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rammygirl Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 Seems very fishy to me. Sounds like a dodgy agent trying to get cash up front using misleading information. I notice if you google Australia House you get three websites offering visa services that give the address of Australia House BUT are independent agents and nothing to do with the Australia High Commission at all! I cannot see the government asking for money up front to assess an application. The two official sites are http://www.immi.gov.au and http://www.business.act.gov.au/skilled_and_business_migration Were these the ones you contacted? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smw Posted September 1, 2011 Author Share Posted September 1, 2011 Hey rammygirl, This is the website we looked at, http://www.visabureau.com/australia/australiahouse.aspx?s_cid=20125854&gclid=CMjRpuqi_KoCFUcMtAodT0Qq0Q. The one for Canberra was http://www.liveincanberra.com.au/. They sent us an application pack and we need to pay $250 to apply to be assessed to see if we could then apply for Sponsorship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rammygirl Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 Well the first is definitely an agents web site NOT an official government one. The second is the ACT site, There is a fee to apply for State Sponsorship with ACT - not all states charge this. You need to get your head round the process before parting with any cash. Check which visas you may be eligible for on the immi site then if you need or want State Sponsorship, your occupation must be on the states list and you must meet all requirements as well as wanting to live there. No point in applying if you don't. For instance do you pass the points test and what occupation will you be applying under. To be honest it can be a minefield and although people do manage very well without an agent if you are not good with forms and detail it can be well worth the cost. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smw Posted September 1, 2011 Author Share Posted September 1, 2011 Well the first is definitely an agents web site NOT an official government one. The second is the ACT site, There is a fee to apply for State Sponsorship with ACT - not all states charge this. You need to get your head round the process before parting with any cash. Check which visas you may be eligible for on the immi site then if you need or want State Sponsorship, your occupation must be on the states list and you must meet all requirements as well as wanting to live there. No point in applying if you don't. For instance do you pass the points test and what occupation will you be applying under. To be honest it can be a minefield and although people do manage very well without an agent if you are not good with forms and detail it can be well worth the cost. Im on the list of occupations available for sponsorship in Canberra, so it might be worth just going through them, its all very confusing!! Steph Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rammygirl Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 The fee from Canberra isn't to help you though it is just a processing fee. You will need to put the application together to send them including any assessments etc they require. The information is all on their web site. Also you need to be sure you then have all the relevant stuff to apply for the actual 176 visa via DIAC once you get sponsorship from ACT. Again there is an application fee for this which is non returnable if you do not qualify (not sure exactly but more than $2000). Also you will need medicals and police checks down the line so another few hundered quid. Just want to make sure you know what you are getting yourself into before you start shelling out any cash. You will need to send supporting information to ACT and to DIAC after you have filled in the forms and you are given a time limit to do this so you need to be prepared. If you pass the points test the first thing would be to get your occupation assessed by the relevant body. There is a lot of paperwork and evidence required to get a visa. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Collett Posted September 1, 2011 Share Posted September 1, 2011 Steph, Securing State or Territory sponsorship is a means to a skilled visa end - usually under subclass 176 or 475. It isn't the end in itself. Best regards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smw Posted September 1, 2011 Author Share Posted September 1, 2011 Steph, Securing State or Territory sponsorship is a means to a skilled visa end - usually under subclass 176 or 475. It isn't the end in itself. Best regards. Oh, i know!! Sorry if i came across that way!. We know theres a long expensive road ahead! Steph Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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