New Life Down Under

Great advice Straight to the Point!! I love your straight to the point point of view!

Angela, what is your occupation? As Ali mentioned here, your employment prospects may depend on your industry and skill set

What occupations are you both? Sorry havent read all of the thread but I hate hearing about people being mistreated by their employers. I often here people on here complaining about DIAC (or as we now need to call them DIBP!!) however the stringent immigration procedures are actually in place to protect the migrant. We dont want people moving here, going through a huge upheaval and expense to be left high and dry. A lesson for everyone out there, do not sit back on a 457 and wait for a permanent visa to come your way, try and get your employer to sponsor you for RSMS, ENS or apply for EOI if you can.

Depends on visa but PR ones around $500 as a ball park! For a family of four will be around $800

Just a reminder that fees are going up YET again on 1st September and will be quite significant for families applying, so if possible dont delay and get those applications in! Good luck

Good point DyleB, makes timescales even shorter!

Someone has already posted the proposed pricing on here, well done! The 457 is going up dramatically to $900 for primary and dependents over 18. If you can lodge your application prior to 1st July 2013 do so, HOWEVER VERY IMPORTANT... CHECK THE CRITERIA FOR YOUR VISA THAT YOU ARE APPLYING FOR AS THE CRITERIA FOR TIME OF APPLICATION IN OFTEN DIFFERENT FOR CRITERIA AT TIME OF DECISION. Therefore, make sure you have the correct information at time of application, if not, in trying to save a few thousand dollars, you may in fact lodge an unlawful application and GET A REFUSAL! This is a costly and common mistake which is often left for us agents to sort out! Do not rush your application and miss an important part of it! Good luck, I hope some of you can beat the price hike!

Legislation regularly changes and so does the CSOL. In 12 months time your occupation may not be on any list, State Sponsorship may be removed, Perth may not be Regional etc etc. As a RMA advice provided current and correct at the time it is given. Noone has a crystal ball to see into the future. Chances are (hopefully!) we will have a new Govt by the end of the year and they may overhaul the whole system. IELTS are now valid for 3 years so may be worth doing. Why are you looking at 489? 190 may be a better option to consider

So far increase in VAC for 457 and talk of secondary application fees for dependents

Welcome back Gill, nice to see you here again! I have been as elusive as you.

Hello Claire if Russ gets a 457 sponsorship he can always transfer it to another employer if he is not happy. At the end of the day any employer can sack you if you dont make the grade so it would make little difference to your financial situation. If you get sacked as a nurse you probably would not find anyone else to employ you anyway! How many times have you been to Australia in the past? If the answer is never, then I would think you would be mad to consider getting yourself into financial difficulty for something that you may not like. I have just heard from a client of mine, that their brother who had a lot of money in the Uk, emigrated here with three children and two dogs. It cost them around 30K and after 8 weeks went back, costing them another 30K as he couldnt get the sort of work he wanted. He was an electrician. Over 50% of British migrants return to the UK as the "Australian Dream" doesnt meet their expectations. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/australiaandthepacific/australia/8863885/Record-number-of-Britons-leaving-Australia-and-heading-home.html

Hello 187's seem to be going pretty quickly at the moment. Got one granted last week within 10 weeks of lodging nomination and application, and i didnt lodge it decision ready and added secondary applicant on last minute as we were awating meeting the 12 month defacto criteria. However, I know of people who havent heard back from applications submitted in July! I suppose its the luck of the draw really and depends upon workload of designated case officer

Federal Government have recently announced increase in 457 visa application charge from $450 to $900 as of 1st July. If you are pondering, get your application in sooner than later! Also secondary applicants will also have an additional fee for many visa subclasses come July (dont know how much yet!) Get lodging!!!!!!

Many reasons for refusals including bogus documents, health and character, disagreement in relevant work experience, miscalculation, conflicting information, refusal on nominations etc etc!

As always, great advice from Ali! In my experience, both personally and professionally I find the people who move over here with everything and leave no loose ends behind in the UK tend to make a more successful transition. You are right to have a wobble, the bull in the china shop who just steams in without considering the consequences is often the first to crumble! Trust me, if you turn down this opportunity you may never get one again and you will regret it! It is better to have tried and failed than never to have tried at all and spend a life of regret! Good luck, its 35 degrees today in Autumn, now that should give you something to smile about!

Not necessarily, your agent may have lodged your Nomination prior to lodging your visa application! If so, you will now be able to lodge your visa and pay app fee of $3060 and may get a separate case officer. If you have time on your side, this is the best/safest way to apply as there is no lodgement fee on NOmination, only pay when lodging visa However there is currently around a 20% refusal on RSMS applications in Perth, so your agent will have acted wisely waiting for the nomination prior to lodgement.

Hi Poms in Perth Probably shooting myself in the foot here as a Migration Agent!! However, Perth has now become so expensive that I believe that the most successful people to settle are the ones who come with very little or the ones who come with mega dollars. Basically, if you are coming with little and leaving behind few possessions, I belive you will have the best chance of settling now. With the exchange rate of only $1.45 to the GBP, your money will not go very far. If you come with nothing you have nothing to lose! The people in the worst scenario I believe are those bringing over 300-400K sterling as they will not be able to buy the sort of property they are leaving in the UK. (obviously depending where you are living and where you want to buy!) People talk about moving here for "the lifestyle". In my experience as an agent, there are many people going back to UK as they didn't anticipate how much that lifestyle would cost them. I have just paid my electricity, $622 which averages $10.49 per day. Things are expensive here and a lot of the trades have quietened down. There are lots of skilled young Irish backpackers here who are prepared to work for more reasonable wages and are getting a lot of the jobs as painters, carpenters, drainers etc. All potential migrants should do a reccie first and do their sums properly! It is an expensive mistake if you want to go back. you will probably lose at least $30K if you go home.

Hi Digdig IMO the job market is definitely slowing down now. Only today a friend of mine told me that she was one of 150 applicants for a customer service role. Yes, most employers would probably prefer to employ a permanent resident or citizen, however if the best person for the job can not be found they have to look further afield. If you apply for most permanent visas offshore you will have to be offshore when the visa is granted. So, if you come to Australia on a 417, you can apply for your skills assessment and IELTS on shore (if needed) and then lodge on shore. In MOST instances you will then go on a BVA whilst waiting for your visa to be granted, therefore remaining and working whilst you wait. You can always request a waiver on condition 8547 after you have lodged your visa, therefore allowing you to extend beyond the six month working criteria. Half of my 417 clients seem to lodge their visas a week or so before their current visa expires, therefore getting a BVA. Another client did not have enough time to prepare her application so she went from a 417 to a student visa on a 3 month course to allow us time to prepare her RSMS application. Great for her as she is now gaining a valuable qualification in her specified field. Being under 30 with a 417 option you are potentially in a very good position. Generally it is easier to find employment in Australia rather than from overseas unless you have oil and gas experience!

Another thought that has crossed my mind. Maybe it could be a naff employer nor a naff migration agent!!! After all a 457 visa is employer driven, not agent driven! The employer has to sign the Nomination, if he wasnt in agreement he should not have signed it! Perhaps the agent has done nothing wrong and the fault appears to be with your employer! Why does the agent always get the blame ?? After all, if I dont defend my industry and peer group , who will!!!?? Hopefully on this site there are many people who value their agents!! I know a lot of my clients say they wouldn't have got their visa on their own!!! Has it occured to you that perhaps your employer was not interested in sponsoring you permanently until they had seen whether you were suitable for the role?? Hindsight is a great thing! I certainly wish I was armed with it!!!

How exciting , lots to look forward to I am sure. I arrived with my kids, then aged 3 and 5 in July. As new migrants we thought the weather was fabulous and my children even braved the sea one day! Now, they are generally wrapped in up scarves and coats in July and August and think I am winding them up when I tell them they swam in July on arrival! As another member mentioned, the evenings do get cold and many properties do not have heating and no double glazing! I have my gas central heating blasting out in the evening as I suffer when temps drop below 30 degrees! Walked the dog last night in my jacket! SJT you will probably feel as if you are on holiday in the Med when you get here! Good luck and hopefully you dont get too stressed over the coming weeks!

Maybe worth looking at getting over here on a 457 and then applying for PR when here? At least on 457 you would not have restrictions for only 6 months with the employer? However a large proportion of my clients are currently on 417's, and they have been offered sponsorship having demonstrated their skills to employers. I love Chooks comment, to be young and qualified!!! Sounds like you at least have some options and irons in the fire! Good luck

Hi, this all sounds very strange to me!!!! Was your "naff" migration agent a registered one? I am worried that you could get yourself in a difficult situation with DIAC if the visa is not for the occupation in which is was granted for. Your employer could be in breach of their obligations. Saw someone yesterday who nearly had visa cancelled (457) as in breach of conditions, would have had 28 days to leave country and potential 3 year ban of coming back! Be very careful with how you handle applications for future visa...

Hello Jacko Immigration look at various aspects of the relationship, including financial, emotional, social etc. The best sort of evidence to provide is something showing that you are 100% committed to each other with the exclusion of all others.. If your rental agreement is not in joint names perhaps get a Stat Dec from your agent stating that they are aware that you having been living there since you moved in. Wills and super are good ways to demonstrate that you are genuinely committed to each other for life (or even death!) Invitations to weddings (to demonstrate that people see you as an item) with accompanying photos are also a good thing. You need to think out of the square for evidence that shows how commited you are. Joint ownership of pets are another possibility. Remember they are not interested in boyfriend/girlfriend relationships, so do not make a common mistake and count that period towards your 12 months. Good luck Good luck

Calling all British/Irish qualified Doctors!!! Are you looking to relocate to Perth for 4 years. I am currently looking for Doctors to join a new medical centre, If you are interested please email me camilla@newlifedownunder.com.au JOB DESCRIPTION Position General Practitioner Reporting to Medical Director Location Perth metropolitan area Purpose The position of General Practitioner is primarily responsible for: the diagnosis and treatment of physical and mental illnesses, disorders and injuries; making recommendation for preventative action and referral of patients to specialist Medical Practitioners, other health care workers, and social, welfare and support workers. Tenure as a General Practitioner is subject to registration requirements with AHPRA, RACGP, maintaining medical indemnity insurance and securing a provider number for each location from which the General Practitioner operates. Key Responsibilities include: · Updating and maintaining patient information electronically for the purposes of ongoing care, including with the support of another medical practitioner if necessary. · Engaging with medical centre employees and management team in a positive manner with regard for Equal Employment Opportunities, and Occupational Health and Safety requirements, particularly regarding duty of care. · Conducting examinations and questioning patients to determine the nature of disorders and illnesses, and recording patients' medical information. · Ordering laboratory tests, X-rays and other diagnostic procedures, and interpreting findings to assist in diagnosis. · Providing overall care for patients, and prescribing and administering treatments, medications and other remedial measures. · Monitoring patients' progress and response to treatment. · Advising on diet, exercise and other habits which aid prevention and treatment of disease and disorders. · Referring patients to, and exchanging medical information with, specialist Medical Practitioners. · Reporting births, deaths and notifiable diseases to government authorities. · Arranging the admission of patients to hospitals. · Working within requirements of Medicare, PBS and the RACGP Standards of General Practice. Essential criteria · Engages in and maintains continuous professional development and medico-legal requirements. · Experience in managing a high patient caseload in areas of low socio-economic status. · Excellent communication skills with ability to build rapport with doctors, employees and patients. · Strong IT skills, with knowledge of MS Office suite as well as internet-based research. · Ability to operate efficiently and effectively and self-sufficiently in a busy medical centre. · Excellent knowledge of Medicare and Pharmaceutical Benefits requirements. · Knowledge of Chronic Disease Management, including management plans and team care arrangements. Desirable criteria · Knowledge and experience of using Best Practice. · Experience in training other medical practitioners. · Specialisation or specific area of interest including skin screening, palliative care, women’s health, obstetrics and gynaecology, mental health or chronic disease management. Attributes · Well-presented and punctual · Advanced analytical and problem-solving skills · High level of resilience · Demonstrates high level of empathy · Adaptable, self-starter · Honesty and integrity Evidence of Medicare Provider Number · · The employment contract submitted to the Department provided reference to a “percentage of patient billing” in which the nominated persons will receive on employment commencement with your company. To receive a percentage of patient billing, a Doctor must be the holder of a Medicare Provider Number. · · Please provide evidence indicating that the nominee is: · · • the holder of a valid Medicare Provider Number; or · • is in the process of obtaining a new Medicare Provider Number · · to enable the nominee to receive a percentage of patient billing on employment commencement. ·

Hi Ali Once you have a 457 you can change employers if you find one who is a SBS and be prepared to take over the nomination.