Guest FoxkennedyClan Posted January 23, 2012 Report Share Posted January 23, 2012 Hi all, from Scotland and hoping to come out to Western Australia within the year! I have spent all day trying to understand the process and hoped I could get advice on 2 things... firstly is it really necessary to use an agent as it seems average cost is about £3000? Secondly I cant seem to find out whether I could work if I come out on my husbands skilled worker visa? I assume any employer would have wanted me to do a vetassess skills assessment to find the equivalent for my qualifications (Community Worker and counsellor) however I dont want to go through that if I cant work? He cant even get the 5 partner points for me as my occupation is not on the SOL list so not sure of my rights/responsibilities if just come on his visa application (thats me assuming if he gets a visa then his wife and children travel on it?)/ Thanks for the advice all as even a whole day trawling websites hasn't provided the answers! Cheers Clare:smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKIPPY59 Posted January 23, 2012 Report Share Posted January 23, 2012 Hi all, from Scotland and hoping to come out to Western Australia within the year! I have spent all day trying to understand the process and hoped I could get advice on 2 things... firstly is it really necessary to use an agent as it seems average cost is about £3000? Secondly I cant seem to find out whether I could work if I come out on my husbands skilled worker visa? I assume any employer would have wanted me to do a vetassess skills assessment to find the equivalent for my qualifications (Community Worker and counsellor) however I dont want to go through that if I cant work? He cant even get the 5 partner points for me as my occupation is not on the SOL list so not sure of my rights/responsibilities if just come on his visa application (thats me assuming if he gets a visa then his wife and children travel on it?)/ Thanks for the advice all as even a whole day trawling websites hasn't provided the answers! Cheers Clare:smile: Yes - you would all be included on your husbands visa. It isnt necessary to use an agent but they know exactly what to do and what paperwork is required etc which speeds up the process. Depending on what visa your husband is going for he will need Skills Assessed, IELTS, VISA to be lodged, medicals and police checks - this is what we have been advised. Our agent is Concept Australia and they charge £1500. Good Luck x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New Life Down Under Posted January 24, 2012 Report Share Posted January 24, 2012 Hi all, from Scotland and hoping to come out to Western Australia within the year! I have spent all day trying to understand the process and hoped I could get advice on 2 things... firstly is it really necessary to use an agent as it seems average cost is about £3000? Secondly I cant seem to find out whether I could work if I come out on my husbands skilled worker visa? I assume any employer would have wanted me to do a vetassess skills assessment to find the equivalent for my qualifications (Community Worker and counsellor) however I dont want to go through that if I cant work? He cant even get the 5 partner points for me as my occupation is not on the SOL list so not sure of my rights/responsibilities if just come on his visa application (thats me assuming if he gets a visa then his wife and children travel on it?)/ Thanks for the advice all as even a whole day trawling websites hasn't provided the answers! Cheers Clare:smile: Hello Clare If you are the secondary applicant on your husbands permanent residency visa, you should be able to work, subject to which visa he is applying for! I can not be more specific until I know which visa he is looking at. If you are entering as a secondary applicant (ie not applying in your own rights) I would not think it necessary for you to waste your money undertaking vetassess skills assessments as that MAY not be a prerequisite for the employer you are working for, You may be better to ascertain what is required in WA to undertake the work. ie you may have to do a course at TAFE or similar. As a Registered Migration Agent, I would like to advise you that you do not have to use an agent for your visa. That is a matter of choice! You may also find that an agent in Australia is cheaper than the UK! Dont know why!!! The only thing is to make sure they are registered with https://www.mara.gov.au/ . Under AUstralian Law all agents in Australia must be registered with MARA. However strangely this doesnt apply to overseas agents, but you will find that many reputable UK agents are registered with MARA anyhow, so I would advise you to pick one of them if you choose an agent! If it helps you can look at my fees as I know mine are pretty much the average fee for a Perth Agent. It will help provide a comparison! http://www.newlifedownunder.com.au/index.php/schedule-of-fees Good luck with your visa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil Posted January 24, 2012 Report Share Posted January 24, 2012 What we did was find a large storage box. This was to act as our "all Oz paperwork" box. Then we sat reading, reading and reading. Got to know the DIAC site inside-out and also read all relevant forums (which are a good source of opinions, but sometimes facts are stated that although often well-intentioned, may be incorrect/out of date - bear that in mind). After a while we had a good lot of paper and were fairly confident we understood the available options and which forms to fill in, when and where to send them etc. When we went to see an agent, they told us much the same thing and wanted to charge their fee to do the work for us. We couldn't see what we'd get for our money so went it alone. Using an agent or not is a decision only you can make. An agent should smooth the process and will guide you as to which visa is best etc, but I don't think there's any guarantee they'll get it processed quicker. Most agents will offer a free consultation and it may well be worth taking a couple of them up on that offer. Whether you go it alone or use an agent, be prepared for lots of form filling! I've not idea what current timescales for processing are, but bear in mind you'll be dealing with an admin-heavy government body struggling with ever-changing rules - you may want to factor in worst-case processing times into your move plans. Not sure if they still have it, but there were things like a "if you chase up and application X number of times, it then gets rejected" rule (customer service isn't something DIAC excel at). There was also a time not long ago where so many years (yes, years) had gone by before they'd got round to processing one particular visa type that they just returned all the applications and said you'll have to start again. Then again, some visa types are processing in hours/days from what I hear at the moment - those ones that got binned were a low category. Good luck with it all! It's a daunting task when starting out, but I for one reckon it's well worth it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest SusanAndKatherine Posted January 24, 2012 Report Share Posted January 24, 2012 Hi Clare, An agent isn't a requirement, it is totally down to you if you use one or not. Having an agent also doesn't make the process and quicker once application is submitted. My Fiancée put her application in October 2011 and we where told it would me upto 9mth till its looked at. However we where lucky enough that Im Australian so only had to apply for hers. We did this in Australia as we found out via research that it was cheaper to apply within Australia. She cam over on a holiday visa to begin with to make sure she liked it. Then we applied for visa. Because the visa has taken so long they have now given her a bridging visa which entitles her legally to be here but not to work. Hope whatever you chose to do that we hear sometime that you have immigrated out. just remember the paper work might look daunting but once you start its not as bad as you expected. Kindest regards and best wishes Susan and Katherine x Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest FoxkennedyClan Posted January 24, 2012 Report Share Posted January 24, 2012 Hi all thanks so much for all the advice and interest! I think we will initially try it alone first then look at the agent in Oz option if start to struggle and the thought of maybe not having to do the skills assessment for me is a financial and paperwork relief! i really appreciate all of your postings and the inspiration to go for it - leaving Scotland to come to somewhere we have no family is daunting but I have to say it feels like there is a real community (at least online) to become part of if we get out. No doubt I will continue to pick your brains throughout the process - who knows maybe one day I can offer advice too!! Cheers to all Clare Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest FoxkennedyClan Posted January 24, 2012 Report Share Posted January 24, 2012 Hi newlifedownunder, thanks so much for your sharing of knowledge - our initial plan is a Skilled Independent onshore (885?) or Skilled State Sponsored if we cant get enough points the other way as his occupation is available ontheir skills required list so I think that is either 886/487 (I havent yet worked out the difference between these two!). Could you tell me now with this further information if I can work onhis visa as it might influence the one we apply for (much as a life of leisure sounds nice I will have to work to make ends meet!!). I really appreciate your specialist knowledge and will now definately consider an agency such as yourself in australia if we decide we need to go with one! Very gratefully Clare P.S. thanks so much also for the infor re skills assessment and I will now do some research into my field (community work and counselling) to see how they view my British qualifications before undertaking the cost and hassle - much appreciated! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
New Life Down Under Posted January 30, 2012 Report Share Posted January 30, 2012 Hi newlifedownunder, thanks so much for your sharing of knowledge - our initial plan is a Skilled Independent onshore (885?) or Skilled State Sponsored if we cant get enough points the other way as his occupation is available ontheir skills required list so I think that is either 886/487 (I havent yet worked out the difference between these two!). Could you tell me now with this further information if I can work onhis visa as it might influence the one we apply for (much as a life of leisure sounds nice I will have to work to make ends meet!!). I really appreciate your specialist knowledge and will now definately consider an agency such as yourself in australia if we decide we need to go with one! Very gratefully ClareP.S. thanks so much also for the infor re skills assessment and I will now do some research into my field (community work and counselling) to see how they view my British qualifications before undertaking the cost and hassle - much appreciated! Hello Clare Are you in the UK or Australia at present? The visas you are looking at can usually only be applied for onshore ie in Australia for someone who has a substantive visa, that is a current visa with no conditions stating no further stay or similar? If you are offshore ie out of Australia you need to look at perhaps a 176/175 or another option. On those two visas if you are a "member of the family unit" of the primary applicant ie spouse etc you are able to work.For a sponsored visa you need relative or state sponsorship. Hope that clarifies things a little. Suprisingly quite a few people seemingly apply for onshore visas when they are offshore!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piscine75 Posted January 30, 2012 Report Share Posted January 30, 2012 What we did was find a large storage box. This was to act as our "all Oz paperwork" box. Then we sat reading, reading and reading. Got to know the DIAC site inside-out and also read all relevant forums (which are a good source of opinions, but sometimes facts are stated that although often well-intentioned, may be incorrect/out of date - bear that in mind). After a while we had a good lot of paper and were fairly confident we understood the available options and which forms to fill in, when and where to send them etc.When we went to see an agent, they told us much the same thing and wanted to charge their fee to do the work for us. We couldn't see what we'd get for our money so went it alone.Using an agent or not is a decision only you can make. An agent should smooth the process and will guide you as to which visa is best etc, but I don't think there's any guarantee they'll get it processed quicker. Most agents will offer a free consultation and it may well be worth taking a couple of them up on that offer.Whether you go it alone or use an agent, be prepared for lots of form filling! I've not idea what current timescales for processing are, but bear in mind you'll be dealing with an admin-heavy government body struggling with ever-changing rules - you may want to factor in worst-case processing times into your move plans. Not sure if they still have it, but there were things like a "if you chase up and application X number of times, it then gets rejected" rule (customer service isn't something DIAC excel at). There was also a time not long ago where so many years (yes, years) had gone by before they'd got round to processing one particular visa type that they just returned all the applications and said you'll have to start again. Then again, some visa types are processing in hours/days from what I hear at the moment - those ones that got binned were a low category.Good luck with it all! It's a daunting task when starting out, but I for one reckon it's well worth it! Hi Phil, Do you know of any good agents who offer a free consultation? Thanks in advance Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil Posted January 30, 2012 Report Share Posted January 30, 2012 Hiya! There's a few who post on here I think. One thing is to check on the DIAC website - there's a registration scheme that agents have to be a member of (to try and stop cowboys I think). I didn't use an agent so couldn't recommend any particular one. Good luck! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corinne14470 Posted January 30, 2012 Report Share Posted January 30, 2012 Personally, I think if your visa application is strong ie over 65 points then it may work toget through it yourself. We are just on 65 points and 42-43 yrs old so time is of an essence and also the skills my husband are not clearly cut so £2.5k out of the pot irrespective of the result! Good luck with all your findings :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Piscine75 Posted January 30, 2012 Report Share Posted January 30, 2012 Hiya! There's a few who post on here I think. One thing is to check on the DIAC website - there's a registration scheme that agents have to be a member of (to try and stop cowboys I think). I didn't use an agent so couldn't recommend any particular one.Good luck! Thanks phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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