We share our Top Tips to make migrating to Australia easy.
Its no wonder Australia is called the lucky country. With a multicultural society (1 in 4 born overseas), incredibly diverse cities and towns, beautiful beaches, plenty of work and a society that celebrates uniqueness, it is easy to see why Australia continues to be a hot country to migration to.
The Department of Home Affairs ( DOHA ), have released a fantastic booklet called Life in Australia which can be found here: https://www.border.gov.au/LifeinAustralia/Documents/lia_english_full.pdf
We are a mixed society that allows freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of association, gender equality, dignity and respect. We have laws that govern our safety and shared values, and peacefulness has always been the forefront of our lifestyle. Make sure you have a read of the booklet to ensure Australia is the country for you.
Whilst many may come to Australia for family, study or already have a sponsoring company in place, there is still a large percentage that migrate through the skilled independent stream which enables someone with the appropriate skills to find work and settle in Australia.
Boasting only 5.7% unemployment rate Australia wide in July 2016* (*tradingeconomics.com), there are many work opportunities available. We recommend looking at websites such as www.joboutlook.gov.au for statistics and pay scales or www.abs.gov.au To find specific job advertisements, have a look at www.seek.com.au or www.careerone.com.au
Australia is a big country and typically our populations sit on the coastline where we have lush greenery. With our southern states boasting beautiful snowy winters which are perfect for skiing and our northern states with warm winters and very hot tropical summers, the top and bottom ends of Australia could not be more different.
Our capital cities tend to host larger population’s such as Brisbane, Perth, Sydney, Melbourne, Hobart, Adelaide, Darwin and Canberra. Whilst the smaller cities of Cairns, Gold Coast and others have a quieter more relaxed lifestyle. Despite each city having a unique geography, the cost of living in each can vary greatly. What you would pay for rent in Sydney or Melbourne for a small older apartment, can often equate to a mortgage repayment for a big 3bedroom home on the Gold Coast. Another thing to consider is that the wage in Sydney is typically higher than the Gold Coast. Each of these factors need to be taken into account.
Melbourne has just won the World’s most livable city by the EIU, yet again (6 years in a row): http://www.onlymelbourne.com.au/melbourne-worlds-most-liveable-city#.V8YxypN97BI
Understand you may have one or more options available. Each visa category has different requirements, processes, steps as well as length of time required to gain a visa. Some visas can be acquired as quickly as a month and some can take years.
Once you decide on your most suitable visa option, either find a professional or read as much as you possibly can on the DIBP website, blogs etc. Know that immigration regulations can change daily so when looking to blogs or online information, always consider the source of the information and the date it was published.
Engaging a Registered Migration Agent (RMA) is a fantastic way to take the stress out of migrating to Australia. Whilst you do not need to use an Agent to lodge a visa, it is an important consideration as an RMA is bound to a code of conduct, must be usually resident in Australia, is registered yearly, governed by the Migration Agents Registration Authority (MARA) and they must always be frank and candid about an applicant’s prospects of success.
Engaging a RMA is no different that deciding to use an Accountant to lodge a tax return or engage a Lawyer to check a contract for you. However if you are confident enough to apply yourself, then it is entirely your choice.
RMA’s must have a registration number called a MARN and you can check if someone is registered at anytime on the MARA website: www.mara.gov.au
The DOHA only publish ‘summaries’ of the visa requirements and they do not go into too much detail nor mention any clauses. If you call or approach a DOHA Office to enquire about your eligibility, you will be re-directed back to their website or told to find a RMA. RMA’s must have access to the Regulations, Act, policy, “procedural advice manuals”, and instruments that are constantly updated and applicable to all visas. Having a professional RMA who has up-to-date and in-depth knowledge regarding the legislation pertaining to the grant of visas is certainly going to help your case. Further, you are not just paying for information and help but are also gaining their wealth of knowledge and experience.
As mentioned, some visas require multiple steps and stages in order to reach the application stage. For example, a state sponsored subclass 190 would require a possible English examination, a skill assessment stage, an EOI, a state sponsorship application and then finally the visa lodgement.
There is no point in starting on a route to one particular visa type if you are not aware of the cost involved and later decide you don’t want to continue after completing and paying for one of the steps.
Once the visa is granted, you will be given a period of time specified by the Case Officer in which you must enter Australia to activate the visa. Moving overseas can be a big hassle and visas can add to that frustration. If your visa was granted early and you were given 3 months to move, would that be long enough? All of these factors need to be taken into consideration.
DOHA publish a Service Standard Processing timeframe for each visa category, though they are only to be used as a guideline: https://www.border.gov.au/about/access-accountability/service-standards
If you are fortunate enough to secure permanent residence, then firstly, welcome to our community! However, to remain on a 5year renewable permanent residency visa, you will need to remain usually resident in Australia. If moving to citizenship is of interest to you and should you qualify, it is always our recommendation to do so.
Though not all countries allow dual citizenship and therefore you will need to decide if forfeiting your home countries passport is worth it. Many in society, remain on a permanent residency visa indefinitely. Having a clear understanding of your long term goals will help you in deciding if Australia is the place you want to call home. Are you considering migrating to Australia? Contact Inbound Migration Australia today for a FREE initial eligibility check with no obligations.
Registered Migration Agents (RMAs) are a service provider who can offer you professional help with applying for a visa for Australia. Their service also extends to tribunal representation and citizenship applications. RMAs must be qualified and demonstrate sufficient knowledge of immigration law and procedures, be a person of integrity and be a fit and proper person to provide immigration assistance.
RMAs cannot influence decisions nor promise or guarantee the success of an application. The code of conduct prohibits an RMA to do so. How we can help is with our:
· Sound understanding of immigration law
· Knowledge and experience
· We will assist you to put your best case forward to the DEPARTMENT OF IMMIGRATION.
· We can identify any potential areas of concern prior to lodgement and best advise you on your options.
Not every person or situation ‘fits’ the perfect visa mould and on occasion, RMAs need to refer to policy and previous tribunal cases to support cases. Every case is unique and important and our RMAs treat each case individually with professionalism.
RMAs must have a valid Australian Legal Practicing Certificate or have passed a postgraduate level course now known as the Graduate Diploma in Australian Migration Law and Practice offered at select Universities. This ensures RMAs have the appropriate and extensive knowledge required in order to practice. RMA’s are required to complete mandatory legal professional and legal development studies every year so you can be assured that we keep up to date with immigration law.
Apart from being confident that your RMAs registration with the OMARA is current, Agents are here to take the guess work out of navigating the Immigration legal system. We are trained and registered to interpret and apply immigration law to client cases from visa submissions, migration advice, citizenship, tribunal representation and ministerial intervention applications.
Every registered Migration Agent will have a unique registration number, issued to them by the Office of the Migration Agents Registration Authority (OMARA). You can type in your agent’s name or registration number to ensure their registration is up to date. See: https://www.mara.gov.au/search-the-register-of-migration-agents/
Agent’s must re-register each year after attending mandatory core professional development courses and proving they have paid for access to a professional library (Regulations and Policy for Migration).
Australia’s Immigration visa options are complex and ever changing. Please contact us for a free assessment of your eligibility and options.
If you are already in Australia and do not have any conditions preventing you from lodging a further stay visa, you may be eligible to apply here and gain a bridging visa. However, you can also apply from out of Australia or you may need to travel outside Australia should you have a condition such as 8503 or other on your current visa.
The condition is often imposed on temporary visas to prevent applicants from lodging a further visa onshore. There are provisions for waiving this condition but there must be exceptional circumstances.
Our team are made of Australian born and raised Agents. We love our country and only want to see it grow and welcome in those wishing to contribute positively to our community.
Our Agents are experienced, knowledgeable, passionate and professional at all times. Please see our testimonials to see our commitment to our clients. We appreciate the stress and effort involved in migrating to a new country and our role is to make it as hassle-free for you as possible.
Yes, we can lodge and represent you for both.
Migration Agents are unable to speed up processing times, nor have any influence over a decision made by the Department. It is however, an Agents role to be able to submit a decision ready case so that the Department can pick up your case and be able to make a decision without lengthy delays due to document requests post lodgement.
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