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blues_21
Posts: 2Member
Hi everyone! Would just like to ask for tips and advice for me and my girlfriend's current situation regarding the possibility of migrating to Australia in the near future. We've been researching for a few weeks now and we've tried to learn as much as we could but understandably there are some things that aren't as clearly laid out online. Been reading forums and watching YouTube vlogs as well.
Main reasons:
Common Details Between Us
Company and Work: We both work for the same American tech start up and have held similar positions albeit in different departments, I have 1 more year of experience (different departments). Our skills and experience revolve are closest to that of the 'Corporate Services Manager'
Education: Both of us have Bachelor's Degrees from Top Universities (Marketing and Economics respectively)
Me: 26M (turning 27 this year)
My GF: 24F (turning 25 this year)
Some questions for those who may be able to answer:
What's a good range of disposable money to have for most of what's needed? (Visa App and Requirements, Flights, Reserve Money while trying to settle down and find jobs, Spend on luggage/freight for personal items, etc.). We hear 300-500k/ea is a good range.
Is dreaming about owning a home there too impossible? Seemed like a stretch here in the PH, even moreso in AUS. We hear it's very expensive even for an Australian salary.
Likewise, is dreaming to bring our respective immediately family members with us eventually too tall of an order?
How was your experience sorting out all of the "adulting" responsibilities when settling in? Things like bank accounts, insurance policies, investments, credit cards, drivers licenses, phone plans, internet, and similar. We imagine it will be a restart over in AUS.
On the same note, did you keep any of your "adulting" things active in the PH? Ex. Bank accounts, investments, insurance policies, cards, postpaid plans, etc.
How long would you say it took you to feel "settled in"?
When would you suggest scouting for AUS jobs? Before application, after Visa is granted, when you arrive in AUS? (or other)
Can Permanent Residents stay as non-Australian citizens indefinitely? Or are PRs required to apply for Australian citizenship after x years?
Our current occupations are very close to both 'Corporate Services Manager' (190) and 'Management Consultant' (189). Is it too risky to choose the latter, despite the responsibilities being very close; but not having had an official "Consultant" job title?
....I probably have more questions but there's so much to cover! This should do for now 
Looking forward to hearing your answers if any, and thank you in advance!
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Comments
Posts: 766Member
Joined: Mar 13, 2018
Owning a home highly depends on your location. Buying a place in a regional area is considerably more affordable than in the city. But you will have to see if you will be happy living in a regional area more than the city. There's no point buying a home in a regional area if there's no job for you there. If you want to get an idea of how much houses cost in Australia, check out domain.com.au or realestate.com.au
This depends on your situation, as parent/family visas cost a lot more money and takes longer to process than a skilled visa. You need to be financially stable as well before you can get your family to move to Australia permanently, especially if they are of retiring age and cannot work to support their living expenses in Australia. If they are coming to visit temporarily, they can simply get a tourist visa. You seem to have done some initial research on skilled migration, but I suggest you do a bit more on the parent/family visa. All the information are on the Home Affairs website.
I am not a PR yet, but yes, essentially you will be restarting everything here. Opening bank accounts and getting phone plans are easy and painless, as long as you've got adequate documents. The driver's license is not automatically recognized in Australia, so once you become a PR you will have to convert to an Australian one (in the first few months here, you can drive on your international license). Aussies drive on the other side of the road, so you will have to study the road rules and take a practical driving exam to get a full license. For credit cards, as there is no credit rating report system in the PH, it might take time for you to get one. But using debit cards are pretty common here, so I think credit cards aren't really as necessary in the beginning.
If you are moving permanently to Australia, you probably would not need to keep your postpaid plans if you're not using the services. As for the other stuff, it really depends on you.
As an onshore temporary visa holder, it's difficult to find a job within my occupation due to my limited work rights. Since you are offshore, the chance of finding visa sponsorship for full-time work is quite slim, as Australian employers prefer to hire Aussie citizens/PR. To answer your question, I suggest you browse through available jobs while your visa is processing, but apply only when you get the visa grant. But then again, some companies prefer onshore applicants, so you'd have to consider offers from companies that are willing to wait till you arrive in Australia. Just so you know, there's a huge hidden job market in Australia. People find jobs based on their network (friends, family, colleague, schoolmate). That's another thing that you will start from scratch once you move to Australia. Job postings on websites are well and good, but more opportunities are available/open to you if you can build a good network.
If you decide to apply after arriving in Australia, one thing you should know is that overseas experience do not really count for anything here. Once you first arrive in Australia, most employers will keep looking for "local work experience," which you clearly do not. This is the catch-22 issue---can't get work because no experience, can't get experience because no work. You need to be ready emotionally, mentally, and financially to face this reality. Some people get lucky and find work immediately, but they are the exception.
P.S. Some people build their network by adding strangers on LinkedIn, but I suggest you don't do that. Most Aussies won't bother connecting with you if they've never met you in person before. Focus on building a good quality network on LinkedIn; don't focus on the quantity.
You can, but PR visas are valid for 5 years. Applying for citizenship is optional, but being a citizen is infinitely better than just keeping the PR status. Under the current rules, you would be eligible for citizenship if you've lived in Australia for at least 4 consecutive years, and in the 12 months prior to citizenship application, you have been on a PR visa. If your PR visa expires while you're overseas, you can apply for RRV as long as you've lived in Australia for at least 2 years out of the 5-year validity of your previous/current visa.
As far as I know (I'm not a migration agent, so this response is based on my own research), the assessing authority (whichever will do the skills assessment for your nominated occupation) will look at the job description/tasks/responsibilities more than the job title. So if your job description matches the Corporate Services Manager more than the Management Consultant, nominate the Corporate Services Manager.
Some additional comments:
If you are eligible for skilled migration, then apply as early as possible (of course, you have to do your skills assessment first, then English exam). But with the background you've provided, your profile may not get as many points for the 189 visa, as invitation rounds in 2020 showed that profiles with 95+ points were getting invitations. The only possible way you can get that many points is having >5 years of work experience, superior English, optimal age, Australian study, Australian work experience, points for CCL, Professional Year, study in regional area.
The odds are quite against you if you are applying for 189 offshore, because onshore applicants can prove that they have adapted to Australian work culture. For the 190, there's no trend about which profiles are getting invited as they are not disclosing that to the public. I'm not saying migration is impossible, but rules surrounding migration changes constantly that's why it's difficult to tell the likelihood of getting invited to migrate.
232111 (Architect) | Current points: 65
30-01-2018 Applied for student visa (MArchSci), offshore application.
11-08-2020 Applied for student visa (PhD), onshore application.
28-02-2022 Submitted application to AACA for skills assessment (OQA Stage 1)
27-05-2022 Received skills assessment outcome (Suitable/Positive)
Next steps: PTE exam
Posts: 1,342Member
Joined: Feb 19, 2013
Medyo marami yung questions mo hehehe so siguro advice na lang maibibigay ko...
The earlier you apply, the better.
For instance if yung target nyong occupation sa SOL is mawala in the next year or so.... every consideration you've just mentioned above will be scrapped..
If you think you can attain a Proficient or Superior level of English... why not try taking-up an IELTS exam? May validity naman ata yan for migration na 2 years if I'm not mistaken....
Most applicant kasi.. pasok sa lahat ng criteria... Skills, Education, Age.... pero sa English nag-sstruggle.. and need mag re-take multiple times or mag undergo ng IELTS review classes... so that is something you have to consider also. So if you take the IELTS or PTE exams soon... at least mava-validate yung self-assessed proficiency mo in English.
And some feedback naman about sa Reasons nyo... it's true... Australia is one of the best places to live... but more often than not, new migrant here would struggle at first..... super hirap humanap ng trabaho.. So unless you'll be among the lucky ones... calibrate and prepare yourself.. cause the struggle is real ika nga....
Also, laidback lifestyle? Yes, there's some truth to that, pero you will still experience na para kang nasa rat race minsan... saka kadalasan dito malawak and mabigat ang responsibiliies ng isang tao sa work.. unlike sa pinas na may assistant ka, technician, admin, etc etc.. dito minsan ikaw lahat.... so keep that in mind.
Parting words ko na lang... I-push nyo na yang plan to migrate wala nang masyado maraming considerations at drama drama... take actions everyday... basa-basa, tanong tanong, review-review, ayos ayos ng docs.... baby steps pero may progress... ganun ang mindset dapat
Nominated Occupation: Plant or Production Engineer (ANZSCO 233513)
03/23/13: IELTS GT Exam (British Council)
04/05/13: IELTS Results L:7.0/R:7.5/W:7.5/S:8.5 OBS: 7.5
makalipas ang isang taon....
04/20/14: CDR Application sent to EA
07/09/14: EA started reviewing my CDR
08/08/14: EA Assessment Positive Results (Thank you LORD!!!)
09/16/14: Requested EA for a Duplicate Letter (Original Outcome Letter lost during mail delivery to PH)
09/21/14: Duplicate Assessment Letter received (Finally!!)
09/21/14: EOI Lodged (70 pts)
09/22/14: Invited to lodge Skilled - Independent (Subclass 189) visa
09/23/14: Obtained Overseas PCC
09/29/14: Obtained NBI Clearance
10/12/14: Lodged application - Visa Subclass 189
10/12/14: Uploaded docs
10/20/14: Medicals Done
12/06/14: Direct Grant! To GOD Be the Glory!
12/13/14: Completed Initial Entry - Sydney
Joined: Jan 18, 2021
Wow thank you so much @athelene and @wizardofOz ! Will go over these today with my gf, but I appreciate both of you taking the time to respond! Cheers!
Posts: 831Member
Joined: Oct 24, 2016
@blues_21 I think the most important thing at the start is to get a positive skills assessment. There are several ways to increase your points to bump up your chances of being invited. However, if you don't have a positive skills assessment then you can't even lodge an EOI. I suggest that you carefully study the requirements for a positive skills assessment for the occupations you mentioned & gauge if you meet all of the requirements. There's a document in the Vetassess website with the requirements based on the classification of the occupation and then you also have to check the required tasks for those occupations in the ABS website. Also do further research on the profiles of people who were successfully assessed in your selected occupation.
I think make or break yung skills assessment because it dictates whether or not you can even lodge an EOI, which visas you will be eligible for & in the case of state sponsorship, which states you can apply for.
When in doubt, tanong-tanong lang dito.
Posts: 272Member
Joined: Mar 06, 2018
It always starts with a dream and up to the person dreaming to make it a reality. It is definitely not impossible to own a home in AU as long as you have the right amount of income and savings. It will also depend which state and suburb you want to settle in and what type of property (house and lot, apartment, townhouse) you want to purchase.
ANZSCO 233213 Quantity Surveyor