Australia general skilled migrant visa??

man1

orping wrote:

myself and the girlfriend are hoping to go to australia and we are using an agent. also not all agents are qualified, in australia they register them and monitor them through MARA see www.themara.com.au but outside australia is different. we decided to go with a registered agent who had been through the process and who had proof of knowledge as it is a hell of alot of money. all up for me as a tradesman and with the girlfriend is about 3500. we pay in stages and can pull out when we want and it was all laid out for us and we met the agent before we paid a cent. I did some checking on all agents in ireland and uk and in the end the agent we chose was recommended to us by a few lads i have met on sites so that also gave me confidence. havent got the visa yet but am through the first bit which was a challenge due to my circumstances.

Hey orping
which agent did you use?

daveg

man1 wrote:

Hi Dave
We are considering using these, you were obviously successful with them but how did you find them generally? Were they very helpful. Were they easy to get in contact with whenever you had a question?
They are in london, right? did you deal with them by email or do they have an office here?
Did they assign you with one contact person?
If you had to do it again would you find it easier to use an irish agent?

They did get us through the process but by Jesus do they charge for it. I'm not overly impressed with their contact skills. All contact was by post and email. I've sent several quires that I have not had a response to/took ages to get a response. On the whole they are very good I think it may have been just the case worker we had. Were I to do it again I'd go with Liz O' Hagan.

When you come to transfer Euro to AUD make sure to check out my foreign exchange thread. DO NOT USE AN IRISH BANK FOREIGN EXCHANGE.

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055100067

legs11

does anyone know if electronic engineering is a good area of work down there??!

i was doing the back packing thing in 2002, deadly place. melbourne is fantastic so much to bloody do. compared to here, where its just the pub......

and the pub.......


i got about 4 1/2 yrs work exp, i am looking for work now but have a hons degree, not sure if this is in demand down under?

man1

Yeah thats on the list of skills needed.
See below:

http://www.immi.gov.au/asri/occupations/e/electronic-engineering-technician-3124-13.htm

and if thats not what your skill is then check this list:


http://www.immi.gov.au/asri/a-z.htm#e

orping

im using agent mentioned above liz ohagan of Australian visa specialists. very happy so far. herself and staff are very professional and easy to work with.

man1

Does anyone know of a good courier/parcel service to australia, I need to send some documents to Oz and have already used anpost and they took 21 days to get there.
I have tried DHL but they want 72 euro!!!!! (anpost were 8.50 euro)
Do UPS operate here?
I will need to use them a few times and it will need to be sent in at the most 5 days.

daveg

Sorry I cannot help you as our agent sent all documentation off for us.

What stage are you at now?

We have paid our bond and are finally finished with the process. All except the approval/refusal of the visa.

I emailed our agent to say bond had been paid to which she told me, and this was the first we had heard., that they only allocate so many 136 visa's per year :eek: The year runs June-July. She told us they will not process any visa's now until 1st of July as they have their quota for this year. She said we should have our result early in July.

I presume any that make the mark (120 points) will roll into the next year once they have reached their quota.

man1 wrote:

Does anyone know of a good courier/parcel service to australia, I need to send some documents to Oz and have already used anpost and they took 21 days to get there.
I have tried DHL but they want 72 euro!!!!! (anpost were 8.50 euro)
Do UPS operate here?
I will need to use them a few times and it will need to be sent in at the most 5 days.

daveg

Quick update. We got the visa. Australia here we come...

ashie

daveg wrote:

Quick update. We got the visa. Australia here we come...

Congratualtions Dave - great feeling isn't it after all the hard work and waiting!

daveg

ashie wrote:

Congratualtions Dave - great feeling isn't it after all the hard work and waiting!

It sure is..

Knockoff Nige

Hi Daveg,
I was wondering how long it took all together.
Cheers

daveg

Made contact with agency in uk - 3rd March 2006
Applied for skills assessment - August 2006
Main Application submitted: 21st December 2006
Medicals and police checks done: April 2007
Visa granted: July 9th.

Lot's of gaps in between to gather required info. Took longer than expected. Could be done a lot fasterl

Zambia

daveg wrote:

Made contact with agency in uk - 3rd March 2006
Applied for skills assessment - August 2006
Main Application submitted: 21st December 2006
Medicals and police checks done: April 2007
Visa granted: July 9th.

Lot's of gaps in between to gather required info. Took longer than expected. Could be done a lot fasterl

Good man Dave , Congradulations

daveg

Zambia232 wrote:

Good man Dave , Congradulations

Thanks Zambia. Just wish my mum was as happy

man1

Great news Daveg
havent been on here for a while, (bexpats is a great site, thanks for the tip!!)sorry i didnt get back to you. You must be on your way soon, good luck with everything.
We are going through the new 175 visa as the 136 is finished as of sept 1st but the visa is basically the same with a few minor changes.
The wife passed the skills assessment, we got word 3 weeks ago from her assessment body (we didnt use agent). We will be submitting the actual visa application probably next month.
So hopefully we will be on our way to melbourne soon. can't wait!!!!:)

The Sweeper

Good luck with it man1 - here's a tip for you, if you can help it, don't move to Australia in April or May. If you do that you go from the end of one Winter to the start of another. The weather is better of course, but you'll feel like it's been getting dark at 5pm for your whole life. Better to move September if you have a choice and you're organised - you go from the end of Summer where you are to the start of the lengthening days in Australia - especially Melbourne.

daveg

Hi Man1. Flights are booked for Dec 9th. Getting scary at this stage. Good luck on your application.

Minesajackdaniels wrote:

Good luck with it man1 - here's a tip for you, if you can help it, don't move to Australia in April or May. If you do that you go from the end of one Winter to the start of another. The weather is better of course, but you'll feel like it's been getting dark at 5pm for your whole life. Better to move September if you have a choice and you're organised - you go from the end of Summer where you are to the start of the lengthening days in Australia - especially Melbourne.

Moving in winter does have it's positives as well though:

• Flights are cheaper low season
• Flights are easier to get low season
• Temp accomodation is easier and cheaper low season
• Long term rentals are easier to get off season

hot fuss

man1 wrote:

Great news Daveg
havent been on here for a while, (bexpats is a great site, thanks for the tip!!)sorry i didnt get back to you. You must be on your way soon, good luck with everything.
We are going through the new 175 visa as the 136 is finished as of sept 1st but the visa is basically the same with a few minor changes.
The wife passed the skills assessment, we got word 3 weeks ago from her assessment body (we didnt use agent). We will be submitting the actual visa application probably next month.
So hopefully we will be on our way to melbourne soon. can't wait!!!!:)

Hi,

Just found this thread and have just started looking into the whole process. I can't believe it takes that long. suppose it's time to get the ass in gear.

Just wanted to ask, did you find it tough doing it alone? I read a lot of people use an agent because it's so complicated.. What do you think?

thanks

Meclor

Hi All,

Also looking at moving to Melbourne as soon as possible. Just wondering about going down there on a holiday visa and hopefully getting sponsored by a company in that time god willing before we go. We do meet the criteria for the skilled migration visa however the thoughts of waiting 12 months is killing us that we are more or less ready to go now.

man1

hot fuss wrote: »

Hi,

Just found this thread and have just started looking into the whole process. I can't believe it takes that long. suppose it's time to get the ass in gear.

Just wanted to ask, did you find it tough doing it alone? I read a lot of people use an agent because it's so complicated.. What do you think?

thanks

We didn't use an agent, finally applied on the 18th November after many delays.

Had our medicals done on the 27th november and were posted to the LCU on the 12th last week. Had our x-rays done on the same day. Cost quite a bit too!!!:mad:

Have got our police checks back from the irish police but waiting on some from when we lived abroad.

We were glad we didn't use an agent as they can cost a couple of grand. It was hard work but it is possible to do it on your own.

We did our skills assessment through the CPA which was easy enough but I have heard that for the TRA it can help to use an agent as it is a minefield of documents.

We hope to be in melbourne next april/may if the visa comes through by then.

Good luck hot fuss with the big move.

Dave saw you went on the 9th Dec, how are you finding it? Have a great xmas over there.

daveg

man1 wrote:

Dave saw you went on the 9th Dec, how are you finding it? Have a great xmas over there.

Yep were here. Flew out of Ireland on the 9th Dec followed by 4 nights in Singapore. Arrived in Melbourne on the 15th. Here 8 days now.

You think the hard work is getting the visa? It's not. Wait till you get here and have to find a suburb you want to live in that ticks all the boxes. Our heads are wrecked with it. Driving round day after day looking at suburbs.

On the positive side this place (Melbourne) is superb. Bought a brand new Honda CRV here last week. Price at home €45,000. Price here €21,000. Weather is great. Beaches are great (not that we've seen much). City is great. Shopping is great. South east (where we are staying) is great. Took my son to a place that teaches archery the other day. How many places in Ireland do archery?

Happy Xmas.

Jagera

daveg wrote: »

Yep were here.

Welcome!!

So did you find Christmas a bit surreal? Singing Jingle Bells in 30+ degree heat... well it may not be that hot where you are, but it's not quite freezing & dark out.

daveg

bw wrote: »

Welcome!!

So did you find Christmas a bit surreal? Singing Jingle Bells in 30+ degree heat... well it may not be that hot where you are, but it's not quite freezing & dark out.

Are you joking? Not hot here? !! It's 41 degrees tomorrow!! 31 today and it was 39 yesterday.

Yes Xmas was very surreal. Not like Xmas at all.

man1

daveg wrote: »

Yep were here. Flew out of Ireland on the 9th Dec followed by 4 nights in Singapore. Arrived in Melbourne on the 15th. Here 8 days now.

You think the hard work is getting the visa? It's not. Wait till you get here and have to find a suburb you want to live in that ticks all the boxes. Our heads are wrecked with it. Driving round day after day looking at suburbs.

On the positive side this place (Melbourne) is superb. Bought a brand new Honda CRV here last week. Price at home €45,000. Price here €21,000. Weather is great. Beaches are great (not that we've seen much). City is great. Shopping is great. South east (where we are staying) is great. Took my son to a place that teaches archery the other day. How many places in Ireland do archery?

Happy Xmas.

Hi Dave lucky you being there already.

Hopefully we will be right behind you.

Yeah saw the weather there was HOT HOT HOT on new years. Thats sounds good about the car. Did you get sat nav, I must get one.

Where in the southeast are you staying?

daveg

man1 wrote: »

Hi Dave lucky you being there already.

Hopefully we will be right behind you.

Yeah saw the weather there was HOT HOT HOT on new years. Thats sounds good about the car. Did you get sat nav, I must get one.

Where in the southeast are you staying?

Keep us updated on your progress. Did I give you the link to the site I bought the car from? If not here it is http://www.carbroker.com.au. They basically set a lowest price with you for which you would like to pay for your car (we set it $3,500 below retail price) and they contact all of the dealerships in Victoria (or which ever state) to see if any will sell at your price.

Sat Nav is a must as well as plug adaptors (Eu to Oz) as they are difficult to get here and cost a fortune.

We have just secured a 12 month rental in Langwarrin which we are really happy about. It's in an area we can afford to buy, good schools for my son, easy access to the freeway, close to the beach (5 mins Frankston beach) and Frankston is on our doorstep for cinema, bowling etc.

man1

daveg wrote: »

Keep us updated on your progress. Did I give you the link to the site I bought the car from? If not here it is http://www.carbroker.com.au. They basically set a lowest price with you for which you would like to pay for your car (we set it $3,500 below retail price) and they contact all of the dealerships in Victoria (or which ever state) to see if any will sell at your price.

Sat Nav is a must as well as plug adaptors (Eu to Oz) as they are difficult to get here and cost a fortune.

We have just secured a 12 month rental in Langwarrin which we are really happy about. It's in an area we can afford to buy, good schools for my son, easy access to the freeway, close to the beach (5 mins Frankston beach) and Frankston is on our doorstep for cinema, bowling etc.

I will check that site out thanks. Sounds good.

Did you get sat nav in ireland before you went. Is it cheaper here or there and what about maps.

We will be staying in seaford (just around the corner from you)for the first 6-8 weeks and it looks nice so might stay around that area for the first year if we like it. Thats great that we will have a contact nearby. We should meet up for a few beers when we arrive. Frankston looks good for shops, schools, cinemas etc..
heres a few links that you may or may not have seen

http://www.frankston.vic.gov.au/

http://www.visitfrankston.com/visitfrankston.asp

Good luck

Eamon

daveg

man1 wrote: »

I will check that site out thanks. Sounds good.

Did you get sat nav in ireland before you went. Is it cheaper here or there and what about maps.

We will be staying in seaford (just around the corner from you)for the first 6-8 weeks and it looks nice so might stay around that area for the first year if we like it. Thats great that we will have a contact nearby. We should meet up for a few beers when we arrive. Frankston looks good for shops, schools, cinemas etc..
heres a few links that you may or may not have seen

http://www.frankston.vic.gov.au/

http://www.visitfrankston.com/visitfrankston.asp

Good luck

Eamon

Hi Eamon,

Yep give me a PM when you arrive. Frankston is great. Were in there today for an interview followed by some shopping. Wife took my son to the cinema while I was at the interview. Another company rang today offering a job so it's all good

Seaford is nice but be careful where your staying. The closer to the beach the better the area. East of the Frankston Freeway are known to be rough. Don't mean to worry you in anyway but forwarned and all that...

If you need any info or anything at all drop me a PM.

Dave.

martinr5232

Can anybody tell me how much the agencys charge for doing your application.

Did anybody do it themselves?

Im trying to figure out what to do I didnt think it was going to be this hard:eek:.

Thanks in advance.

birdie08

ashie wrote: »

Hi,

We have just been granted our permanent residence visas for Australia and used an irish agent. Daveg mentioned her - Liz O' Hagan. I couldn't recommend her enough. Shes excellent and she deals with mainly irish so shes familiar with the irish education and training centres like Anco/Fas etc etc.

Our reasons for using an agent were mainly based on how complicated our application was - we figured spend the extra few pound to get it right first time as I have known a couple of people that failed the first part of the application - skills assessment - when they went solo.

Off to Perth ourselves and very excited. Hoping to be there at the end of the summer. If anyone needs any info , send me a pm. Only too happy to help as this visa process is a mine field!!

Hi there,
could you PM me Liz o'hagans contact number details etc. much appreciated

silverski

martinr5232 wrote: »

Can anybody tell me how much the agencys charge for doing your application.

Did anybody do it themselves?

Im trying to figure out what to do I didnt think it was going to be this hard:eek:.

Thanks in advance.

HI there,

we are doing it ourselves, straight forward unless you may have med or police clearance problems.

we lodge our Visa (175) online in April, we hope to hear some good news sometime in Sept.

Regards
Silverski