xizzles

Thank you Alfresco - and I've made further progress - had a long chat with my immigration agent (decided to use the same one that was successful with my 175 Skilled Independent back in 2007) - he certainly didn't mind the repeat business and I've started on getting my paperwork in order!

It's an exciting feeling!

Alfresco

BadgeIsBack

Jumping in here- confess I didn't read the whole thread...

a move to Australia might be the thing if you want to escape a sort of expat bubble in Singapore - especially, if your wife is Australian and has a family here - not sure if that has been picked up on - edit - I might have that the other way around! I have also been in a expat bubble and it is a high life - but I too yearned for a more natural existence. What is at stake here is the real motive, not just materialism.

People can be very critical of Australia but often have very ordinary lives and therefore never get to see the best of what it can offer. I laugh at people who complain about internet access being 4th world - what on earth are they doing that needs such fast access? I can only guess they are computer nerds, frankly who spend too much time playing games online (or something).

If you can still do well in Australia then it can be a great place to live. That big pay cut might still be a good salary here.

But it is getter harder and harder - and expensive - especially housing.

xizzles

A bit of an update (I think I'll just use this to keep track of my 189 attempt): I've gotten around to sorting out some basic papers/documents, and my agent wants to see a detailed CV (because I've been self-employed for the past 20 years) to make sure I qualify for the "experience equivalent" points. God, my face in the IELTS photo makes me look so fat

Hi there, BadgeIsBack, and thank you for your comments - they are much appreciated indeed.

I think that's what I feel I'm in at the moment - a nice, cocoon of an expat bubble. And deep down inside, I'm terrified of the day when the bubble (must) pop. All good things must come to an end, and when that day finally comes, I dread having been left behind in a heartless, concrete-walled of a place called Singapore.

I'm not mincing my words here - Singapore's a wonderful place to dip one's toes into the gateway that is Asia, and an excellent, conducive place to do business, and extremely supportive of talent & rewards that same talent handsomely. However, that same single-minded drive, cold-calculated/calculative measures to encourage talent & economic advancement mean that there's very little tolerance and pity for those who are no longer as productive they used to be (and that day will happen to all of us, I'm afraid).

I could head back to Blightly and start from scratch - but, after being away for 20 (by then, maybe even 30) years, to be honest, I'll be like a fish out of water, and it'll be no different from starting afresh in a country like Australia. Besides, I'll be trading the horrible weather for the much vaunted Australian one .

astera

It's kind of like having a car. If your automobile had a top speed of 70kph I wouldn't be amused. Sure, most roads all around have a top limit of 70 so no issues. But sometimes you need to get on the motorway and go a bit faster.

Same with internet speeds. When doing emails or some random stuff like Amazon or Facebook I don't really care, but when using Netflix, downloading updates, making iTunes purchases or uploading/syncing photos to iCloud I would like to have a lightning-fast internet connection... not one that makes me wonder whether I'm stuck in the 4th world. Not exactly a reason to build a raft and head to the seas, but still just disappointing to be reminded of such backwards infrastructure day in, day out.

Singapore internet isn't great (they market untrue speeds that are simply the connection between you and your ISP on the island), but it's a class above that here.

Good to hear that things are moving forward! Make sure you check out the weather at where you want to move to as that Singapore climate sure beats Darwin (makes Singapore seem cool even...) or anything south of Queensland (going into igloo territory). Brisbane would be nice to prevent thermal shock.

Have heard though that Perth has the best beaches with the warmest water of all the big cities, so maybe that's worth a look too? Have you narrowed down your choices?

xizzles

Hi there astera - funny you should ask about choices, because wife and I were just discussing some options that we hadn't considered previously. Brisbane is, I'm afraid, still not quite on our radar as yet - I'll probably need another trip there to check it out in more detail (the last visit was some 10 years ago, so my impressions may not be indicative any longer), but an interesting alternative to the obvious Melbourne (where we already have a house) and Sydney (where we're building a house at the moment & where my relative is) might actually be someplace in Perth.

Not for the beaches (I can't swim any further than I can run, which isn't very far to begin with) but possibly as someplace closer to Singapore, where I could have a bit of a go at seeing how I'd adjust to life in Australia without having to burn all the bridges to the life I have in Singapore.

It's also the most practical option, if the wife decides to pursue her long overdue Masters degree (and thereby fulfilling the residency requirement) in Australia (leaving me behind in Singapore to ensure that the money keeps coming in - how typical )

I guess after being in Singapore for this long, some pragmatic portions of Singapore have rubbed off on me eh.