Should we do it or not
Jun 11th 2010, 9:21 am
#1
Just Joined
Thread Starter
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 18
Should we do it or not
Hi All
Its been about a year since the last time I created a thread about moving to Oz and whether it would be sensible to do it.
Well I have been offered a different job in Brisbane, on a 457 visa and am unsure whether to do it or not. Family of 5, 3 kids under 7.
Salary offered is around $90K + Super, they have also said they will include LAFHA. Based on this I have worked out roughly this to be $6100 a month.
Going through the website and others have worked out the following monthly costs. I have over estimated on a few things.
Rent - 2000
Car - 800
Car Insurance - 50
Fuel - 180
Contents Insurance - 41
Food - 1000
Train/Bus - 800
Gas/Electric - 150
Medical Insurance - 250
Mobile Phone provided
Laptop/Broadband provided
This equates to $5271, leaving just under $1000 for anything else. Some of the items may be quite high so would have more money in pocket.
So would like opinions on whether this could be done, I am trying to get them to pay for some relocation costs at the moment. Have I missed anything in my list or really over estimated on anything?
Many thanks
Dave
Its been about a year since the last time I created a thread about moving to Oz and whether it would be sensible to do it.
Well I have been offered a different job in Brisbane, on a 457 visa and am unsure whether to do it or not. Family of 5, 3 kids under 7.
Salary offered is around $90K + Super, they have also said they will include LAFHA. Based on this I have worked out roughly this to be $6100 a month.
Going through the website and others have worked out the following monthly costs. I have over estimated on a few things.
Rent - 2000
Car - 800
Car Insurance - 50
Fuel - 180
Contents Insurance - 41
Food - 1000
Train/Bus - 800
Gas/Electric - 150
Medical Insurance - 250
Mobile Phone provided
Laptop/Broadband provided
This equates to $5271, leaving just under $1000 for anything else. Some of the items may be quite high so would have more money in pocket.
So would like opinions on whether this could be done, I am trying to get them to pay for some relocation costs at the moment. Have I missed anything in my list or really over estimated on anything?
Many thanks
Dave
Jun 11th 2010, 10:17 am
#2
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Joined: Aug 2008
Location: Engadine, NSW
Posts: 427
Re: Should we do it or not
Hi Dave,
My opinion is to do it! We too are going on a 457 visa. We have two boys 8 and 5. It has always been our dream having spent alot of time in Australia. Our decision has been made easier by the fact my Daddy and two sisters live in Oz and i so want to be near them. We are very much in the way of thinking that if it all goes wrong we can come back. We are in our early thirties and the kids are of an age where i think they will settle well and are not at a time in their lives where it will affect their schooling etc. Obviously it is a big decision and a life changing one but for us there is no question. We are also very aware of the risks of going on a 457 visa but we feel it is something we need to do and see if its for us and its very much a now or never situation! My advice is lifes too short and things happen for a reason and if you have been given the opportunity then take it!
Good luck with whatever you decide to do.
Emma x
My opinion is to do it! We too are going on a 457 visa. We have two boys 8 and 5. It has always been our dream having spent alot of time in Australia. Our decision has been made easier by the fact my Daddy and two sisters live in Oz and i so want to be near them. We are very much in the way of thinking that if it all goes wrong we can come back. We are in our early thirties and the kids are of an age where i think they will settle well and are not at a time in their lives where it will affect their schooling etc. Obviously it is a big decision and a life changing one but for us there is no question. We are also very aware of the risks of going on a 457 visa but we feel it is something we need to do and see if its for us and its very much a now or never situation! My advice is lifes too short and things happen for a reason and if you have been given the opportunity then take it!
Good luck with whatever you decide to do.
Emma x
Jun 11th 2010, 8:10 pm
#3
Victorian Evangelist
Joined: Sep 2005
Location: Melbourne, by the beach, living the dream.
Posts: 7,704
Re: Should we do it or not
BB
Jun 11th 2010, 9:28 pm
#5
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Jan 2009
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 20,821
Re: Should we do it or not
Hi All
Its been about a year since the last time I created a thread about moving to Oz and whether it would be sensible to do it.
Well I have been offered a different job in Brisbane, on a 457 visa and am unsure whether to do it or not. Family of 5, 3 kids under 7.
Salary offered is around $90K + Super, they have also said they will include LAFHA. Based on this I have worked out roughly this to be $6100 a month.
Going through the website and others have worked out the following monthly costs. I have over estimated on a few things.
Rent - 2000
Car - 800
Car Insurance - 50
Fuel - 180
Contents Insurance - 41
Food - 1000
Train/Bus - 800
Gas/Electric - 150
Medical Insurance - 250
Mobile Phone provided
Laptop/Broadband provided
This equates to $5271, leaving just under $1000 for anything else. Some of the items may be quite high so would have more money in pocket.
So would like opinions on whether this could be done, I am trying to get them to pay for some relocation costs at the moment. Have I missed anything in my list or really over estimated on anything?
Many thanks
Dave
Its been about a year since the last time I created a thread about moving to Oz and whether it would be sensible to do it.
Well I have been offered a different job in Brisbane, on a 457 visa and am unsure whether to do it or not. Family of 5, 3 kids under 7.
Salary offered is around $90K + Super, they have also said they will include LAFHA. Based on this I have worked out roughly this to be $6100 a month.
Going through the website and others have worked out the following monthly costs. I have over estimated on a few things.
Rent - 2000
Car - 800
Car Insurance - 50
Fuel - 180
Contents Insurance - 41
Food - 1000
Train/Bus - 800
Gas/Electric - 150
Medical Insurance - 250
Mobile Phone provided
Laptop/Broadband provided
This equates to $5271, leaving just under $1000 for anything else. Some of the items may be quite high so would have more money in pocket.
So would like opinions on whether this could be done, I am trying to get them to pay for some relocation costs at the moment. Have I missed anything in my list or really over estimated on anything?
Many thanks
Dave
Jun 11th 2010, 9:37 pm
#6
Account Closed
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 14,188
Re: Should we do it or not
Hi Dave,
My opinion is to do it! We too are going on a 457 visa. We have two boys 8 and 5. It has always been our dream having spent alot of time in Australia. Our decision has been made easier by the fact my Daddy and two sisters live in Oz and i so want to be near them. We are very much in the way of thinking that if it all goes wrong we can come back. We are in our early thirties and the kids are of an age where i think they will settle well and are not at a time in their lives where it will affect their schooling etc. Obviously it is a big decision and a life changing one but for us there is no question. We are also very aware of the risks of going on a 457 visa but we feel it is something we need to do and see if its for us and its very much a now or never situation! My advice is lifes too short and things happen for a reason and if you have been given the opportunity then take it!
Good luck with whatever you decide to do.
Emma x
My opinion is to do it! We too are going on a 457 visa. We have two boys 8 and 5. It has always been our dream having spent alot of time in Australia. Our decision has been made easier by the fact my Daddy and two sisters live in Oz and i so want to be near them. We are very much in the way of thinking that if it all goes wrong we can come back. We are in our early thirties and the kids are of an age where i think they will settle well and are not at a time in their lives where it will affect their schooling etc. Obviously it is a big decision and a life changing one but for us there is no question. We are also very aware of the risks of going on a 457 visa but we feel it is something we need to do and see if its for us and its very much a now or never situation! My advice is lifes too short and things happen for a reason and if you have been given the opportunity then take it!
Good luck with whatever you decide to do.
Emma x
I came on a 457, along with another guy from the same office. For him, PR was never going to be an issue to obtain, so the risks of a 457 didn't apply... or so he thought.
He went for the medicals as part of the PR application and discovered a heart condition. Now he doesn't feel ill in anyway at all and the condition has currently zero impact on his health, but it was still enough for him to fail the medical. Company backs him through the appeals process but it comes to nothing, PR will never happen. So company extends his 457.... right up until the point the redundancies get announced... and all 457's get chopped.
In the four years he had been here he had bought a home, settled his three kids in schools, his wife had a decent job as well.
All finished.. 28 days to get out of the country. He's now back in the UK, homeless and jobless.
Do NOT underestimate those 457 risks. I know I did.
Jun 14th 2010, 8:35 am
#7
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Oct 2008
Location: Brisvegas
Posts: 460
Re: Should we do it or not
I came over on a 457 visa and was lucky that my employer sponsored me for PR. I was too old to do it any other way, and didn't have the option to go for PR independently. I can't tell you how vulnerable you feel supporting a family 
as a 457 visa candidate - it sucks and many people come unstuck. If you've a decent employer who will sponsor you after you get here, I'd consider it - or if you just want to give Oz a go for 4 years, and go home - then why not? But don't burn your bridges, and make sure you have a back up plan..
as a 457 visa candidate - it sucks and many people come unstuck. If you've a decent employer who will sponsor you after you get here, I'd consider it - or if you just want to give Oz a go for 4 years, and go home - then why not? But don't burn your bridges, and make sure you have a back up plan..
Jun 14th 2010, 10:14 am
#8
Just Joined
Thread Starter
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 18
Re: Should we do it or not
I think this is a difficult one, really. I do not like the fact we could be thrown out of the country in 28 days if things do not work out.
They have said that they would sponsor after 2 years, need to get this in the contract first I suppose. I think my main worry is for the first 2 years. I will not be cutting any ties, will be renting house, may even consider not taking furniture and just rent a furnished property.
So much to think about, I am still waiting to see whether they willl assist in relocation costs. If they do not then this will not happen anyway, as we do not have that sort of money spare.
We want to give it a go but not to the detriment of our way of living, so if the salary is not good enough to live on then I do not want to do it. The same with the costs of relocating, I do not want to have to take loans/CC to pay for things when we get to Oz, there is just no point.
How do people feel about the actual salary, is this something we could live on?
Thanks
They have said that they would sponsor after 2 years, need to get this in the contract first I suppose. I think my main worry is for the first 2 years. I will not be cutting any ties, will be renting house, may even consider not taking furniture and just rent a furnished property.
So much to think about, I am still waiting to see whether they willl assist in relocation costs. If they do not then this will not happen anyway, as we do not have that sort of money spare.
We want to give it a go but not to the detriment of our way of living, so if the salary is not good enough to live on then I do not want to do it. The same with the costs of relocating, I do not want to have to take loans/CC to pay for things when we get to Oz, there is just no point.
How do people feel about the actual salary, is this something we could live on?
Thanks
Jun 14th 2010, 10:50 am
#9
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Oct 2008
Location: Brisvegas
Posts: 460
Re: Should we do it or not
IMHO $90K is low - If you have a family to provide for. I came over on more than this, and my hubbie supplemented this with a (low) wage. We are not rolling in money by any means - nearly $3K per month rent (4 bed townhouse 8K from city) and one small car. We have 2 children in state school. One holiday per year (down from 3 per year in the UK) and back to UK once in 3 years for a break.
It's just so expensive here - medical treatment adds up (despite having insurance) - food is 2X the cost, clothes about 2-3X (although I order M&S online) - there's no competition so Ozzies pay much more than they need to -as an example I order my undies mail order from the UK for less than half the price that I can buy them for 5 mins walk from my door! Madness!
Buying shampoo etc takes your breath away - no Superdrug 2 for 1's here.
I don't want to put you off - it's a fantastic adventure, and I'd do it all again - it's just that in the 3 years I've been here, prices have rocketed. I'd say living in Brissie is the equivalent of living in an expensive area in the UK (I'm from the South of UK)
It's just so expensive here - medical treatment adds up (despite having insurance) - food is 2X the cost, clothes about 2-3X (although I order M&S online) - there's no competition so Ozzies pay much more than they need to -as an example I order my undies mail order from the UK for less than half the price that I can buy them for 5 mins walk from my door! Madness!
Buying shampoo etc takes your breath away - no Superdrug 2 for 1's here.
I don't want to put you off - it's a fantastic adventure, and I'd do it all again - it's just that in the 3 years I've been here, prices have rocketed. I'd say living in Brissie is the equivalent of living in an expensive area in the UK (I'm from the South of UK)
Jun 14th 2010, 10:54 am
#10
Forum Regular
Joined: May 2009
Location: Brisbane
Posts: 192
Re: Should we do it or not
IMHO $90K is low - If you have a family to provide for. I came over on more than this, and my hubbie supplemented this with a (low) wage. We are not rolling in money by any means - nearly $3K per month rent (4 bed townhouse 8K from city) and one small car. We have 2 children in state school. One holiday per year (down from 3 per year in the UK) and back to UK once in 3 years for a break.
It's just so expensive here - medical treatment adds up (despite having insurance) - food is 2X the cost, clothes about 2-3X (although I order M&S online) - there's no competition so Ozzies pay much more than they need to -as an example I order my undies mail order from the UK for less than half the price that I can buy them for 5 mins walk from my door! Madness!
Buying shampoo etc takes your breath away - no Superdrug 2 for 1's here.
I don't want to put you off - it's a fantastic adventure, and I'd do it all again - it's just that in the 3 years I've been here, prices have rocketed. I'd say living in Brissie is the equivalent of living in an expensive area in the UK (I'm from the South of UK)
It's just so expensive here - medical treatment adds up (despite having insurance) - food is 2X the cost, clothes about 2-3X (although I order M&S online) - there's no competition so Ozzies pay much more than they need to -as an example I order my undies mail order from the UK for less than half the price that I can buy them for 5 mins walk from my door! Madness!
Buying shampoo etc takes your breath away - no Superdrug 2 for 1's here.
I don't want to put you off - it's a fantastic adventure, and I'd do it all again - it's just that in the 3 years I've been here, prices have rocketed. I'd say living in Brissie is the equivalent of living in an expensive area in the UK (I'm from the South of UK)
Jun 15th 2010, 10:51 pm
#11
BE Forum Addict
Joined: May 2007
Location: Back in Blighty
Posts: 1,942
Re: Should we do it or not
I thought the 28 days had gone up to 90 - I may be wrong here. We came on a 457 and had a nightmare - the company offerred to sponsor but then didn't follow through with all the conditions required. OH was close to 45yr and a few point short and we had a nightmare year trying to get security of PR - lots of threads on here from me about it.
So I really echo come deciding to go back at the end (or prepared to at least), or be sure you can get PR independantly. Also the employer often thinks they need to wait for 2 years but that is only the case when you can't get a skills assessment. If you can do this they can sponsor from day one. Do they know this? If this is an option maybe even consider paying the fees for it if neccessary - you'd have to anyway for a 175.
So I really echo come deciding to go back at the end (or prepared to at least), or be sure you can get PR independantly. Also the employer often thinks they need to wait for 2 years but that is only the case when you can't get a skills assessment. If you can do this they can sponsor from day one. Do they know this? If this is an option maybe even consider paying the fees for it if neccessary - you'd have to anyway for a 175.
Jun 16th 2010, 2:45 am
#12
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 516
Re: Should we do it or not
Hi All
Its been about a year since the last time I created a thread about moving to Oz and whether it would be sensible to do it.
Well I have been offered a different job in Brisbane, on a 457 visa and am unsure whether to do it or not. Family of 5, 3 kids under 7.
Salary offered is around $90K + Super, they have also said they will include LAFHA. Based on this I have worked out roughly this to be $6100 a month.
Going through the website and others have worked out the following monthly costs. I have over estimated on a few things.
Rent - 2000
Car - 800
Car Insurance - 50
Fuel - 180
Contents Insurance - 41
Food - 1000
Train/Bus - 800
Gas/Electric - 150
Medical Insurance - 250
Mobile Phone provided
Laptop/Broadband provided
This equates to $5271, leaving just under $1000 for anything else. Some of the items may be quite high so would have more money in pocket.
So would like opinions on whether this could be done, I am trying to get them to pay for some relocation costs at the moment. Have I missed anything in my list or really over estimated on anything?
Many thanks
Dave
Its been about a year since the last time I created a thread about moving to Oz and whether it would be sensible to do it.
Well I have been offered a different job in Brisbane, on a 457 visa and am unsure whether to do it or not. Family of 5, 3 kids under 7.
Salary offered is around $90K + Super, they have also said they will include LAFHA. Based on this I have worked out roughly this to be $6100 a month.
Going through the website and others have worked out the following monthly costs. I have over estimated on a few things.
Rent - 2000
Car - 800
Car Insurance - 50
Fuel - 180
Contents Insurance - 41
Food - 1000
Train/Bus - 800
Gas/Electric - 150
Medical Insurance - 250
Mobile Phone provided
Laptop/Broadband provided
This equates to $5271, leaving just under $1000 for anything else. Some of the items may be quite high so would have more money in pocket.
So would like opinions on whether this could be done, I am trying to get them to pay for some relocation costs at the moment. Have I missed anything in my list or really over estimated on anything?
Many thanks
Dave
You will pay for kids prescriptions, you will pay for the dentist, you will pay (if you can't find bulk bill) your doctor's visit all things that in the UK for kids are free, my child has asthma and a visit to the doctors and his inhalers is just over $120 a hit, when they have the usual sore throats and ear infections in the winter it adds up.
As other posters have said a 457 is a visa that can be cancelled as you know at any time and it does happen, I also know somebody who was given 28 days to get out...... Just go in with your eyes wide open...... Good Luck
Jun 16th 2010, 8:40 am
#13
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Sep 2008
Location: Sydney
Posts: 412
Re: Should we do it or not
Not sure if you do, but check whether you'd have to pay for the school fees on a 457 visa. Don't know the situation for QLD or your visa, just know that temporary visa holders in NSW have to pay about $4500 school fees/year for the state schools.
Other than that I'd say that the costs you worked out are definitely livable and I personally would take the risk!
Other than that I'd say that the costs you worked out are definitely livable and I personally would take the risk!
Jun 16th 2010, 12:03 pm
#14
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Joined: Jun 2008
Location: Abu Dhabi by body and Sydney by soul
Posts: 1,841
Re: Should we do it or not
Why don't you do a proper mideical before you go so that you know you pass the PR requirements should you be offered it?
Jun 16th 2010, 12:32 pm
#15
Forum Regular
Joined: Jan 2008
Location: Bristol, UK
Posts: 148
Re: Should we do it or not
If you already have a job lined up (which is always half the battle), I say go for it 