My husband and I have always wanted to move from Scotland to Australia or Canada although we are aware both countries are very different. We have a 3 year old little girl and our son is 1.

where would be the best part of Australia to move to raise a family? We are looking for plenty to do outdoors near
the beach, good schools would be a must also. We had been thinking Brisbane?

my husband is an electrician is there plenty of work out there for electricians? I’m currently working as contract support for a facilities management company. How easy is it to find work in Australia if you aren’t australian?

Lastly visa costs we haven’t even looked at yet but roughly what would it cost for a family of 4 to apply to move to Oz? We are at the very early stages in our research so any hints, tips or general advice would be greatly appreciated

Hi. Your first step is to find out if you qualify for a visa. Start here and then come back and ask any questions you have. https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visa...sa/visa-finder

Which ones?

The first thing you need to do is see if you/your husband's occupation is eligible for a 189 skilled occupation visa. Your occupation needs to be on this list, and under Visa the 189 needs to be listed https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visa...ccupation-list

If either of your occupations are on the list, then the next thing to do is check whether you could pass the skills assessment test.

?

Well that is a really hard question to answer, as there are so many places around the country that would potentially suit.

I suppose in terms of schools, then some of the best ones in the county are in Sydney.

On a recent list I read for the best schools in Australia, the first seven were all in Sydney.

Loads of electrician jobs in Sydney too - found 904 jobs on the Seek job page

And well over 100 beaches for the outside lifestyle....... I live near the beach and it is a truly wonderful lifestyle.

So my vote would be Sydney or the Central Coast (which is close to Sydney but cheaper)

I didn't overly like Canada so cannot comment there.

Again a ?

I have lived all over the country, in both cities, small towns, the outback and so on.

In my personal experience, it is very easy to get work in the big cities like Sydney, and a little harder in big country towns like Adelaide, and very hard in outback towns.

But I suppose it depends your trade. Doctors and nurses and teachers would be welcome with open arms in outback towns as there is a desperate shortage in many of these areas.

I found admin work hard to get in the bush, as many outback towns have a very parochial attitude, and tend to hire "real" locals who have no experience over "blow-ins" who have lots of experience.

Their exposure to multiculturalism tends to be limited to a Chinese meal at the local RSL club so in that respect a big multicultural city like Sydney is really easy to get work in.

You really just need a good attitude. Don't fall into the whingeing pom arena and you will be fine.

I have been in Australia since 1994 and during that time I was unemployed for six months in a country town, but got a job within a week of moving to the city.

Maybe others have had different experiences.