rjinski

Good afternoon,

On the 14th of September I and my partner are due to fly out to Oz (Cairns) to begin a working holiday visa. The plan is to travel south and travel around the East coast while we are there. We have both recently graduated from the University of Edinburgh and are also hoping to find possible skilled work experience to prolong our stay in Australia. However I was hoping some people may have some advice/guidance on the following:

1. Setting up an Australia bank account from the UK
2. Setting up our Australian tax code
3. Websites/agencies for skilled employment in Engineering and is there anywhere less hit by the recession and more likely to find decent work?

and finally,

4. On travelling the East coast is there any off the radar must see's?

Thank you for all your help,

Richard

Australia_bound?

Open a bank from the UK we used Westpac, all very easy
Tax file number, can't remember how we got ours, must have been a minor thing lol
Skilled, manpower etc, temp agencies, just register with them, will depend on 'if' you can use your qualifications here, you'd have to find that out..
Can't help with 4 as we're west coast

Sherlock Holmes

You can apply for your TFN (tax file number) online. It's free. Not sure if you can set it up from the UK but probably best to wait till you get here anyway for that one.

hilasbat

You can only apply for it once you are in Australia (if you try and apply for it before you get there it won't let you apply, it tells you your visa hasn't been validated and you can only apply once you have validated it), so you will have to wait until you are over there, should take about 1 week - 10 days to come through the post to you.

comet555

What kind of engineering?

Be aware that you are limited to work for any one employer for at the most 6 months. So you may have a difficult time trying to find an professional job (ie. engineering) if they know you can only work there for 6 months.

You'd have better luck in areas that are in huge demand, like mining.... but you'd probably end up working in the outback.

What sort of travelling are you hoping to do? Like weekend getaways while holding down a steady job, or moving about the coast and finding work in various places along the way?

Bermudashorts

We opened a bank account with NAB before we got here so that we could send a little bit of money ahead. Very easy to do online. Once we arrived in Australia we went into a bank to pick up cards and activate it.

You cannot order your TFN before you get here, do it the day you arrive, but you will need an address to send it to. We used our temporary accommodation as we were staying there for five weeks.

You mention you have recently graduated, so you are not a skilled employee and I think it could be very difficult to find skilled work in order to prolong your stay. To prolong your stay you might be better off doing 3 months farm work and then you can do another year on a WHV.

rjinski

I actually graduated in Computational Physics and my girlfriend is a Chemical Engineer.

The plan was to travel down the East coast for around 3months supporting the travelling with part time work while also scouting out possible graduate level jobs and setting up interviews.

I haven't actually looked into the situation regarding visa's but I'm presuming its possible to go through the same company sponsorship visa approach even if I am already in OZ on a working holiday visa?

Richard

Bermudashorts

I think your plans are optimistic. New graduates need lots of training, why would a company make that investment in someone they can only keep for six months. To be sponsored by a company you need to be an experienced employee. There are plenty of unemployed Australians that can take training places. Have a read on www.immi.gov.au, you will see what I mean.

rjinski

Would it not be possible to apply for another more permanent visa once I found a job? I'd be more than happy to stay indefinitely.

Richard

Bermudashorts

Finding a job is not enough to get a visa. You need to prove you have experience for an employer sponsored or a skilled migrant visa.

I think you would be lucky indeed to find an employer in Australia who is going to offer you a new graeduate / training position whilst on a WHV - because you will have to leave six months later.

You might be more than happy to stay indefinitely, but Australian immigration system is not geared towards this, it is geared towards immmigration for skilled workers. If you think you want to stay indefintiely then have your WHV, see if you really like it, but then come home get skilled and apply agian in a few years.

rjinski

Thank you for your input - back to the drawing board.

Richard

Bermudashorts

You can go and enjoy Australia for two years on WHVs if you wanted to.

The trouble is that as a new graduate you are not going to meet the requirements for immigration. But it is something you could do later once you have established your career.

Weebie

There are no engineering jobs in Cairns but there is plenty of fun. Just look into getting a job as unemployment there is worse than blighty.

If your serious about starting your career it's possible as an engineering grad but not in cairns. Try Perth or to a lesser extent Melbourne and Brisbane.

UKnurseinsydney

I think you will easily find a job over here! There are loads of jobs in my experience. You will only be able to work for 6 months for one employer however if they are willing to sponsor you after this then you can apply for another visa. There are lots of other jobs you could do too, to make a quick buck!

Weebie

For nursing yes but for other professions there isn't much.