M J

I know there have been many threads on migration agents,but i've looked through and cant find much that answers my question which is:

Is there any benefit to using an Australian based migration agent rather than a UK based agent?
Im trying to do my research well and have narrowed it down to a few in the UK,these being Overseas Emigration,George Lombard,Concept Australia and Go-visa.
Your thoughts and experience are greatly welcomed.

Wendy

We used an agent that is based in the UK, but the person in charge of our application was in Adelaide. We never had any problems whotsoever and any questions were always answered the by next day. I don't think it makes any difference where they are, it's more a case of how good the agent is.

SunshineGirl

I can certainly recommend Go Matilda, they were excellent with us. They have offices both in the UK and in Australia. Their MD, Alan Collett, posts regularly on the immigration forum.

Tuxtrip

There are no benefits in using an Australian based Agent. I would say that using a UK based Registered Agent gives you easier access if nothing else - no time differences to consider and much cheaper postage. The most important factors to consider are that the Agent taking on your case is Registered (not the Agency) and the service that is provided. Determine the level of service you are wanting and then consider the following:
Does the Agent prepare and complete all the documentation him/herself or just send you a pack of forms for you to fill in yourself? Do they certify your documents? Are there extra charges for some of their services? Are they available to speak to you when you need their advice? Do they offer a no visa-no fee guarantee of any kind? These are the most common things that seem to come up. Get a quote from the Agents you are considering, phone them for a chat and take it from there. A couple of the Agents you have mentioned are fairly good.

M J

Am i right in saying you used Visa Bureau Wendy? Would you use them again if you needed to? And was yours a straight forward case and how long did it take? Sorry for the multiple questions!! I know George Lombard and Go Matilda come highly recommended on this forum but i think its getting to the point now where i make contact and go with my instincts.

M J

Some good advice there i think,thanks.Who did you use /are you using? Who would your recommendations be?

Meryn & Steve

We are using Go Matilda although we are still at the Skills Assessment stage. The guy dealing with our TRA is based in Melbourne but has replied to all my e mails straight away. Thus far, I would recommend them. Their prices are reasonable too.

Wendy

Yes we used Visa Bureau and yes I would definately use them again. I think that we would have struggled with the TRA first time around had they not pointed out a few minor things. We then had chance to change before it was submitted, bearing in mind that when we applied TRA turnaround time was 12 -16 weeks. So we saved $500 and 3 months

We did have a straight forward case really, we were going for a STNI at first, but then they put Electricians on the MODL so were able to change it before it was submitted.

If you feel more comfortable using an agent then go ahead and use one. When it's all over you'll think i could have done that myself, but then hindsight has always been a wonderful thing !!

If you decide not to use one then I'm sure everyone on here will help you as much as they can.

Good luck with whatever you decide

M J

Thanks Wendy.Im positive i will think afterwards that i could have done it myself but hubby and i both work heavy jobs with a little one and its more a time thing for us,just dont have the time to do it. Part of the reason were moving to Oz !!!!

Wendy

I know what you mean


I hope it all goes really smoothly for you and that you are not waiting too long

Sleeping Beauty

we are using concept australia. originally, at the beginning, we said we would have preferred it if our agent was in australia, as it seemed to cut off a few days in the correspondance stakes.

however, we are more than happy with concept. they are very very thorough, and seem to cover everything. they like all the bases covered. they do all the form filling, you just fill in the bits they want you to fill in like signatures etc. they have a web site, the fees are there to see, payable in 3 stages for our visa type and most others. nice approachable people as well. reply back to e-mails really quickly (usually within minutes).

HTH
xx