ptlabs

Hi all, I'm simply curious to know how many of us here actually use/d agents for our Australian or New Zealand migration applications.

Cheers,
Peter

Grub

From personal experience i wish i had saved the £2500 i paid to 4 Corners and done it myself. The forms are a bit complicated at times and if, like me, you had a huge work history to get ref's on (hubbie is self emp carpneter) then it takes time and patience but have found that the only person interested in me getting PR is me! I think they take the money, get the forms in and then stick it on a shelf for a few years to gather dust. I would suggest monitoring them closely!

Nicky 'I'm not bitter!'

ptlabs

Nicky,

£2500 is quite a bit to part with!

Peter

Grub

Yes!
Alot of money for not alot of work as far as i can see. Could there be a career out there for me!??

ptlabs

Indeed. You're absolutely right when you said earlier that at the end of it all, you are the only one who has the most enthusiasm and interest in the whole process. And who can blame you? That's your future, and not to mention 2,500 quid!

Some agents, I would like to think, are much better than others. The ones who participate (I shall not mention names for fear of accusations of advertising on their behalf!) in this forum seem to be worth the pounds or dollars they charge.

I guess after going through the skills assessment and the actual filling up of the forms basically on their own (despite shelling out a bomb for 'professional services'), you won't be parting with those cash that easily the next time round, if there is one.

Picking a good migration agent is an art as much as it is based on luck.

Peter

Alan Collett

How much?? I shall have to put my fees up ...!

As an accountant I've been asked lots of times "Do I need an accountant to help me with my Tax Return?" And as a Migration Agent, "Do I need the help of an Agent to help with my visa application?"

There are strong parallels between the two: if you are comfortable completing the factual content of the forms and have a grasp of the main concepts then you are probably OK.

However, there are a lot of ambiguous areas in tax and migration laws, and it impacts on those who haven't studied the subjects in depth when they are filling in certain parts of the forms - particularly for some of the skills assessment applications (notably RPL for the IT people). That's where many people start to feel a little uncertain about what they are expected to say, and wonder whether they should use someone who has seen it all before.

Didn't someone once say that professions were a conspiracy against the masses ...??

Regards to all.

ptlabs

Alan,

I was equally shocked. The digits were ok, but the pound sign killed it. Anyway, I'll be glad I did no direct advertising on your behalf if you chose to "re-examine your present fee structure to re-align it with current market-driven forces in light of relevations that your existing fee regime is incompatible with the long-term goal of providing top class service to your clients"

Cheers,
Peter

shaun/lor

[QUOTE]Originally posted by Alan Collett:
How much?? I shall have to put my fees up ...!




not just yet alan or does my quote stand lol
shaun

jockney

Hi,Did,nt pay as much as you but probably came to the same conclusions.My agent when contacted sounds like someone who had been earning easy money out of peoples lack of knowledge but now finds that because of sites like this he needs to work harder to keep up with the game.I sometimes feel that I have to force information out of him and unfortunatly we feel that he`s part of the problem.Whether his fault or the embassy`s the majority of advise has been wrong and I`d have been happier making my own mistakes.PS I have only phoned him 4 times in 16 monthsl

Robert Edwards

Nicky, Those fees are "off the planet" but wether to use an Agent or not is a
personal one but the Immigration Law is considerably more complex than a lot of
people are aware of, however that is not to say many applicants cannot complete it
themselves, but one mistake and it's crunch time, as far as the "sticking it on a
shelf for a few years to gather dust" as you would accept there is a period of
"limbo" that is unavoidable as unfortunate as it is. Thank goodness not all Agents
are as you describe. Regards

Rob Edwards
www.australianaustralia.com

"NickyTurner" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
    > From personal experience i wish i had saved the £2500 i paid to 4 Corners and done
    > it myself. The forms are a bit complicated at times and if, like me, you had a huge
    > work history to get ref's on (hubbie is self emp carpneter) then it takes time and
    > patience but have found that the only person interested in me getting PR is me! I
    > think they take the money, get the forms in and then stick it on a shelf for a few
    > years to gather dust. I would suggest monitoring them closely!
    > Nicky 'I'm not bitter!'
    > Originally posted by ptlabs:
    > > Hi all, I'm simply curious to know how many of us here actually use/d agents for
    > > our Australian or New Zealand migration applications.
    > >
    > > Cheers,
    > Peter
    > --
    > Posted via http://britishexpats.com

baldbutts

[QUOTE]Originally posted by jockney:
.My agent when contacted sounds like someone who had been earning easy money out of peoples lack of knowledge QUOTE]

'Ear 'Ear,i think you've commented before Jockney when I last slated my agent.
He seems more interested in writing for a certain emigration paper than dealing with 'strangers'
And while he's at it,he really should work on that limp wristed handshake-gaylord

Icy

[QUOTE]Originally posted by baldbutts:
Yes you`ve got him.Good to know that I`m not imagining things.Still at least your sorted us next I hope!If you ever visit or work in adelaide the beers are on me!

jockney

[QUOTE]Originally posted by baldbutts:
whoops that was me who replied Idid`nt realise the ball and chain was logged on.

ywoods

I used an agent *GO MATILDA* as I was only going to be able to afford one shot at this, and although my application was reasonably straight forward, it was nice to know that it was going to be done professionaly by a competant agent Thanks John

Yvonne

4 days til we leave, 6 til we arrive. WATCH OUT MELBOURNE <~~~ see he did his job well

Steve Williams

Money for old rope. I was Quoted £3000=VAT+Medicals+Immigration Fees...If the fees
were more reasonable I think more people would use agents.