Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

I just wondered if anybody had got the visa and then decided not to move over in the end? This time last year we were all set......now the more I read, the more I'm put off. It all sounds like doom and gloom down under; expensive housing, expensive shopping, crap wages, basically everything people didn't move over for :unsure:

When we went we loved it, but they were holidays, with saved up cash for spends and it's not the same as living it.

Re: Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

The sun still shines if that helps...

Why not go and visit and see if it really is 'that bad' as reported by many on this forum. ;)

Re: Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

We've been! twice!

Re: Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

Well for us it's 'if you never go, you'll never know'.

As far as having the visa and not going, it will be interesting to see how many.

Re: Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

My guess is that those who you are talking about whinging over there were probably also whinging over here so don't worry about it! How many of them are coming back? BoL

Re: Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

Yes (sort of), a couple of years ago.

Our visa application was in and they requested meds.
We cancelled the visa (and lost our money) due to a) my dad's death, b) house sale falling through at last minute and c) I had a great new job opportunity.

Now we are planning to get a sponsored visa and go for a year to see if we like it, but I'm in no rush. I want to see what happens to the economy in both U.K and Australia first :)

Re: Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

So you have time on your side. :thumbup:

Re: Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

In exactly the same position. There is a thread thats been put on a few days ago in response to all the negative posts lately. This thread is full of posts from people who are enjoying their new lives. Last week I didn't want to go. We fly out to Perth on June 30th. I have been really put off and wondered what the hell we are getting ouselves in for. However from reading the positive thread I feel a bit more positive. I don't know how to do a link but the thread is called Re: Lots of Depressing and Negative Posts ... hope it makes you feel a bit more positive.

Re: Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

We aren't there yet, and the way the Oz Government keep moving the goal posts i'm not sure if we will ever get the chance to get there.
I reckon all the people enjoying the Oz life are out there enjoying it, not sitting at a pc moaning about it. :blink:

Re: Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

If you listen to everything people say .... you'll never experience life and you could miss out on something wonderful.

Its not paradise and it doesn't work for *everybody* - but what does?

But there are also heaps who wouldn't do anything different, like myself, I love it here, I'm in a way better paying job, so is my husband, our 9yr old daughter has settled in beautifully, the weather is fantastic in north Queensland. The only thing missing is family.

What irks me is when people get on here and bash the place with how bad this is or that is or get pissed off over a bumper sticker they saw :p

We are all the owners of our own happiness....you come you put full effort into making it work or you'll be unhappy. There are rough patches, absolutely....nobody will say its easy.

If you don't go, then you live with 'should I have gone'....'why didn't I go'....'I kick myself for not going'.

Then again, if you are fine with that, you stay home and be happy with your life where it is.

Bottom line, nobody can tell you whether you should go or not. But I sure as hell wouldn't be basing MY decision on what is said on an internet forum. NOTHING is perfect. If we all looked for guarantees on everything we would never take chances.

Re: Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

Well said paularn.

Don't confuse your worries about economy etc with normal feelings of apprehension and trepidation. Don;t look for an excuse not to go.

We were 110% for Australia when we started our independent PR visa applications, we had talked about going for 10 years and never put the plan into action. We never really thought we'd get an independent visa as there were so many hoops to jump through.

As it started to look more and more likely that we would get the visas, we started to get more and more apprehensive! We were giving up friends, family, good jobs and a great house to move to the other side of the world and start all over again. By the time our departure date was only a week away we got very nervous indeed, we wouldn't have pulled out, but we did 'test' each other a coupe of times in those last few days....along the lines of we still have time to cancel. To be honest, if the other had agreed when one of those comments were made, maybe we would have canceled. Looking back though, it was a mixture of absolute excitement about the adventure that we were about to start, mixed with the absolute terror of thinking about moving to a country to start a new life in a city we'd only spent 3 weeks in prior.

Yes, we had a good life in the UK and we really didn't know what would be ahead of us in Australia. What we did know, and what helped the decision to go were a few key things:-

1 - We looked back over the previous 10 years and realized that in the last 7 we had done nothing different or exciting. We spent time with the same friends, hung out in the same places and lived the same routines. Those 7 years went by so fast.

2 - We spoke to old friends of my parents in the last few weeks before leaving, They, as had many other of my parents generation, said they wish they'd have done it years ago. They remarked on how they remembered my Mum coming to see them, on the same house they are still in now, 30 years ago to tell them Mum was pregnant with me and now here I was moving to Australia and there they were, still in the same house, going to the same pub and musing on what their lives would have been 'IF' they had done something different all those years ago.

3 - The 'What If' scenario. We had come so far and spent so long researching Australia and trying to get the visas that we knew we would definitely be in the 'What If we'd done that' camp by the time we were old. We're not one for regretting decisions we've made, you make your choices based on whats right at the time, but the thought of sitting in a cold damp UK flat in my 80's thinking about what my life would have been if we'd tried Australia scared the shit out of me.

4 - We're not adventurous people, usually happy to do the easy, comfortable thing. Moving to Australia and traveling across the USA & South America on the way was like an unbelievable adventure that 'other people do'. The thought of being an adventurer for a while was the most unbelievably exciting thing.

5 - We could always come back. That was the clincher. We worked out that if we moved, and HATED it, we'd stick it our for 2 years no matter what and then go 'home', or try somewhere else. We figured it would put us back by say 5 years if we had to return, but though the life experience, bad or good, but be worth it. After all, those 5 years would only have been spent sat in the same living room, going to the same job and drinking in the same pub anyway.

So, we got on that plane.....and we've never looked back. Sure, there have been a few down times. I hated my first job, it took Emma a long time to find a job (which she also disliked for a long time), some things are expensive, we cant afford to travel as much as we would have liked, but the good things far outweigh. We've made great new friends, live in a lovely part of the world and consider ourselves lucky every day, especially when your sat in the beer garden or sat on the beach on a summers day.

We've been here almost three years now and we have done more in that time than we did in the last 7 back 'home'. In fact, the move has definitely changed us in some respects, we're not content to sit back and be comfortable anymore. We try and do different things, I always like to have a project on the go. Life's to short to sit still.

Will we be here for ever? Probably not, and that's not because we don;t want to, but more to do with the sense of adventure that was gained in moving here in the first place. For now we love it, but there will come a time when that feeling of venturing into the unknown will become to strong to ignore. As scary as it was, if you have an open mind and a good work ethic life will be what you make of it. Enjoy the good times, make the most of the thrill and excitement of moving, accept that it will take a long time to settle and that you may have to do it hard for the first year or two, an d always try and look for the good in the bad. Above all, keep an open mind and be proud that you've stepped outside your comfort zone in a big way and at least you'll never be sat in your cold damp flat thinking....what if.

Whatever you decide, best of luck to you and don;t dwell on the would have beens. You make the decisions that are best for you at the time.

Good luck.

Re: Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

There are a lot of people who come here and dont like it and i imagine with the GFC there have been people put off comming.

I didnt like it for the first 18 months and if it hadnt been for the wife falling in love with the place i would have been away a long time ago. But over the last 6 months i have grown to feel like it is home. There are still things that annoy me - driving standards in WA for example, but there are a lot of positives.

However, it is important that you are comming for the right reasons. For us, we had no choice but to leave the UK as i work in mining. But i do think some come thinking it will be like living a permanent holiday. The reality is that in a lot of ways it is the same crap, just a different bucket. You still have to get up and go to work, pay the bills and clean the toilet. There are though some small differences that can be important. I spoke to my wife last night and she was overjoyed that a large pod of dolphins had spent an hour playing and jumping around her. You dont get that in blighty.

Also dont come thinking it will be like England with sunshine. Having lived and worked around the world, Australia is most definatly not culturly similar to the UK. Probably closer to the USA.

Re: Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

Do not make major emigration/financial decisions based on what you read on BE. Use this site for research, information and fun only. Too many people on here have their own axe to grind - what they want probably is not what you want. There are also a lot of f**kwits on here.

Unless you come you will never know.

Re: Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

I hate the place, but I know people who love it. Like everything in life, some people like it and some don't.

All the negative and positive posts are just peoples experiences and opinions, nothing more.

Go for it as it's the only way to know if it's for YOU.

Don't let opinions on an internet forum make such a life changing decision for you.

It's your life, if YOU want it, then go get it!

Re: Anybody got the visa and then decided not to go?
 

You know none of us know what the future holds and it certainly doesnt come with any guarantees, which is really what makes life so exciting.

There are no guarantees that your life will remain comfortable in the UK and certainly that your life wont be any better in Australia.

Which is why it is worth trying - sometimes stepping out of your comfort zone can be quite liberating, a huge gamble but liberating and if we all stayed where we felt 'safe' then our world would be very small indeed.

For every unhappy person you speak to that has made the move, there will be several telling you its the best thing they ever did. You wont know until you try and we do only get one crack at life and we never know when that will be taken away from us.

Take one day at a time, dont have high expectations and be open minded about it. Give yourself time to build a different life, make a home and make new friends.

One life and one chance to live it so take any opportunities along the way and see where it takes you.

:)