lizzel

Has anyone applied for their visa through a migration agency? When my partner and I first looked into me going back to Oz with him permantly we were going to go through an agency as we really didn't know what we were doing. Having been given this website though, every time I read everyone's comments I feel as though we should be able to do it ourselves. However, im starting to think we wouldn't be able to do it. It's a lot of extra money to shell out and was wondering if it was worth it?

andy thomas

if you can afford it then its worth it for peace of mind. You know that your application will go off fully completed and if you get turned down for any mistakes made by the agent they pay for re-submitting. if you go diy and cock it up and get refused then you pay to re-submit

andy

Kelly T

We are with Go Matilda and it has been nice to send your paper work to the agent and let them deal with the rest.

We also thought of doing it ourselves but we heard that if you don't put everything down, or if it is worded wrong then it can also go against you.

Kevin had to write a letter to send with his certificates to the our agent in Melbourne for the TRA. The agent read the letter first, via email and told Kevin of any changes before posting it.
The agent tells you of everything that needs to be sent, so you can't really go wrong.

I hope that this all makes sense!

lizzel

Hi Kelly,
What kind of visa have you applied for? Im so confused as to what to do. If we go through the agency its a lot of extra money to pay, but I suppose that they do do everything for you.
Thanks.

dazzac

Hi
I used http://www.1stcontact.co.uk/live/ - they were great.
They have a free assessment to.
It can be a bonus depends on what route your taking and what your circumstances are.
Personally I would give them a call and they will tell you over the phone over the phone if it straigh tforward for you or not.
Personally I wouldn't be going if not for them as the rules changed during my application - once you've failed you can't re-apply within the same bracket.

lizzel

I had no ides that you couldn't re-apply under the same bracket! What type of visa did you apply for?

Kelly T

My husband is applying for the Skilled Independent Visa.
He is a Painter and Decorator.

In all we reckon it will cost around £2,700 (all inclusive).

There have been threads about this before which have said that if you have a straight forward application then do it yourself, but although ours was straight forward we felt that we were only going to do this once and wanted to make sure that we got it.

Noticed that you are from Kent, and don't want to keep going on about it for people who ready know, but we are having a Kent Meet Up on saturday 28th February, 2PM at Bobbing Apple, Sittingbourne, so if you are interested and canmake it let us know.

lizzel

I did see that posting yesterday, but felt that as im fairly new at this and most of the people going have families etc, I may feel a little out of my depth! Im only on Romney Marsh, so not too far away.

Alan Collett

Sorry to bash on about this, but I would recommend that people considering using an agent only use one that is registered with the MARA (www.themara.com.au). I know this doesn't guarantee knowledge or professionalism, but it does give you a lever if you feel you haven't been dealt with properly (all registered agents have to comply with a Code of Conduct).

Also, an applicant can re-apply for the same visa class at a later date if he or she has been unsuccessful.

Best regards.

ratliffe

DO IT YOURSELF!!!
i wish i saved my money and done it myself.why?
you hear comments like 'it takes the stress out of the situation' well thats not true.at the end of the day why fill out all these forms and send it to an agency when you can send it directly to the immigration service. my application whent in may and i still dont have residency.o.k some matters may be out of there control but sooner or later you will still be contacting the immigration service youself.also you will always be on the phone or emailing you agent wanting to know whats going on as you dont get informed etc
save your duns and apply yourself!!

shell1

Hello Alan, myself and my husband have applied for a skilled independant visa, he is a carpenter, we have used a agent but little did we know they are not registered! we have had medicals done etc and are just waiting, we feel we have not been dealt with properly and that they have just taken there money and now just do not seem to be intrested, our first medicals were lost, either the agents fault or DIMIA, nobody would admit liability so we had to have them done again at our expense, they have now gone off to DIMIA and still not a word, and our agents are unwilling to help! It has worried me that if we are unsuccessful then we cant re-apply at a later date under the same visa class...........could you explain why?
many thanks

stephenwhite68

Who are your agents...
name and shame them ...

Alan Collett

Hello!

- There shouldn't be a reason why you can't apply again if your visa application is unsuccessful

- If your case officer has asked you to obtain medicals you can be reasonably comfortable that all else is OK with your application

- You say your agent doesn't seem to be interested in your application. It may well be that there simply isn't anything to report: often nothing happens with visa applications for long periods beyond progressing towards the top of the case officer's pile of applications => an agent's silence shouldn't necessarily be interpreted as meaning he/she isn't taking an interest.

Good luck!

anypan

For us we looked at both angles, DIY or using an agent!!!
We decided that the extra cost of using an agent would be worth it's weight in gold and peace of mind knowing that everything would be filled in correctly.
We used Helen O'Hare of GoMatilda and have found that she has been so helpful and supportive throughout everything step of the process. Even now that our visa's have been granted Helen is still helping us. If you can afford the extra cost then I would recommend using an agent but check them out.

jaxowen

I posted a similar thread when i first joined the forum (about two weeks ago)- my husband and i are applying for an independent skills visa and taking on board other peoples experiences we have decided to use an agent - they were really helpful, answered loads of questions over the phone and we are just undergoing our skills assessment now. I do feel more confident that we haven't missed anything that will hold us up by using an agent - i suppose it depends how much time you have on your hands to ring round etc.
any way good luck!
jax