Qatar vs Australia
Sep 27th 2020, 11:52 pm
#1
Just Joined
Thread Starter
Joined: Sep 2020
Posts: 2
Qatar vs Australia
Hi. I am a GP with 4 years experience post mrcgp and 15 yrs experience as adoctor overall. Considering working abroad.
The choice is between Australia and Qatar. Not sure which one to pursue at the moment.
1) Which one is more expensive in terms of living costs for a single person and other costs eg, utility, rent, food, indemnity, car etc
2) Qatari agents are offering 33000QR this time which is less than what they have been offering in recent years and I dont know if any other perks are included. In past they used to offer 41k for a specialist and more for consultat post. So i am not sure if its worth it financially given the agent's offer of 33K Qryals?
3) whats the difference in duties between a consultant and a specialist?
4) Australia has familiar systems similar to UK i am told?
5) Australian agents give a range of earnings depending on how many patients you see and the split..! Does that mean you have to work like a conveyer belt to generate a good income?
6) Australia and tax: is that a big factor?
The choice is between Australia and Qatar. Not sure which one to pursue at the moment.
1) Which one is more expensive in terms of living costs for a single person and other costs eg, utility, rent, food, indemnity, car etc
2) Qatari agents are offering 33000QR this time which is less than what they have been offering in recent years and I dont know if any other perks are included. In past they used to offer 41k for a specialist and more for consultat post. So i am not sure if its worth it financially given the agent's offer of 33K Qryals?
3) whats the difference in duties between a consultant and a specialist?
4) Australia has familiar systems similar to UK i am told?
5) Australian agents give a range of earnings depending on how many patients you see and the split..! Does that mean you have to work like a conveyer belt to generate a good income?
6) Australia and tax: is that a big factor?
Sep 28th 2020, 12:50 am
#2
Lost in BE Cyberspace
Joined: Dec 2010
Posts: 14,040
Re: Qatar vs Australia
Hi. I am a GP with 4 years experience post mrcgp and 15 yrs experience as adoctor overall. Considering working abroad.
The choice is between Australia and Qatar. Not sure which one to pursue at the moment.
1) Which one is more expensive in terms of living costs for a single person and other costs eg, utility, rent, food, indemnity, car etc
2) Qatari agents are offering 33000QR this time which is less than what they have been offering in recent years and I dont know if any other perks are included. In past they used to offer 41k for a specialist and more for consultat post. So i am not sure if its worth it financially given the agent's offer of 33K Qryals?
3) whats the difference in duties between a consultant and a specialist?
4) Australia has familiar systems similar to UK i am told?
5) Australian agents give a range of earnings depending on how many patients you see and the split..! Does that mean you have to work like a conveyer belt to generate a good income?
6) Australia and tax: is that a big factor?
The choice is between Australia and Qatar. Not sure which one to pursue at the moment.
1) Which one is more expensive in terms of living costs for a single person and other costs eg, utility, rent, food, indemnity, car etc
2) Qatari agents are offering 33000QR this time which is less than what they have been offering in recent years and I dont know if any other perks are included. In past they used to offer 41k for a specialist and more for consultat post. So i am not sure if its worth it financially given the agent's offer of 33K Qryals?
3) whats the difference in duties between a consultant and a specialist?
4) Australia has familiar systems similar to UK i am told?
5) Australian agents give a range of earnings depending on how many patients you see and the split..! Does that mean you have to work like a conveyer belt to generate a good income?
6) Australia and tax: is that a big factor?
2. No idea
3. No Idea
4. Yes. Compared to other countries, Australia and the UK have a lot of similarities.
5. No idea
6. If you compare to Qatar more than likely. Qatar offers many ex-pat tax benefits to attract talented workers.
Sep 29th 2020, 11:07 pm
#3
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 1,203
Re: Qatar vs Australia
Is it just you or do you have a partner/family to consider?
Oct 1st 2020, 4:23 am
#4
Proudly Deplorable
Joined: May 2003
Location: Alloha snack bar
Posts: 24,246
Re: Qatar vs Australia
Hi. I am a GP with 4 years experience post mrcgp and 15 yrs experience as adoctor overall. Considering working abroad.
The choice is between Australia and Qatar. Not sure which one to pursue at the moment.
1) Which one is more expensive in terms of living costs for a single person and other costs eg, utility, rent, food, indemnity, car etc
2) Qatari agents are offering 33000QR this time which is less than what they have been offering in recent years and I dont know if any other perks are included. In past they used to offer 41k for a specialist and more for consultat post. So i am not sure if its worth it financially given the agent's offer of 33K Qryals?
3) whats the difference in duties between a consultant and a specialist?
4) Australia has familiar systems similar to UK i am told?
5) Australian agents give a range of earnings depending on how many patients you see and the split..! Does that mean you have to work like a conveyer belt to generate a good income?
6) Australia and tax: is that a big factor?
The choice is between Australia and Qatar. Not sure which one to pursue at the moment.
1) Which one is more expensive in terms of living costs for a single person and other costs eg, utility, rent, food, indemnity, car etc
2) Qatari agents are offering 33000QR this time which is less than what they have been offering in recent years and I dont know if any other perks are included. In past they used to offer 41k for a specialist and more for consultat post. So i am not sure if its worth it financially given the agent's offer of 33K Qryals?
3) whats the difference in duties between a consultant and a specialist?
4) Australia has familiar systems similar to UK i am told?
5) Australian agents give a range of earnings depending on how many patients you see and the split..! Does that mean you have to work like a conveyer belt to generate a good income?
6) Australia and tax: is that a big factor?
Oct 5th 2020, 8:16 pm
#5
Ghazi78
Joined: Jul 2014
Posts: 41
Re: Qatar vs Australia
Hi. I am a GP with 4 years experience post mrcgp and 15 yrs experience as adoctor overall. Considering working abroad.
The choice is between Australia and Qatar. Not sure which one to pursue at the moment.
1) Which one is more expensive in terms of living costs for a single person and other costs eg, utility, rent, food, indemnity, car etc
2) Qatari agents are offering 33000QR this time which is less than what they have been offering in recent years and I dont know if any other perks are included. In past they used to offer 41k for a specialist and more for consultat post. So i am not sure if its worth it financially given the agent's offer of 33K Qryals?
3) whats the difference in duties between a consultant and a specialist?
4) Australia has familiar systems similar to UK i am told?
5) Australian agents give a range of earnings depending on how many patients you see and the split..! Does that mean you have to work like a conveyer belt to generate a good income?
6) Australia and tax: is that a big factor?
The choice is between Australia and Qatar. Not sure which one to pursue at the moment.
1) Which one is more expensive in terms of living costs for a single person and other costs eg, utility, rent, food, indemnity, car etc
2) Qatari agents are offering 33000QR this time which is less than what they have been offering in recent years and I dont know if any other perks are included. In past they used to offer 41k for a specialist and more for consultat post. So i am not sure if its worth it financially given the agent's offer of 33K Qryals?
3) whats the difference in duties between a consultant and a specialist?
4) Australia has familiar systems similar to UK i am told?
5) Australian agents give a range of earnings depending on how many patients you see and the split..! Does that mean you have to work like a conveyer belt to generate a good income?
6) Australia and tax: is that a big factor?
1) Almost same, not much difference.
2) Maybe the agents are offering low to keep more commission. You need to approach different agents and negotiate. Tell them your expectations and you won't agree below that.
3) Not sure as I ain't a doctor but specialist is considered a higher rank with more perks.
4) Ya, my GP also says this, she has moved from UK to Aust.
5) No it doesn't mean that. In Qatar, you are bound to sponsor visa always i.e. you have one employer. In Aust, if you happen to get PR or Skilled Visa rather than Sponsor, you can switch employer's easily. My GP is always packed with her schedule, though other GPs in same clinic have more empty slots than her. So i assume that she gets commission for each patient, and if she has to spend 8 hours there, its better if those 8hours are busy rather than 5 working hours and 3 idle. But keep in mind that she is excellent, thats why she is packed all the times. This is not the case with every GP in that clinic.
6) Yes, tax is in Aust.
Most importantly, Qatar means DOHA i.e. there is only one city in Qatar which is Doha. Weather is hot and humid in summer. Every thing is available in 5min drive. Its a lovely place to be.
Australia is a continent with lots of happening and natural scenery. Things are really far here sometimes. You need to drive and walk alot more in Aust. 2min in Qatar = 10min in Aust. You will realize if you end up here.
Hope it helps.
Oct 5th 2020, 8:20 pm
#6
Concierge
Joined: Jan 2013
Location: Western Australia
Posts: 21,139
Re: Qatar vs Australia
There's no difference between a UK consultant and an Australian specialist. Just different titles.
Oct 7th 2020, 9:30 am
#7
Forum Regular
Joined: Dec 2016
Location: SYD again, formerly PRG, LON, HKG, SIN, SYD & DOH
Posts: 145
Re: Qatar vs Australia
Posted on the Middle East Thread
______________
Hi - I live in Qatar and lived in Australia for 5, so I can help on the non medical questions.
Housing is expensive in both places. Depending on level of quality you want, there is a wide range of options but you are looking at 10-12k/month at the top end (e.g. a serviced apartment). In Australia your accommodation depends on your location. Eastern Suburbs Sydney is a very different price point compared to a rural location. https://www.propertyfinder.qa/ for Qatar and Domain.com.au for Australia are good places to start.
The Australian health system is a very good one with most people covered by Medicare by the Government and supplemental private insurance if they are higher earners. For a GP, most surgeries offer "bulk billing" which from the patient perspective means that they don't pay for a consultation in most circumstances and the surgery is paid directly by the Government (I think its c. A$37 for a standard consultation). Qatar has either the public system via Hamad and the Primary Health Care network or private clinics for which people either pay or claim from health insurance.
Taxes in Australia are clearly there, what you find though is that you don't need to spend so much there.
- Frequent travel home or overseas (ticket prices from Doha and Sydney back to the UK are were similar pre-COVID). People try and fly out to escape, especially if they are single. Travel is clearly limited in both countries at the moment.
- Qatar's population is small and the "Western" expat/Qatari population is much smaller, as a result things that need to imported are expensive and some services are very hard to find. As a result you can end up spending obscene amounts on Aramex and Amazon shipping costs
- You can do a lot in Australia for free (bushwalking, going to the beach etc) There isn't much you can do in Qatar for free....
Other observations -
- Cars and petrol is much higher in Australia due to petrol taxes. Driving though is much safer
- Food wise, compare supermarket costs (https://www.coles.com.au/) / https://www.carrefourqatar.com/, our shop in Australia is cheaper
- Higher quality clothes, sports equipment, electronics are more expensive in Qatar, if you can find it. Otherwise you are looking at Amazon (and shipping costs)
- Booze and eating out is cheaper in Australia, especially comparing QDC vs the bottle shops
- Fast Food (eg Maccas) is cheaper in Qatar
- Finding a decent Indian curry in Australia is hard, in Qatar you have plenty of choices.
- Finding good Chinese and Thai food in Australia is easy, in Qatar you are stuck with very limited choices
Gut feel is 33k / month (all in) in Qatar, as a single expat is doable, but you wont be having a luxurious lifestyle
In Australia, GPs do ok, but not sure about earnings. That said they're not on the breadline
If I was single in my mid 30's, I would opt for Australia to have a "normal" lifestyle even if the money was a bit less. Both locations have tons of British and Irish medics running around.
______________
Hi - I live in Qatar and lived in Australia for 5, so I can help on the non medical questions.
Housing is expensive in both places. Depending on level of quality you want, there is a wide range of options but you are looking at 10-12k/month at the top end (e.g. a serviced apartment). In Australia your accommodation depends on your location. Eastern Suburbs Sydney is a very different price point compared to a rural location. https://www.propertyfinder.qa/ for Qatar and Domain.com.au for Australia are good places to start.
The Australian health system is a very good one with most people covered by Medicare by the Government and supplemental private insurance if they are higher earners. For a GP, most surgeries offer "bulk billing" which from the patient perspective means that they don't pay for a consultation in most circumstances and the surgery is paid directly by the Government (I think its c. A$37 for a standard consultation). Qatar has either the public system via Hamad and the Primary Health Care network or private clinics for which people either pay or claim from health insurance.
Taxes in Australia are clearly there, what you find though is that you don't need to spend so much there.
- Frequent travel home or overseas (ticket prices from Doha and Sydney back to the UK are were similar pre-COVID). People try and fly out to escape, especially if they are single. Travel is clearly limited in both countries at the moment.
- Qatar's population is small and the "Western" expat/Qatari population is much smaller, as a result things that need to imported are expensive and some services are very hard to find. As a result you can end up spending obscene amounts on Aramex and Amazon shipping costs
- You can do a lot in Australia for free (bushwalking, going to the beach etc) There isn't much you can do in Qatar for free....
Other observations -
- Cars and petrol is much higher in Australia due to petrol taxes. Driving though is much safer
- Food wise, compare supermarket costs (https://www.coles.com.au/) / https://www.carrefourqatar.com/, our shop in Australia is cheaper
- Higher quality clothes, sports equipment, electronics are more expensive in Qatar, if you can find it. Otherwise you are looking at Amazon (and shipping costs)
- Booze and eating out is cheaper in Australia, especially comparing QDC vs the bottle shops
- Fast Food (eg Maccas) is cheaper in Qatar
- Finding a decent Indian curry in Australia is hard, in Qatar you have plenty of choices.
- Finding good Chinese and Thai food in Australia is easy, in Qatar you are stuck with very limited choices
Gut feel is 33k / month (all in) in Qatar, as a single expat is doable, but you wont be having a luxurious lifestyle
In Australia, GPs do ok, but not sure about earnings. That said they're not on the breadline
If I was single in my mid 30's, I would opt for Australia to have a "normal" lifestyle even if the money was a bit less. Both locations have tons of British and Irish medics running around.
Last edited by fth; Oct 7th 2020 at 10:55 am.
