mlbonner

Hi there,

Hopefully someone can help me, coz this 'should' be quite straight forward I think.

I'm stuck on two parts of the AQIS customs form;

In section one it asks you why you're entering Australia. I'm on a first stage de facto visa, so just two years, but planning on being there permanently when (hopefully) I get my PR granted. Do I put a tick against 'first time taking up PR' or 'temp visit', if its the latter I have to give a time frame. Or maybe it doesnt matter too much??? I have an idea what to put, just want to make sure it agrees with someone else

The second thing I'm a bit unsure on, is where it asks you to declare anything less than 12 months old; now in the past couple of months that I've been back here, I daresay I've bought an item or two of clothing, do I have to list these? There's not much room on the form, and if you were to put down everything you'd bought within 12 months, it'd be a pretty long list. Wouldn't it??

Thanks for any help - my stuff looks like a bomb's gone off in the middle of it at the moment, organised chaos I believe its called

Cheers
Michelle

Peter

You have a visa that basically allows you to stay 2 years at the least, so I'd put PR.

As for items < 1 year old, I think they're more interested in stuff that'd attract duty like computers, video cameras, PDA's, GPS stuff, etc. I'm positive clothes don't count. I think clothes come under the "personal" in personal effects.

Pollyana

Hi Michelle,
I came in Pros Spouse, but as I am planning to stay permamently, I ticked that box, not the temp one.
As for the stuff under 12 months old, they are after TVs, pcs, that kind of thing which they will then charge you GST on. They're not worried about clothes or anything like that. I think the aim is to stop you bringing stuff in that you could later sell.

JayDeee

I'm also on a temp spouse visa but not planning on moving for the next 18 months. I have just bought a new computer so say I was to win the lottery and move out within a year what would be the consequences' of having a computer less than a year old? would I have to pay duty and if (for example) I didn't put it on the form how are they to find out.

All hypathetical but I have no Idea what I might buy in the year running up to when I move and don't want to make a silly mistake and buy something that is going to cost me a fortune in duty should I buy something.

I dont see why anyone should pay GST if you ahve already paid VAT in the UK on a personal item that is not goin to be re-sold

Cheers
Kala

Peter

Maybe 'cos British VAT has squat to do with Australian GST. You know, different countries and laws and everything.

JayDeee

Yeah I know that, I'm not going to lobby government over it or anything, it was just a statement that to me finnished off my question.

I was just wondering the reasoning behind this, why the 12 month time limit? is it to stop people buying thing to re-sell?

K

Pollyana

I was told that unless the computer was a really swish up-to-date model they wouldn't be too bothered. Having acquired one which was a bottom of the range, and certainly not swish I didn't declare it. Customs looked at it, cos it came in through airfreight and The Bloke was there when they opened the box, but they didn't query its age. If you have something like a flat screen they might be more interested.

JayDeee

Thank you!
Bugger,
Why did I get talked into buying this ridiculously expensive computer when I only planned on getting a cheap one???


Cos i'm a weak shopoholic female!!!!

and more importanlty why am I worrying about this, I am not goin to win the lottery in real life so will not be moving to Australia for 18 months so therefore my stupid computer really isn't a problem.

Kala

Pollyana

If its a nice posh one, I should hang on to all the proof of purchase stuff, that way if they do query it in 18 months time, you can prove its age.

JayDeee

Good plan,

I really must start hanging onto things, I'm really not a reciept person, I've only had it a week and already dont know where the reciept is.

Thank you for your help.

Off to town 2moro to buy a filing thingy to start hanging on to all the improtant things,

After applying for 2 visas Mine to Oz and my Hubby's to stay here in the Uk I shoudl have learnt to be organized.

Thanks
Kala

mlbonner

Thanks for your answers Ulujain and Pollyana, you've confirmed what I was thinking & I now don't have to find a copy of a new form (I'd filled it all out and then wondered about it afterwards)

Thanks

Pollyana

Kala,
Another little tip if you're going to start sorting out bits of paperwork - make sure you take with you (not in the container) all the stuff you might need when you get here - NHS card, copy of visa application, details of shippers, birth cert all that kind of thing.

mlbonner

Just out of interest, what do you need your NHS card for? I thought the two countries were separate as far as that went? Off to find mine now in anticipation

Pollyana

Soemone told me that it might speed up the Medicare process - when I went to register I'd only been here a week and my details,hadn't got onto their computer, but he gave me a temporary card on the strength of seeing the visa, passprt and NHS card. Probably not an essential, but might help.

mlbonner

Okay cheers, last time I registered I just showed my passport. That was for a temp one though so I'll take my NHS card along... just in case