jamiesmi

Hi

I had my VISA in my passport for sometime now. I have finally decided that it's time to make use of it and leave the UK.

I have a job offer in Brisbane (for a UK company, so will initially be paid in £ while the AU operation is set-up), but am struggling to know where to start to get myself out there.

I've had a search through these forums - and everyone seems pretty helpful so I am after some free advice :-).

I obviously need to get AU bank accounts set-up. It appears this is better to do while in the UK, however many banks need a AU address, how have people got around this? In the main have people migrated everything into $, I think I would like to leave a UK account (help with credit if I ever need to get back), is this allowed - by bank were a bit unsure of this as it should be converted to "off shore"?

What are the tax implications of leaving the UK - is it possible to claim anything back. I am told its best to carry on paying NI contributions - how is this done?

How many people have landed in AU with nowhere to stay? Best to book hotels \ motels or have people rented a property (from the net) prior to leaving the UK?

I want to export my car - however I am told I need to AU'ise it. It appears this is just a speedo change. How many people have taken a car and how easy was it, what about getting it insured?

Sometime back I went to a migration show and there was talk that if you buy a new house in AU (or have one built) there is some incentive from the goverment, but I can't find anything about this - anyone else heard of this?

I've loads more questions - but seem to be getting somewhere with those!

Thanks in advance.

Jamie