MrMouse

Hi there,
Me and my girlfriend are thinking about making the move from the UK to Australia. She is a Australian citizen and we’ve lived together for a year, so the partner (defacto spouse) visa would seem to be the best way for us to go.

On the immi.gov.au website it says that this visa is a temporary visa which then made permanent after 2 years.

My question is for other people who have come over to Aus this way- were you able to find meaningful work while on the temp visa? Was it easy to get a job or did you have problems?

Any stories or tips would be gratefully received. What did you do before you went and what are you doing now? I currently have a good job in the public sector and there seem to be comparable jobs in Aus, I just wondered how easy it is to get one?

Thanks in advance

Pollyana

The main isue you will have is if you want to break into the Aus public sector. It can be done, cos I did it on a spouse visa, however some it depends on the State. Some States won't employ you in a pemanent position until you have a perm visa (Queensland for example) but you CAN hold temporary positions - and there are a multitude of those.
Federal Govt requires citizenship for most jobs, but at the other end of the scale most local councils will employ you on temporary visas with no problem.

Expect to start at the bottom, or certainly lower down though - I was the equivalent of an Ao4-5 in the UK but I've only just managed to get an AO3 here (temp) after three tears on temp AO2s; they tend to like people who have worked up through the Aussie system.

Qld Govt jobs - www.jobs.qld.gov.au

stu:0

Hi there, i off to cairns in june. Going with the girlfriend who's been given sponsership(457 visa) so i'll be on defacto spouse visa and things are looking good as far as work goes at the moment mainly thanks to this forum and the contacts on here. Im an electrician but i guess it could be more difficult in other types of jobs??
We do intend to apply for pr once we are happy out there!

Stu

Paul&Nic

We're on temp visa's (altho only Student visa and we have 20 hr pw restrictions) and work situation is terrible!

I've had 1 months work delivering pizza's and washing up in almost a year! ... can't find anything half decent ... no way! It took McDonalds 6 weeks, and 2 interviews to FINALLY tell me that couldn't employ me because of my visa situation (temp).

Other half has more availability than me, but has applied for probably 80+ (part time) positions either at the Gold Coast or Brisbane.

So far, 1 interview, 30 odd rejections, and the rest didn't get back!

Now this ISN'T specialist work admittedly, but it's Admin work that she has probably 10 years experience.

She's worked for 3 banks in the UK, but when applying for them over here she's not qualified enough ... ... or maybe it's cos she's a Pom!

(did he just say that? ... )

Sam_Mark

Oh that's just scared me a bit, never thought of that! I know this a silly question but my OH was born in Australia too so I would need a spouse visa, would it make any difference to be a married couple rather than just boyf/girf?

JAJ

Same visa, same requirements compared to de-facto couples - the only difference is that if you are legally married you do not need to show at least 12 months cohabitation.

Hutch

My wife has a spouse visa and they (DIMA or whatever they're called this week) didn't even bother with the temporary visa class, just put full PR status in her passport - same for my son.

Wendy

I think that's because you have the little one and are married.

JAJ

If you have been together for 2+ years and have a child, you get to skip the temporary visa stage.

Is your son aged under 16? If so, you should be aware that once your son is living in Australia as a permanent resident (and with an Australian parent, assuming you are an Australian by descent) you can apply immediately for him to be granted Australian citizenship. The normal residence period does not apply in these circumstances.

Siren & Brian

I have to admit that I struggled a little in the beginning when looking for work on a temp spouse visa (if you run a search, I'm sure you'll find a few threads on this topic - including mine) but if you are persistant and upfront about your visa situation, you are bound to find someone who'll give you a chance.

Spouse visas are more "permanent" than say, student or work visas for the simple reason that they usually become PR's at some point. Employers know this.

What I felt was my biggest challenge was my accent. Lots of Australian companies like hiring Australians... but not all of them I managed, as did MANY, MANY others. You should too!

Siren

Hutch

No, I didn't know that - thanks for the tip.

Pollyana

Yes, it is possible to get a good job, and a permanent job. My only problem is wanting to work in the public service - even then I often found that the supervisors and HR were fine with the visa type, it was just that the rules wouldn't allow the exception.

Scubaemma

Thanks for starting this thread, it's really interesting for me too. We're hoping to move to Brisbane next year on spouse visa (OH is an Aussie) and I'm hoping to stay private sector as well. Am working as a Policy Advisor in a Central Gov't Department here in UK so was hoping I'd be able to work for QLD Gov't when we make the move. I'm prepared to drop down a level (sounds like I'll have to!) and was wondering how the temp visa situation would affect things. Hopefully it'll be possible then....

Pollyana, how long did it take you to get your job when you arrived? Is it just a normal application process (application form, interview) to get a QLD Gov't job or do you have to do anything special? Thanks for sharing your experiences, it's really helpful when you're over here and wondering what it'll be like when we make the move!

Pollyana

Didn't take me long to get a job, only about 3 weeks, but it did take me 9 months to get a Govt job - that was going for AO2, basic admin jobs. Also that was - and still is - a temporary position as even though I now have PR there are no vacancies at the right level in my particular dept. However I'm almost resigned to it now; I know I might be able to get perm somewhere else, but haven't yet persuaded myself to go and work in a Dept my heart wouldn't be in. To get a perm job in Qld govt you need a perm visa, and proof of it, so they don't accept "temp becoming PR"!
Most of the positions advertised need you to answer Selection criteria - ie, write about what you've done and why you approached it that way, projects, admin work, experiences dealing with various situations etc - this isn't only limited to govt though, a lot of private sector have started using this approach too.

have a look at some of the positions on www.jobs.qld.gov.au and look at the positions/role descriptions, and that'll give you an idea what they are after.

Sam_Mark

So with all that in mind, would you risk coming out without a job and hunt when there or both get a job before we come out?