Debbi

Hi All,

I was unsure whether to post this on the immigration section - but I guess most of you posting on the barbie thread have been in Oz awhile.

My husbands retired father lives in he UK - he is on his own and we would like to bring him out here to live with us. He is 65 years old. I am an Australian Citizen - born and bred here and my husband will have his citizenship this coming Dec

I just wanted to get any feedback from you all if you have had any experience with the immigration process in bringing out a parent simliar to our situation.

Thanks

Deb

busterboy

Have you looked at the 'parents contributary visa' thread that has been running forever. At least that might give you a start.

sonlymewalter

Is your father an Aus citizen? If not I would think he could move here on a contributory parent visa providing he has a balance of family in Aus. Meaning he has an equal split of children in Aus and UK. If you go on the DIAC site and key in Contributory Parent Visa you can read the rules.

Good luck.

quoll

You may like to bring him but does he want to come?

There are financial implications for him to take into account such as his UK pension being frozen at its current level with no increases based on CPI. Will you be taking him from a social network which is a strength for him and leaving him in a position where it may be hard to develop a similar social network here? The visa can be very costly and may require him to sell up everything he has in UK which would then make it hard for him to return if it didnt work out for him.

My parents made the choice to stay in UK but for 15 years they came to Aus for 6 months of every year. I dont think they have regretted that decision as their old age is more comfortable and supported than it would have been had they moved here but they did have a strong social network to support them.

Debbi

Thanks you make a very valid point - right now he comes out here every year for about three months. This was before he retired - now he has been told that he cannot come out any longer because it will affect his NHS - health benefits? do you happen to know anything about this where your parents are concerned?

Its hard to know what to do - as he does have friends there and he would while he is healthy commute between UK and here - but we are more concerned about what will happen when he can no longer look after himself.

I know a lot of people probably worry about the same thing we are going through right now.

Thank you for your feedback its much appreciated.

Cheers
Debbie

quoll

Yes, the NHS issue is something that has come into play in the last few years - my parents havent been able to come out for 5 years now but they managed OK until they were 80. It really is very hard and I do know how concerned you must be - it is a huge decision that they have to make.

As the NHS changes came into play after my parents ceased to come every year, it would be worth checking out whether they have an impact or not - it is not as if he would ordinarily be resident in Australia, he would just take long holidays so there may be no impact on his NHS access at all - someone on here will know. What may be of more concern is what benefits he would be entitled to in Aus.

I wish you well with your decision, it is really tricky. I know I wish I were closer to my parents as they become more tottery but it was their life and their decision in the end and we just do the best we can with it. Good luck.