Costabeera

Are these people worth registering with, or is emigration an easy enough process to
find your own way through? Has anyone used any migration consultants that they'd
recommend to others? TIA.

col

I don't know whether it is easy not to use a consultant cos I went straight to one. I used Ian Harrop & associates ( he has 2 offices but it depends where you live if you use him or not) the guy is from melborne(I think) and is Definitely a good option.
I have found him most helpful & with something as important as this I thought the money was worth it!


Col.

Wannastay

i did the whole process myself, and paid $300 for a Migration Agent to backstop my work. to be honest, didnt need to as it is a very simple (though extremely methodical) process - all you need to do is be objective (i.e if i were reading this form/reference from someone else, would i understand what they were saying/trying to prove).

dont bother - all a Migration Agent would do (having approached one initially) is tell you what documentation to collect (Form 47SK tells you anyway), how to fill the form in (unless you are a complete numpty/dont speak english, this is easy), and they lick the stamp and post it on.

however - using a migration agent to answer specific questions, and paying on a pro-rata basis is something i found exceptionally helpful. but be VERY careful - one that i approached told me point blank that I COULDNT apply for Perm Residency whilst resident in Australia on a 457TR !!!!!

all you Migration Agents out there- dont jump down my throat, only voicing my opinion and what worked for me.

Jez

Just use either George Lombard, JAJ (don't know his full name) or do it yourself
after reading the postings in the newsgroup. At least that is what I did and found it
pretty easy. Jez

"Costabeera" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > Are these people worth registering with, or is emigration an easy enough process to
    > find your own way through? Has anyone used any migration consultants that they'd
    > recommend to others? TIA.

dtmig

I also agree with jezz, after reading this group for long time. Try George Lombard or JAJ (Jeremy). These two gentlemen were very helpful for everyone here so I'm sure they can help you too

heading downunder 2002

Alan Collette is also very helpful to this newsgroup and may be able to help.

Susan

ndaltonb

We used Zeno of Ian Harrop and Associates.

Great thing is that he is in contact with the AHC on a daily basis and always knows what's going on. He's saved me £'s as we didn't do the medical up front so Zeno gets a thimbs up from us.

Also, when I phoned him twice in total fit of depression re the wait, he has a good sense of humour to turn it around.

Re the forms. Yes I can do them myself but going through Zeno, I KNOW they are OK.

You can find your own way through; it's the extra's you get from your agent.

Hope this helps

Nigel and Sally

Bones

We also used Zeno and we can echo what Nigel and Sally say. In addition our skills assesment was prepared and sent away within 9 days - much faster than if we had researched it ourselves. Also Zeno advised of additional evidence to send, which was not on the forms. He also advised us on front-loading our application pointing out the pitfalls and what we had to gain.

Good Luck,
Peter & Tracey

pott

Just to add to the above

I think it all depends upon how straight forward your case is. This is our second time applying. First time we had a few hurdles to cross e.g. companies going into liquidation and not being able to get the ref's we needed. (back then you needed to prove 7 yrs working history) This caused months -over a year from start to finish- of letters and phone calls only to be rejected. If we had used an agent in the first place there would not have been a problem. So if you think you would be up against problems use an agent as they have the knowledge and clients who have been in similar situations.
If you do use an agent I would go with any of the above.

Good luck with it all.

dpr

Like 'Wannastay', we did not use migration consultants. We made the decision to do without if possible (initially anyway) 'cos one consultant quoted us in the region of £400 merely to get police clearance certificates from South Africa where we had lived prior to coming to the UK.

We applied in December last year and received a letter in January this year indicating it would take up to 50 weeks. However since the date of that letter it has taken about ten weeks to get the visas WITHOUT the help of any consultants. I'd guess we have been extremely luck and, in addition, our application was pretty straightforward. My gut feeling is that if your application is straightforward and you don't have problems with your skills assessment do it yourself and save the money for other things. A few things we did which we feel helped us?!? (also posted on another thread - sorry for the duplication for some of you)

Couriered absolutely everything including any simple correspondence e.g. letters
Applied to Adelaide
Used the DIMA form and filled it out meticulously explaining any ambiquities (and there weren't many - it is long but pretty straightforward)
Sent our medicals/police certificates with the application (I know someone else has said by telling them not to do this, an agent saved them money - as I suggested above (we'll never know for certain) that if you have a straightforward appl, with skills assessed, lots of points, English 1st language etc that you go for it and send the lot in one go; if however you suspect that you may have problems then use an agent in the long run it's probably money well spent.

Anyway, although this was short for us the uncertainty was a pain so we feel for all you guys still waiting - good luck

cheerio

dpr

Colin73

Can anyone give me the phone numbers of George Lombard or JAJ (jeremy), as they seem to be highly recommended!
This would be much appreciated,
Thanks, Colin.

Paul

Hello colin. Georg Lombard's company, along with others, is listed in the links pages here http://britishexpats.com/links/Immig...ces/index.html

hanu

I am using George Lombard .His site :
http://www.austimmigration.com.au/

Colin73

Thanks Paul and Hanu,
But does the fact that they are based down-under(and i`m in London/England), a bit of a dis-advantage...ie; Time differences etc...!
Is it better(for me) to deal with a London based agent? If so any recommendations would be very much appreciated....
Thanks again folk`s!!XX!

heading downunder 2002

Hi Colin,

I would try Zeno from Ian Harrop & Associates as mentioned above, we have used him and he has been excellent and still is this far down the line. He is based in South Wimbledon. we live up North and have done it all over the phone with absolutely no problems.

Susan