oceanblue

My husband and I would like to live in Australia, but have no idea which visa route to pursue. I have many relatives in Adelaide (two uncles, an aunt, seven cousins etc.) so ideally we'd like to live there. My husband would be the principal applicant. Would they consider my relatives if we were to go down the sponsor route? My husband has been working as a computer technician/systems administrator for the past 10+ years. He does not have a college diploma, only an MCSA certification from Microsoft. Surely his experience would count for something? He has very good references from past employers and extensive knowledge/experience in his trade. I'm not on the skilled trade list, so he would have to be the main applicant. I'm 28, my husband is 35. Should we talk to an immigration agent? Would it help if he got a job offer first? Would that increase the chance of them accepting our application? Could someone please recommend a visa route or immigration agent?
We're newlyweds currently living in Cyprus (we grew up here) and feel that we would do much better in Australia.
Please advise, and thankyou so much.

JAJ

Find a good agent, such as George Lombard in Sydney, for professional advice of whether it will be possible to get a skill assessment and ultimately a skill sponsored visa.

oceanblue

Thankyou, I will be sure to contact him.
I would still like to hear back from others in this profession, to see how they were able to score more points without a college diploma. My husband is going to complete his MCSE soon and we're hoping this will help him further. Would you recommend the 475 Visa for our situation? My aunt or uncle would need to sponsor us - would this be acceptable if my husband is the main applicant? What are the fees, approximately? Timeline?
Thankyou

mi5agent

Good advice...we used George.... The guy and his staff are ACE!

Bermudashorts

Have you identified a particular occupation on the SOL that your husband would apply under? If not, you should do this first and then see what is required for that specific occupation in terms of qualifications and experience.

I believe the case is that if you don't meet the requirements of a skilled occupation, you cannot "make up" for it by gaining points elsewhere.

I would focus on getting skills assessed first and then decide which particular sub category of visa to apply for, the 175 / 176 / 475 all need positive skills assessment. Family sponsored are one of the slowest to be processed so I personally would not consider that route unless you have to.

I should add, if you think your case is a bit tricky, a migration agent such as those mentioend does seem like a good idea. I am going to suggest to my sister that she contacts George as she is also not that straightforward.