why do so many people use a migration agent
 

Its just a thought as it seems so many people use agents- why?. My friends and I all did our own application and they are very simple and straight forward, and above all it saved us a lot of money. I applied for a skilled independent visa and did what most people do and did the online points test. Then we printed the application forms of the web site and filled them in!. There was nothing difficult and as long as you get everything together like your proof of qualifications, transcripts of results, birth certificate, references, job assesment from relevent assesing authority and get them copied and signed by a notiory public your done. Even if you use an agent you still have to do all the ground work for them and they just package it together, check your application and bank your money!!! Come on guys, the rules are simple..if you meet the points and can fit the criteria you will get the visa...and save your self lots of money. Agents may tell you they can speed things up for you but they cant. No one can rush DIMIA. Out of interest our application took 8 months from start to finish and I genuinely have just spoken to someone who is using a well known agent who has been processing the application for 20 months! DO YOUR OWN ITS SIMPLE.

Re: why do so many people use a migration agent
 

the only reason is (for us)that we hadnt found this and other same type sites before we made the descision to apply and already signed up. but wouldve probably gone it alone if we had known that there are so many helpful people out there to answer even the smallest of questions. :D

kath x

Re: why do so many people use a migration agent
 

Good for you. I used an agent because my situation wasn't simple and straight forward. Without the help of our agent I doubt we'd have passed the Skills Assessment stage.

Money well spent in my books.

Re: why do so many people use a migration agent
 

Agenst can't speed things p but there are times when their knowledge is invaluable. Knowing how to approach an application with a long criminal record, or a medical issue, for instance, can mean the difference between getting a visa or being refused.
Having said that, if your application is straightforward then there is no reason for not saving the money and doing it yourself. Its one of those situations where you can't make a blanket decision - each persons' circumstances are different and therefore each application is different.

Re: why do so many people use a migration agent
 

Not everyone has a clear cut case, I work in IT but needed a degree to get through the ACS, so as far as I was concerned, that was a show stopper.

I used to be a sparky after I left school and did a part apprenticeship before specialising in alarms. That how I got here and thanks to a migration agent asking the correct questions. If you have been working in the same occupation since leaving school, and have all the qualifications, yeah do your own.

Re: why do so many people use a migration agent
 

Well whoopy do for you Colin... Have a badge for doing it on your own. You'll be telling us next it's daft to have a window cleaner or gardener. Try looking through the posts before you start making poor threads like this, and see that some people have complicated lives and may need the experience of an agent to help them get their dream of a life in Australia or elsewhere.

Me? I look at it like this. I could lose 17.5% of the price of a brand new car as soon as I drive it off the forecourt. Makes an agent look cheap in my eyes.

Mind you, you probably walk everywhere anyway.

Re: why do so many people use a migration agent
 

I agree with you. We did not use an agent and have had no problems (so far). However our application is straightforward and I understand why people with complicated cases might want to go with an agent.
I think sometimes people underestimate themselves. At the beginning I found the application daunting but with a little perseverence I found it easy enough to do.
Having said that this is all in hindsight and if you asked me while I was in the middle of it all I would probably have a different point of view.

Re: why do so many people use a migration agent
 

My case is straightforward, but I nearly went with an agent anyway because what price can you put on peace of mind? If I was still in the UK and as desperate as I have been to succeed, I would have thrown money at it. The only reason I haven't is that I now live in NZ and so have had opportunity and easier access to the information and support I needed to go it alone. Also I have been obsessively reading the DIAC website for about 5 years :)

I do get frustrated though on behalf of some of the people on here who post threads saying they can't even get hold of their agents on the phone. There must be some real charlatans out there making a quick buck on people's desperation.

Re: why do so many people use a migration agent
 

It was easier, simple as that. I don't think it was that expensive. Cost us 4grand. But i hate paperwork.

Re: why do so many people use a migration agent
 

Because I'm deaf and I needed to know how to proceed and what would happen in case of IELTS failure.

Daniel

Re: why do so many people use a migration agent
 

Like you, we did ours by ourselves. Our case was very straight forward, plus I had the time and patience to research everything to do it myself.

But.... this isn't the case for everyone and I think it's pretty presumptious to think that people who are using agents are wasting their money. Some people do genuinely need an agents help. There are lots of complications that come up, for example:

-medical issues
-past convictions
-child custody issues
-problems with work experience, references, etc
-age issues, being close to a deadline and needed to make sure everything is 100%

These are just a few that I can think of at the moment. Plus, not everyone has the time or inclination to do the application themselves.

I do agree with you, it's not rocket science. But you really can't compare your situation to everyone else.

Your point about times is not a fair comparison either. You don't know the circumstances with their application. Maybe they're from a high risk country, have medical issues or child custody problems. Any of these things could cause delays in the process. We got our visa in 7 months and so did others that used agents.

I will however admit though that sometimes it could take the application longer to get submitted if you're sending paper back and forth to the agents. But once it's submitted the time scales are the same agent or not.

Re: why do so many people use a migration agent
 

Well Colin, that’s great that you did it all yourself. However our application was not straightforward and time was an issue from the age and points, point of view.

For example the documentation for proof of post secondary education for an Indonesian (my wife who is Indonesian and the main applicant) was an issue. Is her university recognised by the DIMA? Is the course and qualification recognised by DIMA? If recognised, precisely what proof do we need to obtain? The certificate of qualification is not sufficient in these circumstances. Would you know the answers to these questions?

Some of this is information to which only an experienced and reliable agent can access easy. There are other technical issue regarding the proof of ‘fluency in an Australian community language other than English‘ which gives bonus points. Also issues regarding self employment, living in a 'high risk' country, etc.

While both I and my wife like to consider ourselves fairly bright and capable, there are some issues and subsequent outcomes which we would not be able to predict. Again if our visa application had been rejected as not valid, we would have had time issues connected with age.

As it happened we signed up with an excellent agent with offices in the UK and Australia, whose depth of knowledge on all our issues was priceless. The result is that our visa came through smoothly in ten and a half months; money well spent. (Thank you Alan).

Cheers
H.

Re: why do so many people use a migration agent
 

Basically people do it for a few different reasons
1, their case is not straight forward
2, they don't have the time
3, they don't have the organisational skills (or confidence in their organisational skills)
4, they want the added peice of mind.

It's their money, why are you so upset that people want to use agents?

Re: why do so many people use a migration agent
 

Just in case.;)

Re: why do so many people use a migration agent
 

having been a member of this site for nigh on 5 years now, ive lost count of the number of people who failed at various stages of their application cos they were doing it themselves; they took folks advice and got an agent and passed, and are now in aus; people use agents for a variety of reasons, dont be so presumptious that everyones application is as easy as yours.