Crikey, best be careful, it's a big bad world out there.

New Zealanders desperate to move to Australia are being told not to bother. Rather than the good life they are expecting, they risk finding themselves broke and homeless and getting caught up in serious crime and prostitution, an Australian newspaper reported yesterday.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/ar...ectid=10745190

Should that make me feel better that my husband didnt get the job in Australia

Apart from the (admittedly worrying) statistic about childrens' court, that article is mostly the views of a couple of people who deal with the most deprived in society.

Yes, for every 100 people who emigrate to Australia (or, indeed, anywhere) there will be a handful of hard luck stories. The benefit rules for new arrivals are (sensibly) tough and probably don't help.

I posted the NZ Herald quote cos it tickled me as usual they make it sound like Oz is a big bad place and that we should all stay here where we are so well off as in all likelihood we'll end up on the streets and working as prostitutes.

However, it's hardly a handful of hard luck stories:

"Of the 300 people each week seeking free food packages at the Nerang centre, half are New Zealanders," she said.

The source article:

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/q...-1226114421719

I said a handful out of every 100 who go

Now this is a terribly class-concious thing to say, but I have a feeling that Kiwis who emigrate to SE Queensland might be... and it's so bad to generalise.... er.... inclined to be of a less middle class persuasion than those who migrate to say Sydney or Melbourne

Made me laugh so thanks for cheering me up X

"Don't come here, especially if you don't have a job, don't have money or a back-up plan if things don't work out"

I agree with the above statement. The job markets are extra tight over here (Oz) at the moment, apparently due to an influx of kiwis recently.

Dunno if I agree about the class of people moving to certain areas of Australia though, I think you choose the City based ont he type of lifestyle you want to have.

I was so lucky - arrived in Aus on 11 February 2001, then on 26 Feb without warning they changed the law to stop new arrival Kiwis claiming benefits and make it very difficult to get citizenship.

Wrote to the Minister and they let me take my citizenship ceremony at Australia House in late 2003 (I'd left before I had time to do a local council one). Only needed two years' residence in those days.

Best $200 I ever spent

Oopsies then....

Read this in our local free rag.

Crossing the ditch for new lives.

Yeah, it's terrible over here, don't come

Half the problem is that some New Zealanders turn up expecting all the leg-ups and handouts they get back home and it's a shock when they can't get them.

My advice is not to emigrate with just a Special Category Visa - get a job sorted out before you leave and make sure you're eligible for permanent residency one way or another.

From your link
That's stretching it a bit, the standard of living is higher but people are expected to work hard to get it. It doesn't just fall into their laps.

Hi all. Have spent the last 10 yrs in Oz.... Sydney.... It's a beautiful place, fantastic climate, lots of jobs if you're qualified and have skills which are in demand. Getting a job is never easy in any country if you have no local experience. However, with unemployment below 5% then the vast majority of employable people will get a job eventually. It's expensive to rent and difficult to find rental properties, buying property also very expensive. Don't move to Qld or Northern NSW right now.... With the floods, cyclone and over-inflated Oz $ affecting the tourist industry, jobs are in short supply up there. Sydney traffic pretty awful, people not always that friendly.... It's a big city basically! Overall a great place to live and would highly recommend it but go with your eyes open..... No international move is ever easy and life in Sydney is not always rosy red!

The way things are shaping I think I am going to end up across the Tasman come late October.

Not only are their salaries discounted to half price, NZ employers also seem to have some weird ideas , not least a complete disregard for UK experience and a determination to rigidly categorise candidates

I emphasised with the complaints within this story http://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/n...ectid=10684204

I like to live in TAssie, but theres no jobs,,

about sums it up. but it can be worse for those Brits coming to NZ when you see some of what passes for the highest standards we have here. frustrating!
Anyway DC are you a UK-NZ-Aus triple-national??