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TiaanAndLeigh

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Hi there.

My name is Leigh, and my husband Tiaan and I are seriously considering making the move to Australia. In fact, it is pretty much a given that we will be going. However, I am feeling so overwhelmed by all the things that lie ahead that I am struggling to make a start and get the ball rolling. I have done the Visa wizard on www.immi.gov.au and it looks like our best option will be to go the skillselect route. I am an architect and my husband is in IT, so we are both on the skills list, but I have so many questions! I think the biggest one is how to go about finding work once the visa process is in motion. The last thing I want to do is arrive in Aus without a job! We are intent on starting the ball rolling as soon as possible and I am in the process of gathering the necessary documentation, and I look forward to picking peoples brains and sharing all the valuable advice that the forum has to offer!

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Welcome Tiaan and Leigh.

I'm sure the rest will welcome you sometime, but it's a long weekend here and they're probably all off doing something.

Remember most of the people here went through the same process - it's difficult and long, but it's not impossible.

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Hi Leigh and Tiaan, and welcome to the forum. It sounds like you have great skills for entry, and I'm sure you will find lots of great info on here :)

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Welcome to the fourm Tiaan and Leigh, you will get plenty of advice and support on this forum.

Just take one step at a time. All the very best with your plans.

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Hi Tiaan and Leigh

The visa process changed on the 1 July 2012 and unless you have a sponsor in Australia your only route is the EOI and skills select.

My first suggestion would be to decide on who's skills you are going to apply for the visa. Not sure how old you are but it can make a difference in points. You may want to consult with one of the agents on the forum so that you make the best choice.

Once you have done that find out what skills authority's do the assessing of your occupations, your hubby's will be ACS (Australian Computer Society) not to sure what yours would be (think it may be VETACESS). Once you have that info find out which IELTS exam (academic or general) you will need to do and book as soon as you can (Search for British Council on Google).

The next step would be to start gathering all those documents that you know are not going to change like:

1. Un-abridged birth certificates.

2. Un-abridged marriage certificates.

3. Passports.

4. Military discharge papers if applicable.

5. Diplomas, degrees and academic records.

6. As many pay slips as you can.

7. Bank statements.

8. Copies of IRP5's

I am sure the list is much longer but hopefully this is a starting point for you guys.

You can only lodge and submit the EOI once you have completed and have the results for the skills assessment and IELTS. As far as the IELTS goes (whether you write the academic or general) aim for 8 and above for all four bands (reading, writing, listening and speaking), it will get you 10 extra points on the EOI and will save you money in the long run (my wife as well as a few other people on the forum had to do it more than once to get those points and it paid off for us.)

Last but not least, congratulations on making this life changing but definitely worth it decision, you will not regret it. It's going to get tough and emotional (believe me) but stick it out and never look back. There are many people here in forum land that will support and encourage you no matter what and they understand what you are going through as well as what you will go through in the months to come.

Don't be afraid to ask questions no matter how silly you may think they are, the only dumb question is a question that never gets asked and remember that failure is not the end but the beginning of new opportunities to start again using a different approach.

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Good luck, I don't know of anyone who has a job lined up when coming over on a PR visa, Prepare to support yourself for the first while until you find a job

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Welcome and full steam ahead with your adventure. Remember it may seem daunting at times but is never insurmountable!!

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Hi all. Thanks for the welcome and advice. We will keep you all posted with our questions and progress!

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Welcome to you both!

We have also just started out on the process recently and started by reading booklet 6 on the Dept. of Immigrations website, which helped explain the whole process more clearly ... http://www.immi.gov.au/allforms/booklets/1119.pdf

I would say before doing anything else start by applying for all your unabridged certificates at home affairs as there is no turn around time given (the friendly lady at the counter informed me it could take anything between 2 days and 2 years to receive them!?!)

Well best of luck with everything...what a great adventure to be starting out on :)

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HI and welcome

Just want to let you know we are having a get together this Saturday at the Walter Sisulu botanical gardens in Roodepoort. If you not busy why don't you pop past. There will be a lot of people at different stages in the process and you might get some good advice. PM me if you are interested or check out the get together section for Gauteng.

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Baie welkom!!! En sterkte met die pad wat voorle, dit is nie maklik nie - maar verseker die moeite werd :ilikeit: :ilikeit: :ilikeit:

Ps: Wat doen jou man in IT?

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Hi Lynnie!

My man is 'n team leader/bestuurder van die Tegniese afdeling in beheer van infrastruktuur vir servers landwyd/internasionaal. Hy kyk na Mail, SQL, securtiy, firewall, applications, VM environments, ens.

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Hi Tiaan and Leigh

The visa process changed on the 1 July 2012 and unless you have a sponsor in Australia your only route is the EOI and skills select.

My first suggestion would be to decide on who's skills you are going to apply for the visa. Not sure how old you are but it can make a difference in points. You may want to consult with one of the agents on the forum so that you make the best choice.

Once you have done that find out what skills authority's do the assessing of your occupations, your hubby's will be ACS (Australian Computer Society) not to sure what yours would be (think it may be VETACESS). Once you have that info find out which IELTS exam (academic or general) you will need to do and book as soon as you can (Search for British Council on Google).

The next step would be to start gathering all those documents that you know are not going to change like:

1. Un-abridged birth certificates.

2. Un-abridged marriage certificates.

3. Passports.

4. Military discharge papers if applicable.

5. Diplomas, degrees and academic records.

6. As many pay slips as you can.

7. Bank statements.

8. Copies of IRP5's

I am sure the list is much longer but hopefully this is a starting point for you guys.

You can only lodge and submit the EOI once you have completed and have the results for the skills assessment and IELTS. As far as the IELTS goes (whether you write the academic or general) aim for 8 and above for all four bands (reading, writing, listening and speaking), it will get you 10 extra points on the EOI and will save you money in the long run (my wife as well as a few other people on the forum had to do it more than once to get those points and it paid off for us.)

Last but not least, congratulations on making this life changing but definitely worth it decision, you will not regret it. It's going to get tough and emotional (believe me) but stick it out and never look back. There are many people here in forum land that will support and encourage you no matter what and they understand what you are going through as well as what you will go through in the months to come.

Don't be afraid to ask questions no matter how silly you may think they are, the only dumb question is a question that never gets asked and remember that failure is not the end but the beginning of new opportunities to start again using a different approach.

Why does an 8 on the IELTS save you money on the long run?

Thanks

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Why does an 8 on the IELTS save you money on the long run?

Thanks

What I meant by this is you can manage 8+ in each band (reading, writing, speaking and listening) you get 20 points for english language ability in the points test where 7 will only get you 10. If you get (like my wife) 3x9's and a 7.5 you may have to write the IELTS again. There are some people on the forum that have had to write the IELTS 3 or more times. I think that at R2100.00 its a good bet not to have to write it more than once.

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