LisaActually Posted March 19, 2014 Report Share Posted March 19, 2014 Hi So I am going through the 100 steps of immigration to Aus (found on this Forum - than you VERY much!!!!!) and step 4 was to post to this forum - (which I have been lurking on and trying to pluck up the courage to post on for about 2 months) - so here goes. I am finding the forum amazing - your guys are awesome - Im always saying to my husband the forum this, the forum that...... I think he is very tired of it......... Anyway...................My husband and I are in Durbs and live - for all intents and purposes a - FANTASTIC life. We have no kids(yet), have not really been affected by crime, have disposable income, travel overseas often and have THE MOST amazing group of friends.We have lived overseas and came back because SA was/is our home and he never really saw us living anywhere else. I have always been open to immigration in principle ( to the USA specifically) but the husband EXTREMELY anti it. Life is extremely comfortable. So it was in this mind set that we went to AUS on holiday recently to see friends and family. It was our second visit so we knew what to expect. But within about a week of landing - I was like OMG what are we thinking - and why don't we live here???? (Again this was not at all on my mind when we got on the plane) I just felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders and everything was soo easy. But I daren't say anything to my husband because he is extremely anti. So obviously I was a little unhappy - cause I am a pushy person and we all know you cannot push your other half into these things. So I just sat back and enjoyed the holiday and tried to ignore the niggly feeling in my brain. At some point during the holiday a family member said to us - what are you guys doing to combat the steady rand decline in terms of Wealth retention? UM nothing? We have offshore holdings but I had never really considered that while in Rand terms we would be considered Wealthy is AUD or USD this was steadily declining......... My husband just gave me a look that kind of said .......... oh cr*#p........ Anyway that was that and we didnt think about it again expect to say when we got home we would change our investment strategy to move as much money offshore as often as possible. and that was that. Then a couple of days before we left he said to me - I think we need to think about immigrating(.....to aus , or Emigrating from SA.......cant work out which I should put in this sentence). UM what??????? I nearly feinted. He was like, "you know the other day when I dropped you at the beach and then went to do some chores?" Me - "um ...yes"Him - " I realised that for the whole we were apart I didn't think about you once."Think (Um is that a good thing) - okHim - " well that is the first time that I can remember not worrying about you when we were apart...... and I also realised today how much better I have slept since we have been here, so I think we need to move"Wow - ok so I never realised that he worried so much - I guess he didn't either, so that was it decision made to look into it. (there was more back and forth than that when we got home, and some tears and nervousness - but the decision is made) We think we can probably go on an Investor Visa (188) and we have applied for his unabridged birth certificate. Now we wait - I dont really know where to go from here - we are trying to liquidate funds and work out how we are going to get money out of SA. And work out if we are going to use an agent or go at it alone, and where we want to go. Feel very alone, no one I can really TALK to about it. Our Friends will FREAK and I think I will be disowned. Thanks for reading this far - OVERSHARE much? Anyway thats me. XL 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KalahariHarry Posted March 19, 2014 Report Share Posted March 19, 2014 Hi Lisa,Welcome!!!!! and good luck with it all, i got so much info here, but info you can get on the immi site too, the support and advice here rocks.Trev 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordy Posted March 19, 2014 Report Share Posted March 19, 2014 Welcome to the forum. Just a word of caution - you do know the 188 is a temp visa? I would consult one of the forum agents for advice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mara Posted March 19, 2014 Report Share Posted March 19, 2014 Welcome to our little niche in the world, trust you will get most of your questions answered here.I am with Jordy, if you could come on PR it is a much better decision. Do make contact with one of the agents on this forum, they are all happy to give advice. If you are interested in doing that, just say so, you will get lots of recommendations. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaActually Posted March 19, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 19, 2014 Hi guys Thanks the replys and the info. I am aware that it is a temp visa, and we have had this thought about the visa. We aren't particularly skilled so any 189/190 skills assessment would be a stretch, and the only possibility would be ACT or NT MAYBE. (We have spoken to 2 different agents their conclusion was we could TRY and do the VETASSES and then see) Now I'm not too excited about either and don't want to get The visa knowing we would want to try and get out if it, also if we did get it then stuck it out the 2 years then moved, it would be the whole traumatic moving thing again, making new friends etc. I'm not sure if I'm keen to live in limbo like that....I don't see the HUGE advantage to PR, except the cost benefit I terms of medical/schooling (we don't have kids) etc and that we would then need to apply for pr 4 years later so there is that rigmarole - please tell me if there is something I have missed. Lisa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shannonc4 Posted March 19, 2014 Report Share Posted March 19, 2014 Lisa - welcome to the forum. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jacovl Posted March 19, 2014 Report Share Posted March 19, 2014 Welcome to the forum! Trust you will make the right decisions pertaining to your situation! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crossedover Posted March 19, 2014 Report Share Posted March 19, 2014 Hi LisaA,I so understand the fact you can not talk about 'the move' openly... It makes it far more difficult. But that is where the forum is great, you will find many people in a similar situation as you or people with the same questions or posts with great answers. But beware it's quite addictive .... Good luck with your process. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
heidim Posted March 19, 2014 Report Share Posted March 19, 2014 (edited) Lisa, if you have PR you don't live in limbo anymore. It means YOU are now in control of where you want to live, Oz or RSA. If you have a temp visa you're at the mercy of the Immigration Department which every forumite will tell you is living hell! We have all at one stage been at the mercy of DIAC when applying for visas. They change rules, they change application fees, they kick you out. Just ask those who have been category 5 visa holders. Those are people who applied for PR visas and while waiting for the visa, DIAC suddenly took their skills of the lists and bumped them to the bottom of the cue and many have been waiting more than 5 years to get that visa. Now THAT is living in limbo.On PR you are basically considered on the same level as a citizen with the same rights, privileges and obligations as citizens. You're just not allowed to get an ozzie passport and you're not allowed to vote. And then you have some exclusions on Centrelink.Basically it gives you the peace of mind that once you make the move chances are slim that your visa restrictions will require you to leave the country.Edited to add: you say that if you have PR you have to apply for PR 4 years later. You probably mean citizenship right? You don't have to apply for citizenship if you don't want to as your PR allows you to stay indefinitely. But if would be foolish to spend 4 years in Oz and NOT get that citizenship.I guess a very basic explanation between a temp visa and PR comes down to the fact that the restrictions and rules for temp visas are more likely to change considerably, leaving you vulnerable and in a situation that you may be forced to go back to RSA. With PR you are basically guaranteed that you can live in Australia indefinitely. Edited March 20, 2014 by heidim 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
McCabes Posted March 20, 2014 Report Share Posted March 20, 2014 welcome and good luck 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eva Posted March 20, 2014 Report Share Posted March 20, 2014 welcome to the forum and all the best with your emigration journey! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HadEnoughofJuju Posted March 20, 2014 Report Share Posted March 20, 2014 Hey Lisa, welcome to the forum and good luck with the process. The safety and lack of worry is not something that you can explain to anyone. You need to experience it for yourself and once you realise how life should be then the decision becomes easier. You're not alone, you have an amazing bunch of new friends who will eventually become like family right here on the forum who will support you no matter what. Heaven knows they got us through it in the beginning. We chose not to tell anyone until we knew that it was possible for us and it was tough but hang in there and share your heart out here, it's a safe place. Think of immigration and emigration like this. To emmigrate is to exit ones country of regular residence and to immigrate is to come into ones chosen country of residence. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaActually Posted March 20, 2014 Author Report Share Posted March 20, 2014 Thanks so much HEOJJAnd for all the support peeps. we have decided to do the VETASSESS and then reevaluate our options.xLisa 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 5, 2014 Report Share Posted May 5, 2014 Welcome to the forum Lisa, been a bit of a lurker for quite sometime, and its been my hubby organising everything upto now. There is so much information on this forum that you might find you can do the application yourself. we did and saved us alot of money. Good luck with your assessments and hope everything comes right for you:-)Emma Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Posted May 5, 2014 Report Share Posted May 5, 2014 It seems that you've had a "light bulb" moment in your lives . . . . both of you. You've realised, each in your own way, that money isn't everything in life.There's also peace of mind, security, lack of constant stress, and a swag of other issues.I had a "light bulb"moment personally, last year, about my drinking (alcohol) and haven't touched a drop since. Basically, I came to the realisation that I was killing myself with the amount of booze I was knocking back each and every day.Nobody nagged me, nobody gave me a "good talking to", there was no health scare . . . . nothing. . . . . but one day I realised the damage I was doing to myself.The tough one is keeping that light bulb moment in front of you when it begins to get dim. . . . . . and it will get dim at some stage or another.Just write down the reasons you've thought of migrating, and refer to those same reasons when you begin to feel it is all too much hassle to emigrate, leaving your cosy lives behind.Enjoy your journey. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nev Posted May 5, 2014 Report Share Posted May 5, 2014 welcome, yep, get PR if you can (And if it wont end up forever to get) otherwise get here however you can Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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