Immigration Checklist - What to bring and not

[Cornel0210]

Good day 

 

We have started the process of immigration; I have received a positive skills assessment from the ACS, and I will take the PTE test early Jan. We will then proceed to submit our EOI. 

 

So many questions and I assume most of them have been asked on this great site, however I'm struggling to find answers so I'd rather ask them in my words. 

 

I was hoping that ex-saffas that have immigrated recently could perhaps share a breakdown/checklist of everything that needs to happen. We are applying for a 491 visa as I have family living in Perth. 

 

We already have all our unabridged birth and marriage certificates which I've heard take some time to acquire. 

 

Apart from that is a MoveCube worth it? What items to bring and not to bring? 

 

I hope this post makes sense. So many things to think about, very much overwhelming. 

 

Have a good day

[Rossen]

Hi Cornel,

I'm not sure what you mean by " breakdown/checklist of everything that needs to happen" as that could be quite a list. As you mentioned there is a treasure trove of info on this website including the visa process and the actual move with most guides still being applicable. Have a look at tis one as a start:

 

 

With regards to the move cube, we used a large move cube to ship a few sentimental items and it worked out well for us with most items still being in use 4 years later. Just make sure that you can live without these items for a few months. For example we shipped our dining room table and chairs and used an outdoor set which we eventually moved outdoors. It was really good to get our move cube 4 months down the line and its also nice to have things from our old life around. 

[TeeTMI]

You might also take a look at this post from 2017.  I have not looked through it in any detail recently - but I'd disagree with the timings for getting medicals and Police Checks due to variation in processing times.

 

[Samie]

congratulations @Cornel0210for taking the steps. The resources that others have given you above will be useful but from our own experience what I have seen is that each move is different and based on where you will be staying and what visa, situations will differ. I would urge you to research a bit if you have young family about Perth suburbs, and also what does and doesn’t apply for your visa regarding schools, Medicare. Knowing a bit of info around what your living expenses will be can help you negotiate better with your employer so you don’t struggle when you arrive. We didn’t do any furniture moving as we saw it easy to sell (nothing sentimental for us) and buy here. Most furniture we got from marketplace when we arrived and change with time, something to consider.

 

All the best.

[PieterleRoux]

Good luck with the big move...

 

I think you are already in a good position by having the documents sorted out. That almost turned into a big headache for us. 

 

We brought over a MoveCube when we came over in March 2022 (although it only arrived 6 months later) 😆

 

Looking back I would still do it this way (although back even less stuff in the cube). We used it to mostly bring sentimental items and a lot of the kids toys and my woodworking tools.

 

We started fresh in a new country in a new house with new furniture. And I'm really glad I did. Most of our appliances were 7-10 years old as we got them just before or after we got married. Did not make sense to bring these old items over. If you have newer appliances I would perhaps consider packing them if there is space. Washing machines, tumble driers, dishwashers and fridge/freezers aren't cheap (anywhere in the world at this stage). Beds and linen will be useless to bring. 

 

Good luck with this new exciting journey of yours