My husband and I are looking to emigrate to Brisbane next year and are unsure which visa we should apply for. Does anyone know roughly how long a PR visa application would take?
Also, once granted is there a validity period?

I work as a pharmacist here but to work in Oz i need to apply for registration which w
ill take time as there is alot involved. My hubby is on the skilled migration list so he would be the main applicant (pharmacists are no longer on the list! :frown. were just worried that we might get visas before i finish registration process, but if they take a long time eg over a year we can apply for that first.

Also do migration agents charge alot and are they worth it? unsure whether to use an agency or apply ourselves are weve heard the applications can be a bit of a nightmare!!

any advice would be appreciated! :biggrin:

 

Hi Frances.

I would recommend you contact an agent and find out where you stand with what visa you can apply for, most reputable agents will give you an initial phone interview free of charge to assess your Visa possibilities. They would also be able to give you an idea of time scales and any skill recognition that you may need to do.

Asking how long for a visa is like asking how long is a piece of string. Some sponsored visa applications take a couple of months. Some skilled visa applications can take 3 yrs or longer.


"Go Matilda" and "Visa Bureau" are two reputable agents that will normally give you a free initial telephone interview to assess your options. try calling a couple to find out the costs, then you can decide if you want to use an agent or if you want to go it alone

I hope this helps

 

Thanks Colin, I contacted a migration agent today so just waiting for a phone consultation :biggrin:

 

Hi If you can get PR it leaves you more or less unrestricted and also entitles you to a little benefit whilst you get up and running.
We personally used an agent when applying and id do the same again if i had to re-apply. Its not cheap but IMO definately well worth the money.

Good Luck with your consultation and do let us know what you decide to do/what they advise.

Cal x

 

hiya,

Just to let you know, we spoke with Visa Bureau and looked into the visas. After weighing everything up we decided to apply for a PR (175) and attempt it ourselves!

Hubby has just lodged his skills assessment for the Australian Computer Society, while we wait to hear back from them we're starting to gather the fair bit of documentation we need for the visa....alot involved but very excited!
x

 

Hi,

Thanks for letting us know how things are going and good luck with your application. Look forward to your updates and your post telling us its all been approved and you are on your way. :biggrin::biggrin::biggrin:

 

Thanks Colin, will keep you informed!:biggrin:

 

Good Luck Frances. x

 

Good Luck guys, fingers crossed it is plain sailing for you.

Cal x

 

Thanks guys! x

 

The quickest way to get here is to have an employer sponsor you on a 457 visa. Thats what we did we were here 3 months after applying for the job, now we are sorting our permanent residency while we are here.
The 457 restricts you in terms of mortgages etc you need a 20% deposit for a house, you can get car finance and medicare but not a lot else. We also found a problem once our eldest was ready for tertiary education because after year 12 they go back to being international students for uni etc and that costs twice as much so our boy is taking a year out while we sort it out.
Just a suggestion, good luck.

 

how's it going

Hi Frances
I'm new to the process too and trying to weigh everything up. We've got 2 young children and its beginning to look like a pr visa is a must to have the best protection/support for the family once we're in. What stage are you at? I'm a nurse. Just booked myself onto an IELTS exam as my first step.
Ann:laugh:

 

Hi Ann
We decided on the 175 visa after weighing everything up aswell and have hopefully made the right choice! There are alot of visas which would be processed faster but to be honest we need the 18-24months to tidy up finances etc.

My hubby is a programmer and the main applicant and the australian computer society received his skills assessment 2weeks ago. This can take up to 12weeks to be processed so we did this first. He has just applied to sit the IELTS and has it booked for the 19th March. In the meantime we are just trying to gather up the rest of the documentation needed like proof of genuine relationship etc.

We are doing the visa ourselves but I inititially spoke to a migration agent who said they would aim to get the visa lodged before July as the points system is changing again, this timeframe is now our target (although we had a look at the new points test and should be ok if the visa is assessed on the new criteria).

Once the visa is lodged I'll do my own skills assessment and sit the exam I need to do but we're prioritising with Colins first as this is needed for the visa.

Hope this helps and Good Luck!

Frances

 

thanks for reply Frances. I sit the IELTS in May. Going to aim for the independant pr visa. Going to the downunderlive expo. in Birmingham (UK) next weekend so should find a fair few brains to pick!
Good luck and keep us up to date.
Ann:smile: