phil

That might be good. But the wait time between test and ceremony can be very long.

Still aiming for a 1 August trip? If so, that might be a bit tight. Could try ringing the council and seeing if they'll fit you in soonest. Other than that, brace for the cost of RRV.

I think you're an Australian once you've done the ceremony. Whether you choose to get a passport after that is up to you (and obviously comes with its own waiting period). It also happened to me - the gap between test and ceremony meant we had to pay for RRVs which we wouldn't have had to if they hadn't been so far behind on processing citizenship ceremonies.

Depends on the council. Mine (South Perth) was around 8 months. Annoying as I had to fork out for RRVs too.

News article on it today https://www.sbs.com.au/news/demand-for-australian-citizenship-at-record-high It mentions they may look at extending the PR requirement to 4 years. I thought it was that long anyway.

I think they justify it because, well, there's no competition. And yes to a long wait for the ceremony.

18 months would sound about right. Found out the hard way when had to also shell out for Resident Return Visas when leaving the country for a holiday. grrrr.

Check out Harvey Norman and the Good Guys as they sell TV's, washing machines etc. You'll get an idea of the cost to buy new ones. For our shipping we were only bringing around half a container and paying for volume. So by the time we did the maths on buying new units versus paying for, and waiting X months for, old stuff we decided to not bring white goods. Your maths/situation may differ. Also throw in that should your white goods need repair/service you may find it difficult to get that done. And if anything breaks you may find warranty claims a challenge. That said, your washer and TV should work fine with a change of mains plug (there's some fluff written about only licensed electricians being allowed to change plugs, I'm not sure how true that is, I could never find a clear answer). But if you're bringing anything with a UK plug, also bring some of those 4-way strips (then you just have to change one plug et voila, 4 UK-plugged items have power). Your TV will likely have a setting in its setup menus to switch it to Australia. But unless it's a very old TV it'll pick up channels just fine. If you'll be plugging it in to Foxtel or some other Set Top Box that may not be a concern Our mover was very clear that we had to be meticulous with bikes and their tyres. Like, make sure there is not a single spot of dirt anywhere. So we were. No hassle with stuff getting through (other than how long it took).

I may be mis-reading it, but he's a citizen already if born here to PR parents. At least, my boy is.

I just let mine lapse. No need for it now. Like you say, your Aussie one entitles you to drive when visiting the UK. Another way of looking at it is that the UK government had enough money out of me over the years, I ain't giving them any more to renew a driving licence I won't need.

There's still quite a lot of fenced-off area between the skate park and the swimming pool. But the whale playground, skate park and pool are all open. The surf club and function room building look nearly done too. Outside Dome is still a favourite for bikers to sit and ridiculously rev their unnecessarily-noisy machines though. It'll be lovely when it's all done.

Some of the agencies will only deal with you if you're already onshore, so be prepared for that. That said, I've seen a few GIS roles floating around over the last couple of months. I'd say have a look on seek.com.au, filter down to the relevant roles/areas/salaries and check it each day for a couple of weeks. You'll work out which agencies are the best ones to contact.

It's worth double-checking with the airlines and getting their policy in writing. I've heard of folk who've been told one thing on the phone only to find another thing when they've gone to check in. Out emigration flight was with Singapore, for the reason nikkiwd's posted. At the time to get the same amount of baggage with Qantas would have doubled the flight cost. But then that was a while ago, so definitely check. The wording of the Singapore policy at the time was that you get the extra allowance if you've an unvalidated permanent visa with the paper stamp in the passport (which was free to get at the time). But I've also read that they weren't that fussed about the paper bit in the passport. For piece of mind, we got it in there though. And it's actually been a useful thing when having to demonstrate visa status for employers etc.

They might not have publicly committed to it and it's probably not a very well kept secret, but they'll be in WA pretty soon.....

I had it in my Calendar and everything. But then justfaffing made an appointment for us to see a mortgage lady. So we went and did that. Would have been interesting to attend as I've got to play around with some funds soon. Will keep an eye out for another event. Especially if just social. Heck, I might even buy Bibbs a cider.

Gas?

Chump

I'm not an electrician, but my understanding is this - Devices that aren't earthed (lamps and the like) may only have a two pin plug as there's no need for the third. I'd say go for an earthed adaptor though, then if whatever you plug in is meant to be earthed, it will be. Voltage/frequency is much the same as the UK, but whereas maximum current in UK is 13amps the Aussie sockets are rated to 10amps. Never had a problem with anything I've plugged in and I can't imagine there's too many appliances out there that draw over 10amps. Watch for things you can't change the plugs on (any chargers/adaptors e.g. mobile phones) and yes, you can work around that by having some UK 4-way mains strips and swap the plug for an Aussie one. You can buy those plugs at Bunnings (they have stores everywhere) for a few dollars. I have heard it's illegal for anyone other than a qualified electrician to swap a plug, but I've not looked into it. We had adaptors on a few things for a while - until each one got on our nerves and I got round to changing the plugs. If you have things that have what I call a "kettle lead" like this Then the same fitting is used in Australia. So you can either swap the UK plug for an Aussie one or just replace the whole lead. The same goes for these one

There's a comparison chart at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bed_size There are only small differences. Yep. One tip for things like mobile phone chargers/other transformers that you can't change the plug on - bring a few of those 4-way mains strip adaptors. Change the plug on that to Aussie, and your chargers will work in the 4-way.

They didn't cost a lot and I've found that when applying for jobs more and more people are asking to see proof of visa entitlement. The labels are an easy way to do that.

It's generally quiet between mid-December and end of January (or at least until after Australia Day). Lots of folk are away so the job market slows down.

Maybe it's changed, but we only had a couple of hours in Hong Kong. Enough time for a shower and a bite to eat. Cathay weren't bad, but I didn't find the seats as good as others on their 747. Preferred Emirates. At the end of the day, they'll get you here!

Must be from activation, yep. Also, if driving on a UK one, it must be valid. Which I suspect means neither the date on the photocard or the paper bit (the actual licence) have expired. WA's official page is at http://www.transport.wa.gov.au/licensing/20669.asp A 457 is a temporary visa, so the temporary/visiting rules apply.

But to add, it's a useful thing to have for ID/proof of address - UK licences aren't accepted as ID in a lot of places.

Drinking on a school night?