Life
is all about making decisions, but some are more major than others. No-one
attempts to change lifestyle completely without considering all the implications
of one's actions. Attempting to move to Australia is the greatest decision
we've ever made, and it wasn't taken lightly. We knew it wouldn't be easy,
that it would take time and patience, that we might fail at any of the
numerous stages, and that our resolve would probably be tested to the
limit.
The
process began in February 2004. The Internet has made things so much easier
because the wealth of information supporting issues like this is available
instantaneously. No writing of endless letters and waiting for replies.
No elongated telephone calls. We spent 3 weeks researching the various
visas and the relevant criteria for each. The Australian Government web
sites provided all the information we needed. We subscribed to an Internet
Company who gave us an initial assessment based on our circumstances with
advice on how to proceed with our application for Retirement Visas.
There
are registered Migration Agents who will work on your behalf, but the
advice to us was that we would cope quite happily doing everything ourselves.
We downloaded all the application forms and procedural notes off the internet
and set to work. Collecting all the evidence proving our status took a
month. In early April we submitted all the documentation to Australia
House and waited. We were told the process could take up to a year to
complete.
Australia
House appoint a Migration Officer to each case, so there is a point of
contact throughout. There is a set order of staged processes and one can
be rejected at any point along the way. If one is rejected there is no
appeal.
Towards
the end of April we were asked to arrange for chest x-rays and medicals
through one of the approved panel doctors. The earliest available appointments
were at the end of May. However, at the end of my consultation, I had
to make a separate appointment to see a Cardiologist because of family
history regarding hypertension and angina. This added another month to
the process. Finally, in late August our Migration Officer wrote to say
we had six months in which to liquidate our assets - in other words "to
sell our bungalow". Failure to meet the timescale would result in
us having to reapply.
Then
the nightmare began. Within 5 days of putting our bungalow on the market,
we had an offer, which we accepted in good faith. There were only 2 other
parties in the chain. An offer from first time buyers had been accepted
by our buyer, so it really did seem too good to be true. However, whilst
our agent and solicitor worked incredibly efficiently, the vagaries of
the English house buying/selling system had yet to play their part. A
failed mortgage application, changing personal circumstances, little effort
made by other conveyancers and agents all conspired against us. By the
middle of February (yes .... this had begun in September), because our
visa offer was about to be timed out, deadlines were given to the other
parties to exchange contracts quickly or ...... At this point our buyers
withdrew, leaving those on either side in the lurch.
Having
picked ourselves up, we put the house back on the market and were forced
to begin the visa application process all over again.
We
knew the house market would be slow during late February and early March,
but we thought this would give us time to reapply for the visas without
being under too much pressure, and could work to our advantage. We had
a number of viewings, but all from people who had other properties to
sell or who didn't like bungalows or didn't like gardens. As soon as we
put our re-application in to Australia House, Jacqui was called for a
new medical. Her previous one had timed out because of a 40 year old TB
scare, whereas mine was valid for a year. Just as she was about to go
for that, in the first week of April, a lady viewed the property, returned
a week later and made a very acceptable offer subject to surveys. It took
3 weeks for the survey to be completed, another week for the reports to
be written, with various Bank Holidays in between.
Then, in the third week of May we received confirmation of our second visa application acceptance including another 6 month time limit, and, on the same day, our Estate Agent told us the buyer had sent her deposit cheque to her solicitor. In a frantic morning of telephone calls we booked the shipping company for the following week, arranged flights and car hire, agreed with our solicitor that we were prepared to complete the sale at the end of the following week and booked ourselves into a caravan park in Mudgee, a rural town in New South Wales, which we hoped would become our new home town.
The
next 2 weeks flashed by in a mixture of mad activity, elation and emotion.
Our passports were sent off to Australia House with proof of asset liquidation
and returned with the visas. The packing of the house went extremely smoothly,
after which we sold both cars, moved to a hire car and went to see friends
and family to say "au revoir", taking just 4 suitcases and a
laptop with us. The rest was destined for the high seas and Sydney harbour.
