Thread: A snipet of Austrailia's immigration Laws

This is just a tad of austrailian immigration laws:

http://www.escapeartist.com/efam/80/australiacosts.html

Finalizing our papers to apply for our Visas, so that we would be allowed to stay in the country for longer than 3 months. These are different from the Visitor Visas that I mentioned earlier. There are a number of different Visa sub-classes, and depending on your situation, you will be informed which one to apply for. For instance there is the Business Visa 457, which allows you to work and live in Australia, for up to four years, and to pay taxes, but you are classified as a temporary resident. As such, you are not covered by Medicare (Australia has a social medical coverage, like Canada), your children can’t attend school unless you fork over a hefty fee ($4000 per year) and you aren’t entitled to certain tax benefits. There is also the RSMS Visa 857, which classifies you as a permanent resident, with all the benefits of a citizen. This Visa is good for five years and allows you to apply for citizenship after two years in the country, 12 months of which has to fall within the previous two years of the time you apply. A requirement of this visa is for you to be sponsored by a company, and for that company to show that they have a need for you due to a lack of people in the area, that can fulfill your job.

There are various other visas that you can apply for based on your skills and/or reasons for moving to Australia. Many require that you also prove your qualifications to a division of Government known as Trades Recognition Australia (this applies to the 857, also). The costs may vary a bit from visa to visa, but for us (applying for the 857) the total was A$2375 (About $1850 USD). This included the TRA fee for trade recognition. In any case, you have to go through piles of paperwork to get your visa approved. The process was so long, that we actually migrated on the 457 Visa (which was easier to secure) and transferred to the 857 after we were in Australia (which meant re-submitting all the same stuff, so keep your originals). It took us 6 months to get on the right Visa. In the meantime we had to make sure that the company was willing to pay for private medical coverage and the boy’s school fees. You, and all of your family travelling with you, will have to send certified copies of birth certificates, marriage license, each page of your passports, chest x-rays (for everyone over 16), medical exams, contract of employment, FBI clearances, copies of your resume, letters from previous employers, and who knows what else that I can’t recall at the moment.

Getting all of these documents together is no easy task. There are doctor appointments to make, fingerprinting necessary, fees for notarizing, the cost of running off copies of all this crap and a ton of postage. Conservatively, I would estimate another $500 to get it all done.

The United States is the only country in the world people feel it is a rag for them to come here to wipe their hands and a mat to clean their feet.