Every year, Americans from the United States decide to leave the country and move to Australia. If you are thinking about making this move, here are some steps that you will need to take:
Obtaining A Visa
If you’ve decided that you want to make a move to Australia, your first step will be to obtain a visa. This gives you three options:
– Student visa
– Family visa
– Working visa
If you are moving to Australia so that you can attend a university, you’ll probably be eligible for a student visa. Otherwise, you’ll need to obtain a family visa or working visa. If you already have family members who reside in Australia, you should be able to go through the process that will give you your family visa. Your third option is a working visa. You will be able to get this type of visa if you are hired by a company that’s located in Australia. To obtain a working visa it helps if you have the following assets:
– Under 40 years old
– Proficient in the English language
– Be proficient at a job that’s listed as a skilled occupation
– Have diplomas, awards, degrees or other professional qualifications
– Have existing assets or financial resources
Visa Application
When you apply for a visa, you’ll have to satisfy a number of requirements. Here is a list of items you’ll need:
– A passport that’s valid
– An application form that’s completed
– Birth certificate copies that are certified
– Pay a visa payment fee
– Clearance from the police — required when applying for permanent residency
– Certified copies of your passport’s biographical pages
– Recent photos that are appropriate for a passport – 2 of them
The cost to obtain your visa will vary depending on the type of visa that you are acquiring — the fees can run from a range equal to AU$420-AU$3085. The timeframe to obtain your visa will also vary. If you are trying to get a working visa, the processing time may be as little as a few days. That’s quite fast compared to getting a family visa — it may take months.
Airlines And Flights
You have a few different options when it’s time to fly to Australia from the United States. Many different airlines such as American Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines, Virgin Australia and Qantas have direct flights from airports such as LAX, Burbank or the San Francisco International Airport to destinations like Melbourne or Sydney. The flight from LAX is one of the quickest ways to travel “down under.”
Making Your Move
The cost to relocate to Australia from the United States is higher than most moves since it is so far. It may be time for you to let go of most of your possessions and start fresh once you start living in Australia. Otherwise, it’s best to sell your bulkiest items if you want to save on the cost of relocating. Also, you may not want to take items that you’ve owned for less than one year as they can be subject to taxes, duties or other fees.
If you follow these steps to move to Australia, it should help make relocating a much smoother process.
Jim Treebold is a North Carolina based writer. He lives by the mantra of “Learn 1 new thing each day”! Jim loves to write, read, pedal around on his electric bike and dream of big things. Drop him a line if you like his writing, he loves hearing from his readers!