Moving to Australia on a permanent basis requires a lot of preparations and work, just like any other situation but you will need to keep a few differences in mind. The guidelines of this article will give you more information so you can make things work with fewer problems in the long run:
Keep a Close Eye on your Finances
You have to do this long before moving day so you can keep them out of the way. Having any legal, financial and tax matters having a hold over your needs would be disastrous when you need to organize a dozen other smaller details, so ensure you deal with this long before you move on to the actual packing and hiring of a moving company. You will need to setup a bank account that works both in your home country and Australia if possible as this will allow you to live with greater financial stability and flexibility.
Preparing Travel Plans Early
You need to think ahead when you work on your moving plans, ensuring you have collected the contact details from all your friends, relatives and business contacts if you need to know their physical addresses. You can inform them of your flight details if need be and maybe even have some of your closer friends and family help you out with the preparations.
Keeping Documentation in Check
There are quite a few things you need to do before you can call it a day, but the basic requirements for an Australian visa will include evidence of available funds, assessments of your skills and qualifications, police background checks, health insurance and a test of your English language level. You can find additional information on that subject on the Department of immigration website of the Australian government. It will have a lot of useful information in greater detail plus a wizard that allows you to enter information about your particular information, pointing out advice specific to the correct visa based on your needs. Each type of visa has certain restrictions applied to it, such as not being able to work or specific healthcare restrictions that apply to non-citizens. You would do well to keep a good track of your medical records, marriage certificate (assuming you’re married), school records, birth certificate, work records and more so they can be presented as part of the visa application process.
Customs Restrictions and Details
If you need to bring any appliances or electronics, you will need to ensure you have what it takes for them to function there, but that is the least of your worries. There are many aspects to customs that need to be considered before you move on, such as the following:
1. Clean your items and household goods, since they will be subject to inspection once you arrive in Australia. If any items have been in contact with soil, plants, animals and animal products or food they will need to be thoroughly cleaned or else customs may simply decide to keep them until they are cleaned. The Department of Agriculture takes their job very seriously and cross-contamination of species is serious business, so make sure your items have gone through proper cleaning.
2. Inspect your possessions carefully before moving, making sure they are well-looked after and that they have no signs of insect infestation. If it has any traces of sawdust-like powder, chew marks, fresh holes or something similar in its timber, then you will need to dispose of the item. If the possessions were treated, you will need to provide and retain a certificate which verifies treatment as customs will need one.
3. Secure all your items when you pack them for moving. Anything loose needs to be well-wrapped and ready for transport without fail. Ceramics, glass and utensils need to be properly padded to avoid breaking of packages or items.
4. Label all your belongings clearly and keep an inventory list. This is especially important when it comes to medical items, dangerous goods or anything that may jeopardize the safety of people handling your possessions.
5. Make a master list of all your personal effects, including the contents of every box you plan on shipping and organize them with a system so they can be easily identified by customs authorities.
6. Keep in mind that the Department of Agriculture will pay special attention to any items that came from plants or animals, such as timber, seeds and anything related. They will also pay attention to any items that were in contact with food, soil, water and plants, which may easily include gardening tools, shoes and more so keep them clean.
7. Certain items are not permitted in Australia, such as fresh fruit and vegetables, disease or pest-infested items, live bulbs and plants, organic residue on items, restricted seeds, unprocessed goods of animal or plant origin, unidentified seeds and spices, biological products that include plants and live animals unless the animal has a special permit and goes through a sometimes months-long quarantine period. The period may vary by species and country of origin, so you will need to find more information specific to your circumstances on the department’s website.
More basic moving tips find at: movingman.co.uk