Pocket Legal Guide to Moving
to the Land Down Under

What visa options are available if you are planning
to move to Australia?

Australia is one of the most popular countries to immigrate to. With more than 240 days of sunshine and cultural diversity, it has quickly become an appealing destination to live and work. But like any other country in the world, Australia also has rules, laws and regulations intended on immigration that are over 400,000 pages long. This didn’t deter the applicants, and the Immigration Department receives 13,000 visa applications daily from all over the world. It’s perfectly understandable since Melbourne is ranked the world’s most liveable city, while Sydney and Perth are in the eighth place.

As one of the best known and highly popular destinations, Australia is also a "magnet" for those who are wanting to move to the Land Down Under, to study, live and work.

If you’re among does desiring to move down under, take a look at the pocket legal guide we prepared and which might help you get closer to your dream.

Skilled work visas

The first step to move to Australia is to apply and gain a visa. There are several options and you should carefully review all of them before deciding which one is the right for you. The most common one is the work visa and you can have a look at the occupation list to see which professions are in demand. If your occupation is there, you can send the expression of interest based on which Australian government may grant you a permanent visa. Another option is to gain temporary work visa based on the consolidated skilled occupation list. Temporary work visa allows companies to sponsor their employees from abroad for a maximum of four years.

If your profession is not on any of these lists, you can apply for working holiday visa, which will allow you to live and work in Australia for the period of one year. But this is not as easy as it may seem, since the visa holders can work for an employer up to six months, and that makes it much harder to find the job.

Partner and spouse visa

If you are married to an Australian citizen, or in a de-facto relationship with one for more than a year than you can apply for a temporary and permanent visa. The most important thing is to start with your application as soon as possible since there is a lot of documentation to file. Make an appointment for the medical exam right away to get the more recent date since the interest is high. Order the birth certificate from your home country and obtain a police clearance for the countries you lived in and Australia. Have family and friends with residency sign the 888 forms and a JP to sign all these and other necessary documents and statements.

The Economist magazine has named Melbourne, the capital of Victoria, as the world's most liveable city for the seventh year in a row.

Student visa

If you want to study in Australia, you must enroll in a course at the education institution before applying for a visa. Depending on the type of study, you may have to fulfil non-academic visa requirements. The proof of enrolment is a mandatory document for visa application. You will also have to present the statement of your character, health certificate, Overseas Student Health Cover, statement that you have no debt in Australia, confirmations that you can cover the expenses of travelling, tuition and living. Certificates of your academic record so far and English language proficiency.

Parent visa

Parent visa is a subclass of Family member visa and includes parents whose children have the Australian citizenship or permanent residence. In this case, parents can receive the permanent visa, but they must be sponsored by their child which has lived in Australia for two years prior to the submitted application. The rules also prescribe that you have to apply for this visa outside of Australia unless your temporary visa states otherwise. You can hire the best law firm in Sydney or another area of interest to prepare documents for this type of visa. On the other hand, the temporary visa also requires that the parent is sponsored by the child who is the citizen or permanent resident of Australia, and it’s valid for two years with no possibility to be extended or renewed.

Finally

Aside from tourist visa, which will help you see and feel Australia you can also get the information of its rules and requirements for a visa online on the official website of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection. The process may seem complicated and demanding but the effort is well worth it and soon enough you'll be enjoying the beauties and charms of Australia. So, be brave and start with some boring bureaucracy in order to have fun and memorable moments in Australia as soon as that visa arrives at your door.

Leila Dorari is a freelance writer and self-improvement enthusiast from Sydney. Currently, she is spreading the word on useful tips and tricks that can help travelers enjoy exploring every bit of our planet. In her spare time, she is either window shopping or exploring new ways to make her life more meaningful.

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