A Guide To Australian Migration

Last September, my wife and I were granted our Australian permanent resident visas. It came to us as a surprise. I have a friend who just migrated to the Land Down Under, and he got his visa after two years of waiting. I lodged our online application only last January. Nine months of waiting for our visa application to be approved is certainly a quick turnaround. We are very thankful for that. To those who are interested in taking the same path, I am writing this article to guide you.

First of all, you have to read through the Australian Government Department of Immigration and Citizenship. This is the official website on migrating to Australia. I like the way the site is set-up. It offers very comprehensive and detailed write-ups on how to migrate to the country. Under the General Skilled Migration Program, you can decide which visa subclass would you like to apply to. I opted for a Skilled - Independent Visa Subclass 175. This is good for people who have the qualifications to migrate to Australia, but do not have an employer or a relative who can sponsor their migration. There are a lot of other options which are suitable for your circumstances. The visa wizard on the Department's website will guide you through this.

One thing that you need to remember when applying is that Australian migration is based on a points test. There are specific qualifications which would merit you a certain amount of points. If you pass the points test, you can proceed with your application. In the Visa Subclass 175 for example, the passing mark is 65 points. Your age, English language ability and job experience will determine how much points you can accumulate.

Once you are certain that you can qualify for a visa application by passing the points test, you now need to work on completing the requirements. I took up IELTS first. I gave it my best shot, because the higher your band score is, the larger points you can earn for your points test. The next step that you need to complete is to have your job experience and credentials evaluated by an assessing authority. I am an engineer, and I had my credentials reviewed by Engineers Australia. If you are an engineer like me, you will have to submit a Competency Demonstration Report (CDR) to prove that you are qualified. The website of Engineers Australia provides a good explanation on how this is done. My advice would be to carefully make your CDR. This is your ticket to Australia. This has the biggest weight on whether or not your application will be granted. I edited mine a lot of times. It took me a month and a half to complete it. I never regret staying up late just to make it the best way that I can. On December 2010, I received a letter from Engineers Australia. I got a positive result from their assessment.

After completing all the requirements, you can now lodge your visa application online. If you have complete documents, your application can progress swiftly. The Department will tell you if you're ready to get your medical examinations. If you are told to do this, you can assume that the likelihood of your application being accepted is really high.

There are people who hire the services of migration agents to get them through this. This is not to discourage people from seeking their help, but personally, I'd recommend people to apply on their own if they can. It's cheaper to do that. The only thing that needs the most attention is creating the CDR. If you are confident you can complete it by yourself, then you're okay to lodge an application on your own. It's not that difficult.

I have outlined the basic process of immigrating to Australia. I hope this helps, and good luck to your application!

Creating Abundance - My Next Goal

How does a person create abundance if he is spending more than what he earns? That's easy to answer. He must increase his income. But what are the ways of increasing it? These are not as easy to find. Each day I think about this, and up to now, I still have not been able to think of that brilliant plan which will turn my finances around.

I have learned a lot of ways in order to earn extra cash. Some recommend finding a second job. Most say selling and getting into business will do the trick for you. Others tell you to go into trading stocks and invest in mutual funds. In the past two years, I have tried to expose myself to these.

While I have made money out mutual funds, the rest of these said vehicles of financial freedom are not really that easy to get on. Take investing in stocks for example. I had been into stock trading since last year. At the start, I was earning. The market was bullish, and although I did not get good buys, I would still earn after a few weeks of waiting. Now that market volatility is something that we see on a daily basis, things have changed. I have lost some money. Investing my emergency funds on stocks further added to my losses. There were times when I had to sell what I had in my portfolio, even if they were not ripe to be sold. I needed the money to finance family matters that needed immediate attention. That was a mistake, and I learned it the hard way. I lost thousands. But for me, that was part of the learning curve. I don't regret doing that, as long as I have made myself better. I have read that one must build his emergency fund first, and those that go to investments must really be what are extra. This is certainly good advice. I should have did it that way. Next time when I will have the money, I will invest it more intelligently.

I have also tried to venture into some small business. Franchising was the first option that came into my mind. However, I had realized that a franchise needs to be managed well. Without a trustworthy individual overseeing its operation, a franchise is doomed to fail. I have seen a lot of them fold up and close lately. Without ample readiness, the money you have invested may easily go up in ashes. I was lucky not to have started it. I still am not ready. When the right time comes, definitely, I would like to pursue this. A well-managed franchise generates passive income. That is what I want to have in the future. 

My next goal is really to find financial abundance. I am on my way to be free from financial strings. I have a lot to learn, but I can build from the experiences that I had on these different strategies. It is certain that if I commit myself to achieving this, I would succeed. I have never failed when I put my whole self into something. I think that is true to all of us. I have made my decision to leave this life of always having to settle for less. I have not been the best that I could have been. I don't want myself to stop at where I am now. I know I am destined to be greater. Financial freedom - here I come!