Knowing what to do with your pension when you emigrate to Australia can be one of the hardest decisions to make. However, read on for professional advice from Adam Roderick of pension and finance experts Prism Xpat:

Right, you are moving to Australia and there is a lot to do. It’s all finally going to happen now and you need to sort out the most important things first (jobs, schools, houses) and take short cuts wherever you can. Unfortunately, one shortcut many people take is to accept the apparently common view that UK pensions should just be moved to Australia without being given too much thought. In the current financial climate though, this is one shortcut you might just regret!

This current common view is almost a complete turnaround since just three years ago, when most people and advisers would not even consider giving up the valuable terms and conditions provided by UK employment pension funds. 

A possible reason for this change of heart is Australia has recently dropped all superannuation (their word for pension funds) taxes after age 60. However, the retirement taxes weren't that high anyway, so a more likely reason is that many advisers (despite the Financial Service Authority's best efforts) still seem to operate a "salesy" approach to advice and get commissions only if their customer moves money (hence why many of them are still advocating a transfer regardless of the migrant's specific situation).

What do I need to know?

What migrants need to know is that there are important subtle factors with pensions that will have a significant effect on their final retirement income. For example, over a 25 year period just a 2% extra investment return each year, after tax, will mean 50% more retirement income to live off! That could mean enjoying $30,000 per year instead of just getting by on $20,000 per year for the rest of your life.

Did you know Australian superannuation funds have annual taxes on the investment returns within the fund each year? Or that Australian funds tend to have much higher annual charges than UK employer or stakeholder funds? You may have heard that even simple UK funds (money purchase funds) can have terms that provide a guaranteed income in retirement.  These impacts can easily turn the tables on whether or not a cross border pension transfer is worthwhile. The list goes on and on...

What is my Critical Yield?

A Critical Yield tells you: "What investment return would my new fund need to earn between now and retirement, to be high enough to provide an income equal to what my employer’s fund will pay me?"

The Financial Services Authority suggests only high risk takers should consider a pension transfer unless the critical yield is under 7% per annum. By this, I mean that the mandatory "Transfer Value Analysis" that must be done would need to produce a result where you would only need 7% returns each year (or less) to buy an annuity equal to your final salary fund’s promise. 

If you're interested in taking this route, then good luck but it is extremely rare that you’ll see critical yield calculations this low in the current market. Generally you’d need much higher returns to beat your final salary income. 

What to do?

Despite all these examples, there are situations where it can be valuable to proceed. To avoid all the confusion you need to obtain top quality advice in analysing your pension scenario.

For more information on the key rules, including what happens if you miss Australia’s 6 month window for a tax free transfer, please use our online financial assessment or call +44 (0)845 450 4004.

- Prism Xpat is a trading style of Xpat Ltd which is authorised & regulated by the Financial Services Authority. They are a partner of Australian Visa Bureau, an independent company specialising in helping applicants emigrate to Australia.

©Visa Bureau 2003-2010

Visa Bureau takes no responsibility and cannot be held accountable for action taken as a result of any information or comment provided on this blog, and we recommend that you always seek a number of opinions before making a decision regarding your migration or visa application. Please refer to the Visa Bureau terms of use for more information.

Opening an Australian bank account is one of the most pressing things for any new migrant to do upon arriving in Australia, and Rebecca Jolis from the National Australia Bank (NAB) has news of a new update for their customers:

NAB announced on 15th October it would be abolishing more bank fees on customer accounts. Fees to be abolished include current $4 and $5 monthly account service fees on NAB’s most popular everyday personal transaction accounts: Classic and e-Banking.

There is no asterisk, no disclaimers and no rule requiring customers to make a minimum monthly deposit. The fees will be abolished with effect from January 22, 2010.

Monthly account service fees are one of the most unpopular fees charged by banks, and commonly cost customers between $3 and $10 a month, or up to $120 a year, and more than 860,000 NAB customers will benefit from the decision to abolish these fees.

Today’s announcement means monthly account service fees will be abolished or waived for around 97% of all NAB personal transaction account customers.

Monthly account service and a range of transaction fees will also be abolished on 10 other transaction and savings accounts with effect from January 22, 2010.

This will mean the only personal transaction account with a monthly account service fee will be NAB’s premium Gold Banking product which provides extra benefits like purchase protection, overseas travel insurance and no NAB fees on overseas transactions.

If you would like more information on banking in Australia or opening an account before you leave the UK, please contact the NAB Migrant Banking team on 0208 6149 320 or email .

- NAB are a partner of the Australian Visa Bureau, an independent company specialising in helping migrants with their Australia visa application.

©Visa Bureau 2003-2010

Visa Bureau takes no responsibility and cannot be held accountable for action taken as a result of any information or comment provided on this blog, and we recommend that you always seek a number of opinions before making a decision regarding your migration or visa application. Please refer to the Visa Bureau terms of use for more information.

Could it be the 21st Century return of the "10 pound pom"? The price makes it seem too good to be true, but the £10 flight to Australia offer being promoted by STA Travel is 100% genuine, although some are still confused as to how they can take advantage of this astonishing deal.

For the uninformed, on Wednesday, 5th August, 150 one-way Qantas tickets to Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane or Adelaide will be put on sale for just £10 from STA Travel. However, there's one small catch; only Australian working holiday visa holders will be eligible for the offer.

How can I be eligible for a £10 flight to Australia?

As the offer's exclusively for working holiday visa holders, the answer's simple; makes sure you've been granted your Australian working holiday visa! While applying is fairly simple with our online visa application, it can take a week or two in some cases for the visa to be granted. Therefore, it's vital that you make your application sooner rather than later if you're keen to get your hands on the deal of the decade.

What does an Australian working holiday visa let me do?

The Australia Working Holiday Visa gives young people between the ages of 18 and 30 from working holiday visa eligible countries the opportunity to have an extended stay in Australia for up to 24 months. 

The visa allows you to make your initial entry into Australia no later than 12 months from the date that the visa was granted. The visa permits you to stay in Australia 12 months from the date that you first enter Australia, and you can then leave and re-enter Australia as many times as you wish during your 12 month stay. However, if you depart Australia during your 12 month stay you are not able to recover the period of time you have spent outside Australia.

Where can I go to purchase a £10 flight to Australia once I have my working holiday visa approved?

The flights are set to be put on sale at the eight following STA promotional branches on Wednesday, 5th August:

• Belfast (92/94 Botanic Avenue BT7 1JR)
• Birmingham High St (222-224 Corporation Street B4 6QB)
• Bristol (43 Queens Road BS8 1QQ)
• Glasgow (122 George Street G1 1RF)
• Leeds (88 Vicar Lane LS1 7JH)
• London Victoria (52 Grosvenor Gardens SW1W 0AG)
• Manchester (Albert Square 86 Cross Street M2 4LA)
• Southampton (6-8 Civic Centre Road SO14 7FL)   

Doors open at 8am, but don't expect to be alone in trying to take advantage of this deal, as keen applicants have been advised to camp out beforehand to be in for a chance at the £10 tickets.

Remember though, even if you're first in line on the 5th of August, you won't be able to purchase the ticket without a valid working holiday visa. Don't miss out on becoming a "10 pound pom"; apply online for your Australian working holiday visa today.

- Tom Blackett is Online Editor for the Australian Visa Bureau

©Visa Bureau 2003-2010

Visa Bureau takes no responsibility and cannot be held accountable for action taken as a result of any information or comment provided on this blog, and we recommend that you always seek a number of opinions before making a decision regarding your migration or visa application. Please refer to the Visa Bureau terms of use for more information.

Just a quick update to notify any Surveyors (ASCO: 2123-13) that the Institute of Surveyors Australia (ISA) has gone into voluntary liquidation (as you can see from the surprisingly blunt note on the top of the ISA website homepage). It's unclear what will happen to surveyors yet to receive their assessment results, but I imagine a solution will be presented by DIAC in due course.

Also, to avoid any confusion, I'd like to make it clear that Quantity Surveyors (ASCO: 2122-11) don't need to worry; they need to have their skills assessed by the Australian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (AIQS), who are still in operation

Even though the ISA only assess the skills of Surveyors and a handful of other Australia visa occupations (such as Cartographers), it's still a reminder of the harsh economic times we live in and an example of the difficulties many skills assessing bodies are having to face.

Another of the Australia skills assessing bodies we heard from over the weekend was Trades Recognition Australia (TRA). They made the following statement:

"Changes to Processing Times

From 1 July 2009 Trades Recognition Australia (TRA) will introduce additional quality assurance arrangements to improve the integrity of its assessments. As a result processing times will change.  It is expected that most applications will be assessed within 30 working days."

While it's not as concerning as ISA's news, it's still an indication of the strain that assessing bodies have been put under, especially given that the processing times for TRA skills assessments used to typically be 10 working days for occupations listed on the Migration Occupations in Demand (MODL) list, and 20 working days for all other occupations.

 - Tom Blackett is Online Editor for the Australian Visa Bureau

©Visa Bureau 2003-2010

Visa Bureau takes no responsibility and cannot be held accountable for action taken as a result of any information or comment provided on this blog, and we recommend that you always seek a number of opinions before making a decision regarding your migration or visa application. Please refer to the Visa Bureau terms of use for more information.

We looked at off-list state nomination as part of yesterday's blog, and covered the approach that Western Australia are taken to this relatively new initiative. Unfortunately, not every Australian state and territory has been as receptive to the process, but most have at least provided an official statement on their approach to off-list nomination.

See below for the official statements on off list nomination from each Australian state and territory:

WESTERN AUSTRALIA Official statement: "Skilled migrants seeking State Sponsorship for an off-list occupation must meet the general Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) skilled visa criteria and the Western Australian State Sponsorship requirements. Greater consideration will be given to applicants who: Have a job or offer of employment in Western Australia in a Skilled Occupation List (SOL) occupation (must be related to the nominated occupation); Have established links to the State - living, studied or have support in Western Australia; Demonstrate that their occupation is in demand in Western Australia; OR Are prepared to live and work in a regional area of the State. Off-list nominations will be assessed by the SMC on a case-by-case basis and the ability of the applicant to meet Western Australia's workforce skill shortages." Note from Visa Bureau: Even though Western Australia have a set criteria for applicants who will be given 'greater consideration', they will still accept and consider other well-presented applications.

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VICTORIA Official statement: "Victoria’s off-list nominations have been incorporated into our Eligibility Lists. Please note that there is no separate process for off-list nominations and all applicants for Skilled – Sponsored visa nomination by the Victorian Government must nominate occupations from Victoria's Skilled – Sponsored Eligibility Lists. For the Skilled – Regional Sponsored visa, you must have either: An occupation on the Skilled – Regional Sponsored (475 or 487) Eligibility List or An offer of employment from a regional Victorian employer in any occupation on the DIAC Skilled Occupations List."

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SOUTH AUSTRALIA Official statement: "Off-List Sponsorships – Policies for this option are currently being finalised.  When the Policies and Procedures have been completed they will be published on our website.  No information is available and applications are not being accepted at the moment."

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QUEENSLAND Official statement: "The Queensland Government is now able to nominate applicants for some occupations that do not appear on the Queensland Eligible Skills List. The Off-List Nomination Program has been developed to target skills needed for: Queensland priority industries; Research priorities; OR Other specialised areas of priority for Government. Nominations will be considered on a case-by-case basis. Applicants must meet the general Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship skilled visa criteria as well as Queensland state nomination requirements. The application must be accompanied by a firm, long-term job offer by an employer in one of the targeted areas. The application must also include: The employer's description of the proposed or current employment; AND A written declaration by the employer that the skill is likely to be in demand over the long-term. Please note: Queensland off-list nominations will only be considered for occupations in high demand that meet the above criteria."

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NEW SOUTH WALES Official statement: "The decision has been taken to assess applications for sponsorship based on the occupations listed on our website and any additional sponsorship (from the 500 places) will still be based on those occupations.  A number of factors including the current economic situation in NSW were taken into account in making this decision, in fact a number of occupations have recently been removed from both the skilled and regional migration lists as employment opportunities have been reduced."

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NORTHERN TERRITORY Official statement: "Such ‘Off-List’ nominations will be considered if: Your skilled occupation is listed on the Northern Territory’s Occupation Shortage List (www.migration.nt.gov.au), or you are otherwise able to demonstrate your employability in the Northern Territory;  You have successfully completed a migration eligible two year course at any Charles Darwin University campus in the Northern Territory; OR You have strong demonstrable family, friendship or other connections in the Northern Territory."

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TASMANIA Official statement: "Tasmania’s policy on using these 500 ‘off-list’ places allows applicants to apply only if their occupation appears on the Supplementary Eligible Occupations List."  Note from Visa Bureau: Currently, the Tasmania Supplementary Eligible Occupations List is very limited, with only two occupations on it at the time of writing.

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AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY (ACT) There have been no official statements or announcements made by the Australian Capital Territory pertaining to off-list nominations. However, should they make an official decision on how off-list nomination will be used, it will most likely be made available on the ACT skilled migration website.

What changes to off list nomination can be expected?

Until all states and territories take a transparent approach to off list nomination, it will always be difficult gauging exactly what their individual position is. Even though all of this information is current as of today, more changes are always possible, especially given how relatively new off list nomination is to the process.

Therefore, we advise that all applicants unsure of which state sponsored Australian visas they are eligible for to check each state and territory's migration site on a regular basis for more information. The casework department is always monitoring the situation, and as a result, we are poised to offer our clients alternative migration pathways as and when they become open to us.

- Tom Blackett is Online Editor for the Australian Visa Bureau

©Visa Bureau 2003-2010

Visa Bureau takes no responsibility and cannot be held accountable for action taken as a result of any information or comment provided on this blog, and we recommend that you always seek a number of opinions before making a decision regarding your migration or visa application. Please refer to the Visa Bureau terms of use for more information.

In their latest initiative, the Australian Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) have taken to YouTube with 'ImmiTV'. With this new channel of communication, DIAC now have the perfect means to provide Australia visa information to thousands across the world but the videos they've released so far are of questionable value to the vast majority of Australian visa applicants.

ImmiTV "showcases the work undertaken by staff and highlights events celebrated around Australia". Unfortunately, it's hard to see what information anyone caught in the Australian skilled visa application process could take from the videos already uploaded.

While stories of successful migrants to Australia might provide a glimpse of light at the end of the tunnel, the videos seem to focus more on the Australian refugee program, as opposed to the skilled migration stream. The videos themselves are well put together, but I can't help but feel that DIAC's efforts would be better served by directly addressing such hot issues as visa processing times and the rise in Australian visa application fees coming on 1 July.

Below is an example of one of the ImmiTV videos, with approx. 20 more videos available on the ImmiTV YouTube channel. Have a look and feel free to tell us what you think, as well as the kind of issues you think DIAC should be focussing on in their online communications.

©Visa Bureau 2003-2010

Visa Bureau takes no responsibility and cannot be held accountable for action taken as a result of any information or comment provided on this blog, and we recommend that you always seek a number of opinions before making a decision regarding your migration or visa application. Please refer to the Visa Bureau terms of use for more information.

Is Tourism Australia starting to get desperate?  As reported yesterday on the Australian Visa Bureau, international tourists could be offered free flights to Australia in a bid to counter-act the downturn in Australian tourism.

Essentially, the proposed plan (titled the "Mayday Project") would involve visitors being given free return flights to Australia by Tourism Australia, with the proviso being that they promise to spend a certain amount of money within Australia while visiting.

Independent Tourism Holdings director Steve Cusworth is steering the project, but he won't meet with Australian government representatives and key tourism industry names until next week.  However, it's another example of the Australian tourism board looking to innovative new ways to combat the ever-newsworthy global economic crisis. 

After the roaring success of the 'best job in the world' promotion by Tourism Queensland, it seems that going beyond the usual tourism campaigns is the route to success for marketing the land Down Under.

However, that's not to say they don't face a challenge. International tourism to Australia saw a drop of 8.5 per cent in 2008, and even though the country routinely tops traveller's lists as the destination they're keenest to visit, it's far from the most economically friendly destination for Western tourists.  With subsidised airfares though, it's fair to say that Australia would be an awfully more attractive proposition. 

However, assuming that tourists taking advantage of the deal, they'll still be required to spend a certain amount while on their travels.  The current amount being bandied about is AUD $5,000.00 (approx. £2350.00), but what is there to spend it on?  

Assuming you don't have any interest in enjoying the too-many-to-list resorts, activities, tours, restaurants and shopping experiences that make Australia such a great place to visit on an Australian holiday visa, here's a quick guide to a few easy ways you could get that cash out your wallet and into the Australian economy!

Need to spend 5,000 Aussie dollars in a hurry?  Why not buy...

• 78,000 teabags;
  
• 13,390 eggs;
  
• 1,240 loaves of bread;
  
• 4,760 pints of milk;
  
• 1,450 Big Macs;
  
• 166 copies of Baz Luhrmann's 'Australia' on DVD; OR
  
• 760 pints of draught beer in an Aussie pub (or 970 shots of whiskey).

So, even though they've not kicked off the flights promotion yet, you'll be well prepared to meet the minimum spend requirement if and when they do. Just pace yourself if you take the pub option though, or distribute your hundreds of drinks amongst the rest of the pub's patrons; less risk of liver failure, and you're guaranteed to make a few friends!

- Tom Blackett is the Online Editor for the Australian Visa Bureau 

©Visa Bureau 2003-2010

Visa Bureau takes no responsibility and cannot be held accountable for action taken as a result of any information or comment provided on this blog, and we recommend that you always seek a number of opinions before making a decision regarding your migration or visa application. Please refer to the Visa Bureau terms of use for more information.

While they were launched to much fanfare, there are signs that not everyone is entirely delighted by the results of Baz Luhrmann's series of ads promoting Australia (as covered in a previous blog post). In fact, some notable figures from the Australian tourism community are saying that many businesses have been forced to take matters into their own hands when it comes to attracting travellers.

Speaking on the situation forced upon a number of companies in the Australian tourism sector, Managing Director of the Australian Tourism Export Council (ATEC), Matt Hingerty was quoted as saying "The industry is taking the response into their own hands. You would have seen a lot of retailing activity - cost cutting, advertising and so forth - because the big national branding exercise being conducted by Tourism Australia is just irrelevant to them at the moment. They're struggling for survival."

However, Mr Hingerty's comments come amidst contradicting reports that interest in Australia has never been higher; in a recent poll of over 5,500 people, Australia has been voted the most desired destination by travellers. Unfortunately, the poll also revealed that two-thirds of these potential Australia holiday visa travellers are being forced to rethink their holiday plans as a result of the global economic crisis; indicative that the lack of a tourism boom might not be poor old Baz' fault after all.

What's more, it'd be unfair to say that Luhrmann's recent efforts haven't proved inspirational to at least two individuals out there; namely Adam Buxton and Joe Cornish of BBC 6 Music's Saturday morning radio show. As part of their regular 'Song Wars' feature, both Adam and Joe wrote and recorded an original song inspired by their experiences watching 'Australia'.

They might not be exactly the kind of response Mr Luhrmann was hoping for, but they're still definitely worth a listen (especially if you weren't able to spare the three hours to see the film). Check them out below.

Adam Buxton's 'Australia' song

Joe Cornish's 'Australia' song

- Tom Blackett is the Online Editor for the Australian Visa Bureau

©Visa Bureau 2003-2010

Visa Bureau takes no responsibility and cannot be held accountable for action taken as a result of any information or comment provided on this blog, and we recommend that you always seek a number of opinions before making a decision regarding your migration or visa application. Please refer to the Visa Bureau terms of use for more information.

It's a monumental month for migrants in Australia, with February 2009 marking 60 years of Australian citizenship. First introduced in 1949 through the enactment of the Nationality and Citizenship Act 1948, it marked the shift from Australian residents being regarded as British subjects to being fully acknowledged citizens of Australia.

It's interesting to look back at those early days of Australian citizenship and see how they contrast to today. For example, at the first citizenship ceremony on 3 February 1949, seven men were chosen to represent each state and the ACT. As a representation of the diversity of the migration population of Australia at that time, each came from a different country; Czechoslovakia, Denmark, France, Greece, Norway, Spain and Yugoslavia.

Were the same symbolic ceremony to take place today, it'd be a very different (and certainly less Eurocentric) group of residents on Australia visas taking part. According to the 2007-08 DIAC report, the top countries for citizenship applicants to come from today are the UK, India, China, South Africa, the Philippines, the Republic of Korea and Malaysia.

Additionally, 1949's Australian citizenship applicants didn't have to face the same hurdles as today's, with the Australian citizenship test probably the most obvious difference. While it was designed to "play a valuable role in both encouraging people to find out more about Australia, as well as understanding the responsibilities and privileges being an Australian citizen brings", the test has faced some stern criticism since its introduction on 1 October 2007.

For example, knowing the answer to "who is Australia's greatest cricketer?" (a question rumoured to have been personally implemented by former Australian prime minister and cricket fanatic, John Howard) seems like a curious way to gauge whether an applicant is worth of being granted Australian citizenship.

However, regardless of the various foibles and quirks of the process, the history of Australian citizenship still stands as something to be celebrated (regardless of whether you're already Down Under or just thinking of emigrating to Australia). While the government has the usual formalities set in place (commemorative coins and anniversary-themed conferral ceremonies ahoy!), we can't think of a better way to mark the occasion than by cracking open a cold one and raising a toast to the 4 million migrants who've been successful in gaining citizenship over the past 60 years. Join us, won't you?

Cheers!

- Tom Blackett is the Online Editor for the Australian Visa Bureau.

©Visa Bureau 2003-2010

Visa Bureau takes no responsibility and cannot be held accountable for action taken as a result of any information or comment provided on this blog, and we recommend that you always seek a number of opinions before making a decision regarding your migration or visa application. Please refer to the Visa Bureau terms of use for more information.