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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To emigrate to Australia?!

257 replies

DarlingDuck · 16/07/2011 14:56

DH and I are 30 and have 3 DC's, we've wanted to emigrate for a long time. It would mean me re-training and doing a midwifery degree but I would earn twice the salary in Australia as I would here in the UK. The only cons we can think of would be missing our families and all the huge spiders/snakes!

I realise it will be a huge upheaval and our eldest will be around 10 years old when we plan to go which may be hard for her. Ideally we would like to do it sooner but we want to make sure we can earn a good wage.... AIBU?

OP posts:
vegetariandumpling · 16/07/2011 16:08

I can't believe anyone would emigrate somewhere without visiting and checking it out first.

I did this, didn't regret it. Admittedly not with children though, and not Australia. A holiday and living somewhere are completely different, you just can't compare. If I'd have visited first, so many small things would have put me off going altogether, but as I was already there to live I just had to get on with it Grin

Sidge · 16/07/2011 16:12

Where was it vegetarian? You are quite mad Grin

(Unless you were sent for work and had no choice then I'll let you off!)

MumblingRagDoll · 16/07/2011 16:17

vegetriandumpling and neither can you compare emigrating without children to moving as a single person.

You only had yourself to hink about...you have to consider the long term effects on your DC when you move abroad. I lived in Adelaide for a year when DD1 was newborn....I have beeen back nce but will never move there permanently.

For me it is not only the cultural differences but also the fact that my DC wouldn't have any extended family out there...no cousins or Aunties and uncles. Our extended family in the UK is a massive part of life.

But OP I do understand your desire for a "better" life....but also that you need to go there...talk to expats. Oz is expensive now.

Original poster
DarlingDuck · 16/07/2011 16:19

I spent 7 years living abroad in different countries so it doesn't really faze me, I have been to NZ so have a rough idea of what Australia may be like. Most people I know have been to Australia, I spent 2 years living in a house full of Aussies and DH lived there for a year so that is good enough for me!

OP posts:
MrsKravitz · 16/07/2011 16:22

New Zealand is quite different

Original poster
DarlingDuck · 16/07/2011 16:24

But it's more similar to Australia than England, right?

OP posts:
MrsKravitz · 16/07/2011 16:25

Id say about equal differences

diddl · 16/07/2011 16:29

Why not train over there?

MrsKravitz · 16/07/2011 16:29

Im in the process of organising a move to australia at present btw.

Just a word of caution....check your midwifery levels. I worked with some UK trained midwives who were shocked to find they were on junior payscales as their UK midwifery didnt match the australian one. They had to do extra training and a top up course to be on basic grade pay.

Allinabinbag · 16/07/2011 16:31

I think it's great to have long-term goals as a family, but be flexible along the way. I would be trying to work out if you want to retrain as a midwife full stop, and then doing it, before worrying about what you will do afterwards. I wouldn't change career to go to a country (what if you don't like the career or the country?) but if you want to change anyway, why not?

Five years is a long time, the economy of both countries may be in a different place, immigration rules change, families expand/people get old and need looking after. I would focus on the next year or two of retraining and not necessarily tie it to some big escape fantasy which may be less or more appealing in five years time, depending on what happens in them!

wompoopigeon · 16/07/2011 16:40

I know a successful dentist who emigrated to a big city in Australia and was surprised to find no dentistry jobs going. Zilch. She hasn't found one in 18 months. So FGS before you retrain have a good look at the labour market, including in health, because lovely beaches are all very well but spending years living off your savings ain't much fun.

Original poster
DarlingDuck · 16/07/2011 16:41

I am going to look into training over there too, it may be a better option!

OP posts:
Original poster
DarlingDuck · 16/07/2011 16:42

Oh yes, I would love to be a midwife and would like to retrain anyway regardless of emigrating!

OP posts:
GnomeDePlume · 16/07/2011 16:43

We lived abroad (not Australia though) for 5 years. DCs attended the local primary school and became totally bilingual. It was a company move so we were eventually moved back. No regrets, it was a great experience. DD1 wants to go back to go to university.

Before we went we spoke to lots of people. Many people said 'oh we could have gone but it wasnt the right time for us/the kids/the cat'. None of the people we spoke to who had actually moved abroad regretted the experience. Some said it wasnt for them so came back but none regretted having given it a go.

The only difference between the people who did and the people who didnt was that the people who did, did.

You only get one life.

CadburyGuinness · 16/07/2011 16:51

The cost of living is much higher in Aus at current exchange rates (on which, I assume, you are basing your expectations of getting double the UK salary)
Do your research first.
Check out the cost of groceries at the 2 biggest supermarket chains:
Coles (www.coles.com.au) and Woolworths (www.woolworths.com.au)
Check out Real estate prices in your preferred city (eg REIWA.com.au for Perth).
This is not intended to put you off, but there's no point getting a nasty surpris, when all the relevent info is readily available online.
Grass is not necessarily greener, although in our case, it as the best move we ever made
Good Luck!

MumblingRagDoll · 16/07/2011 16:55

I don't want to keep bringing you down but I have to add that I too had traveled extensively and also lived with (and loved!) plenty of Aussies...DH is an Aussie. But the reality of living there was such a smack in the face.

I had no comparative cultural experience....in the Uk, things that you take forgranted as normal such as health visitors, World book day and a hundred other childhood things, either dont' exist or are totally different.

The kids are brought up differently...theTV is vastly different anf more Americanised....clothing is weird out there and not as good....

Catslikehats · 16/07/2011 16:55

I live overseas.

On the whole it works fabulously for us a family but it is really hard being away from home at times.

When friends have "big" birthdays, or christen their children we cannot always be there, when relatives are sick or worse, we cannot always visit them, when people need us it is just not alway possible to do anything but comfort from afar. That is really tough and we only live 6hrs away so do get back fairly frequently. I think when you go as far as Oz you really have to be prepared to put your life in the UK almost completely behind you.

On a different note you really don't seem to have thought the logistics though at all

GnomeDePlume · 16/07/2011 17:05

Part of the experience is that suddenly everything you knew about being a grown-up is wrong. On the other hand at least is Australia you will be able to understand the language!

We did it with less than three months notice. Found a house and bought it, found schools, set up bank accounts etc etc.

The OP is talking about a few years away. I think she can be forgiven for not having got all the finer points of the planning in place yet.

DarlingDuck YANBU

microserf · 16/07/2011 17:24

i'm a kiwi. i would definitely check the cost of living out, as you will be surprised how high it is relevant to salaries in Australia and NZ.

i moved countries several times as a kid and LOVED it, great experience. the only word of caution i have for you as i know a few english families who moved, loved it and the lifestyle, but ended up coming back for friends and family.

i live in the UK, and it is hard missing family events, xmas etc. i really hate Angry the way they ramp up airline prices at xmas... bastards!

microserf · 16/07/2011 17:24

doh! "relative", not relevant!

Original poster
DarlingDuck · 16/07/2011 17:25

Does anyone know how New Zealand compares to Australia in terms of salary and cost of living?

OP posts:
molepom · 16/07/2011 18:46

I would look at more detail first.

The migration rules are changing all the time and I'm fairly sure although I may be wrong, that even if you have a degree, you will still need a certain number of years experience as well in that profession.

DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE the length of time the visa applications take, or the cost.

Be VERY careful about what agents you use, make sure they are registered.

Most of all, the application process is hell in itself, never mind the actual moving or the time after it. It will put an enormous strain on your relationship, especiallly once the visa has been granted. DO NOT underestimate this. Its a rollercoaster of a ride.

CheshireDing · 16/07/2011 20:31

Darling, my DH and I had a 4 year visa for Melbourne (he is an A&E Adult Nurse), we are back in the UK now and trying to get a job offer in America, although even as an RN with about 14 years experience this is going to take ages to get in to the US. We never worry about moving around and I do not think this will change when our 1st baby is born in October.

My pros and cons as to Australia. This is only my opinion from my experiences so do not slate me people:-

PROS

  1. You feel like you have more of an evening due to it still being light when you finish work
  1. It's hot so you will probably eat less crap and more healthy stuff and hence be slimmer
  1. Family can visit if they want, you need to think about what is best for your own family
  1. There are plenty of agencies constantly looking for people wanting to go to Oz, they are in the RCN mag all the time
  1. It's easy enough to get a job offer, get your x-rays and get on your way. It might be a bit stricter in a couple of years (we went in 2007)

CONS

  1. Water draught in Melbourne for the last 10 years when we lived there, this may sound like nothing but trust me it was having a massive impact on little things like your brown crispy garden and big thinks like farmers committing suicide because they could not afford to feed their cattle
  1. Too far to go on holiday anyway else in the world (hence our new move to the east coast of America)
  1. The pound to the dollar is considerably less than it was when we were there, I would say cost of living in Oz is the same as the UK with some places being more expensive (Melbourne & the immediate outskirts of the city are very expensive). Perth is not even cheap any more.
  1. Nurses need to work full time because of their visa until they become a Citizen, you will find a large proportion of the Australian Nurses are part time and the foreigners are the only full timers
  1. My DH was unable to teach in Oz as they wanted him to wait until he got his Masters, however his abilities and experiences in this respect are more recognised over here and now he does teach
AngryFeet · 16/07/2011 20:52

I love Australia and spent a year living there in my 20's. In a way I would like to emigrate there but there are lots of downsides as there are with any place. I think emigrating somewhere you have never been is madness tbh. It may look idyllic but it is not perfect. I would hate to live in Sydney but I love Brisbane. But people like different bits of Aus so you need to see where you 'fit' first.

It is also definitely not cheaper with regards to cost of living now. The exchange rate is shit so the money you take with you will be a lot less than say 5 years ago. Houses are very costly as is food.

You really need to spend a lot of time looking into this and if you are to do a degree make sure it is something you can and want to make a career of here in case you change your mind or move there but hate it and come back.

Do not underestimate how hard it can be to move so far from everyone you love. A lot of people struggle very badly. Definitely read the expats forum for experiences.

microserf · 16/07/2011 21:06

my 2p more - yaNbu to want to emigrate somewhere you've never visited. i've done it 3 times, and each time it worked out great!

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