While there are many process which in theory should be very simple and very quick, it seems that gaining your Australian visa may not be as simple as many would have your believe. This thread covers the process by which you apply for your Australian visa to move there permanently and brings up a number of elements of the process which you need to be aware of!

The main focus of the thread is medical examinations and police checks which are a vital part of the entry process into the country. However, there is some confusion as to whether you should look to have these reports available prior to applying for your visa or after your visa process has begun. The problem seems to evolve around the fact these reports are only valid for one year and may be invalidated if your visa and other paperwork are not completed in time.

Even though the Australian authorities have decided to try and automate the system as much as possible some people are wary and nervous about making their applications online. A great number seem to prefer the traditional person to person route at an early stage rather than having a case officer assigned to your case further down the line.

There seem to be a number of potential elements which can drag on and cause problems for those looking at quick professional visas as well as those looking for the more traditional visas. Many have highlighted one particular automated email which is causing concern as it suggests medical records are required at the outset, while a case office confirmed that it will be requested at a later date. Cutting corners in this system could be counterproductive but some people seem happy to take that chance.

Summary

While we are all aware of the mass of paperwork which is required to move to countries such as Australia it seems as though the online and offline systems are not quite singing from the same hymn sheet so to speak. This has placed doubts in the mind of many who would now rather speak direct with a case officer from day one, something which is actually counterproductive from the Australian authorities’ point of view. A simple email has placed the seed of doubt, but this seems to have grown!

The main concern seems to be the timing of the paperwork needed to complete a successful Australian visa application with the online system suggesting something totally different to the case officers on the ground. However, it must be said that the decision to allocate one case officer to each applicant as a point of contact does improve the system but it is now just a case of marrying up the online and offline systems to reduce confusion.

The problem is that just one contradicting statement puts doubt in the minds of those using the system and wastes more time on correspondence and telephone calls. However, as confidence in the system grows these fears are sure to evaporate and the Australian system has the potential to become one of the more straight forward in the world.

Advice about the length of time a visa application will take seems to vary from a few months to a year but it has never been more vital to know what paperwork is required and when it should be presented – this seems to be the trick to cutting the administration time.

Read the full thread on paperwork required when moving to Australia.