Employer Nomination Scheme - how long does it take pros/cons?

[goncalves]

My husband has been approached for the above - we have started the visa application ourselves and he is currently doing his assessment for Engineering Australia. Has anyone gone through an employer nominated visa? What are the pros/cons of going this route? Are you tied to that company for 2 years? Any advice will be appreciated.

[kaz101]

Hi goncalves,

If you have a search through this forum you'll find quite a few members who have been down this route...

Cons
Yes you are tied to a company for 2 years
If your job is lost then you need to find another employer within a certain timescale otherwise the visa becomes invalid

Pro
You have a job to come to and so some income.

I didn't go that route (we're self employed) so I can't offer personal experience.

Regards,
Karen

[amaslam]

I don't recall the (2) yr requirement, but I did go down this route. The main con is you lose your LAFHA allowance and any tax benefits that brought, but on the flipside you're eligible for Medicare and the lower insurance costs of a resident (i.e. non-resident, paid $200/month, resident paid $60/month). I didn't really see being tied to an employer for (2) yrs as a con (I had been with them 7 yrs at that point already). The processing went really fast once all the paperwork was in (i.e. from the last document submitted to the success letter < 2 weeks). Most of the wait is for police checks and health checks to come through.

Originally Posted by goncalves

My husband has been approached for the above - we have started the visa application ourselves and he is currently doing his assessment for Engineering Australia. Has anyone gone through an employer nominated visa? What are the pros/cons of going this route? Are you tied to that company for 2 years? Any advice will be appreciated.

[goncalves]

Hi there
Thanks so much for your feedback, we are currently in negotiations with the company so here's hoping that things go well. On that note however we are going through the stage of once you tell people (family / friends) all the opinions come out and then your brain becomes a huge MESS!! In your opinion, people who are already there, is the education (government) really better than South Africa? Is the medical care good? (I have two small kids)?? Is it really safer than here? Everyone keeps saying "there is lots of crime in Australia too" - this poistion would be in Adelaide, can anyone help?
We have a really good life in terms of material crap but ultimately this move is for our kids and their future, do you really and truly believe that it is a better life in Australia?

I believe so but as I say my brain is just being tossed from one side to the next with the comments from the "die hard South Africans".

Thanks again.

[kaz101]

Hi goncalves,

I can't advise about the education but other members will tell you about that.

Every where has some sort of crime and Australia is no exception. There are good and bad areas everywhere. I've not lived in Adelaide but I have visited and I have felt safe walking around during the day and even at night. I lived just north of London in the UK and never felt safe walking alone at night, even though I did it on some occasions.

Don't let other people mess with your brain. People often don't like change - even when it's other people that are making the change.

How would you feel if you didn't come out here and try it for yourself? Would you always be wondering?

From what I've heard there's loads more crime in South Africa but I'm assuming that's in specific areas too since I've never been there.

Regards,
Karen

[amaslam]

At the end of the day just four people need to be convinced if AU is better:
You, your husband, your 2 kids. No one else is moving here.

There have been a few posts from S. African emigres and they have been positive. In particular I found the posts by MartinW quite good (he is from S. Africa and living here). I would send him a PM asking your questions as he can be very specific about what's what. If he does answer can you share the answers back in this post?

Die hard 'anybody" will always love their country more.

I'm particularly struck by the crime comment, no way in h*ll is there a similarity to the crime patterns in the two countries. I've always heard that S. Africa has really bad crime, especially violent crime that targets women.

Originally Posted by goncalves

Hi there
Thanks so much for your feedback, we are currently in negotiations with the company so here's hoping that things go well. On that note however we are going through the stage of once you tell people (family / friends) all the opinions come out and then your brain becomes a huge MESS!! In your opinion, people who are already there, is the education (government) really better than South Africa? Is the medical care good? (I have two small kids)?? Is it really safer than here? Everyone keeps saying "there is lots of crime in Australia too" - this poistion would be in Adelaide, can anyone help?
We have a really good life in terms of material crap but ultimately this move is for our kids and their future, do you really and truly believe that it is a better life in Australia?

I believe so but as I say my brain is just being tossed from one side to the next with the comments from the "die hard South Africans".

Thanks again.