Friends,
Last week I moved from California to Sydney, on 190 PR and just wanted to share my experience hoping it might help people planning travel soon. I got 190 PR in December 2018 and my original entry date was in Feb 2019 but I never travelled then and it was my first entry ever!
I used to live in Los Angeles, but there were no direct flights from LA to Sydney. The only direct flight from USA to Australia was United Airlines from San Francisco to Sydney. So, I booked that flight for me and my family, and we drove all the way from LA to SFO a night before for this flight.
Next day in morning, when we went to checkin for the flight, I showed them my grant letter but they said it's not a PR as the word "Permanent Resident" wasn't mentioned on the grant letter. So, I asked them to check on VEVO. However, VEVO website was down for regular maintenance and Airline was not able to verify my PR. So, as a last resort they called Home Affairs, but due to long hold the flight check-in time passed and I was asked to board the next flight which was a day after.
Following day, I went 4 hours ahead of time but this time VEVO was working fine and the whole check-in process took only 30 minutes. In-fact, the airline check-in staff apologized that I got late by one day and waived off almost $800 fee in extra baggage which I was carrying.
After reaching Sydney, the health officials took temperature reading and explained the 14 days Quarantine process. Following that, it was a quick walk to port of entry and a smooth entry. I was expecting a question on why I didn't make it to my initial entry but no questions were asked at all and the whole entry process took less than 5 minutes. My status on VEVO app immediately changed from Offshore to Onshore.
After that we boarded a bus and were taken to a 2-bedroom fully furnished apartment suite in a 5-star hotel in Sydney CBD.
I am highly impressed and truly appreciate the efforts and the arrangements made by Australian Government for the whole process and taking care of our accommodation, food, essential items for the 14-day Quarantine.
The harbor view from my hotel window is amazing and really feeling great to be part of such a beautiful country! I was in USA on a H1b visa for almost 10 years but never felt home like here.
Last week I moved from California to Sydney, on 190 PR and just wanted to share my experience hoping it might help people planning travel soon. I got 190 PR in December 2018 and my original entry date was in Feb 2019 but I never travelled then and it was my first entry ever!
I used to live in Los Angeles, but there were no direct flights from LA to Sydney. The only direct flight from USA to Australia was United Airlines from San Francisco to Sydney. So, I booked that flight for me and my family, and we drove all the way from LA to SFO a night before for this flight.
Next day in morning, when we went to checkin for the flight, I showed them my grant letter but they said it's not a PR as the word "Permanent Resident" wasn't mentioned on the grant letter. So, I asked them to check on VEVO. However, VEVO website was down for regular maintenance and Airline was not able to verify my PR. So, as a last resort they called Home Affairs, but due to long hold the flight check-in time passed and I was asked to board the next flight which was a day after.
Following day, I went 4 hours ahead of time but this time VEVO was working fine and the whole check-in process took only 30 minutes. In-fact, the airline check-in staff apologized that I got late by one day and waived off almost $800 fee in extra baggage which I was carrying.
After reaching Sydney, the health officials took temperature reading and explained the 14 days Quarantine process. Following that, it was a quick walk to port of entry and a smooth entry. I was expecting a question on why I didn't make it to my initial entry but no questions were asked at all and the whole entry process took less than 5 minutes. My status on VEVO app immediately changed from Offshore to Onshore.
After that we boarded a bus and were taken to a 2-bedroom fully furnished apartment suite in a 5-star hotel in Sydney CBD.
I am highly impressed and truly appreciate the efforts and the arrangements made by Australian Government for the whole process and taking care of our accommodation, food, essential items for the 14-day Quarantine.
The harbor view from my hotel window is amazing and really feeling great to be part of such a beautiful country! I was in USA on a H1b visa for almost 10 years but never felt home like here.
