My Journey

My departure experience from Nigerian Airport was as usual, nothing ghen ghen. I had a stop over at Abu Dhabi and Perth, unknown to me Australia is really a big country cos it took me additional six hours from Perth to Sydney. I dare not make such mistake again

My Stopover experience? When I landed at the Abu Dhabi airport, the overzealous airport staff selected me out of the crowd, being the only black and a Nigerian, I knew what this was only a time wasting process started asking silly questions of why I was going to Australia and why I was studying the course I chose. Not even in Australia yet and I am going through all this, despite a valid student's visa.
A little clumsy at Perth Airport with all my goodbye nigeria luggage, cos you had to take a bus from the international to the local airport, thankfully i was able to get the Trolley Cart using the Aud coins I had on me because I had my currency changed at Abu dhabi.
Nothing remarkable at Perth Airport.

* What are the immigration rules to follow?
Do not bring growing seeds, anything that can be cracked like beans, nuts. Instead have them all blended and in air tight white bags.You can google Australia incoming passenger card to get familiar with their forbidden foods. Please declare every thing. I declared my wooden stick (omorogun). Have an address that you will be staying handy and also an Australian phone cos you will be asked to fill this in the form.

* How did you carry all that cash with you?
I had just $4000 us dollars, which was declared .

* Can you open bank account while still in Naija?
I opened a NAB account which I opened online in Nigeria, and they actually sent the welcome letter to my home address in Lagos. I had my handy eftpos card waiting to be picked up at my selected branch when I got to Australia.

* Which State/suburb did you settle in and why?
Just like most people, it is where you know someone that you feel comfortable to settle in. I settled in popular gbogbo ero in Liverpool, Sydney . You find a lot of migrants there

* Driving in Australia? How long can you use your Naija driving license before you get Aussie license?
Hmmmm. This one pass me. It took me a long while to get used to be comfortable driving, I used my Nigeria driving for a year then it expired, kept renewing the Nigeria International driver license yearly for 2 years, until I got the permanent residency then I had no choice but to sit for the dreaded driving test, almost had a heart attack in my preparation. I had to go for a crash driving lesson at the rate of 40 dollars per hr for 4 hrs in 2 weeks. Thank God for that, cos that Naija driving would have failed me woefully. I cannot risk the license taken at all.

* Where you live and why you like it or don't like it? Tips on choosing the right neighborhood, mortgage plans, proximity to work etc.
Levels changed after no more school fees, we had to move to a quiet neighborhood cos it is closer to kids school. There is really no tips, depends on how much you are willing to pay for the accommodation and proximity to school, station/bus stop, and work
Mortgage plan is seriously on the way, tired of the agent peering into your house during the house inspection not to talk of the liability called house rent.

* How easy was it to settle in, with your kids? How did you go about finding the right schools for them? What is their school system like for toddlers (age 5 and below)?
There is pre-school for 4years old
As a parent of little ones , at least a quarter of your income goes to child care. Damn, it was really expensive. Thankfully, we had couple of friends around that sometimes helped to care for our little ones, but remember it is do me I do you and this also comes with a bit of begging and often disappointment.

* Can a mother combine work and taking care of the kids? Easier if the kids are older, not less than 8 years. It is possible but one of the parents will have a flexible shift. Here in Australia, it is not mother thing, it is parent thing.

* Tips on how to cloth and cope with the cold weather
Easy, just like nigeria weather most times of the year. Thankfully, I visited a boutique in lagos before coming and got really beautiful clothes because they don't really have nice female outfits aside their jeans and tops, the classy quality ones are ridiculously expensive. Meanwhile you will get them at affordable prices in Nigeria, UK or America.

* How much does your family survive on in a month?
It is an expensive place, you cannot risk not getting a good well job.
By the way, I was scammed when I was new in town. Got employed by a guy but was not paid for my job, at least if he wont pay he will talk - I used the guy as a work reference to get my accommodation and my 2nd job which was a step to greater heights.

Praying for bountiful rain upon the land of Australia and Merry Christmas Everyone.

Hello,

Please I will like to prepare Akamu(ogi) or pap for my baby here in Australia.

Please who knows a good blender I can use for that or someone that does it which blender do you use.

Will be waiting for your reply.

Thanks

happy4lucy:
Hello,

Please I will like to prepare Akamu(ogi) or pap for my baby here in Australia.

Please who knows a good blender I can use for that or someone that does it which blender do you use.

Will be waiting for your reply.

Thanks

Kmart blender


https://www.kmart.com.au/product/1.5l-digital-blender/918805


$49

tyosho:
It will be nice if this thread is restricted to info about life in australia.Not questions on how to secure visa or gain admission.

My family and I made use of IOM to secure our travel tickets.We went with emirates and had a stopover in Dubai.Nothing special about the travel experience.We were entitled to 40kg per adult,40kg for a child and 23kg for infant.We also paid for 2 extra bags of 32kg each but i hear prices have gone up so cargoing is cheaper.You can cargo through certain airlines like saa,emirates and etihad.
All in all we had like 12 luggages.
I went with ALL kinds of food stuffs except beans(becos of weavils).With my food items,i put them individually in transparent bags and labelled them.Fish,egusi,dry pepper,garri,amala etc.
Got to melbourne,declared i had food items but was not searched and was allowed to go through.

We opened accts with NAB and commonwealth bank but didnt transfer any money from nigera.We went with some cash and left the remaining in a GT dom acct and transferred from there to our OZzy acct when we arrived.We also opened a dom acct in OZ(commonwealth bank was seamless) for ease of transfer.There might be a cheaper way to transfer funds but this is what we did.

We stayed with family in Northern suburbs initially but got our own place in the Eastern suburbs,somewhere not far from Dandenong.We settled for the East because its quite busy,more factories and industries in these areas.If i dont live in the East,I will go for the North and West in that order.West is cheapest but people say it has a history of crime.I however have friends who have lived in the West over 10years and have never had any incidents.Anyhow,wherever you decide to stay is fine.Just get somewhere close to the train station and mall.

In melbourne,you can use your naija license for 6months.My husband passed his victoria drivers test on first attempt,i havnt tried yet for my drivers license.People say though that it can be quite tough cos i know someone who failed 5times!I was able to start driving within 2months of getting here.Just remember,you drive on the left always.

No ideas on how mortgages work but when choosing a neighborhood,also consider ones with good schools if you have kids.If your kids are still of daycare age(below 5),use careforkids.com.au to compare prices,reviews etc.

Settling in was not bad for me cos i had friends and family here already.My kids settled fine as well.

Upon arrival;
Get a mobile sim(i use lebara)
Apply for TFN(tax file no)
Open a bank account or go and activate the one you opened from Nigeria
Go to centerlink and medicare for registration
Get a travel card(MYki card if in melbourne).

Update your linkedin profile and make it very appealing to recruiters.You can also search for recruiters on Linkedin.

With regards to work,there is always something to do.It might not be want you want initially but there is work.Some people start off working at factories,aged care homes,disability and support centres etc until they eventually get what they want.Some people also end up going into nursing,community welfare,policing etc.But like i said,if you dont mind chopping humble pie to start somewhere earning money with these blue collar jobs,you will be okay.I know people who have houses with money earned from these blue collar professions.
There is dignity of labour here so people dont care what job you do to earn money.

For transportation,if you can afford it,pls plan to buy a car asap(carsales.com.au,gumtreee.com.au).please buy cars with roadworthiness and valid registration(at least 6months).If no car,you can use the metro system until you can afford to get a car here.

For housing,a friend referred us to her agent who leased us an apartment even though we didnt have jobs at the time.She accepted our bank statements as proof of income.We pay just a little below 2k monthly as rent.

Then i also just found out about NRAS housing scheme from a colleague days back.Its for families who fall within a certain income threshold.IF your rent was like 350,you would pay like 260 and the govt will pay the balance.I dont have much info as i dont qualify anymore since hubby and I both work now.But im certain most freshbies would qualify.

With furnishing the house,we went across gumtree.com(for people who were selling their furniture due relocation or other reasons),kmart stores( for kitchen items),bestbuy.com(this is a company that sells new electronics at reduced prices because they have scratches or marks on them;there are plenty stores like that but this is the one i patronised) and ikea stores(for kitchen and beddings)

For people that dont mind as well,in order to save costs,you can patronise Salvos stores(its a charity shop that all kinds of household items in great condition).

To get the best energy providers,internet providers,insurance etc,you can make use of iselect.com.au

During cold weather,you wear jacket and use heater(we paid almost 200 a month for heating during this past winter)

I do most of my shopping at Dandenong Market as food stuffs there is cheaper than everyother place I know.There is also Marmara market at Dandenong(all kinds of food items including shaki,cowleg,cow tongue etc) and an African store not far from the market(cant rememeber the name).At noble park is SUR african shop where i get dry fish,palm oil,egusi and stuff like that.

With departmental stores,woolworths is most expensive and aldi is cheapest.Coles is in between.
I know of only one nigerian restaurant that recently opened in the city and i have never been there before.
There is also another popular naija shop in the West called Fatimoh"s shop

With centerlink link claims,we were paid family tax benefit part A and B,family rebate and child care assistance.This all sumed up to $621 forthnightly for the first 4months,it came down to 550 and then now sits at $89 fortnightly.It reduces with every income increase.
Childcare rates was $113 for two kids initially (5days a week) and now is $370 a week.

We also got a concession card which has now been cancelled since we both have jobs.With the concession card,we paid discounted electricity and waterbills,half price for transportation,free ambulance cover,susbsizied fees if we had done any studies at the time and my first kid who is in kinder got 15hours free of daycare weekly .

With jobs,for me,it was just God.I got a job in the Tier 1 team of an IT company with no technical knowledge whatsover.It was my 3rd video interview and i got the job two months after arrival.I commute 54mins by train to the CBD which is quite a distance by OZ standard.But i dont mind really.I got the job through indeed.com which i prefer to seek.com
There a couple of recruitment agencies i know and i will list as i remember.

Strategy one(blue collar)
Adecco
Hoban
Ozstaff(blue collar)
Randstad
Sharp &carter
Hays
Smaart



cc Bellong,vinsmuft,funkjo,oknee,hordunayo,incemay,abeg you guys should come and add o

How is medical practice over there?

tyosho:


Can you ask him to tell you what sort of visa it is exactly?There have been people told the same story but all the got was the 600 tourist/visitor visa which does not allow them to work.Sorry to say but if that”s the visa the agent is trying to get for anyone,na suffer sure pass

Hi ma'am please can I pm you because it's personal though my 2nd question has been answer by @soltino in one of the students threads.. Thanks.

BhawnaYs:
Hi,

Migrating to Australia is one of the best thing, if anyone is thinking to move abroad. Although the immigration process is quite complicated where the applicants need to fulfill all the eligibility criteria of the immigration department. But once received your PR they can enjoy all the benefits as per the Australian citizen. Some of the benefits are listed below

1. If you are holding PR, you can invite your other family members to Australia.
2. If you holding PR, you can apply for Australian citizenship meeting the other eligibility requirements.
3. You can avail the other health medicare benefits
4. Holding PR you have right to move in and out of Australia.
5. The child born in Australia will get Australian citizenship by birth

Also the immigration department follows the point system criteria where you need to score minimum of 65 points out of 100. The points can be calculated using

[url=https://www.aptechvisa.com/australia-point-system
/]Australian PR Points calculator[/url]

An impressive update there.Can't a PR holder invite a friend apart from close family relatives.

Solitin40:

Kmart blender


https://www.kmart.com.au/product/1.5l-digital-blender/918805


$49

Thanks, was using it and it broke down... just asking for more options if not I will go back to Kmart and get the blender again. The first one lasted for 1year

hartson:
An impressive update there.Can't a PR holder invite a friend apart from close family relatives.

You may not be able to "sponsor" but should be able to invite a friend. i.e you can write a letter inviting them to visit and in it state that you are prepared to cover all their costs while in Australia.

.

So here is my landing gist

Long Post Alert

The beginning
I got my grant on 31st of October and resigned the following morning giving a month's notice to my employer. Getting the required items needed for the journey ahead amidst  handing over tasks and projects at work was hectic but I survived.
Friday 29th was my last day at work. It started with a small get-together send forth party at the office then partee after partee at a sea-side bar in Victoria Island. I woke up on  Saturday visiting few places I needed to touch down at before leaving. On Sunday morning, I was on my way to my parent's base to say my farewell and pick up some local recipes and items. I was out of the base on Tuesday and had 2 days left to complete the packing before I finally leave on Friday.

On Wednesday, malaria came knocking but I just had to kill it totally since it's gonna be my last malaria. So I finished the 'thing' and on Friday, 6th December, I was awake preparing to start a new journey of a new beginning.


Your departure experience from Nigerian Airport?
My flight was scheduled for 1pm Nigerian time. I left the house 9:50am and got to the airport at 10:20am. Got to Emirate stand and my bags were weighed. Alas! Everything was 69kg (40kg + 22kg + 7kg) when I was only entitled to 53kg (23kg x 23kg x 7kg). The lady had already started calculating extra luggage allowance. I look the lady.. Madam calm down, I need help o. Na so she calm down. I sha ended up paying for extra luggage allowance which I had initially planned for.

I proceeded to get my boarding pass and went back to bid my sister and friend farewell. I thereafter moved to a restaurant to have breakfast. At this time, boarding had started. I proceeded to the boarding session and after clearance from 2 Immigration officers, I was referred to another one. He began with series of questions about the trip, final destination, the visa process. He also asked I show him my PTA, I told him I wasn't going for a visit. He asked for BTA, I told him I had money in my account and I don't have to get BTA or PTA for this trip. The baba sha stood his ground and I stood mine too. When I realised this man was going to waste my time, I just told him I will go and get the BTA since I have more than enough in my account. I had moved a bit when he called me back and said I can proceed. I wasn't even in the mood to say thank you. This was when I realised I hadn't checked the time cos I was just 15 minutes to the boarding closure and I hadn't even gone past the checks before boarding. I did this in few minutes and was in the plane. Window seat.. You know. (I had set alarm to book the seats 48 hours prior to the flight time).

* Stopover experience? When you landed at the airport?
Dubai.... In-flight entertainment and the food were awesome for the 7 hours journey. The only constant thing was my request for water. I guess I was dehydrated due to the malaria fever. I watched 2 movies and listened to the Joyous celebration album...fantastic album and slept for an hour too.

Landed in Dubai and walked for about 25 minutes to my boarding gate. (I didn't know it was that far, I would have taken a cart). After relaxing for about an hour, boarding started. This time, the flight was a freaking long 12 hours but I slept for over 6 hours while I continued listening to the Joyous celebration album

* What are the immigration rules to follow?
Just be confident when being asked questions. Declare food and money in your declaration card.
My locust beans was the only item collected and thrashed right in front of me at Adelaide airport. � �� The overzealous officer just saw 'locust beans' and said 'no form of beans is allowed'. I should have just written iru instead of locust beans. Please use 'irú' or 'seasoning' instead of locust beans on your packaging.
My groundnut and other items were allowed.

* How did you carry all that cash with you?
All my money was in my naira account. Although I had opened a Commonwealth bank account when I got my grant, I used my Naira Mastercard for all my transactions in Adelaide till I got my Comm debit card. I made naira transfer to one of the seniors here and got AUD transferred to my Comm account.

* Can you open bank account while still in Naija?
Yes, I did open with Commonwealth bank

* Which State/suburb did you settle in and why?
SA - Adelaide cos I was nominated by the state.

* Driving in Australia? How long can you use your Naija driving license before you get Aussie license?
For 489, you can use Nigeria driver's license for your entire stay, it's only wise to get the Australian driver license for jobs, convenience etc. I haven't driven since I got here, been using my Metrocard.

* Where you live
I got a place before leaving Nigeria so it made my settling in easier. Got it through a friend of mine who was visiting a friend of his and realised someone was moving out. He spoke to the landlady on my behalf and she was willing to wait 1 week before my arrival. After I had a chat with the landlady, she agreed to rent the apartment to me. That's how I moved in the following day after my arrival.

* Are there Nigerian food/restaurants etc? Are they very expensive?
During my waka in the CBD one day, I got a promo ticket for Uber eats.(they were just sharing the tickets that day in the CBD). So I ordered for some jollof rice and chicken from an African restaurant with the Uber Eats promo card. Actual cost was A$22 but I paid A$7. I ate it thrice cos it was too much to finish at once

I am a Dispute Resolution and Customer Experience Analyst currently looking for job. Although, I have been applying for jobs even before I got here, I hope to get one as soon as the holiday is over.

C'est fini

Please don't mind my grammatical errors

tunlex01:
So here is my landing gist

Long Post Alert



C'est fini

Please don't mind my grammatical errors

Congrats again Mr Tunlex, I remember you helped with a lot of my questions earlier this year, i am really glad that finally you are there, i tap into your blessings may this new year favor all hopefuls, amen...prosper and grow brotherly

LadyHeaven:


Congrats again Mr Tunlex, I remember you helped with a lot of my questions earlier this year, i am really glad that finally you are there, i tap into your blessings may this new year favor all hopefuls, amen...prosper and grow brotherly

Amen o....congratulations to you Sir Tunlex

The kind thing wey NBNCo/internet dey do these days no be am at all. Constant dropouts and atimes just no connection. ISP is next to useless. And to think that I used to support the yeye people?

This is soooo annoying.

LadyHeaven:


Congrats again Mr Tunlex, I remember you helped with a lot of my questions earlier this year, i am really glad that finally you are there, i tap into your blessings may this new year favor all hopefuls, amen...prosper and grow brotherly

Amen. You will be celebrated this new year.

Thank you.

FBS:
The kind thing wey NBNCo/internet dey do these days no be am at all. Constant dropouts and atimes just no connection. ISP is next to useless. And to think that I used to support the yeye people?

This is soooo annoying.

very annoying. The message sent to my landlady indicates the issue will persist until January 9th.

Me I'm using my Optus data for now and it has not disappointed.

tunlex01:


Amen. You will be celebrated this new year.

Thank you.

Ameeeeeeeeeeennnnnnn

Uwlc

So.....internet restored, all appears to be well with the world again.


Happy New Year to everyone in advance. Blessings.

And here we are. Happy New Year 2020 to everyone.

Hi Everyone, please is it easy to get an undergraduate visa to Australia? I am asking because I am thinking of the country to apply for my undergraduate studies aside Nigeria

Nigerians in Australia.

Please what's this news about the fire and weather in Australia...

What shall it profit a man to leave 9ja and enter fire in Australia?

Smile4mee01:
Nigerians in Australia.

Please what's this news about the fire and weather in Australia...

What shall it profit a man to leave 9ja and enter fire in Australia?

This made my day day������

Juliette3Ken:
Hi Everyone, please is it easy to get an undergraduate visa to Australia? I am asking because I am thinking of the country to apply for my undergraduate studies aside Nigeria

It depends on your circumstances. Yes, it is not difficult.

Smile4mee01:
Nigerians in Australia.

Please what's this news about the fire and weather in Australia...

What shall it profit a man to leave 9ja and enter fire in Australia?

Nobody is forcing you to leave na. I don't think anyone has complained to you about the fire.

The fire is quite unfortunate but it is only affecting a small fraction of the country. It is not as if the whole country is on fire.

If it were happening in Nigeria, it wouldn't be a news because nobody cares about others and their well-being.

So you can stay put in Nigeria and leave the Australians to handle their fire.

bellong:


Nobody is forcing you to leave na. I don't think anyone has complained to you about the fire.

The fire is quite unfortunate but it is only affecting a small fraction of the country. It is not as if the whole country is on fire.

If it were happening in Nigeria, it wouldn't be a news because nobody cares about others and their well-being.

So you can stay put in Nigeria and leave the Australians to handle their fire.

the way the news being reported, listening from outside you will think the whole of Australia is on fire. oga bellong happy new year. you scarce for here recently

Good day everyone,pls I've been trying to apply for the 489 myself and it's asking me for Transportation reference number or visa grant number, I dont know how to go about this. Anyone to help?

bellong:


Nobody is forcing you to leave na. I don't think anyone has complained to you about the fire.

The fire is quite unfortunate but it is only affecting a small fraction of the country. It is not as if the whole country is on fire.

If it were happening in Nigeria, it wouldn't be a news because nobody cares about others and their well-being.

So you can stay put in Nigeria and leave the Australians to handle their fire.

Oga, you were only asked a simple question. Just answer and keep all those long stories u wrote up there to yourself!!!

bellong:


It depends on your circumstances. Yes, it is not difficult.

Alright ma'am

Smile4mee01:
Nigerians in Australia.

Please what's this news about the fire and weather in Australia...

What shall it profit a man to leave 9ja and enter fire in Australia?

What shall it profit a man to leave 9ja and enter fire in Australia? This is quite a stereotypical statement.

So if something little occurs in a speficied area of a country, does that mean it's the whole country that's affected?

Your last statement gave you out as someone who is against abroad migration. More like TeamDoNotMigrate gang. Nigeria is better. You will make it in Nigeria than traveling out.

Do you know how many fire outbreaks we witnessed this past year in Nigeria? If you've been keeping abreast of news regularly you must have heard about all the market fire outbreaks that occurred this past year 2019.

What we are suffering in this country is more than Hell fire. There is a better way to ask such question rather than making it looks like you are an antagonist of those relocating abroad.

Stewart883:


Oga, you were only asked a simple question. Just answer and keep all those long stories u wrote up there to yourself!!!

That can't be called a question. What is the meaning of "What shall it profit a man to leave 9ja and enter fire in Australia". Is that a question? That's more like a mockery. If the person that made that statement is a supporter of team "do not relocate abroad", he or she shouldn't bother to make such a mockery statement of a fire that occurred in small fraction of a country. Are you not aware of how many fire outbreaks we experience here in Nigeria day in day out? Haven't you heard about all the fire outbreaks in Nigeria? Does that means it's the whole of Nigeria that was affected?

The said fire didn't even occur in the city. It happened in the remote part of the country more like in the bush. Here in Nigeria, during the dry season, farmers in some villages in Nigeria do experience fire outbreaks in their farmlands. That doesn't mean such fire spreads all through the town they live in. That's simply bush burning. It happens in the bush.

There are ways to ask a question. But making a mockery statement about a minor bush burning occurrence that occurred in a fraction part of a country is not enough to make it look like relocating to Australia is a bad move.


All #TeamDoNotTravelAbroad gangs should take note of this. We are already facing hell fire in Nigeria. Allow us to enter another Hell fire in Australia. We like it that way.

been hearing about fire fire , hope you guys are safe ..