do we need an agent to sort out our visa?

[Guest kezza01]

Hi all,

 

We are at the very first stages of applying for a skilled independent permanent visa (subclass 190). nothing signed as yet. my husband scores high in points and is booked to do the general English test which he will need to pass to give him 60 points.

 

We have read that you don't need to have an agent to get a visa? is this true? and how easy is the process without one?

 

many thanks

 

kerry

[wubbledoos]

We did it with no problems, the most work intensive part was the ACS skills assessment, the EOI submission and visa application were straight forward.

 

Personally I think the fees are very very high for what is done. But if money isn't an issue and you don't want the stress then go with an agent.

[Guest kezza01]

what is involved with the skills assessment? my husband runs his own building company and will need to get his dad to give him a reference. how should it be worded? is there any advice you can give on this subject please.

 

thank you so much for your response.

 

kerry

[amdaloia]

Hi

 

My partner, 2 kids and I are in London and applying for a partner visa for him (I am Aussie, he is English and kids have dual citizenship/passports) and we did it all ourselves and without an agent. Obviously there are different requirements/supporting evidence for a partner visa than a skilled work one but I am sure the process and the paperwork would be similar.

 

Its not that difficult, its just long and tedious (and can sometimes ask some questions that test your memory - such as countries visited in the last 10 years, places you have lived in the last 10 years etc) and if you think about it you have to provide all the information and supporting documents to the agent and they simply transfer the information you provide to the forms so you might as well save yourself some money and do it all yourself.

 

If you do it yourself be prepared to spend a decent amount of time going through the handbook to make sure you have all that is needed and make sure the forms are carefully and correctly completed. Supporting evidence can be tiresome to get together but it also serves as a nice reminder of your relationship from years past

 

If there is something extra special that an agent does (we never even considered going to one as after I looked at the forms and process it certainly wasnt worth the money that we would have had to pay - especially as the application is quite expensive in itself) then maybe consider it, but it really depends on how much you want to pay, how much time you have to do it yourself and if you are more happy for the Embassy to liaise direct with yourself/your partner or some third party.

 

Good luck with whatever option you chose and remember there is always this forum to help you out if you decide to do it yourself and have questions.

[jim and adel]

Plenty of people get visas without using agents. We did it ourselves easily enough - all the documentation, checklists and guidance needed is available online and there are migrant discussion boards like this one where clarification can be sought. Some people have complex circumstances or want the reassurance that their case is being handled by a professional and therefore feel that using an agent is money well spent. For us, it would have been money wasted.

[Petrus]

...applying for a skilled independent permanent visa (subclass 190)...

The subclass 190 is a Skilled Nominated, the skilled independent is the subclass 189.

To get a visa by yourself you should perfectly know rules and procedures you'll find along the process.

It's feasible, but since you're confusing one type of visa with another, probably you'd better look for the guidance of a migration agent.

[wrussell]

Hi all,

 

We are at the very first stages of applying for a skilled independent permanent visa (subclass 190). nothing signed as yet. my husband scores high in points and is booked to do the general English test which he will need to pass to give him 60 points.

 

We have read that you don't need to have an agent to get a visa? is this true? and how easy is the process without one?

 

many thanks

 

kerry

 

You do not have to retain the services of an agent to apply for any Australian visa.

 

If you do consult an agent. make sure you consult a registered migration agent.

 

You should at least run your case past a registered migration agent for an assessment, even if you do not wish to retain the services of an agent to manage your case.

Edited March 3, 2014 by wrussell
typo

[Irishglover]

If you do it yourself there's a lot of filling in what seems like the same form multiple times. It's not overly complicated doing it yourself especially once you've done the IELTS, have your skilled assessment in place and have enough points. I did it for a 489 visa for myself and my partner and was amazed how smoothly it all went.

 

When doing the reference for the skilled assessment there is an example on the website where all of the skilled occupations are listed or else on the site of the governing body for the assessment. You can also look up the skill in detail and you'll get a list if points of what a person with that skill should be able to do. Put the 2 together, saying in the reference you've done what the want you to be able to do and you should be ok.

[BillyJo]

Hi all,

 

We are at the very first stages of applying for a skilled independent permanent visa (subclass 190). nothing signed as yet. my husband scores high in points and is booked to do the general English test which he will need to pass to give him 60 points.

 

We have read that you don't need to have an agent to get a visa? is this true? and how easy is the process without one?

 

many thanks

 

kerry

 

Hiya Kezza,

 

We are in the middle of doing a 190 Visa and went for the migration agent option.

After many chats and looking at stuff online......we were simply too confused by the differing information out there and also did not want to base such a big decision/move on our ability to follow unverified information written by other people on the internet.

 

The agent's fees are bloody expensive......for what they do......but if you are willing to pay this for piece of mind, and for a consistent, professional and registered point of reference/information....then I think that it is money well spent.

We wanted to get through the process in the shortest time, with the least amount of hassle. I feel that if i turned the clocks back then I could do it without an agent.....but that is only on the basis of the experience and information that we have been guided through by the agent.

 

It's a totally personal choice Kezza.....but if you have the finances, then I would go with an agent if you want things to move quickly and smoothly with minimum stress to you.

 

In terms of a reference from employer/ Dad in law.....here is the advise given by my agent (you can have this for free!)

 

 

INSTRUCTIONS FOR EMPLOYMENT REFERENCES For the purposes of assessing the work experience requirement,employment references should contain the following information about the employee: • Main duties-This should match the occupation that your skill is being assessed for under your skill assessment, or be closely related. (I have included these descriptions below) •Hours of work-You need to show that you have been working for at least 20 hours a week in your occupation. •Period of employment- Your employer needs to include the exact date that you started working for them(DD/MM/YYYY) and the exact date you left (DD/MM/YYYY). If you are still working there they should state this. • Salary details For the purposes of assessing the work experience requirement, employment references should contain the following information about the employer: • Contact details for the company including postal and street address, telephone and fax numbers, email and website addresses

• Contact details for the writer of the employment reference including full name, position and signature

•Organisation chart for the company where appropriate It is important to note that if the applicant fails to provide sufficient verifiable documentary evidence of employment, there is likely to be a significant delay in processing the visa application. Furthermore, failure to satisfy the decision-maker that the work experience requirement has been met will result in refusal of the visa application

[BillyJo]

More on References:

 

INSTRUCTIONS FOR EMPLOYMENT REFERENCES

 

You must provide verifiable documentary evidence of your skilled work experience covering

the required period of employment that we are claiming points for.

Any employment evidence presented with the application must contain enough information

to satisfy the visa decision maker that you meet the work experience requirement.

For the assessment of the work experience requirement, employment references should

contain the following information about the employee:

Exact period of employment (date of commencement DD/MM/YYYY and termination

DD/MM/YYYY), including:

· whether permanent or temporary

· full or part time

· the main five duties undertaken

· the salary earned

· position/s held

Employment references should be written on the official letterhead of the company and

also contain the following information about the employer/s:

● Contact details for the company including postal and street address, telephone and fax

numbers, email and website addresses

● Contact details for the person authorised to sign the employment reference including full

name and position, telephone number and signature

● Organisation chart for the company where appropriate

If the applicant fails to provide sufficient evidence of employment, there is likely to be a

significant delay in processing of the visa application.

Failure to provide satisfactory evidence of employment for the relevant period may result in

refusal of the visa application.

An example of a work reference including all of the above information is listed below.

 

Immigration2oz.com

42 High Street

Guildford

Surrey

GU1 3EL

01 November 2013

REF: Joe Blogs

 

To whom it may concern

Joe has been employed by Immigration2oz on a permanent fulltime basis, working at least

40 hours per week since he started with the company on the 9th of February 2007 and is

still employed to the present day. The position he holds is ‘Accountant’ and his current

Salary is £30,000.

In his role as an Accountant, Joe holds the following responsibilities:

· Daily management of multi-currency bank accounts

· Preparation of multi-currency cashflow forecasts.

· Maintenance and reconciliation of balance sheets accounts including monthly

reconciliation of debtors, creditors, prepayments and accruals.

· Managing inter-company transactions and agreeing month end balances within the

group.

· Posting and documenting Journals

· Review and submission of monthly supplier payment runs.

· Review of existing financial processes and systems and improve efficiencies.

· Assist in the quarterly process of budget setting.

· Producing schedules for the year end file for submission to auditors.

[catherine.c]

For what it's worth I spoke to an agent before I began the process and they gave me information which I believed was wrong. I checked it on the immigration site and yes, it was wrong. This made me realise that nobody will look after your dreams as well as you would yourselves.

[Guest murphyslaw]

hi i was just wondering if anyone could direct us towards websites for advice to start the process yourself instead of a agent

[snifter]

hi i was just wondering if anyone could direct us towards websites for advice to start the process yourself instead of a agent

 

Starting here is usually a good point. Check to see if you are eligible and if so what visa. Then start reading

 

http://www.immi.gov.au/Pages/Welcome.aspx

[Guest kezza01]

thank you so much billyjo you are extremely helpful :-)

[jodipodi]

More on References:

 

INSTRUCTIONS FOR EMPLOYMENT REFERENCES

 

You must provide verifiable documentary evidence of your skilled work experience covering

the required period of employment that we are claiming points for.

Any employment evidence presented with the application must contain enough information

to satisfy the visa decision maker that you meet the work experience requirement.

For the assessment of the work experience requirement, employment references should

contain the following information about the employee:

Exact period of employment (date of commencement DD/MM/YYYY and termination

DD/MM/YYYY), including:

· whether permanent or temporary

· full or part time

· the main five duties undertaken

· the salary earned

· position/s held

Employment references should be written on the official letterhead of the company and

also contain the following information about the employer/s:

● Contact details for the company including postal and street address, telephone and fax

numbers, email and website addresses

● Contact details for the person authorised to sign the employment reference including full

name and position, telephone number and signature

● Organisation chart for the company where appropriate

If the applicant fails to provide sufficient evidence of employment, there is likely to be a

significant delay in processing of the visa application.

Failure to provide satisfactory evidence of employment for the relevant period may result in

refusal of the visa application.

An example of a work reference including all of the above information is listed below.

 

Immigration2oz.com

42 High Street

Guildford

Surrey

GU1 3EL

01 November 2013

REF: Joe Blogs

 

To whom it may concern

Joe has been employed by Immigration2oz on a permanent fulltime basis, working at least

40 hours per week since he started with the company on the 9th of February 2007 and is

still employed to the present day. The position he holds is ‘Accountant’ and his current

Salary is £30,000.

In his role as an Accountant, Joe holds the following responsibilities:

· Daily management of multi-currency bank accounts

· Preparation of multi-currency cashflow forecasts.

· Maintenance and reconciliation of balance sheets accounts including monthly

reconciliation of debtors, creditors, prepayments and accruals.

· Managing inter-company transactions and agreeing month end balances within the

group.

· Posting and documenting Journals

· Review and submission of monthly supplier payment runs.

· Review of existing financial processes and systems and improve efficiencies.

· Assist in the quarterly process of budget setting.

· Producing schedules for the year end file for submission to auditors.

 

Hi billy jo, just wondering.... I know the roles and tasks etc that employers put on the reference are supposed to match the occupation you are applying under as closely as possible but can you basically just copy them as they're written on the skills assessment website (as long as it's correct of course)? I did wonder if this would be ok or if it would be seen as... Hmmm...well, unfavourable to skills assessment organisation?

Would be much easier for us to just give hubby's employer the bullet points as stated on vetassess for them to copy? X