Are we Nearly There Yet?

It’s been a while since I did a visa update but I think we might finally be on the final straight for this visa business and it reminds me of when your a child on a journey and keep asking your parents “are we nearly there?”.

We have gathered the following “evidence” to be submitted:

1) Statutory declarations from friends and families with just a couple outstanding;
2) Copies of emails, text messages, Skype and phone chat logs;
3) Evidence of our travels together;
4) Evidence of employment;
5) Bank statements, receipts, tickets as evidence of joint finances;
6) Certified copies of my passport and driving licence;
7) Proof we live in the same address – which is hard to do as we don’t get post to the home address but our PO Box address but we have evidence the post goes to the same place;
8) Copies of cards, letters and emails to and from friends when we discuss my moving to and being in Australia with the Aussie

Now we just have to do the following:

1) Finish our statutory declarations and get them certified/witnessed;
2) Get the Aussie’s passport and driving licence certified;
3) Wait for the outcome of my UK police check;
4) Wait for the outcome of the Aussie’s police check for Australia;
5) Finish filling out my application form;
6) Fill out a form which asks for everything I have done for the last 30 odd years including where I have traveled outside Australia, education and worked (seriously!).

I have tried to think of everything possible to support the application and sometimes think we have gone over the top but then I think is it better to give them more than they need so they don’t end up needing more from us so the process is smoother?

I think we will then be done if we can just get these last few bits finished off this week. Then it will be a case of submitting the application, being granted the bridging visa (hopefully) and waiting.

I do still wonder whether we should have used a Migration Expert but with the cost of the visa being so high we really wanted to avoid that cost. I’m hoping we do have everything together finally. Has anyone else used a migration expert for this process? What was your experience?

One of my friends in Darwin said to me that I should just write in my statutory declaration that I live in a house in the middle of nowhere with an outside toilet and shower, why would I do that if we weren’t serious!! I think she has a good point 😉 Not sure that’s what immigration is looking for though.

*** Please note that I am in no way giving visa or legal advice about applying for visa’s in Australia or anywhere else – this is just what I have found and is only relevant to our situation ***