-
Starting today August 7th, 2024, in order to post in the Married Couples, Courting Couples, or Singles forums, you will not be allowed to post if you have your Marital status designated as private. Announcements will be made in the respective forums as well but please note that if yours is currently listed as Private, you will need to submit a ticket in the Support Area to have yours changed.
Thinking of Moving to Australia
- Thread starter Tahoenite
- Start date
my understanding is that jobs are harder to come by. While I've never been there it does seem like a nice place and everybody I know who has been there loves it.
Perhaps see if you can find the member kiwimac and ask him a few questions or johnnz.
Upvote
0
This may seem silly but I wanted to ask about cell phones, I have looked online but could not really decipher specifics about what is offered. I would like to know is;
What kind of cell phones do you all use (ie GSM 900/1800 compatible)?
Is there a preferred provider?
Do you use prepaid often over there or contract better?
We were specifically looking for areas in Canberra, Perth, and James Cook, for coverage.
Thank you for all your help.
What kind of cell phones do you all use (ie GSM 900/1800 compatible)?
Is there a preferred provider?
Do you use prepaid often over there or contract better?
We were specifically looking for areas in Canberra, Perth, and James Cook, for coverage.
Thank you for all your help.
Last edited:
Upvote
0
short answer is yes but from my understanding there are some issues that would not allow a US handset to be used in Australia
Vodafone 3 would be the most popular I think although I don't have figures.
Optus which also owns boost mobile and virgin mobile (plus others) is reasonable although it is worth noting that boost has been made a brand of optus while the other optus owned companies have been kept seperate. This means if a phone is locked to a particular network like optus you will not be able to use a virgin sim card in the phone despite them being the same company.
Telstra has alot of customers although I would say not that many in the major cities. Once you get outside of the cities reception is pretty poor unless you are with telstra. This means basically anyone who lives in a country area has no choice but to use telstra. Telstra used to be called Telecom and was the government owned telco and still from time to time seem to forget they now have competition.
vodafone 3 (hutchinsons the company behind the brand 3 merged with vodafone last year) seems to have better pre-paid options. About eight years ago everyone I spoke to who had a plan with vodafone said they would frequently stuff up the direct debit.
Optus do have a large number of people on plans although I think this is more due to having business phones.
telstra I'm not sure about.
Virgin mobile are mainly pre-paid. When they first started they only did pre-paid and nothing else. They now do plans (post-paid) as well. I am with virgin on a plan. The reason for this is because if I call another virgin mobile or send a text message it costs me nothing. If I was on pre-paid like my parents then it would cost 5c/min for a call and 5c for a text message. To call other networks normal charges apply. Since my wife and my parents all have virgin mobiles it means I can call them for nothing. If you have a handset already then virgin will also give you $10 credit every month if you join them. That was another reason I joined in the first place.
The basic rule when getting a phone though is figure out who you will call the most and make sure you are on the same network. This way you will get the best deal.
canberra and perth it should make no difference which provider you use.
For James Cook uni however I am not sure of its exact location and you may find you need to go with telstra if it is out of town.
Upvote
0
ebia
Senior Contributor
- Jul 6, 2004
- 41,711
- 2,142
- Faith
- Anglican
- Marital Status
- Married
- Politics
- AU-Greens
Just to reinforce what TheDag said about country coverage - Telstra NextG is the only option even in some relatively civilised country areas like this.
On top of that Australia has reputation for being relatively expensive for mobile calls and very expensive for mobile data compared to many countries.
On top of that Australia has reputation for being relatively expensive for mobile calls and very expensive for mobile data compared to many countries.
Upvote
0
Montalban
Well-Known Member
A very minor point. We know what the term 'cell phone' means, however we tend to use 'mobile phone'
I know a guy who bought one of the first iPhones and he got it direct from the USA. He had to buy additional material to make it work here in Australia.
There are many. I believe Telstra has the widest coverage. I am not with them, myself, neither for my mobile phone, internet, or mobile internet.
This would depend on your needs.
All the major servers would cover Canberra and Perth - both cities. James Cook University is in Townsville just outside of FNQ (Far North Queensland - not an official name)
There's a Telstra coverage map link here depending on what service of theirs you're after
Iprimus coverage map here
Vodaphone coverage map here
Upvote
0
They all helped, next question is it common to use your own phones or use the ones that companies offer?
I noticed quite a few of the companies offer a SIM card set up, does anyone use this and is it easy to use?
Does handset = mobile phone?
Upvote
0
Montalban
Well-Known Member
Companies would have different policies on mobile phone use. I doubt many give open slather use of their phones for personal use. So most would have two phones.
I don't know what this is.
My understanding is a that a handset is simply a land-line phone connection -whether you've got a cordless one or not. The handset being simply that part of the phone you hold in your hand.
I could be wrong.
But your understanding of 'cell phone' is what we call a mobile phone.
Upvote
0
More questions.
Is there a preferred bank to use over there for savings and checking or all of them about the same?
What type of retirement accounts do people use, do companies give pension plans, or do most people set their own and if so which companies?
And thank you everyone for all for the help you have given us, my wife just sent off her applications to Australearn so we should know is 8 to 10 months if we are headed over.
Is there a preferred bank to use over there for savings and checking or all of them about the same?
What type of retirement accounts do people use, do companies give pension plans, or do most people set their own and if so which companies?
And thank you everyone for all for the help you have given us, my wife just sent off her applications to Australearn so we should know is 8 to 10 months if we are headed over.
Upvote
0
ebia
Senior Contributor
- Jul 6, 2004
- 41,711
- 2,142
- Faith
- Anglican
- Marital Status
- Married
- Politics
- AU-Greens
The major banks are remarkably similar. Compared to the UK I found them relatively expensive. People here don't use cheques very much because bank charges are high on those. The smaller regional banks are sometimes a slightly better deal (eg The Bendigo in Victoria, Bank of SA in South Australia) but you don't get the same extensive coverage off their home turf. In country areas not all the national banks will be represented, and which ones are best represented varies by state (eg Westpac is very well represented in country Victoria but much less so in country SA).
A popular alternative is Credit Unions, which are non-profit making. They generally offer lower charges and provide counter services and ATM facilities via one of the major banks. E.g. we bank with the Victorian Teachers' Credit Union and have access to pretty much all the facilities of the Commonwealth Bank but with lower charges.
Upvote
0
Montalban
Well-Known Member
The big ones are:
National Australia Bank (appropriately their initials are NAB)
Commonwealth Bank
Australia New Zealand Bank (ANZ)
Westpac (which just bought out St. George Bank - which currently continues to trade under its own name)
Banks here I think are worse than in the USA. They claim there's competition but there really isn't much and the banks charge you for everything.
Most people may be relying on superannuation
If you work in some industries the employer contributes to your superannuation.
There's also things such as 'salary sacrificing' which you can get less money in the hand and more put in to your supeannuation
Good luck
Don't forget we spell it cheque not check.
Check simply means here to test things. Although due to American influence we have anomalies such as raincheck
Upvote
0
Yes, handset = mobile phone.
It's a term usually used if you already have a phone and just want a SIM - i.e. bring your own handset.
Some people prefer to sign up for a handset + SIM deal from a mobile provider, others prefer to buy their own handset and just get a SIM - they're both pretty common so it's really up to you.
e.g. try the optus site to compare both types
Upvote
0
As others have listed the main banks I won't repeat it, and yes, people don't tend to use cheques here as much (many places won't take personal cheques).
Retirement accounts here are superannuation, and your employer must contribute a mandatory amount of money (based on a % of your pay - it is currently 9%) to a superannuation fund of your choosing. You can also elect for you want the fund to invest to a certain degree - e.g. shares,bonds,property funds,cash etc, and you can choose to invest your own after-tax money as well to "top it up".
Good luck!
Upvote
0
For clarification superannuation is a government mandated retirement that is set up with a person's preference? Is the superannuation a personal account that follows you from job to job? I am sorry I tried reading up on it but seemed fuzzy on a couple points.
Upvote
0
To quote the Australian Taxation Office:
So yeah, government mandated, employers must contribute for all relevant workers.
Your super account if your personal account, not a communal one. It can follow you job to job - each employer is required, on commencement of employment, to ask you which superannuation fund you have an account with and pay to it. If an employee doesn't specify, most employers have a preferred fund with which they will start a new account for the employee and will pay into that.
Many people are lax when it comes to this and end up with a few different super accounts, which isn't ideal, but it isn't really a whole lot of effort to ensure each time you change jobs you give them the details of your existing account. You can also transfer the balance of your account to a different providor whenever you want (or even start a self-managed fund in which case the individual becomes responsible for how the fund is being invested themselves).
Upvote
0
Montalban
Well-Known Member
A lot of 'alternative' lifestyle people live around Sydney University in suburbs such as Newtown, Chippendale, etc.
I can't vouch for the prices of residences there, but both suburbs are close to the CBD
As to practicing in Australia...
"New Zealand applicants
Admission
If you have been admitted in New Zealand, apply directly to the Supreme Court of NSW in accordance with the Trans Tasman Mutual Recognition Act 1996. For any enquiries call the Registrar of the Supreme Court of New South Wales on (02) 9230 8063 or email supreme_court@agd.nsw.gov.au."
The Law Society of NSW
Upvote
0
While it does not follow you from job to job there is talk of the government linking super accounts to either a tax file number or some other system so people don't lose track of their super. there is currently I think billions of dollars of super where the person has not updated details and therefore lost track and is missing out.
The bit below is also for your information even though I am quoting another poster
Although it is a little known law that employers can force you to go with the default fund in certain circumstances. My employer can do that but have chose to pay my super into the fund I want despite me being the only person not with the default fund.
Bank bashing is a national sport same as putting down politicians!
it does pay to shop around. When one bank introduced a unlimited transaction account the other banks said it won't last. However it was so successful that most banks now offer a unlimited transaction account. Suncorp has sub accounts you can create for which you use phone or internet banking to transfer money to and from. These sub accounts have a much higher interest rate which helps. The interest rate is actually higher than what banks offer for term deposits and unlike term deposits you always have access to your money.
The following banks are banks that I know have secure internet banking
Suncorp
NAB (national australia bank) but only if you have a mobile phone
HSBC
Bemdigo (note bendigo puchased the bank of SA so they may have it as well)
this list is not comprehensive but if you plan on using internet banking you should make sure they have either security tokens (the bank may charge for these) or virtual security tokens (where you need a mobile phone). Virtual security tokens are not as secure as the information can be intercepted.
These tokens have an extra password to enter to log in on the websites after entering your user id and password. the token has a number which changes every thirty seconds. If you do not put the correct number in for the timeframe it will not allow you to log in. The way most people hack into bank accounts is by spying on what you type on your keyboard and then using the information later (you can't be logged onto a bank website from two places at the same time) so by the time you log off the extra number will have changed and they will not be able to log on and transfer money out of your bank account.
I know Westpac has said several times that to have this security is too expensive although they may look into it again.
Others may know of other banks who use this system.
Upvote
0
Thank you all again for the advice it has really helped us refine our plans as they look more like we could be moving over. Your answers and more importantly, statements that were just part of posts have pulled us more in this direction.
I have a couple more questions.
First do doctors, medics, normal people get sued when something goes wrong when helping someone that has had an accident and needs medical assistance? Like if a man is choking at a restaurant, someone jumps up and gives him the ab thrust maneuver and cracks a few of the guy's ribs in the process.
Second do they allow animals into all public buildings if the owner calls them a "service animal"? At the moment in the US business's are mandated to allow any "service animal", and are forbidden to ask what the animal is used for. People with seeing eye dogs make sense but we have those that are abusing it by bringing little decorative dogs into places like a movie theater claiming that they need it for some reason that they will not give. I am curious if you have anything like this in Australia?
I have a couple more questions.
First do doctors, medics, normal people get sued when something goes wrong when helping someone that has had an accident and needs medical assistance? Like if a man is choking at a restaurant, someone jumps up and gives him the ab thrust maneuver and cracks a few of the guy's ribs in the process.
Second do they allow animals into all public buildings if the owner calls them a "service animal"? At the moment in the US business's are mandated to allow any "service animal", and are forbidden to ask what the animal is used for. People with seeing eye dogs make sense but we have those that are abusing it by bringing little decorative dogs into places like a movie theater claiming that they need it for some reason that they will not give. I am curious if you have anything like this in Australia?
Upvote
0
Similar threads
