How I applied for migration to Australia

Migrating from Singapore to Australia

Immigration was a totally foreign concept to me. My wife and I met while we were studying in Australia. We came back to Singapore to get married and had our kids. While we were in Singapore, we realized that we were not happy and felt that something is lacking - work-life balance. We thought of coming back to Australia and looked for ways on how to migrate. Back those days, I did not have any idea on how to start. I was back and forth to the Australia High Commission and research online to get information. Guess what, all these researching did not help and confused me even more on how to apply correctly. Added to my worries are the stories I read from forum websites where some people's applications are rejected.

Since after weeks of research and I was still not sure where to start and what to submit, that's the time when I decided to seek help from a professional. I returned to the internet and searched for registered migration agents in Singapore. One of the agencies I found with good reviews is NTRUST. We attended their immigration seminar and we found it very informative. From there we made an appointment for a consultation to discuss our case in more depth. Their consultant analyzed our eligibility and criteria and we were advised about every step of the process in details. Of course, to make sure I would engage with the best migration agency, we consulted with other agencies in Singapore. My wife and I decided to use NTRUST because we felt they could provide a better service than the others.

One of the requirements I needed to complete is the IELTS general training exam and get the score I need to add more points for my application. I registered for the exam at British Council and I practiced almost every night for a month to improve my English. Luckily, I was able to get good scores so I did not retake the exam as other people do. From there, I submitted all other requirements to our migration agent and they took care of the submissions and communication with the Australian authorities.

It took about 7 months before our application for Australian PR was approved. After a year of preparation, our family moved to Australia. We are now living in Perth.

What is in Australia which is not in Singapore?

My Answer: Life

For me, personally, it is life. I find life in Australia. I personally do not find life in Singapore. What do you value the most about life? You got to ask yourself this, "What do I live for?". Do you live for money? Do you live for work? Do you live for the clothes that you wear or the type of food that you eat?

For me, I live for my family. When we migrated here in Australia, I started to enjoy my life so much more. And as a family we do things a family is ought to do together. Our lives here in Australia comprise of doings simple things together as a family including things you might not imagine are enjoyable but they are. Cleaning the house together as family, mowing the lawn and doing our garden together as a family, taking a deep in our swimming pool at our backyard as a family. Not necessarily going to the movie houses (because tickets are expensive), but going to video rental shops and watching it together as a family. And one of the favorite things my family life revolves around because I originally came from Singapore, is the concept about food. Food is such a huge part of a Singaporean's makeup. We were raised thinking that food is a huge aspect to enjoy.

In Singapore you go out to the hawker center and join the queue and wait for your dish which can turn out nice or not nice. In Australia, family life is different.  When we think of food we'll eat, we go to supermarket and get the ingredients. Let us say for example, chicken rice. I had a lot of chicken rice in Singapore but from our own point of view, we really enjoy the food we prepared for ourselves more. Why? Because we one exactly what goes in to the dish. We know what sort of chicken we are cooking - hormone-free, steroid free, fresh and juicy. While cooking, the kids participate chopping the spring onions, we make the sauce and debate about it which is fun. And best of all, we sit down, eat the food we prepared with some of Australia's best white wine to compliment the rice and chicken meat. That in my opinion is life. That in my opinion is what life should be all about.  When the kids comeback from school early, we jump on our bicycles, and grab our fishing rods and we do a bit of fishing. The weather is nice, the scenery is amazing, there are no crowds, and you don’t have to spend a large chunk of money just for a holiday.

In Singapore, I have to admit it is a very good place to work. You can literary work day in day out day and night and when you get tired from work you go to sleep and continue working when you wake up and you work, and you work, and you work.

For me, work is part of life but it is not life.

Life in general, I just think there' more life in Australia.

Weather in Australia

Australia's geographical size is so large and climate in different places varies depending on where you are. It can range from tropical to desert all the way to temperate. Living in Perth, I would say the climate here is more of a temperate-type and I love it.

There are 4 seasons here and you can actually see them go by and there is actually a certain feel in each. For example, while I'm writing this post, the winter had just passed, and we are bridging out into springtime. Spring begins in September in Perth and during this season, the colors of the environment are just lovely, it is wonderful. Flowers are everywhere in different colors - red, yellow, lavender - even if you just drove along the streets not to mention if you actually drove outside of the metropolitan area, there will be a lot of colorful wild flowers all over around. The weather really impacts the type of flora.

Then after spring, summer comes in December which can really be quite warm. The people will then hangout at the beaches for refreshing afternoon sea breeze. Bodies of waters are really very nice, you can cool down on the river, sea, or like many people homes here, they cool down in their own swimming pools.

In March, autumn begins. I would say this is my favorite season because I find it mild with blue skies, not too windy, plants and tress' colors change and their leaves drop. This time, the daytime is still sunny but the nights are cooler.

Then in June comes winter, the coldest part of the year. I find winter very important because it gives the land a time to rejuvenate and recover a lot of water that is lacking in a lot of months. Rain cleanses things up, fills the dams with water which will last for the remainder of the year.

The seasons change, things change, and the clothes people wear change in line with the season. One thing I find which I really appreciate about the weather in Perth is the fact that air has very much lower humidity. Because the humidity is low, the air is lighter, therefore it is easier to breathe. If you want to be more scientific about that, if there is less water and more air, there will be more Oxygen in the air. Generally this will affect you and your sense of well-being. You go out and exercise and you find that your body can able to take in more Oxygen and your body can do a lot more. You will feel more energetic because you do not have to fight the weather like what you experience if you are in a humid environment.

If you are migrating to Australia and weather is a big factor in making a decision on which place you will settle, I highly suggest you come to Perth. I've been to a lot of places in Australia and I still, always believe that I made a fantastic choice on where to live.