Moving to Australia: A First-Steps Guide for Expats

Australia takes migration seriously in a way that is unusual: it publishes occupation lists, runs a transparent points test, and actively selects for the skills it wants. If you are on the right list with the right assessment, the path is clear. If you are not, no amount of enthusiasm substitutes.

The country that awaits is genuinely attractive - high wages, strong employment protections, good weather in most of it, an outdoor culture, and a multicultural society where nearly a third of the population was born overseas. The counterweight, consistently, is housing.

How the skilled system works

The core mechanism is SkillSelect: you submit an expression of interest with a points score covering age, English ability, qualifications, skilled work experience, partner skills and other factors. Periodically, invitations to apply are issued to candidates above the threshold for their occupation.

Two prerequisites sit before that.

Your occupation must be on a relevant skilled occupation list. These lists are revised, and the list your occupation appears on determines which visas are open to you.

You need a skills assessment from the assessing authority for your occupation - a formal evaluation confirming your qualifications and experience meet the Australian standard. This takes time and money and is a genuine gate. Start it early; it is the most common cause of a delayed timeline. The general version is getting your qualifications recognized.

From there the main streams are independent skilled migration with no sponsor, state or territory nomination where a jurisdiction nominates you for its labour market needs, employer-sponsored routes, and regional visas which offer additional points and lower thresholds in exchange for living outside the major cities.

That regional element is worth taking seriously rather than dismissing. Points for regional nomination are substantial, and regional Australia is not the outback - it includes substantial coastal cities with real employment.

English testing is central to the points score, and moving from competent to superior English is often the cheapest available points improvement. So is a partner’s skills assessment.

Australia has also been restructuring its temporary skilled routes and its student and graduate pathways, so check current settings rather than older descriptions. The Australia visa section covers the structure, and the sponsorship side is in how employer visa sponsorship works.

Arriving: TFN, Medicare, super

Your first errand is a Tax File Number, without which you are taxed at the highest rate. Apply online as soon as you arrive.

Then Medicare, if you are eligible. Permanent residents generally are; temporary visa holders often are not, unless their country has a reciprocal health care agreement with Australia. If you are not eligible, you will usually be required to hold private health insurance as a visa condition, and you should arrange it before you fly. See health insurance for new arrivals.

Then a bank account, which Australian banks make comparatively easy - several allow you to open before arriving.

And superannuation. Your employer must pay a percentage of your earnings into a superannuation fund on top of your salary. Choose a fund rather than defaulting, consolidate accounts if you accumulate several, and be aware that if you leave Australia permanently on a temporary visa you may be able to claim it back, subject to tax. The general principle of tracking retirement savings across countries is in moving your pension abroad.

Healthcare

Medicare covers much of the cost of doctor visits and public hospital treatment for eligible residents. Some doctors bulk bill, meaning no charge to you; others charge a fee with Medicare rebating part, leaving a gap payment.

The Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme subsidises medication. Dental care for adults is largely outside Medicare, as is much optical - private “extras” cover is what most people use for these, and it is a normal household expense.

Private health insurance also interacts with the tax system through a surcharge on higher earners without hospital cover and a loading applied if you take it out later in life - which is why many Australians hold it even with Medicare eligibility. Ask an adviser whether it makes sense for your income.

Details in the Australia healthcare section, and the dental gap in dental and vision care abroad.

Money and tax

Australia taxes residents on worldwide income with a progressive scale and a tax-free threshold, plus the Medicare levy. Non-residents are taxed differently and without the threshold, so your residency status for tax purposes matters and is determined by tests distinct from your visa - see tax residency explained.

Salaries are high by international standards, particularly in mining, healthcare, engineering, construction trades and technology. Employment conditions are strong: four weeks of annual leave is standard, there is a well-developed award system setting minimum conditions by industry, and penalty rates apply for unsocial hours in many sectors.

Structure is in the Australia tax section.

Housing, which dominates everything

Sydney and Melbourne have among the least affordable housing relative to income anywhere in the developed world, and rental vacancy rates in the major cities have been extremely low. Rental applications are competitive and often involve inspections attended by dozens of applicants.

Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Hobart, Canberra and the regional centres are cheaper - though all have risen - and the regional visa incentives point in the same direction.

Practical points: rental applications generally require references, proof of income and identity points; bonds are held by a state authority rather than the landlord; and lease terms and tenant rights vary by state. Budget for the first-month cost, which is substantial - the arithmetic in budgeting your first six months abroad applies.

Life, distance and climate

The distances are the thing people from Europe most underestimate. Sydney to Perth is roughly the width of Europe. Domestic flights are a normal part of life, and “popping home” to Europe or North America is a very long and expensive journey - which affects how often you will see family, and matters more over years than people anticipate.

Climate varies from tropical in the north to temperate in Tasmania. Sun protection is a serious public health matter rather than a suggestion, given skin cancer rates. Bushfire and flood risk are genuine considerations in choosing where to live and worth researching for a specific area.

Socially, Australia is informal, direct and welcoming, and its multicultural cities make arriving comparatively easy. Workplace culture is relatively flat and work-life boundaries are generally respected.

What catches people out

Occupation lists changing between planning and applying. Skills assessment timelines. Medicare ineligibility on a temporary visa. The rental market. And the sheer distance from the northern hemisphere, which is an emotional cost as much as a financial one.

For comparisons, moving to New Zealand is the close sibling with a smaller economy and a different lifestyle balance, moving to Canada runs a similar points system in the northern hemisphere, and moving to South Africa is a common origin for skilled arrivals here and an interesting comparison in its own right.

State-level detail, current occupation lists and cost breakdowns are in the Australia country guide and the cost of living section. For current invitation round and assessment experiences, the visa and immigration forum is where candidates compare notes.