Should I use an agent to migrate?

[moe]

Hi there - just joined the forum and really appreciate all I've learned from reading the posts on migration/visas.

My wife and I (and two young boys) would like to start the application process to migrate to Australia, and are wondering if we should use an agent to shepherd us through the process.

I just went through the visa "wizard" and it came up with a couple of visa options. But I was quite shocked when I saw the fees. The total cost was ~$5000!

Given the cost - and the fact that the fee is non-refundable - I'd like to get an expert opinion on the chances that our application will be approved before applying.

What's everyone's feeling regarding immigration consultants - would they be useful in our case?

Thanks for your help!

Moe

[CharR]

If I could afford it, I would definitely use an agent. You will save yourself SO much hassle and I you say, it's an expensive thing to have rejected!

[comet555]

It really depends on whether or not you like paperwork and if there are any issues with your application (medical problems, custody issues, criminal records, sketchy work experience, approaching 45, etc).

I did my application all by myself. My husband is an engineer and getting the skills assessment was very simple (copy of resume and degree) so there wasn't any complications there. We knew our points and work experience was ok and that the medicals and police checks would be fine. So for us it was fairly straight forward to do it ourselves. At the time though I wasn't working and I happen to like researching and paperwork so I didn't mind.

For us the process cost about (was a few years ago so hard to remember exactly) - all in CDN dollars:
$300 for the skills assessment
$1700 for the visa application (was a bit cheaper then)
$600 for medicals
$30 for police checks
$30 (I think) for long form birth certificates for all of us (you will need them)
$200 for certified copies and secure postage to Australia

So in all it was about $3000 Canadian. This was for what would be the 175 permanent visa application (it changed after we got ours).

I should also not that on that there is only a first installment of about $2000 or so. The second installment you might see mentioned on there is only payable if you do not speak english (or your spouses) or something along those lines. So if english is your first language and you hold a Canadian passport you will only need to pay the initial application fee.

You could go for an initial consultation with an agent (usually free) that will give you a better idea of what you qualify for and what your chances are. Whether you use one or not is up to you. What I will say though is if you meet all the criteria of the skills assessment and the visa then you will get it approved. There is no judging of applications so if you've got the points, work experience, meet all the requirements (medicals, police checks, etc) then they have to give you a visa. If you are confident all those things meet the criteria then it just depends on whether you would want to do it yourself. If not, then definitely speak with an agent who can guide you along.

[moe]

Thanks to you both for your responses (and especially to you, comet55, for the detailed information).

Has anyone heard of/worked with a good agency for Canadians? I'm in Ottawa (but I guess with email it doesn't matter where the agency is located).

Moe

[comet555]

In this day in age it doesn't really matter where your agent is based. I've been going on another message board (British Expats) since 2005 and the two most highly recommended agents are these guys:

George Lombard:
http://www.austimmigration.com.au/site/

Alan Collett:
http://www.gomatilda.com/contact.cfm

If I were to use an agent I would use one of these two. I believe they are both based in Australia (might have office in the UK as well). It wouldn't really matter though as you'd deal with them by phone or by email anyway. The only difference would be the times that you will be speaking with them. If you are in Ottawa you'd be calling after 6pm and before you go to bed. Which could be good if you're working during the day. That is a question I would ask though, how you manage contacting each other due to the time change. They're quite used to it though as most of the clients are in the UK and the times change there is worse than to Canada so I'm sure it'd be fine.

Whoever you go with make sure they are MARA registered as you have legal recourse if they do things they shouldn' (ie, overcharge, not provide services, etc).
http://www.themara.com.au/index.htm

I'm also give you a link to the British Expats board. There are so many people on there that you can almost always find the answers you need. Unfortunatley for us the majority of the people that move to Oz are from the UK which is why there isn't nearly the same amount of activity on here.
http://britishexpats.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=54

Good luck.

[thermojetics]

We did the application ourselves without an agent, but we have paid 320CAD to liveinaustralia.com and we could ask them up to 3 questions a day for 6 months. We also used the brits expats forum which I highly recommend it.

Good luck!

[cdnexpat]

I did mine by myself, but I had a lot of friends who had also gone through the process so it was easy to compare notes, I've also had to do the health check multiple times for the 457, and have colleages who were able to do all the paperwork for me so I didn't have to repeat that for the PR. Personally I wouldn't have done it myself if I didn't have any help. It can be daunting (but not really difficult, you just upload whatever they request). So if you have the extra money and want peace of mind get a migration agent.

Another thing to keep in mind is that sometimes migration agents have "connections" to get applications fast tracked. Mine took over 7 months (which I'm told is good) whereas people who had migration agents that applied at the same time as me took <4. Could just be a statistical anomaly though.