On Saturday, 1st April – April Fools’Day – I received an email from my migrant agent with the news. I am a permanent residency. The PDF from the Department of Immigration and Border Protection was attached. It took three years. I applied for the temporary residency visa in April 2014. Two years later, in April 2016, I became eligible to …
Sometime in May or June, I became eligible to apply for permanent residency. If you’re just joining me at this part of my story, I came to Australia in 2012 to be with my partner. I applied for a de facto partner visa subclass 820. It grants temporary residency. It lets me travel, study, work, and access …
Given Australia’s publicly funded universal health care, is private health insurance worth it? Last June, shortly after I lodged my application for a de facto partner visa subclass 820, I received a bridging visa. That made me eligible for Medicare, which I enrolled in immediately. For my American readers, Medicare is Australia’s publicly funded universal health care scheme. …
Nearly two years after I began the application process, my temporary visa has finally been granted. Immigration took so long that my medical assessment expired. My migrant agent called and told me I needed to do it again. His office scheduled it with Bupa. It was bad enough the first time with Medibank and it was downright awful …
It’s hard to believe 2014 is almost over. Here’s my year in review. 2013 was hard. The excitement of being in Australia gave way to homesickness and a sense of grieving. By January, things had started looking up and the year started off well. I was becoming more comfortable getting around Melbourne, I had taken up hobbies, …
It’s summer so you know what that means – Christmas! The Melbourne CBD is alive with the scorching sun and the colourful sights and sounds of Yuletide. It feels strange to celebrate Christmas in the summer. It’s not just the warm temperature. I’m from Miami and winters there are mild, but it’s still winter. December 25 was selected to …
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