Australia - Immigration
I’m not quite sure when my obsession with Australia started but I do recall a middle school project where we researched and presented on a country of our choice. For me, it was Australia. I didn’t know a ton about this country at the time but I did know it’s where one of my favourite animals, the Platypus, lived. My Grandma and Grandpa Olafson also had a friend who lived there, Frank, and he had come to visit us in Canada at least once by then. I have a vague memory of sitting at the dining room table in my parents’ house and this boisterous man with an accent talking to us. My Grandparents went to visit him in Australia as well and this photo of them with a koala during one of their trips fills me with joy.
I write this on Australia day, though it’s actually not anymore in Australia, because depending where you are in the country, they’re 15-18 hours ahead of the Mountain Standard Time zone I live in. Australia is INCREDIBLE. IN-FREAKING-CREDIBLE! I am fully obsessed with the country and could easily write a book sharing experiences from the three trips I have taken there, each ranging from just over 2 weeks to 10 months. Hmm, that actually sounds like a really enjoyable project… Anyway, this post is about my decision to immigrate to Australia, one I made almost 3 years ago and began gradually working on from that day up until my paperwork to be considered for a visa invitation was submitted in September 2019. It’s also about working towards a goal and how I responded when I realized that all of the work I had done was likely for nothing. If you’re not keen to read about that, jump ahead and read from the 3rd last paragraph to the end for a dose of inspiration.
The day I got Joey.
This wasn’t the first time I had thought about moving to Australia. In fact, when I relocated to Calgary in December 2009 to start work in the accounting field, I viewed it as a temporary stop on my way to Australia. I moved to Calgary to get the work experience I needed while completing the post-graduate program for the Certified Management Accountant (CMA) designation. Then I would be off to Australia! And then I got Joey. Named after a baby kangaroo, my 6lb Chihuahua Pomeranian would serve as the first barrier to my moving plans because dogs are required to be placed in quarantine once they arrive in Australia. At the time it meant he’d need to be in the government-run facility for 3-6 months! I can’t remember what the exact length was then but I was not ok with putting my tiny dog through that. I had developed some great friendships and was involved in the local running community, and wasn’t sure I wanted to give that all up. I bought a condo the next year and remember joking that I guess I was here to stay.
Fast forward 5 years later and the dream of moving to Australia had come back full force. This time I was serious. Australia had modified the quarantine restrictions for dogs which meant Joey would only need to spend 10 days at their facility upon arrival. He could also receive the 6 months of pre-move vaccinations and testing here, via his current vet. After a few months of being nervous to share my plans with others, mostly because I didn’t want it to jeopardize my employment, I got to work planning out everything I needed to get done in order to put in an expression of interest (EOI) with the Australian government.
It took me about a year of collecting the paperwork, including transcripts for all of my post-secondary education, syllabi of the courses I took, proof of my CMA designation, employment verification from all of my accounting jobs, a statutory declaration for work dates, and writing the International English Language Testing System (IELTS) academic exam. This was just to have my skills assessed by CPA Australia which I needed as qualification to apply for immigration as a skilled worker under the General Accountant code. CPA Australia responded by letting me know that I needed to write an exam on the Fundamentals of (Australian) Business Law in order to meet all of their educational requirements, but everything else was good. So I spent almost two months preparing for the exam by reviewing all of the prep material and luckily passed it on the first attempt.
Australia is not an easy country to move to and it’s because so many people want to live there. I don’t blame them and I don’t blame the government for being so strict. It’s a lengthy process just to submit an EOI and once that has been accepted and you’re invited to apply for a visa, which is never guaranteed, you then have to complete a thorough health exam, background check, and submit proof of a number of items. EOIs are accepted based on the number of spots they have for specific visas and occupations. Spots go to applicants who have the highest number of points. You gain points based on criteria such as your age, relationship status, years of work experience, education level, and how competent you are in English.
A ton of work, hours, and a few thousand dollars later, on September 17, 2019, I submitted my EOI to the Australian government. The only thing left to do was wait to be invited to apply for a visa. And obsessively check for updates on the website where invitation rounds are summarized, of course. Once the pandemic hit and Australia closed their borders other than to citizens and those with permanent residency, I knew there wouldn’t be much action. At some point in summer 2020 I went onto the site to check for updates. I discovered that the country was only accepting 1,000 accountants over the year beginning July 2020 and with more searching I found that there were something like 14,000 EOIs submitted by accountants. Yeah, a lot of accountants want to move to Australia. I can’t remember where I found that number but as soon as I read it, I knew that my chances of being offered an invitation to apply for a visa were pretty unlikely. Actually, more like it’s not going to happen. Ever. I have 85 points and all of the invitations being offered to accountants had been for points higher than that in the months before and after I applied. I thought I might catch a break at some point but after seeing the updates, I realized that this was not going to happen for me.
If you’re thinking “there must be some other way” trust me, I have looked into everything. Unless my future husband happens to have Australian citizenship, or I work for a company that is willing and able to transfer me to Australia, I won’t be moving there. Those two things are definitely possible and even though I am an optimist, I am also realistic and know they might not happen. I have had many dreams and goals that haven’t panned out the way I have wanted or expected them to but I do know that everything always works out for the best.
I have shared my big goal of moving to Australia with many people over the years. I was so confident that it was going to happen. I daydreamed about living in Sydney where I would bring Joey for a swim at the dog beach in Rose Bay (and wondered if he was allowed on the harbour ferry we might take to get there), enjoy weekend trips up to the Hunter Valley for wine tasting, and find myself a handsome & brilliant Aussie to marry. I legit stopped dating when I made the decision to move because I didn’t want to meet a guy and be tied down here. Ah well, you live, you learn!
So now, as I work on building a business with a vision of impacting people across the globe, I know that what I dream about might not be what happens. However, I know that if I don’t try, it definitely won’t. I also know that it could be so much bigger than what I currently envision. Whatever goals you’re working on, whatever dreams you have, keep working on them. If you face a dead end, make a turn and know that you’re being guided in a direction that will take you exactly where you’re meant to be going.