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The Pacific Engagement Visa is a permanent residence visa. If you are granted a Pacific Engagement Visa you are responsible for covering all of your moving and settlement costs.

This includes all of your visa-related and pre departure costs, such as visa application charges, passports, flights, and other costs associated with moving to a new country, such as removalists.

The exact amount will vary depending on factors such as the airfares between your country and Australia, where you choose to live, and whether you have included a partner and dependent children in your application. The cost of passports, health assessments or other documentation, such as police certificates, will also vary between countries.

Once you arrive in Australia, you are responsible for your settlement costs, such as the cost of rent and a rental bond for accommodation, household furniture, and school supplies. 

Visa-related costs

You will need to pay all costs associated with applying for the Pacific Engagement Visa. This includes the Visa Application Charge/s for yourself and each additional person in your application and other expenses such as character and health checks and identity documents. 

Make sure you read through the full details of the documentation you need to provide and the requirements for those documents. This information can be found on the Department of Home Affairs website.

To register for the ballot, you must pay an AU$25 fee. This fee is per registration and covers any family members you have included in your ballot registration. You pay the fee online through ImmiAccount when you register for the ballot.

For more details on the ballot fee, visit the Department of Home Affairs website. 
 

If you are selected in the ballot and invited to apply for a Pacific Engagement (subclass 192) visa, you must pay a Visa Application Charge when submitting your visa application. The charge is AU$325 for the primary applicant – the person who registered in the ballot - and AU$80 for each spouse/partner/legally dependent child you include in your application. 

For more information about visa costs, visit the Department of Home Affairs website.

Ballot stage 

The primary applicant needs a valid passport from a participating country to enter the Pacific Engagement Visa ballot.

Visa application stage 

If you are selected in the ballot to apply for a Pacific Engagement (subclass 192) visa, you must have valid passports for the primary applicant and all family members included in the visa application. 

If you need to get a new passport, processing times and charges differ depending on your country of citizenship. Contact your local passport office for current processing fees and timeframes. 

When you apply for a Pacific Engagement (subclass 192) visa, you will also need to provide official documents to confirm your family relationships, such as marriage certificates, divorce papers, birth certificates, death certificates and parental responsibility documentation. Visit the Department of Home Affairs website.

If you don’t already have these documents for you and your family, you should obtain them as soon as possible if you are notified of your selection in the ballot. You may need to pay a processing fee for documents. 

You and your family must meet the health requirements for the Pacific Engagement (subclass 192) visa. The doctor who examines you must be registered as a panel physician with the Department of Home Affairs. 

You should not organise your health examinations until after you are selected in the ballot and invited to apply for the visa. 

Health examinations vary in price depending on the country you live in. Ask the panel physician to confirm the cost when booking your appointment. 

To find out more information on the health requirements and to find your closest panel physician, visit the Department of Home Affairs website.

As part of the character check for the Pacific Engagement (subclass 192) visa, you will need to pay the costs of obtaining a current police certificate, military certificate and other character documents. This requirement also applies to any family members aged 17 years or older who apply for the visa with you. 

For more information on character documents, visit the Department of Home Affairs website.

As the primary visa applicant, you must provide evidence that you, or your spouse or de facto partner, meet the English language requirement for the Pacific Engagement (subclass 192) visa. 

There are a range of ways to meet the English language requirement for the visa. Some of these ways, such as undertaking an English language test, have a cost.

For more information on the English language requirement, visit the Department of Home Affairs website.

Pre departure costs

If you have been granted a Pacific Engagement Visa, you are responsible for all of your pre departure costs such as flights, removalists, and other costs associated with moving to Australia.

The cost of flights depends on which airline you fly with, the location you are flying from and the location in Australia you are flying to. Travel costs will be higher for large families. 

The Pacific Engagement Visa Support Service can provide you with free information sessions to help you prepare for your move. In those sessions we will provide:

  • information on travel and relocation
  • practical advice about living in Australia
  • information on community and government supports.

Costs on arrival

As with any big move, once you arrive in Australia there will be expenses to pay. You can expect costs to include rent and a rental bond for accommodation and connecting your electricity, gas and other utilities to your accommodation. You will need to budget to cover these expenses until you get your first paycheque. When you sign your employment contract, confirm with your employer when you will get paid so you can budget to cover costs until then. 

To save on costs such as temporary accommodation, some families may decide that the adult with the job will relocate to Australia first. This may give one parent time to organise things such as ongoing housing and schooling for the children prior to the rest of the family relocating. 

Your first entry to Australia must be on or before the date provided in your visa grant notification letter. The first entry date is generally 12 months from the date of visa grant. This applies to your family members as well. You will also need to arrive before the starting date on your job offer.

Housing and accommodation

Before you arrive in Australia, you will need to make sure you have a place to stay. The accommodation type will depend on whether you are single or have family members arriving with you. Temporary accommodation, such as hotels, can be expensive throughout Australia, and you will have to search to find something within your budget. Another option may be to stay with family or friends if they live near your new workplace. 

If you choose to rent a property in Australia, you should be aware that housing in big cities is generally more expensive than in regional areas. However, there are typically more options to choose from in the cities and larger regional towns. To work out how much you will pay in rent, you can research rental properties near the location of your job. Rental availability can be low in some parts of Australia and rental costs can be high, depending on where you are planning to move to. It is best to research a few different places you might like to live.

There are costs that you will need to pay upfront to rent a house or apartment. These include 2-4 weeks' rent in advance and a rental bond of 4 weeks’ rent. The rental bond is a security deposit you must pay once you sign the lease and before you move in. The rental bond is a protection for the property owner in case you damage the property or move out before the agreed time. When you move out, you will get this money back if you have caused no damage and have not breached the lease. 

It is a good idea to know the relevant Tenancy Union or Authority in the state or territory you are moving to. These organisations will not help you find a property, but they can help you to understand your rights as a tenant and can provide advice if you need it. 

You will need to pay for utilities such as electricity, gas and water for the home that you live in. These costs vary depending on how many people live at the property with you and how much electricity, gas and water you consume. There are normally connection fees you must pay for each service you connect. This is the case if you are renting or purchasing a home to live in. There are different utility service providers throughout Australia and it is worth researching to find the package that best suits you. 

You may have to set up internet and Wi-Fi connections if they do not already exist at your property. Contracts for these are usually between 1-3 years, with monthly bills based on usage. There are many internet and mobile phone providers in Australia. Most internet companies will have packages that bundle home internet, home phone and mobile phone plans under the one account and can potentially save you money.  It is recommended that you spend some time researching different companies and the packages they have on offer to see what will best suit your needs.

Mobile phone and internet reception is good in the large towns and cities but can be patchy in regional areas. Often in regional areas, your choice of providers is far less than in the cities.

You may need to buy large items such as furniture and white goods (including appliances such as a fridge and washing machine) to furnish your home, if you have not brought them with you. While some long-term rental properties may provide white goods, these are not usually provided. 

You may need to buy other household items or borrow from family and friends, if you are not intending to bring these items with you. There are a good variety of stores throughout Australia that range in affordability from second-hand marketplaces and stores known as ‘op shops’ right through to high-end specialty stores. 

Transport

Transport costs will depend on your location and choice of transport. In many parts of Australia, cars are the primary mode of transport. Most Australians own a car for everyday travel. However, owning a car in Australia is expensive, and you will need to consider petrol, insurance and mandatory registration costs.

In cities and larger towns, there are reasonably-priced public transport options available, including the bus, train, tram, ferry. Public transport is reliable if you live within the cities but can become less reliable the further out of the city you live. Public transport is very limited in rural areas. It is a good idea to research the public transport options in the places you are considering living in and to work out how you will get around. Each state and territory has local public transport operators that you can find online, along with timetables and prices.

School costs

Education in Australia covers early childhood, primary and secondary schooling, followed by tertiary education, which includes university and vocational education. Children typically attend school from around the age of 5 until the age of 18. School is compulsory from the age of 6 until 16 in most states and territories.

Early childhood education and care is available for those families needing childcare while parent/s work or study during the day. It is not compulsory and is delivered by approved providers and services who charge daily fees. These fees can vary and the Australian Government subsidises the cost of care through the Child Care Subsidy (CCS).

There are 4 care types eligible for CCS:

  • Centre Based Day Care
  • Family Day Care
  • Outside School Hours Care
  • In Home Care. 

Public schools make up more than two-thirds of the schools in Australia and are provided by state and territory governments. 

Wherever you live in Australia, you will be in what is known as a catchment or enrolment area for your local public school. Every public school reserves enough places within their school for students in their local catchment area, which means your child/children have automatic access to that school. 

Australian public schools provide Australian and permanent resident children with free education. You may be invited to make voluntary financial contributions to support your school. You are not required to make payments or voluntary financial contributions to your school. Schools cannot refuse your child instruction in the standard curriculum if you do not contribute.

There is also an independent school sector in Australia, made up of religious schools and independent (or private) schools. Independent schools charge school fees. These fees vary from between AU$1000 and AU$50,000 per year depending on the school.

For almost any school your child/children attend, you will need to pay for uniforms, stationery, textbooks and excursions. Most public schools try to ensure uniforms are affordable for families or allow some items to be purchased from cheaper department stores. Religious and independent school uniforms are typically more expensive and must be purchased from selected stores or the school itself. Most schools (public, religious or independent) have a second-hand uniform shop and in some cases you may be able to buy used books. If your children are at secondary school, they may need a computer. In some states and territories, the government will provide children in public secondary schools with a laptop for use at school while in others you will need to buy this yourself.