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My husband and I are both experienced registered nurses. We are in the process of applying to migrate to Australia permanently as skilled - independent applicants. At present, we have just had our skills assessed by ANC and are about to apply for the visa.

Is there anyone else out there who has migrated to australia who can advise us on nursing out there - How easy is it to get work? Can you get permanent contracts? what like are the wages? What like is the cost of living? Are we best to contact hospitals directly or through an agency?

Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated

Well ,

As we are in a nursing crisis here in Oz You should not have a problem finding work in any state...but which state are you looking at ?

As you have to apply to the NRB in your state of choice to be registered to work in that state.

We do not work on a contract basis here, you are employed as permanent full time or Part time according to your choice of hours, or you can work casual on call, which is the type of work you will get in agencys.

It is best to apply to your closest to home public hospital directly and they will give you a list of positions to choose from.

Best wishes ! we really need you out here

We are thinking that we would like to live in Tasmania or if we couldn't get work there initially then maybe around Perth or Adelaide. What like are the wages? Is it easy enough to live on (similar to UK). Thanks very much for advice. Can't wait to move out!

ThomasRoss, I found a list of skills shortages here. They also have an online form to ask for assessment of your eligibility to migrate to Tasmania. As you'll see on the site, they are desperate for RNs and ENs so I doubt you'll have any problems.

This web site gives you a basic guide to the cost of living in Tazzie. Generally, Australia is a cheaper place to live than the UK, and a nursing wage is a tad easier to survive on than it is here. If you have a fair bit of experience your wage will be even more attractive. The awards (rank/pay systems) vary from state to state but they are all different to the UK system. You will pay more tax but instead of income tax and NI, it's all in one and healthcare and schooling are included in that. BTW, some sites say that petrol is more expensive than other countries. It is in comparison to the US, but compared to the UK it's not - roughly penny for cent (£0.90/L = $0.90/L) so is about 0.4 times what we pay here.

That last site says that the median house price for the capital, Hobart, is $120,000/£50,000. Living out of the capital will be cheaper still and Tasmania is gorgeous so you may prefer to go somewhere a little off the beaten track.

This is the site of the Nursing board of Tasmania. They are the people to talk to about registering. The current Tasmanian award for public sector nurses starts at $30,082 for a new nurse. You say you are both experienced - a level 1 nurse with 8 years experience would get $38,724 and a first year level 2 nurse would get $39,954. An experienced E grade or junior F here might roughly equate to a junior level 2 in Oz....it depends on the area you work in and the vacancies available. As you can see, the pay in Tazzie is quite low compared to the equivalent in the UK but you really will notice the difference in fuel, groceries, housing and recreation. The other states get paid a fraction more but their costs of living are also higher.

Hopefully some of this info will help you. It sounds like you're well on your way. Please let me know if there's anything else you need to know - I'll do my best to help.

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