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Australia seems like the perfect country to retire to: friendly people; open space; 1st world living conditions.
BUT!!
Take a gander at what they require from a person seeking a retirement visa:
Quote:
You may apply for an investor Retirement Visa if you meet the following criteria:
* are 55 years of age or older
* have a minimum assets available to transfer to Australia of:
A. $500,000 if you intend to live in a regional/low growth area of Australia; OR
B.$750,000 if you intend to live in a high growth area of Australia
* have a minimum net income stream of:
A.$50,000 annually if you intend to live in regional/low growth area of Australia
B.$65,000 annually if you intend to live in a high growth area of Australia
(Now Check This Next One Out--and bear in mind these figures are IN ADDITION TO the figures above)
* are able to make a minimum designated investment of:
A.$500,000 if you intend to live in a regional/low growth area of Australia; OR
B.$750,000 if you intend to live in a high growth area of Australia
* you must have held all of the assists listed above for 2 years prior to lodging your application, unless the assists are related to superannuation and/or inheritance
* have evidence that you, and your spouse if applicable, hold a private health insurance package that meets Australian Department of Health and Ageing (DHA) guidelines during the period of the intended stay in Australia
have no intention of working full-time in Australia (you, and your spouse if applicable, will only be allowed to work up to 20 hours per week while in Australia)
are of good health and character
I should add that even after investing minimum 1 million dollars in Australia you still do not nor will you ever qualify for state-sponsored health care.
Needless to say I won't be moving to Australia any time soon.
Australia is just not very interested in taking old age immigrants, my wife and I have being looking at getting her mother to make the move.
Even in our situitation where 2 of her 3 children are now Australian residents and willing to sponsor her, we are looking at around $50k in application fees to get a fast tracked Visa which still has no guarentee of success. (we could pay a much smaller amount, but she would have to join a que for thats about 10 years long).
Besides what did you expect? To show up with no money and get a government pension?
You need $1 million to live a comfortable retirement in OZ, without government support.
Given the high cost of living in Oz, the numbers aren't too out of whack. $750k should buy you a fairly decent house in a not-too-bad part of most cities. Nothing too flash but nice enough. Perhaps with some left over to buy all the other things you need to get settled: car(s), fridge, washer, dryer, TV, other electronics, barbeque, etc.
The Investment bit seems a bit of a tough one but they seem to be rolling the Retirement visa in with an Investment-type visa so that you're more of a contributor to Oz. Or they're just discouraging retirees from considering Oz as a destination, which I wouldn't think too many people would consider given how expensive it is. btw: Canada doesn't have a retirement visa at all, neither does the US.
Given the high cost of living in Oz, the numbers aren't too out of whack. $750k should buy you a fairly decent house in a not-too-bad part of most cities. Nothing too flash but nice enough. Perhaps with some left over to buy all the other things you need to get settled: car(s), fridge, washer, dryer, TV, other electronics, barbeque, etc.
The Investment bit seems a bit of a tough one but they seem to be rolling the Retirement visa in with an Investment-type visa so that you're more of a contributor to Oz. Or they're just discouraging retirees from considering Oz as a destination, which I wouldn't think too many people would consider given how expensive it is. btw: Canada doesn't have a retirement visa at all, neither does the US.
Sorry to be dense but what is Oz/ Is that shorthand for Australia?
I know of no country other than Australia that demands that kind of investment w/o any guarantee the money will be returned if you decide Australia is not for you. On top of that I cannot believe that for that kind of investment in their infrastructure they don't at least offer state-sponsored healthcare. Retirees still have to maintain a private health ins. policy which offers no guarantees (like American co's) they won't cancel you the moment you sneeze. And once you're dropped by your ins. carrier you're ineligible to stay in Australia. Then try getting that 1 million back.
Yet in spite of the stringent requirements I'll bet retirees are lining up out the doors to plop their 1.5 million down to get into Sydney or Melbourne.
Australia's requirements are not unique. For NZ you need NZ$1,000,000 and for the UK you need £1,000,000. They just don't want elderly foreigners going to live there - why should they? What's in it for them unless you are loaded?
Sorry to be dense but what is Oz/ Is that shorthand for Australia?
I know of no country other than Australia that demands that kind of investment w/o any guarantee the money will be returned if you decide Australia is not for you. On top of that I cannot believe that for that kind of investment in their infrastructure they don't at least offer state-sponsored healthcare. Retirees still have to maintain a private health ins. policy which offers no guarantees (like American co's) they won't cancel you the moment you sneeze. And once you're dropped by your ins. carrier you're ineligible to stay in Australia. Then try getting that 1 million back.
Yet in spite of the stringent requirements I'll bet retirees are lining up out the doors to plop their 1.5 million down to get into Sydney or Melbourne.
It's my understanding that as long as you keep up to date with your premiums, Australian health insurance companies can't cancel you - regardless of how sick you may get.
It's my understanding that as long as you keep up to date with your premiums, Australian health insurance companies can't cancel you - regardless of how sick you may get.
That's correct and they cannot force you out of the system by rapidly increasing their premiums either. No person in a right mind would hold private insurance if what the op stated was actually correct.
Last edited by danielsa1775; 08-07-2012 at 06:56 AM..
Australia's requirements are not unique. For NZ you need NZ$1,000,000 and for the UK you need £1,000,000. They just don't want elderly foreigners going to live there - why should they? What's in it for them unless you are loaded?
This I agree with. It makes no economic sense for a first world nation to have to accept foreigner retirees into its ranks, possibly costing them taxpayer funds for healthcare when they did not spend at least half their lives paying into the Australian system.
I imagine some rich Asian retirees may take up the offer but few else. Meanwhile it is very expensive to live in Australia on the pension. More folk seem to be retiring in South East Asia in order to live with a greater degree of comfort.
Numbers are still small but increasing.
There would be no value these days in Western foreigners coming to retire in OZ. Very poor value indeed. Unless of course one has family of some sort already here.
Malaysia offers a better deal....Ecuador is popular with North Americans.....Sri Lanka seems to have a good deal.....
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