The 2 year period must be spent actually resident in Australia. It maybe possible to aggregate shorter periods of residence to arrive at the 2 years.

Australia no longer operates Exchange Control, and Australian residents are free to move money into and out of Australia, and save and invest overseas as they wish.

However, amounts of more than AUD$10,000 in cash (but not bank drafts, or travellers cheques) must be reported to Australian customs when carried into or out of Australia.

Once you are resident in Australia, you will be generally liable for Australian tax on your worldwide income, whether you bring it into Australia or leave it overseas.

In particular, make sure you comply with Australia's Foreign Investment Fund taxation regulations, if you have any investments (including pension funds and insurance policies) located outside Australia.

Australia has agreements with many countries to avoid double taxation of people in this position, but these are not necessarily comprehensive.

It would be in your best interests to seek professional tax advice, so you are fully informed regarding your specific circumstance.

Permanent residence in Australia for migration purposes and residence in Australia for tax purposes are entirely separate.

It is possible to hold Australian Permanent Residence and not be an Australian tax resident, and it's also common for temporary residents to be liable for Australian tax. Only an Australian resident for tax purposes, or someone who has income sourced in Australia, may have to file for Australian tax.

Some public sector jobs across Australia, including in the police forces, are open to both citizens and Permanent Residents.

The majority of State/Territory government jobs are open to permanent residents unless special circumstances apply.

The Commonwealth (federal) government normally requires Australian citizenship, however if you are a permanent resident eligible for citizenship you can sometimes be engaged on a probationary basis.

As soon as you arrive as a permanent resident, you should visit a Medicare office with proof of your resident status.

You will be able to register for Medicare straight away (in fact you can do this even if you're on a holiday validating your visa), and you will get a temporary Medicare card. Once you've done this, if you need to see a doctor, just go to any medical centre (many of which open all day, 7 days a week) and wait your turn.

Many medical centres' will 'bulk-bill,' in other words they bill Medicare directly and you don't pay at all (provided you have your Medicare card with you). If the medical centre doesn't bulk-bill you need to pay (AUD$35 is typical) for a consultation. You can claim about 70% of the account back in either cash or electronic funds transfer to your bank account if you bring the receipt and your Medicare card to a Medicare office.

If you need an X-ray or other tests you can get these at pathology centres which are located in almost every suburb. You normally need to be referred by a doctor. Again most of these places will bulk-bill Medicare directly, or you can claim most of the cost back.

If you attend a public hospital in Australia, the hospital will bulk bill medicare.

You should get used to carrying your Medicare card with you at all times in Australia.

Call in at any ATO office with your passport and proof of address. If you are only validating your visa with a holiday, they will still accept an overseas address and send your TFN notification there.

( The main ATO number in Canberra at +61 2 6216 1111 should be able to assist you )

Australia has a number of External Territories, three of which are reasonably populated, Norfolk Island, Christmas Island and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands. Norfolk Island has the most autonomy of the three.

Permanent Residence (PR) status (or Australian citizenship) does not give you the right to live in these territories, unless the local government agrees to admit you (this is certainly the case with Norfolk Island). In reality, opportunities in all three are quite limited.

For visa purposes, an 'eligible New Zealand citizen' is a person who resided in Australia prior to 26th February 2001 holding a Special Category Visa (444); or lived in Australia for at least one year in the two years preceding 26th February 2001; or has a certificate, issued under the Social Security Act in 1991, that states that the New Zealand citizen was residing in Australia on a particular date.

Australia currently has reciprocal arranges with the UK, Sweden, Netherlands, Belgium, Finland, Norway, Italy, Malta, Republic of Ireland and New Zealand.

Citizens of these countries are eligible to receive a reciprocal Medicare Card which qualifies you for the grant of your 457 visa. Please see Medicare for full details ( http://www.medicareaustralia.gov.au/public/migrants/visitors/index.jsp )

Documents in languages other than English must be accompanied by an accurate English translation of each document.

If documents are being translated outside of Australia, the services of a Registered Translating Service in that country must be used.

If documents are being translated in Australia, this must be done by a translator who is accredited by the National Accreditation Authority for Translations and Interpreters (NAATI).

Ozgo can arrange to translate your documents with a NAATI accredited translator.

Australian Registered Migration Agents can certify your original documents. Other persons who can certify documents include Public Notaries, Magistrates, Justices of the Peace, Commissioners of Declarations, Commissioners of Affidavits, solicitors, and medical doctors. The people authorised to verify documents, may vary from country to country. Photocopies of certified documents are not acceptable. Ozgo can certify all your documents in-house.

Medicals needs to be conducted by a panel doctor or radiologist (if an x-ray is required) who has been appointed by the Australian Government to perform medical examinations for visa applicants. Please contact Ozgo for details of panel doctors.

It is a requirement of most visa categories that you and any family members over 16 years of age will be required to provide police clearances for every country you have lived in for 12 months or more (accumulatively) in the past 10 years.

Yes absolutely, it is not only feasible, but very common for clients to use Ozgo Migration Services even if they live outside Australia. In fact, most of our clients live overseas, so we are very competent in dealing with overseas clients. We stay in touch through emails, phone calls or SKYPE to deliver our high standard of service.

Many of the visas categories are now assessed in Australia so being based in Australia gives us an advantage when liaising with the Australian authorities e.g. Australian skills assessing authorities, State & Territory Governments and the Department of Immigration.