Open an Australian Bank Account
If you are on a reccie I would open a bank account whilst you are in Australia. It is free of charge, can easily be done using your passports and is essential when transferring your funds out to Australia.
If you have not yet opened an account, I would recommend opening an account with the Bank of Queensland who have recently introduced a visa debit card. This card is essential for car hire, opening mobile phone or broadband accounts etc. Your account can be opened from the UK , BOQ managers have a personal interest in their branch so their customer service is second to none.
We personally dealt with Kim Halvorsen from the Mooloolaba office, she is very efficient and answered any questions we had from the UK immediately.
Kim can be contacted on kim.halvorsen@boq.com.au
Don’t forget you do not have any credit history in Australia!!!
And you have to earn your credit rating all over again!!
Transferring Your Funds to Australia
I suggest registering with a few currency exchange companies, do not accept their first rate and challenge them to give you a better rate than the other companies you are registered with. You are converting you life savings so every cent is important to you and they allow for movement within their deals. Their commission is earnt by adding even a couple of cents for every pound you convert into dollars.
By following this advice you should have the most dollars as possible transferred into your Australian bank account for your new life in Australia.
sklinky