Opportunity to move to Australia, canI leave my debt behind

jon-jo

Hello;

Myself and my partner have the opportunity to Move to Sydney. I am carrying £35k worth of debt on CC and a loan for 5 years or so now (have been waiting for my company to pay dividends, not yet happened).

I was worried about not being able to get a visa for Oz with this amount of debt, but on searching internet I found that some people actually left their debt behind.

Has anyone experience of this, moving overseas and leaving debt behind somehow.

Oh, I am currently fully up with payments, have never missed one and have a good credit score, but am contemplating defaulting or even going bankrupt to clear debt so can move on with my life. Oz may be another option though.

cheers

jon

poppy10_2

Have a read of this:

http://britishexpats.com/forum/showthread.php?t=620681

thefoolonthehill

Do you know you are going to live in Australia for the rest of your life?

I live in Oz but pay my debt via a DMP every month. From what I have read then there is not a lot that can be done to make you pay your debt back. If an Oz debt collection agency buys your debt then of course they are going to chase you for it. However, legally there is not a lot they can do and if you tell them to take a hike then that is what they should do.

I would recommend paying the money back and if you are struggling at the moment then take out a DMP with CCCS or Payplan. Alternatively, can you approch your creditors for a F&F? Will you be selling a house and be able to repay with these funds?

Please also bear in mind that your credit rating will start again from scratch in Oz so entering a DMP in the UK will have no adverse affect. However, it may also be important to note that you have racked up a substantial debt and although you can start a fresh out here you could quiet easily rack up a substantial debt once again. I feel that if you simply run away from the debt then there is probably a high chance this will happen. I repay my debt as I owe it and it reminds me of what an idiot i was. It also helps me from racking up similar debts here.

Generali

jon-jo wrote: »

Hello;

Myself and my partner have the opportunity to Move to Sydney. I am carrying £35k worth of debt on CC and a loan for 5 years or so now (have been waiting for my company to pay dividends, not yet happened).

I was worried about not being able to get a visa for Oz with this amount of debt, but on searching internet I found that some people actually left their debt behind.

Has anyone experience of this, moving overseas and leaving debt behind somehow.

Oh, I am currently fully up with payments, have never missed one and have a good credit score, but am contemplating defaulting or even going bankrupt to clear debt so can move on with my life. Oz may be another option though.

cheers

jon

You borrowed it and spent it and now you want everyone else to pay back your debt for you because you can't be bothered.

jon-jo

Thanks poppy and foolonthehill for your useful link and constructive post.

misspoppy

Hi

I thought that you were credit checked and needed to have a certain amount of money to move to Oz, have you done your research about requirements for entry and to work?

moongarden

Jon Jo this sounds like a large debt perhaps from buying a big item - a car or something?
A few things to consider:

1) you need to make a change in the way you understand and handle money so that you don't just get into debt in Oz the same way - what will be different/what will you do differently? How will you learn what changes to make? Learning how and why you got into this situation - what your are triggers and how to avoid them - will give you a lot of freedom in your life..

2) what if you get to Oz and it doesn't work for you or your partner dies or the relationship breaks up? where will you go? would you want to return to the UK to be with family? Plan for every eventuality then you won't get caught by surprise with something you can't handle (this is how a lot of people get into debt)

3) Was this £35k to buy a large item such as a car? Could you sell the item if you are going to Oz - if it was a car and now only worth say £12k that would still knock a large chunk off the debt. Don't forget that you can negotiate a settlement figure on each debt which could also knock between 10% to 40% off. This move could be a really good time to really understand your finances and get in control of them.

4) Think about what you want to be able to look back on when you are old and grey sitting in your rocking chair on the porch? Moving to Oz was a turning point in my life because (a) i learned how to take control of my finances and it gave me a rock foundation that meant i could go anywhere or do anything, or (b) i left my debts behind for others to pick up and i created some new debts in Oz which gave me a sand foundation so i've never tasted the complete freedom of knowing I owe nobody anything and "da man" doesn't own me.

You say you have been managing to make the payments and have never missed any. Is it just the minimum payment you have been making or have you been snowballing the debts? You could negotiate hard with the lenders, sell off some stuff and get rid of a massive chunk of this before you go, then just manage the rest out with some snowballing.

I don't mean this post to be unconstructive. I had a similar amount of debt and on a salary of £25k a year, learning some clever management skills from here, I cleared the lot within 4 years - with no DMP or negative effect on my credit file.

You can do it too.

moongarden

misspoppy wrote: »

Hi

I thought that you were credit checked and needed to have a certain amount of money to move to Oz, have you done your research about requirements for entry and to work?

I'm guessing, like NZ, if your partner is on the preferred occupations list and has the savings and good credit then the requirements are less stringent on you.

thefoolonthehill

misspoppy wrote: »

Hi

I thought that you were credit checked and needed to have a certain amount of money to move to Oz, have you done your research about requirements for entry and to work?

No this is not the case. Due to Data Protection laws your credit rating in the UK cannot be seen by any credit company outside the UK. When you move to OZ you start your credit rating all over again.

There are many different visas available for emigration to Australia. Depending on which is applied for will determine if any funds are needed to get the visa. For example if you emigrate on a skilled Visa then no proof of funds is needed

Generali

On a practical level, if you move to Aus under most visas, you have no recourse to the state ie you can't sign on. Moving with no savings is a big risk as a result.