Tiago didn’t believe he needed help from a Migration Agent – his appointment with Sarah showed him she was an asset he needed on his team.
Tiago’s Story: Tiago and his husband Danilo came to Australia as students. With jobs in the education sector, they had some ideas about how to proceed to move towards residence. Tiago is a big researcher – and they were able to organise their own Temporary Graduate Visa (subclass 485) after getting their skills assessed and English tested.
Tiago and Danilo knew they wanted to gain permanent residency – and knew the General Skilled Migration Programme was the right pathway. Tiago had done extensive research, so they believed they had enough knowledge to manage the process themselves – but Tiago wanted to speak with a few migration agents, to ensure they were on the right path.
Then he had his initial meeting with Sarah.
We sat down to have a chat with Tiago about his experience of this process and what made him decide to engage a Registered Migration Agent – and to work with Sarah.
Had you obtained advice from another Migration Agent prior to meeting Sarah? If so, why did you still make an appointment with Sarah?
Yes – I had met with several Migration Agents. I wasn’t necessarily looking to have them prepare our applications – I just wanted to get an idea of the process, to ensure we were organised.
The ones I met with prior to Sarah didn’t seem to have the extensive knowledge I was looking for. There was even one whom I met who did not even know as much as I did! I was asking questions and getting no answers, it was very frustrating.
Then a friend referred me to Sarah. She understood everything I was saying, we had an instant connection. We were on exactly the same page and she knew what was next for us and what we needed to do. She could answer all my questions, straight away.
That was when I knew she was the one. We needed her on our team!
What were your first impressions of Aspire Australia and Sarah when you came for your appointment?
I got a really good first impression. She was incredibly direct – straight to the point. She wasn’t there to waste time or side-step the more complicated details.
I was very well prepared because I had been doing a lot of research, so I knew what questions I wanted to ask. Sarah had read through our preliminary questionnaire and other documents, knew what our questions were and was ready to answer them!
So, in 45 minutes we were able to efficiently plan our entire application.
Sarah was very confident about what she was saying, she made things really clear and simple.
What were the key questions and concerns you had when coming to the initial appointment?
I knew what evidence we needed and everything we needed to declare, so the questions I had were more about the step by step process for the 491 visa – and how we could get sponsorship to obtain more points.
We were living in South Australia and were committed to our life there, so we needed to apply for state sponsorship. We weren’t sure how we would go through with this, due to the nature of our employment.
Sarah was confident she could help with this. It was a great feeling to know she was there if something went wrong, she would know what to do.
Did you feel Sarah understood your situation and your goals and was able to assess your visa eligibility thoroughly?
Absolutely! I thought I was proactive, but wow – she got us into gear!
She made me realise our dreams could come true even sooner than we realised.
How did you feel after the initial appointment?
I walked out very excited. Sarah had given us so much good news and confidence that we could make our dreams a reality!
I had been thinking we had to wait to apply – but no, Sarah informed me we could get started right away as we were in a good position. And from that conversation in our initial meeting, through to our visa application – that time has only been four months!
This was very surprising – I thought the process would take much longer. And we even had some complications along the way, but Sarah and her supportive team have been able to help us through.
Was the Migration Action Plan prepared for you by Sarah helpful as a guide?
Very much so. It was exactly what we needed. It was the one thing I had been looking for going into the meeting – a guide as to how the process would work, step by step.
We had some options available to us, she showed us the right path.
Following the appointment, what further interaction did you have with Sarah? How valuable was that to you?
I had wondered if living in a different state would make coordinating difficult, but it was so easy communicating with the Aspire Australia team.
They were always incredibly responsive to our emails – and Sarah was clear, direct and spot on.
What I like about Aspire is they really kept on our case, to deliver documents as soon as we could. They weren’t sitting on their hands, they pushed us to get things done, so we didn’t waste any time. Sarah was incredibly focused and driven.
Also, I had thought we needed as many documents as we could – but Sarah advised us this is not the right approach. She told us that less is sometimes more – the right documents are much better than a large stack of wrong ones!
Sarah and her team were able to organise our evidence. In the application process, we discovered some of our employment was not able to be used, as it didn’t fit with some of the criteria. They helped us with an extensive sorting of evidence – getting payslips, counting hours worked etc. They were there every step of the way.
Never, at any time, did I have to call to follow up, or ask what was happening. They never forgot about us, we always felt like we were their highest priority, even though I’m sure they were very busy!
Do you believe you received value for the $225 you paid for the session?
100 percent! I came out with a completely different timeframe for when we could apply. And the confidence I had in her, knowing we had reduced our risk of rejection, was worth it.
Would you recommend booking an appointment with Sarah to others?
Absolutely, I refer everyone to Aspire! Sarah really is a Migration SuperHero.
Everyone’s story is different and each situation demands a unique strategy. To obtain your very own step by step MAP: Migration Action Plan, we invite you to book an appointment with our Migration SuperHero, Sarah Gillis.
