STEP 1  - TAX FILE NUMBER

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A TFN is a requirement for ANY kind of work you do in Australia and is similar to a National Insurance number.

You can apply  

It’s simple to complete and isn’t too time consuming. I received my confirmation letter within a month of applying

 

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STEP 2 - BANK CARD​

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The next step is getting is your Australian bank card. I would recommend Comm Bank personally, their app is super simple to use, international transfers are free from exchange rates, you can open saving accounts really easily and the interest is actually half decent. You can apply easily online 

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[But just note that you do have to choose a specific branch to collect your physical card from, I remember this caused massive issues with friends as they couldn’t access that specific branch and, as a result, had to get it redirected, which was a ridiculously tedious and long process. Try and choose a branch in a location you know you’ll be in within 7-10 business days of applying, so plan ahead.]

 

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STEP 3 - PHONE NUMBER

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This can be done super easily before you come to Australia with an E-sim; loads of people do this and you can keep both your normal and Aussie number.

 

If you’re planning on staying in Aus long term however, and don’t need your old number, I’d recommend AldiMobile. A sim is only $5, and then you can choose a monthly data plan on top of that. I pay $25 a month and get free calls / texts to most international countries and about 30GB of data, which also rolls over each month which is h0nestly amazing.

 

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STEP 4 - MEDICARE

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Most people don’t understand what this is and before I left I couldn’t really find a clear explanation of how it works ANYWHERE online and had to figure everything out for myself.

 

If you’re from one of these countries: UK, Italy, Malta, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Ireland, Slovenia or Sweden you can access Medicare [Australia’s reciprocal health agreement.]

 

LET'S BRIEF IT DOWN

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• For the Brits, it’s not like the NHS. Medicare is like a half-and-half situation, the Aussie government will pay a bit and then you sub the rest. For example, if a GP appointment is $90, you could pay $50 and they pay $40, but prices are obviously dependent on each medical practice. ​

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• They have something called ‘bulk-billing’, this means that the whole price is covered with Medicare, certain things such as blood tests fall under this.​

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• All emergency hospital visits are free if you’re under medicare, but GP / nurse appointments, treatments, prescriptions etc. are not.​

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• Ambulances are not covered under Medicare and they costs thousands of dollars if you get one, so if you’re in a critical situation obviously go right ahead, but if it’s not an urgent situation maybe think about getting an Uber to a hospital instead.

 

To apply for Medicare, you have to create a MyGov account, and then fill out a form online         

This can be a long process, and you have to also send off your visa status, passport and often proof of address.

 

Now after you’ve applied, some people don’t hear back from Medicare for months and months and just forget about it. This has happened to me. All you have to do is call 13 20 11. The people are usually lovely to speak to and most of the time your details are just backed up, that’s why it’s taking forever. A lot of the time they can process it for you immediately over the phone. So definitely chase them up. Once you’ve been accepted, you’ll receive a physical card, but there’s an app you can just use instead.

 

It’s really handy to have Medicare if anything happens whilst you’re over here, I’ve heard horror stories from different people about the hassle of claiming on their travel insurance travel insurance, and how months later they're still waiting on their money back.

 

Just note, if your visa changes, you have to update your Medicare and reapply for the whole process again which is a massive fucking ball ache :))

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STEP 5 - RSA

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You don’t need to do this straight away unless you’re planning on working in Australia immediately, but definitely think about it when your travels are coming to an end and work is looming.

 

You must have an RSA if you’re working in any establishment that handles alcohol, even if you're just serving the occasional affogato in a coffee shop. This process, I’m sure most people would agree with me, is possibly the biggest ball ache of them all. As, shocker, each state has different rules.

 

If you get your RSA in Melbourne it’s applicable everywhere else in Australia except from Sydney, and vice versa. I did mine in NSW and it was around $150. The Queensland one, however, is much cheaper, as little as $20, but you would only be able to use that in Queensland. Confusing right? I really don’t understand why they make it so difficult.

 

I went for the in-person option, which consisted of a gruelling 6-hour day sat in a classroom, being talked through a PowerPoint presentation. And whilst at the time, this felt like half a day of my life that I’ll never get back, I will say the whole thing was over and done with straight away.

 

Alternatively, a lot of my friends have gone through the process online and spent HOURS each day filling out about 200 questions on their phone. Oh and also, you have to record and send a video yourself pretending to cut off a drunk person at a bar, so unless whipping out your year 8 GCSE drama skills sounds like a good time to you, have fun with that one.​

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Okay I’d say that’s basically everything. I WISH before I travelled that I had a clear list of everything I had to do before and when I arrive in Australia instead of researching for hours myself and still not really finding the right answers. So even if this is only useful for one person, I'll be satisfied.