We all know the feeling, arriving in a new city, being in awe by its wonders, discovering as much as possible and then realising you have so many things to take care of! I think it happens to everyone when you go to Australia. Since everyone has TFN’s and banking accounts to set up, we want to get that out of the way as fast and soon as possible.
Here a little guide on everything you may need to get so that you can easily do it in one day!
First: have FUN!
First off all enjoy the city! You have a whole year to work and get everything sorted out, so enjoy the fact that it just took you (probably over) 24 hours to get to Australia! Go out, explore the city, discover the little parks, get wasted! Nothing better than starting your year in Australia with some fun!
Tax File Number
Start off with this one since it is very easy! You just apply online through this site. It should be free, as soon as they ask you to pay anything, know that you aren’t using the official site of the Australian Government! All you need is your passport since your working visa is linked to this. It takes up to four weeks to get it and will be sent to your Australian address. If you don’t have one yet, ask the hostel if you can use theirs. You can work without a TFN but they will deduct a lot more taxes. If you are waiting for your TFN and you already scored yourself a job, just tell the company you work for. They can already deduct the tax you would pay with a TFN and once you have one, pay the taxes they deducted to the government under this TFN.
Let’s Talk Money
Australian bank account
It is a lot easier to travel with an Australian bank card. Even if you are only in Australia for three months I would recommend getting one. You have a couple of different options but in the end, they’re all the same.
NAB: I used NAB because they have a free checking account, a reward saver that gives you a double bonus (once you figure out how to use it) and they are pretty much everywhere. It is very easy to set up! Just go to a NAB office, fill in some paperwork and get the card sent to wherever you’re staying within 3-5 working days. Very easy and fast!
Commonwealth: EDITED: One of our readers brought it to our attention that Commonwealth is supplying loans to the Adani coal mine, one of the largest dangers for the Great Barrier Reef. Since we love the reef and don’t want it to disappear, like is happening now, we would never think of joining this bank.
Transferwise
Transferwise is a peer to peer international money sending service. This means that if you want to change EUR for AUD, they will search for somebody who wants to do the opposite and give your EUR to them and their AUD to you. This way they don’t have to pay international banking fees and the fee they charge is a lot lower. Check first with your own bank account to see the rate they charge for international transfers as there are countries, I believe it was Canada and the UK, that are better off that way. Most nationalities will be better off using transferwise.
I have been using transferwise for over 2 years now. It is reliable, gives you fair standards and is really quick. Within 48 hours your money will be sent to your bank account! When I started it took about a week to get to you.
With this link, your first transfer will even be without any fee!
Medicare
This will not be for everyone. If your country is on this list you will be eligible for Medicare under the reciprocal health care agreement. There will be separate parameters for every country but it comes down to, you have to be a resident of this country and you have to be part of a health care in your country.
You will need: your passport and a European Healthcare card.
Applying is very easy. Go one of the Medicare centres with above cards. Fill in the files and let them take copies of your passport and European Health card. Done! Your Medicare card will be sent to the address that you gave them and might take up to a month to get there so be aware that it is hard to apply to when travelling. Even if you didn’t apply for a Medicare card yet, you will be covered by this agreement. The only difference is that without it, you’ll have to pay up front and get it back later on.
Phone
You probably all have a phone with access to WiFi, but being able to call and text with it as well might come in handy! There are certain providers that only give you data or special offers to call international. As I don’t call international too much and use wifi to skype home, I was happy to choose one of the bigger providers. You can save money by looking at the small ones but it wasn’t worth the hassle for me.
I can’t vouch for Vodafone but I heard a lot of negative things about it. There reach would be kind of short. I did use Telstra and Optus and in my opinion, they are both about the same. People say that Telstra has more reach in rural areas but for Tasmania and WA, Laura took Telstra while I had Optus and most of the time my connection was better. The best thing to do is also change providers every so often. All providers give special deals for new joining people so if you switch when there is a good deal you will always get a lot more data and free minutes! You’ll even be able to keep your number!
All these things will take you about half a day to set up and you will still have an evening to get some good dinner or have a party! It might seem like a lot but if you time it well and know where to go, it is done so fast!
RSA
One more thing I want to include, since I read a lot of questions about it on backpacker Facebook groups, is the RSA. Depending on your state you will have to do an online course or actually go to a seminar. Whether you do the online course or the seminar it will take about 5-6 hours but will be very easy. If you pay the slightest attention, you will pass!
Victoria: You will have to attend a seminar (about 4 hours) and take a test at the end. The course will cost you about 50 AUD and you can do it with this company.
New South Wales: I have never done a course in NSW so don’t want to give you any bad advice but if you found a place, to look up if it is official, check this website.
QLD, WA, SA and NT: All included in one RSA course that you do online. I did mine through HIA were it will cost you 18 AUD or pair it up with another course and get quite huge discounts.
Tasmania: Since I haven’t done it myself either I put a list with the official recognised training companies by the government.
This should get you on the right path to having a great WHV here in this beautiful Australian Country!!
If you liked this post share it with friends who are going to Australia soon! You never know if it might help them out!
