Hi All,

I’ve been browsing Lowyat Forum on and off for the past decade or so and I’ve seen a lot of threads every now and then that centres around the topic of moving to Australia. There’s a lot of good information on here, but there’s also an equal amount of misconceptions about living and working in the land down under.

One saying that I’ve come across a lot which stands true is that the grass is not always greener on the other side, and this is something that I’ve always kept at the back of my mind when I was planning the big move. I’ve seen many migrants struggling as they did not deliberate enough when making the decision to uproot their established lives in Malaysia to give what they perceive as the land of opportunity a go.

I have a bit of time to spare over the next week, so I’d be happy to shed light on and provide some first-hand insights into moving, living and working in Australia. Some context about myself to kick start the AMA:

- I obtained my Australian permanent resident visa prior to the COVID pandemic
- I moved early 2022 at the tail-end of COVID border restrictions
- I am English-educated while my wife is Chinese-educated
- My wife and I are in our early 30s
- We are both currently working in our respective industries, either at the same level or higher that the jobs we had prior to leaving Malaysia
- We had a combined monthly salary of approximately RM35k per month in Malaysia with our house and cars paid off, which made the decision to move even more difficult

Feel free to ask me anything and I will endeavour to provide a candid answer based on my personal experience.