Expats Moving to Australia

Before relocating to Australia, it is important that you gather as much information as you can about the country, its society, land, government, economic etc.'

The more you know before moving to Australia the better you are prepared and the easier you adjust to expatriate life in Australia.

Moving to Australia - Australia Facts

Australia is the sixth largest country in the world after Russia, Canada, China, the United States of America and Brazil.

Location: Australia is an island continent located in the southern hemisphere, between the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the only country in the world that occupies an entire continent. Australia includes the mainland continent, the major island of Tasmania, and several other islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.

Neighboring countries:In the North: Indonesia, East Timor, and Papua New Guinea. In the northeast: Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and New Caledonia. In The Southeast: New Zealand.

The origin of the name Australia – Comes from the Latin name Terra Austrails which means southern land.

Capital: Canberra located in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT).

Australia has six states, two major mainland territories, and other minor territories. Each state and territory has its own Capital.

New South Wales (Sydney)
Queensland (Brisbane)
South Australia (Adelaide)
Tasmania (Hobart)
Victoria (Melbourne)
Western Australia (Perth)
The Northern Territory (Darwin)
Australian Capital Territory (Canberra).

Australia has three different time zones:

Australian Eastern Standard Time (AEST) which is UTC+10 and includes New South Wales (except Broken Hill), Victoria, Queensland, Tasmania, and Australian Capital Territory

Australian Central Standard Time (ACST) which is UTC + 9.5 and includes South Australia, Northern Territory and Broken Hill, NSW

Australian Western Time (ASWT) which is UTC + 8 includes Western Australia.

Note: UTC = Universal Time Coordinated. It is the current term for what was commonly referred to as Greenwich Meridian Time (GMT). Zero (0) hours UTC is midnight in Greenwich England.

Daylight saving time is operated in New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, and the Australian Capital Territory. Western Australia began a three year trial of daylight saving on 3 December 2006. Queensland and the Northern Territory do not observe daylight

Daylight saving normally begins from the last weekend in October and finishes in the last weekend in March.

Population

Around 21 million people (estimated in July 2007). The most populous states are New South Wales and Victoria. Their capitals, Sydney and Melbourne, are the largest cities in Australia.

Australia's population is concentrated mostly along the coastal region from Adelaide to Cairns, with a small concentration around Perth, Western Australia. The centre of Australia is slightly populated.

Australia’s population includes indigenous peoples (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander), Descendants of the British who set up colonies on the Australian continent in the 1700's, Europeans and others, who migrated to Australia as the new nation evolved, and in recent years immigrants from Asia, Africa and the Middle East.

Political System

Australia gained its independence from the UK in 1901 - Six independent British colonies agreed to join together and become states of a new nation - The Commonwealth of Australia.

Australia is a constitutional monarchy and has an elected Prime Minister. The country recognizes the sovereignty of the British Monarch which is represented by a Governor General.

The constitution of Australia created a federal system of government. This means that the power is divided between the Commonwealth Government (the federal government) and the six state governments.

The Commonwealth Government passes laws which affect the whole country. The states governments make their own laws over matters not controlled by the federal government.

Moving to Australia - Languages

The official language is English. But many other languages are spoken by minorities at home, including Italian, German, Greek, Cantonese, Vietnamese, Chinese dialects and Aboriginal languages.

Moving to Australia - Religion

Australia has no official state religion and people are free to practice any religion they choose. Big percentages (64%) of the people in Australia are Christian (split between Catholic, Anglican and other Christian beliefs). 5% believe in Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism and Judaism. The fastest growing religion in Australia is Islam. 25% of Australians don’t have a religion.

Moving to Australia - Economy

Australia has a strong economy. Australia exports many products– barley, wheat, sugarcane, bananas, citrus fruits, pineapples, grapes, tomatoes, vegetables, honey, wool, sheep, alumina, coal, gold, and diamonds.

Australia mainly exports to Japan, China, South Korea, USA, New Zealand, and India.

Australia has long coastlines and therefore benefits from catches of fish such as tuna abalone, lobsters and prawns.

Currency: Australian Dollar

International Dialing Code: +61

Electricity: 20/240 volts AC, 50Hz. Three-pin plugs are in use, however sockets are different from those found in most countries and an adaptor socket may be needed.

Moving to Australia - Australia Holidays

Moving to Australia - Weather Australia

Australia is a large country and its weather varies widely in different parts of the continent. A large part of Australia is a desert known as the outback. Only the southeast and southwest corners of the continent have a temperate climate.

In general, it is possible to speak about two distinct climates - tropical and temperate.

The tropical weather is characterized with wet and dry seasons. The wet season is hot and lasts from December until March. The dry season lasts from April until August. In the tropical area there is little change in climate from summer to winter

In the temperate area there are 4 seasons. But because Australia is located in the southern hemisphere the seasons are opposite from those in the northern hemisphere.

Summer: December to February

Autumn: March to May

Winter: June to August

Spring: September to November

In the winter there are cold temperatures but rarely under zero. The summers are hot although quite pleasant in some cities.