The Analyst Down Under

I finally submitted my online application for 175 visa today. The application status can be retrieved here . This is a copy of the screen on making the payment of AUD $2,575 using my friend's credit card: Application for grant of a General Skilled Migration visa Your application has been submitted. Your Transaction Reference Number (TRN) is: EGNW44UZRD Important information Please note, this does not mean your visa application has been approved. You will be advised by this Department when your application has been approved. Please record your Transaction Reference Number, as you will need it if you want to check the status of your application through the online enquiry facility which is available by selecting check the progress of an application on the Applications & Forms page accessible from this Department's homepage. Please note each secondary applicant included in this application, more than 16 years...

Another Homer Simpson moment 'Doh! I left out my CIMA exam results in that express pack to the ICAA, because of which my PASA application has been awaiting information for almost a week now. I tried all the silly things possible, but of course they didn't work. In the end I had to go and get the paper attested, put it in an envelope and courier it today on Tahir Saifuddin RA Maula's milad. Fedex quoted Rs. 4,000 and a 5% discount so I said goodbye. Then I saw OCS had a student package and since the ICAA sounds academic, I was able to convince them that this had to do with academia (not a complete lie).  So that only set me back another Rs. 1,280, which is still 500 less than Pakistan Post's Express Mail Service and possibly only a day or two earlier due to the weekend gap. Website address to track:  http://www.ocs.com.pk/tracking.php Packet Tracking Result Tracking No. 96250464774 Booking Date : 2010-11-03 Consignor : MR.TUAHA SHAKIR Origin: KARACHI MAIN OF...

With just Rs. 46 left in the bank, I've never been so happy about having all my money chugged down a juicer before. The online transaction finally went through though not as smoothly as I would have liked to keep Monday mornings fresh and breezy. As soon as the ICAA received my application, they processed the payment, which was of course unsuccessful, despite my repeated reminders to notify me when the payment would be processed. I immediately attempted to activate an online session with my bank after talking to service adviser who advised me to call back within the next 3 hours (i.e. 12 pm PST and 6 pm Sydney) as soon as I had opened a 'window'. My bank had problems activating a session and only on the second inquiry did I realize that I only had internet processing for my other bank account - Dawoodi Hardware. I tried to transfer funds from my salary account to the business account thorough internet banking but the captcha's somehow never seemed to be right and I dec...

I had sent in my Pre-Application Skills Assessment (PASA) to the ICAA last Friday, but it isn't being processed until the coming Monday at least. It took Pakistan Post's Express Mail Service (EMS) about two days to reach Australia and another four days for Australian post to finally deliver it to the postal box address on the form. Tracking the package was not a problem, as both Pakistan Post and Australian Post provided tracking summaries of the package. Another risky undertaking that saved at least me Rs. 1,200 from an exchange service or a fat half-lie at my bank was that I included my VISA card details on the form for payment. I've sent them three emails so far to tell them that they will need to advise me the exact time and date of payment so I can activate an online session to be able to complete an online transaction. This is a potentially costly risk in case it doesn't work out, as I would have to pay Rs. 1,200 plus the local exchange rate for AUD, which has inc...

Its usually a nice feeling when you slip in your latest degree-certificate into your file. But I was almost embarrassed this time as I seemed to have amassed quite a bit of card paper in there already. The part that really stings is that the card papers may have helped me get more subsequent card papers, but haven't really helped me get back any of the hard-earned and getting-harder-to-manage paper that I've put into these things. That's why I need to get down under, remember? So that I can earn a lot of money in a respectable profession of my choosing and have plenty of time to enjoy life with my family in a beautiful country that respects nature and takes care of its citizens and seems to have more chances of surviving into the next decade/ century than where I am currently. I need to keep that in mind, because sometimes we get so involved in short-term goals and objectives that we forget the broader vision that keeps escaping us like a mirage. So, back to short...

Sweat, blood and tears are good. Then maybe you can just pass on those CIMA papers like I did (I shudder to think about the bucketfuls due for November at the Management Level, and beyond). I am grateful to the Lord and to all the people whose prayers pulled me through. On the other hand, life just isn't effortless any more. I know I don't always dot my is' and cross my ts' but I missed out on the minimum 7 band IELTS requirement in the writing section. Which means another Rs. 10k (or is it 12k already?) and unnecessary delays. I guess this time around I'll have to sit down and do some 'practice' - or at least one blog dedicated to IELTS exam strategy, because that's where I messed up. 'Unnecessary delays' is right because I just had a virtual classical Homer Simpson 'doh moment while going through the assessment criteria for immigration. Turns out I could have been in Australia already (yeah right), if I had applied just a few months earlier...