savING and earnING

I joined ING through my friend's referral. Accordingly, we will receive a $50 bonus if we opened our account with them using our friend's referral code. So, I read their terms and conditions and decided to give it a try. They had a "catch" which was not really an issue. There is always a solution for things that you want to achieve.

On referrals:
1. Referred person must use the referral code upon signing up. It is not automatically visible so one must ensure to look for it before proceeding. It usually appears after the "About you" information sheet.
2. Referred person must deposit $1,000 within a certain period to be able to get the bonus.
3. Referred person must use the debit card for at least 5 times within a certain period to be able to get the bonus.
3a. Use of debit card may be in the form of ATM withdrawal or eftpos payments.

On free ATM withdrawals:
1. User must deposit $1,000 every month.

Many find it a hassle to deposit the $1,000 monthly as their pay have already been registered to a certain bank account. The solution for this is to have your payroll account changed to ING or to have $1,000 deposited to ING and the rest to your preferred bank account. Approach your payroll officer for this set-up.

To date, we (as we opened a joint account) already received $250.00 for joining ($50.00) and for referring two friends ($100.00 for each successful referral).

Bonus received for joining

Bonus received for referring two friends

If you want to join, use the promo code EYB102. Let's start saving and earning together 😊

Free $20 dollar Fashion Voucher

Wouldn't it be nice to spend on food and get a retail fashion voucher in return?

It's like hitting two birds with one stone! 😃

Broadway Sydney has a wonderful promotion until 31st of August 2017 where you spend at least $20 on any of their food stores at Level 2 and you get  $20 retail fashion voucher that can be used in any of the stores in Broadway except Coles, Woolies, Target and K-mart!

Shoppers need to get a receipt from where they dined and present this to Customer Service on the same day otherwise, the receipt will not be acknowledged. The voucher, however, can be used until 30th of September 2017.

Broadway Sydney Promo

                      I reckon it's a brilliant idea and I can't wait to go back there to dine and shop! 

two $20 vouchers for having dinner and desserts at Broadway

FREE Coke NO SUGAR

                     Coke is giving away samples of their "No Sugar" selection. Get yours here.

        You do have to give out your email address where they will send a coupon for you to redeem.
These samples can be redeemed in any of the three establishments namely, Mcdonalds, 7-eleven and Coles. (I use a special email address for this kind of marketings)

It's best to claim at Coles on the mornings as the daily stocks easily gets "sold out" and while 7-eleven is one of the choices, not all stores provide these samples. We have tried 5 stores in Central area and none of them have the Coke "No Sugar" 250 ml. I have yet to try claiming at Maccas but I am sure there would be no issues. 

6 days in Sydney

Mandatory "arrival" pic

My sister and I were almost always last minute planners and packers when it comes to travelling. It was hard to plan early with the kind of work or boss that she had. But anyway, though we wanted a long visit to Sydney, we can only do 6 days because of the above reason. Arrive on a Saturday afternoon and then return on a Friday night. A small budget did not really help much in making an itinerary but I think we made it work for us. Here are a few tips:

1. In Singapore, Scoot has a promotion every tuesday but it is best that you look at the trend. Sometimes, other days are cheaper than booking on tuesdays. Our return fare costed SGD 1,455.18 with just 20kg baggage. I know, but we booked it last minute because again, of leave😟 They say, you  may even get the same price with Qantas. Just do more research about it but at least you can have our price as a comparison.

Purple trees near the apatrment

2. Airbnb - the hotels were very much a pain in the pocket so we resorted to checking airbnb. Fair enough, we did find one that is near Central Station and was in a new apartment. It was at Forrest Lodge and the owners travelled out of Sydney during most of our stay there so we basically had the house for ourselves even if we just rented a room. It did cost us AUD 505.00. No regrets with this as we felt comfortable and safe in that place. A word of advise though, it is best to research for the exact location of the unit/house that you have chosen, read the reviews and most of all, check frequency of bus/public transportation and it's exact distance to any facilities. We had a few friends who just booked away having seen how nice the unit is but only to find out it is actually a very far walk to any bus stops. They would shed pales of tears first before they can reach home after a tiring tour day.

Bus stop signs

3. Tours and things to do - with the very limited time we had to plan, I think my sister did a good job. For our first day, we experienced a local "market" activity at Forrest Lodge. Thereafter, we proceeded to Darling Harbour to wait for the weekly fireworks. The weather was nice for us - not too cold and definitely not hot and humid as in Singapore. But as we waited through the night, it proved to be too cold with my arm hairs standing straight and my feet could barely walk. It was funny, we had to buy coats to help us cope with the cold.

Panoramic view of Darling Harbour

Just because of the word "Cathedral"

Our second day was a Sunday and we definitely planned to go to Church. We attended mass to a Cathedral outside Townhall Station. At first, it seemed like the ceremony was done differently that what we are used and then we realized that it was not a Catholic church. It was Anglican. Feeling that it seems rude to just leave, we waited until it was finished. For me, it's all the same. Still glad we were able to go to church. The rest of our days were spent with the free walking tour. There is a group which leads tourists on a "free" walking tour around Sydney City which is good if you are keen to walk for almost whole afternoon. From what I can remember, from Townhall, they led us to St. Martin's place, St. James where we can see the Hyde Park and St. Mary's Cathedral, to QVB then to Sydney Opera House. For more information, you can check their website at Free Walking Tours. They do not charge but feel free to give any amount.

Harbor Bridge photo op with sister

loving the weather at Sydney Opera House

Blue Mountain was what we did on our third day. We did not book any tour. We just booked this ticket that entitles us to unlimited rides. Yes, we love extreme rides and the Steepest Railway did not disappoint. We only had to do this trice though as we did not have enough time. We just took the train from Central to Katoomba and back. I guess, we should have done this on a Sunday had we known that every Sunday, fares are only to a maximum of AUD 2.50 except the airport line. So there you go, another tip. What amazed me during this trip is that how some stations are very open, tapping stations are just on a pole, how we can freely eat and sleep inside train.

As I have said, we love extreme activities so we did Skydiving for our fourth day. The day started

me skydiving

early for us. We had to be picked up at Holiday Inn hotel by 6 am and then bring us to Wollongong. I slept through the ride. Upon arrival, they briefed us on what's going to happen and then we waited for our turn. It was a bit of a long wait though, considering we had to be up earlier than 6 am. However, the experience was all worth it. Here is a video compilation of our skydive.






Our fifth day was our retail therapy. We went to DFO Homebush and was able to get some good deals. The google maps was really helpful to get us to places such as this. Afterwards, we had dinner with our Singapore friends who recently moved to Sydney.

Bondi Beach was the last on our list but alas, that day was so hot we could not stand to stay longer. The trip to Bondi was longer that the time we spent there, I reckon. We just quickly had our lunch, took some photos by the beach then went back. We spent the rest of the day sleeping in our airconditioned room.  That day, the landlord was back and they told us that Thursday is a late night shopping day so most shops close around 9. They close at 5 pm on usual days. Our eyes glittered when we heard that and we rushed to the nearest mall - Broadway Shopping Centre. We were so happy to be in Target for the first time and bought a lot of cheap items. This led us to our next problem. We only had 20 kg baggage and our latest buys may cause us to be over. With less than 24 hours before our flight, we cannot buy more baggage. We did manage to hand carry the rest so it's all good :)

Also, we subscribed to Singtel's Australia roaming charge for a cheaper rate as compared to relying on Australia's free net which is very slow.  So there you go, these are some of things you can do in Sydney for 6 days. It truly depends on your interests but I reckon the free walking tour is best for all.

New to Australia - Superannuation simplified

Superannuation or Super (for short) is a retirement fund. It is similar to  CPF of Singapore or SSS/GSIS of Philippines. In Australia, employers are required to contribute 9.5% of your ordinary earnings as long as you are 18 years old or above and earns at least $450 per month. But unlike Singapore and Philippines, there is no one government agency to receive these funds. The employee may choose any of the super funds or may even manage their own super fund. Personally, I think they are all the same. An employee may not even choose one and just leave it to the employer's super choice. Super funds contributions can be tracked anyway as these are tagged with your TFN - Tax File Number. Although, it is advised that you consolidate all the contributions into one account.

So, the main issue faced by migrants, especially the older ones, is how to grow their super. Below is the table which compares three options in personally contributing to your retirement fund:

Super Contribution options

In the options above, let us assume that the annual salary is $85,000 and that option A is when you just leave everything to the employer which is their compulsary 9.5% contribution. Options B and C are when you, as the employee, decides to add more to the account in the amount of $5,200 annually or $100 weekly (amount may differ according to your capability). The difference between these two latter options is the tax incurred in how you added contributions to your funds. In scenario B, you ask your employer to deduct the amount of contribution from your salary, thereby decreasing your taxable income. This is called salary sacrifice or also Pre-tax contribution. While option C is when you decide to make the contribution after your have received your net pay. This is termed as after-tax contribution. Note that the total tax on the last column is only shown for illustration purpose. Tax on salary will be paid by your employer while tax on super is facilitated by your super fund.

These are actually just scenarios for your consideration. I would personally go for option B as I don't only save on tax, I would also be growing my retirement fund.


Disclaimer : Changes may have taken place after the writing of this blog.

New to Australia - first things first

First of all, Welcome to Straya!

I had imagined a lot of things I wanted done the moment I landed into the land down under. I thought to myself, having read about how laid back the life is here, I want to learn how to play the piano, how to drive and maybe how to cook and definitely start baking again. There's just so much you can think of when you reckon you will have a lot of free time. (Yes, I do have much leisure time now, thus this blog). But a couple topped the list which are Medicare and Tax File Number. To be able to register to these, you will need an Australian mobile no. It does not matter whether you get a temporary prepaid sim card as you can use the same no. when you eventually decide to move to postpaid.

And while at it, you may also want to register to the following:
1. Flybuys card - to earn rewards when buying at Coles, Target and Kmart
2. Woolworths Card - to earn rewards when buying at Woolsworth
3. Priceline Sister Club - to earn rewards when buying at Priceline
4. Oporto - to earn reward when buying at Oporto and receive 10 dollar meal on your birthday plus a                    $5 credit when you download the app.
5. Gloria Jeans - to earn reward when buying at Gloria Jeans and receive free coffee on your birthday
6. Velocity Frequent Flyer - to earn rewards when you fly via Virgin Airlines and redeem velocity points via flybuys card or when you have AMEX velocity card. Read about it here.
7. Messina app - pay using this app to earn rewards while buying Gelato Messina anywhere in Australia which you can use to redeem free scoops 😉


Do not worry about having to keep or carry these cards , there is an app called "Stocard" where you can store these card details. As my friend usually says, "It's better to have it and not need it than need it but not have it."

My birthday treat from Oporto

How to get the Messina app

Look of Love

We went to Opera House Vivid Sydney last Saturday and there were lots of people. I guess this contributed to the somewhat bad mood of Kane, the baby boy we brought along. Come dinner time, he was already throwing a slight tantrum. He did not seem to know what he wants until he saw this other lady on the next table. He would giggle every time the lady looks back at him.

This is how he looks like when he's not in the mood

                                                               Watch the video here.

Look at him now, mesmerize by the lady at the next table

Love Inspiration

The inspiration for the composition below is from Katy Perry's Teenage dream. I was listening to this song on my way to work and suddenly I felt in love :) I felt the urge to write down my feelings at that moment, typing through my phone while walking.

There's an inner joy 
and light-heartedness
that you know you're inlove!

It's an amazing feeling
and you can't help but smile..

There is no one in particular
but just the idea of love is
so spectacular..

that you can simply relate to songs
and the lyrics seem not be to be wrong.
they express exactly what you feel
and you just know it can be real

You're inlove and you know
this right man will just show
all you have to do is have faith
you'll soon have a date! :)

You're inlove and you know
all your worries will go
if  you keep on believing
the love will keep burning!

You might have read this from my other blogspot - catey007.blogspot.com but reading about it made me want to repost 😉

Credit Cards

There is nothing wrong with credit cards. In fact, there are lots of advantages so long as you use it carefully. You can earn points when you buy groceries, recharge your mobile sim or top-up your opal card with no additional charge or they call it "surcharge". And the points you earn can be used to redeem rewards - shopping vouchers, free flights, etc.

The key thing is to look for a credit card that has no annual fee. I know, in Philippines and Singapore, annual fees are usually waived when you pay on time or meet a minimum yearly spending but I was shocked to find out in Australia that they do not waive annual fees. At least that;s what I have experienced. So I searched for cards that do not charge annual fees and here are what I found -Coles Mastercard and Amex Velocity Card. 

I have applied for Amex Velocity Card and these are what I have gained so far:

1. Bonus points upon approved application

2. One - time $10 cash back when buying at Woolies. The offer comes and changes from time to time and it's up to you to take it or not. 

Current AMEX card offers

3. Claimed free flights from Sydney to Perth via Virgin Australia.

4. Earned referral points by referring my friends.

You can have all these benefits too when you apply now through this link -  Amex Velocity Card. 

Migrating to Australia

I was granted my independent permanent visa in February 2015 but I moved to Sydney in April 2016. As I write this blog, I am already living permanently in Australia for 13 months now.

The migration process was not easy. It requires a lot of  research, readings, discussions and contemplation. I have attended a few of migration agent's seminars, read some articles and forums and tried to search for a detailed process on how to apply but always turned out to nothing as the search always directed me to a migrating agent. Yes, I wanted to apply on my own for the very reason that using an agent will not guarantee my application approval (although, it may increase the probability). Aside from having to pay a hefty fee, I will still have to be the one to gather all the documents - employer's certificate of employments and university documents. I know, I know, I'm just being stingy but hey, I am proud to say I have achieved it on my own (with the help of forums and some friends) Plus I do know a couple who engaged the services of a migration agent but still ended up unsuccessful but by all means, take the path which is comfortable for you. Note, however, that whether you apply independently or through an agent, please read the steps and requirements carefully.

I did try to ask someone who is a PR (permanent resident) in Australia on how to apply only to be told to READ without having been given a link. Thus, having undergone the stressful process of research and getting lost, my friend and I have vowed to do our best to help the others who are interested. Believe me, the moment I moved to Sydney, a lot has asked me how.

The very first step is to check whether or not you occupation is eligible for migration to Australia through this link . Scroll down and you will see the list as per screenshot below.

Once you have identified your occupation, click the relevant Assessing Authority to know the requirements. Since I am an accountant, my Assessing Authorities are CPA / ICAA/ IPA. I chose CPA Australia. Once you are in their website, choose Migration assessment, and on the upper left hand side, read each subheadings carefully and yes! the IELTS to take is Academic.

Read through and you are on your way to Australia :)

Additional note - as much as possible, we want Independent Visa so choose 189. Read more about Visa 189 here.

Disclaimer: This is my personal experience which may be different to yours. Best to do more research or consult a legit registered migration agent.