7th November: The job offer is withdrawn

This morning I find myself caught in a flurry of phone calls. Mel at the agency is trying to reach me. Christine is trying to reach me. Lisa is trying to reach me to say that Christine is trying to reach me. At the end of the first round of calls, I've learned that the job offer is hanging by a thread.

Apparently, while I was back in the UK, the Australian government changed the rules about who could award 457 visas (a certain category of sponsored work visa). And now, at this final hurdle, it looks like I can't get a work visa. No work visa, no offer.

The rest of the day is more of the same. Christine is asking me what's going wrong, but I don't know any more than she does. Lisa is telling me I need to keep on top of the agency, but my phone is already red hot. Mel is telling me that she's called the relevant people in the agency, and they've said there's nothing they can do. Before I went to the UK, they could have issued me a 457 visa straight away. Now that the rules have changed, they can't. It's as simple as that. No agency is allowed to sponsor someone. QPS doesn't sponsor anyone. I have no way of getting the work visa that I need. By the end of the day, the offer from QPS has been withdrawn.

I'm back to square one. Worse in fact. I have no chance of getting work in Australia unless I apply for residency in my own right, or Paddy sponsors me. Both of those options will take months.

I'm screwed in Australia. Next week's visit to New Zealand has turned from a long-awaited tourist & scouting visit to a full-on jobsearch visit.