tips for all the paperwar

filed under: germany organising

Today at 4:30 pm there was a really convincing reportage about Tasmania on NDR – I think I’ll stay down-downunder… The german actor Hans Joachim Fuchsberger (“Blackie”) lives in Hobart for 7 years and will never leave because of the incredible untouched nature (1/3 of Tasmania is a declared protected area) and the easy way of living without any stress.
Anyways, I want to give you some hints of the different documents an other preparations I had to take care about for the trip to Tasmania. Note that this list will be updated in the future. No warranty ;-)

Visa: There is a huge variety of different visa-types. For a first overview visit the homepage of the Australian embassy to get some information how all the stuff works. In my case the best solution was getting an “ETA” (Electronic Travel Authority). It is a normal tourist visa which everyone can get on the website of the embassy. It takes about 2 minutes to fill in your data and costs AUS$ 20 (about 12 Euro), payment is only allowed via credit cards. You can get the same visa when you book your flight in a travel agency. If you have the right connections (as I have due to my job at the AAD *g) it is possible to change your visa type later when you’re in Tasmania.
Passport (Reisepass, Ausweis): You need a german “Reisepass” to travel into Tasmania which sounds much easier than it is: You are only allowed to apply for it at your local city hall where you are registered with your “Erstwohnsitz”. There are different kinds of passports: A final one (needs two pictures, about 13 Euros, 5-6 weeks) and a preliminary one (needs two pictures, about 13 Euros, 1 week) if you are in a hurry (as I was *g). Of course as we are in Germany only you for yourself are allowed to fetch the finished passport from the city hall (which often has VERY friendly opening times… no more comments) – e.g. it’s not possible to give your father a written permission to fetch it.
Flight (travel agency, airline, luggage limits): “The early bird catches the worm” – book early and save money. I didn’t have this chance so I had to pay about 1300 Euro (two-way) and a luggage limit of only 20 kilos (!) plus 7 kilos of hand luggage. The cheapest airline in my case was SIA (Singapore Airlines) and Jetstar for the distance between Sydney and Hobart. Concerning luggage, inofficially you may carry up to 30 kg with SIA and 25 kg with Jetstars – but don’t relay on that ;-) Hint: Grab a seat at the emergency exit – as long as you’re no contortionist…
Drivers License: If you have the “old” pink papermade drivers license you need at first the credit-card like euro-drivers license (24 Euros, 3-6 weeks duration). After that you can apply for an international drivers license (13 Euros, issued instantly). Tassys drive on the left side as you know. The great thing: There is no TUEV, your car just has to be ‘roadable’ to get registered… What you do is paying at least 39 dollars for registering your car and additional 100 dollars for the insurance. But as it’s valid for about one year you may have luck and get a car with three months reg left ;-) Note, that this insurance only covers human damage not material damage…
Accomodation: I had the great luck to get a room in Jane Franklin Hall which belongs to the University of Tasmania. They offer a full catered service in a very dignified ambiance. Of course it’s not that cheap (about 130 Euros a week) – but especially during the first days/weeks it’s perfect to have the head free looking for an alternative.
ISIC: As I mentioned before, either ask for it in the Asta-office of the University you study at or visit the website Asta Reisen – there you’ll find all the information you need.
Immunisation: You should get two immunisations: Hepatitis A/B and Polyo.
Travel Guide: (todo)
Power Supply: Tassies use 230 Volts – YES! But you need a special adapter
Living: Your rent is accounted weekly here, get a cheap accomodation in a molehole for ca. 65 $ a week (you’ll have NOTHING *g) or enjoy a full catered service like Jane Franklin Hall for ca. 240 $ a week which includes: Three great meals on seven days, laundry, huge rooms, huge community around, internal network, DSL internet connection, etc.
Money: Just remember the good old DM – one AUS Dollar is nearly the same than one former DM. Courses vary between 0.54 EUR cent and 0.70 EUR cent for 1 AUS Dollar.
Clothes: June – September = winter in Tassy with temperatures between 2 and 16 degrees, be prepared with some warm clothes as well.
Shopping: (todo)

By the way: To get informed about the meals of the different airlines check the website airlinemeals.net ;-)