“I’m leaving everything and going to work in Australia”

Each week, a reader tells us about their financial situation. From her paycheck to her savings account, including her savings and her expenses, she takes into account her budget and relationship with money.

• First Name: Rome
• Age : 24 years
• Circumstance: She lives with her partner
• Studies: Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work
• Job: Divemaster (dive guide)
• Net Salary: ± 2700 euros
• Additional Legal Benefits: Company car and free accommodation
• Shareholder Income: ± 2700 euros
• Family Income: ± 5400 euros
• Fixed Costs: 105 euros per month
• Storage: 12,000 Euros

Romi: “I currently live and work on the other side of the world. Like my boyfriend, I work as a dive guide in Australia. We started this activity a month ago and are taking full advantage of this new life. In Belgium, I worked as a social worker. A job that I find very pleasant and inspiring. was, but I felt that I was missing something. My job as a divemaster, on the other hand, gives me everything I could dream of. The range of tasks is huge. We help in the dive shop, where we fill oxygen tanks, help customers with dive gear, general questions, phone calls and We answer emails. In parallel, we go on almost daily tours, which mean classic diving and snorkeling excursions. In short: this is Cal. We both love getting into the water and discovering the most amazing sea creatures. »

300 AUD = 184 euros per day

“We earn about 300 AUD (Australian dollars, editor’s note) a day, which corresponds more or less to 184 euros. It’s still high season, so the pace is steady, but, thanks to our good team, we don’t need to think we’re working. You Our employers do everything to make me feel as comfortable as possible. I get a lot of satisfaction from this job and the clients are always very enthusiastic. After a tour, I received hugs from very grateful tourists. When I worked in Belgium, the situation was not necessarily so positive, so I like this environment. Enjoying it even more. Being able to do this work in my boyfriend’s company and with great colleagues makes it even better.”

Free house

“My boyfriend and I earn 5400 euros together. This allows us to save a lot as our employer provides us accommodation for free. We spent six months traveling around Asia before coming to Australia, so this money was welcome. Winter is approaching and our contract runs until the end of August. But we aim to work across Australia to explore the country. Our current monthly fee is only 105 euros. I pay 15 euros for my Belgian mobile subscription with my number and 25 euros for my mobile subscription in Australia. 50 euros for my pension savings and 20 euros for health and hospitalization insurance. We took out good travel insurance before we left, which is no luxury in case of medical complications. Australia isn’t cheap, but if you buy things on sale or cook for several days, you can keep costs down. We spend 400 euros a month on groceries, including bottles of wine. Local wines are not really expensive: you pay an average of 7 euros for a good bottle. »

Is it worth it?

“In Belgium, I tried to save 1000 euros per month. Now that we are in Australia and have nothing to pay, we try to save as much of our hard-earned money as possible for future trips. Traveling costs money, but once there, you can easily decide whether to make it an expensive or a cheap trip. . During our trip, we have already done some expensive things, but we have saved enough that it is not a problem. Every time we do the math to assess whether it is worth it or not. I have 12,000 euros in reserve, but for one reason or another I have financial worries. If there is, I know I can turn to my family. It takes a lot of pressure off.”

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