100pts

Since being back here, I've really noticed how INSANELY difficult it is for a citizen of this country (me in this case) to get re-established AS a citizen. Let me explain.

I attempted to open up a bank account the other week. I was told I needed 100pts of ID, and given a long list about what I could choose from. MY passport was only worth 70pts. (D's was worth a full hundred right off the bat, and he's not even from here) So I needed an additional 30pts of ID. My U.S ID card was good enough, but none of my creditcards were since none of them are linked to any Australian credit lists. So I was short by 5pts. They told me to go and get on the electoral roll, since that would be the last remaining points needed for my 100pts of ID.

Okay, no worries, thought I. This shouldn't be too difficult. And, it wasn't. I went down to the roll office, submitted my app and was told it would take roughly a week (maybe 2) to get to me. Disgruntled, but mostly okay with that, I toddled off home, unable to open up any other accounts just at that moment.

When the THIRD week rolled around, and I still hadn't received my Electoral Roll card, we made a call down to the Office, and they told us to come in and they'd print something up for me to take down to the bank. So, we headed down there once again and picked up the letter, then headed over to the bank to open up the account. This was going smoothly until the moron at the bank said my U.S ID card wasn't acceptable, which of course made me argue with her that it was, and she should probably talk with the other girl who had given me this information. She hurried out of the room to talk to the other girl, and came back in WITH the bank manager AND the other girl, and together they searched through their lists on the computer and finally came to the conclusion that yes, my international ID card was an acceptable form of ID.

Hurrah, I got my bank account up and running.

Very happy with this, we then plodded across to the Medicare building, and I attempted to sign up with that. My attempt was feeble however, since even though I had my passport, and ID, and bank statement, and all the SHIPPING DOCUMENTS proving I had shipped all my crap back to this country for the purpose of living here, it seems that Customs no longer stamps your passport upon re-entry into your country of birth. Or, at least in Australia. I know this because there ARE NO stamps indicating I arrived back here in my passport. Apparently that's all done electronically now. So, because I didn't have a stamp in my passport, the lady at Medicare told me they needed proof that I'd arrived back into the country, NEVERMIND THAT I WAS STANDING THERE INFRONT OF HER. She informed me I'd need to bring in my boarding pass and my itinerary, proving I wasn't about to leave the country again. At this, I said, "Who the hell keeps their boarding pass!?" She then said I needed to bring in just the itinerary.

Annoyed, we walked over to the nearby Flight Centre office, and I gave them all my details, and asked if they could print out a copy of my itinerary. Lo and behold, there was no record of it! No record that I'd made a booking, much less flown on Air New Zealand to get home. You can well imagine how I wanted to strangle SOMEONE by this point.

The woman at Flight Centre says she's going to ring Air New Zealand (even though I'd already supplied her with my passport AND the name, address, email address and phone number of my travel agent who I booked with) to see if they had the itinerary. After numerous searching through their records, they could not find me either. There was no record of my ever having purchased tickets, nor having even flown with them. This meant, obviously, that I couldn't get my itinerary re-printed.

Now I'm MORE annoyed and pissed off, so we head back home (because I have all that information there) to get it. Unfortunately, it turns out I didn't have my itinerary, couldn't find it anywhere, BUT I did find my boarding pass! We then called the Medicare hotline, told the CSR the whole story (to which he remarked, "that's bloody stupid" and promptly called the office where I had been) and he told us that all I needed was my boarding pass. An itinerary was not necessary.

Okay, whew. So, I grab everything I need for Medicare (again) and head back down to the office. The moron I dealt with earlier was nowhere in sight, and thankfully I ended up getting a really sweet and lovely lady, who helped me out with everything, and I was allowed to sign in with Medicare once and for all. THANK CHRIST.

Then, I headed across to Centrelink to sign up with them, and was ever so relieved that I didn't have any more bullshit to deal with. Well, nothing too major, anyway. In order to get my Newstart, I need to bring 100pts of ID AND another document (either birth cert. or passport, preferably both) to prove who I am. Well, because I'd left the U.S in such a rush, I (somehow) left behind my birth cert. and had to reapply for a new one, which I was able to do today. That should be here just in time for my Newstart assessment interview which is in 2 weeks. If it isn't, my pay gets held up until I can bring that in for the ID point garbage.

What pissed me off more than anything, is that these places require a passport AND a birth certificate proving who I am, regardless that TO GET A PASSPORT YOU NEED A BIRTH CERTIFICATE! It's a government issued document for christ sake! It's perfectly legal, has my photo on it, and my date of birth! Interestingly enough, if I'd re-entered MY country on my U.S passport, that alone would be the 100pts I need to do anything and get anything I wanted, nevermind the fact that if I HAD re-entered on my U.S passport, I would only be allowed to stay here IN MY BIRTH COUNTRY for three months!!!! Does this strike anyone else as completely fucking ridiculous?

D's CANADIAN passport gives him more rights (as ID) than mine does, AND I WAS BORN HERE!!! It's insane. So of course this means I'll be writing a lovely letter to the local member of parliament, and telling her some things need to change. It's not right and it's not bloody fair that I (or any Aussie re-entering their OWN country) has to go through all this shit!

Anyway. Thankfully it's all done now and over with. I have my Newstart Assessment Interview in 2 weeks, and an interview with a local headhunter day after tomorrow to see if I can find some work. I'm not holding my breath, however.