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Brits in Sydney

Everything you need to move to, rent in and enjoy Sydney as a Brit, and how it fits with your UK tax, pension, money and paperwork.

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Official Britain

British Consulate-General Sydney

The UK's consulate in New South Wales: consular help for British nationals, trade and investment; public access by appointment only

Level 16, Gateway Building, 1 Macquarie Place, Sydney NSW 2000

Website · Map

Votes for lifeVote from SydneyLiving abroad doesn't cost you your vote. Register as an overseas elector, choose a proxy or postal vote, and renew every three years.
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Sydney Partners

Katharina Bergauer, innsicht

Global partner · online

The inner move

A move abroad changes more than your postcode. Katharina Bergauer (innsicht) supports individuals, couples and families before the move and until everyone feels at home. Online, in English or German.

Katharina Bergauer

Eintragungsnummer: 17784

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Global partner · online

Learn the language

Get to grips with the language where you live, keep the kids' English sharp or prep for an exam. Live online lessons with qualified teachers since 1991: English and the main world languages, 1:1 or in small groups, for adults, kids and household staff.

Cambridge School of English Online

Cambridge School of English sp. z o.o.Warsaw, Poland · online since 1991

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Your business here: partner in Sydney

Are you a highly recommended business for Brits in Sydney? One partner per category, so there's no competitor next to you.

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Partners pay to be featured. Our guides are written independently. Meet all our partners

Guides for life in Sydney

Basics

Cost of living in Sydney: how it stacks up against London and the rest of the UK

Sydney rents rival London's, the Opal weekly cap is a gift and a flat white won't break the bank. Here's what living in Sydney costs, in dollars and pounds.

Basics

Sun, heat and bushfires in Sydney: a Brit's guide to staying safe

The Sydney sun is not the Blackpool sun. Here's how to read the UV index, cope with a heatwave, follow the fire danger ratings and make a bushfire plan.

Basics

Languages and your family in Sydney: the second language your kids will meet

English is the easy bit. Your kids will still meet a second language at high school, and a partner who grew up with another language has free help on offer. Here's how it works in Sydney.

Money and work

Australian taxes for Brits: residence, the UK treaty and your frozen State Pension

Australia taxes you as a resident from the day you settle, while HMRC wants to know you've really gone. Here's how the two fit, and why your State Pension stops rising.

Money and work

Banking in Australia as a Brit: opening an account before you land

You can open an Australian account before you fly and pick up your card in Sydney. Here's what the big banks ask for, why your TFN matters and what to do with your UK account.

Money and work

The frozen UK State Pension in Australia: what it costs you and how the Age Pension fits in

Retire in Sydney and your UK State Pension never goes up again. Here's why, what that costs over twenty years, and how the Australian Age Pension can soften the blow.

Money and work

Superannuation and your UK pensions: what Brits in Sydney need to know

Your employer pays 12% into super from day one, and your UK pensions can usually stay put. Here's how the two fit together, and why transfers need regulated advice.

Home

Renting in Sydney: where Brits live and how to land a place

Sydney rents are steep and inspections are crowded, but renters' rights are stronger than they were. Here's where Brits live, what you'll pay and how to protect your bond.

Home

Buying a home in Sydney as a Brit: the foreign buyer ban, FIRB and the NSW surcharges

On a temporary visa you can only buy new in Sydney, with FIRB approval and a 9% surcharge on top of stamp duty. Get permanent residence and most of that falls away.

Moving and visas

Moving to Sydney as a Brit: the visa routes that actually work

There's no British fast lane into Australia, but there are good routes. Here's which visa fits you, what it costs to qualify, and the first things to sort before you fly.

Moving and visas

Skilled work visas in Australia: the 482, 186 and 189 for Brits

Most Brits who settle in Sydney do it through a job. Here's how the Skills in Demand visa, the 186 and the 189 work, what they cost from July 2026 and how they lead to permanent residence.

Moving and visas

Australia's working holiday visa for Brits: three years, up to age 35

Since July 2024 Brits can get three years in Australia on the 417 without a day of farm work, and you can apply up to the day before you turn 36. Here's how it works.

Moving and visas

Partner visas in Australia: a guide for Brits with an Aussie partner

Fallen for an Aussie? The partner visa is your route to staying for good, but it's one of the priciest visas going and the evidence takes work. Here's how it works in 2026.

Moving and visas

Australian citizenship for Brits: when you can apply, the test and keeping your British passport

Four years in Australia, the last one as a permanent resident, a 20-question test and a ceremony. And no, you don't have to give up your British passport.

Health

Healthcare in Sydney: Medicare, the UK agreement and private cover

Brits get some Medicare cover from day one thanks to the UK agreement, but it has gaps. Here's what's covered, when you need private insurance and how to see a GP in Sydney.

Health

Medicare in Australia: when Brits in Sydney can enrol, and when you need cover

Medicare isn't the NHS, and not every Brit gets it. Here's who can enrol, what the reciprocal deal covers, and the levy and private cover deadlines new arrivals miss.

Schools and study

Schools in Sydney: public, private, IB and the British question

Sydney has almost no true British-curriculum schools, but plenty of good options. Here's how the NSW system works, what temporary visa holders pay and how to keep UK universities open.

Getting around

Driving in Australia with a UK licence, and getting around Sydney

Your UK licence works in Sydney at first, and swapping it for a NSW one needs no test. Here's the deadline that matters, plus how to get around on trains, metro and ferries.

Community

British life in Sydney: roasts, the footie at 2am and finding your people

Sydney is full of Brits, but British life here runs on a different clock: the footie before breakfast, Christmas on the beach. Here's where to find a roast, a match and your people.

Going out

British food in Sydney: a proper cuppa, a roast and the footie

Sydney's oldest pubs do a decent Sunday roast, a Scottish butcher sells black pudding and haggis, and British sweets are a tap away. Here's where we'd start.

Going out

Nightlife in Sydney: where Brits go out after the lockouts

The lockout laws are gone and live music is back. Here's where to go out in Sydney, how late things stay open, what a schooner is and how to get home in one piece.

Compare propertyBuy in Sydney or back in the UK?Mortgages, stamp duty, buying costs and capital gains side by side.
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Britain in Sydney

Free listings we choose and check: the British mission, clubs, party groups, sport, schools, pubs, shops and churches. Every entry checked on its own or an official 2025–2026 page (2026-11); listings are not paid. Tell us on WhatsApp if something has changed.

Official Britain

British Consulate-General Sydney

The UK's consulate in New South Wales: consular help for British nationals, trade and investment; public access by appointment only

Level 16, Gateway Building, 1 Macquarie Place, Sydney NSW 2000

Website · Map · Facebook · X

Clubs and associations

Royal Society of St George, Sydney Branch

Sydney branch of the English patriotic society, listed by the Society's headquarters

Website · Map · e11r@bigpond.net.au

The Caledonian Society of Sydney

Newer society for Scots in Sydney, with quarterly networking evenings and a St Andrew's Day dinner and ceilidh

Website · Map

Party groups abroad

Listed side by side, in alphabetical order. We don't favour any party.

Conservatives Abroad – Sydney

Sydney branch of the Conservative Party's organisation for members abroad, serving members and supporters in Sydney

Website

Labour International – Asia-Pacific branch

Asia-Pacific branch of the Labour Party's organisation for members abroad, serving members and supporters in the Asia-Pacific region, including Australia

Website

Lib Dems Overseas

Non-European branch of the Liberal Democrats' organisation for members abroad, serving members and supporters in countries outside Europe, including Australia

Website

Schools and universities

School

Roseville College

Anglican girls' school, Preparatory to Year 12; offers Cambridge IGCSE electives in Years 9 and 10 alongside the HSC

27 Bancroft Avenue, Roseville NSW 2069

Website · Map · 02 9884 1100 · Facebook

School

PLC Sydney

Girls' school, Preschool to Year 12 with boarding; Cambridge IGCSE in Years 9 and 10 and Cambridge A levels introduced in 2025, alongside the HSC

Meta Street, Croydon NSW 2132

Website · Map · +61 2 9704 5666 · Facebook · X · LinkedIn · YouTube

School

Kincoppal-Rose Bay School

Sacred Heart school in the eastern suburbs; Cambridge IGCSE programme (since 2024) in English literature, maths, science, computer science and Global Perspectives

Cnr New South Head Road & Vaucluse Rd, Vaucluse NSW 2030

Website · Map · +61 2 9388 6000 · Facebook · Instagram · LinkedIn · YouTube

School

Newington College

Independent school, K–12 across three campuses; Cambridge IGCSE for Years 9 and 10 (since 2024) plus the HSC and IB Diploma

200 Stanmore Road, Stanmore NSW 2048

Website · Map · +61 2 9568 9333 · Facebook · Instagram · LinkedIn · YouTube

School

UTS College – Cambridge International AS and A Levels

Two-year Cambridge AS and A level programme for students aged 16+ on the UTS campus, with first-year university subjects included

Website · Map · +61 2 9218 8700 · Facebook · Instagram · X · LinkedIn · YouTube

British Council

British Council Australia

Runs UK school exams (IGCSE / International GCSE, AS and A level) and UK professional exams for private candidates; IELTS in Australia is run by IDP, not the British Council

Website · Map · Facebook · Instagram · X

Pubs and restaurants

Our guide to British food, shops and pubs in Sydney

Pub

Beach Road Hotel

Big Bondi pub with big-screen sport across several bars

71 Beach Road, Bondi Beach NSW 2026

Website · Map · (02) 9130 7247 · Facebook · Instagram

Sunday roast

The Duke of Clarence

English-style tavern in a CBD laneway; full Sunday roast with Yorkshire puddings, roast of the day in the week

Laneway, 152-156 Clarence Street, Sydney NSW 2000

Website · Map · +61 2 8999 3850 · Facebook · Instagram · X

Sunday roast

Forrester's

Surry Hills corner pub serving a roast in a giant Yorkshire pudding; live sport in the public bar

336 Riley St, Surry Hills NSW 2010

Website · Map · 02 8033 2665 · Facebook · Instagram

Afternoon tea

High Tea at The Treasury, InterContinental Sydney

Afternoon tea in a restored 1850s building: sandwiches, scones with clotted cream and preserves, loose-leaf tea

16 Phillip Street, Sydney NSW 2000

Website · Map · +61 2 9253 9000

Restaurant or café

The Fox Hole

Small bar in The Rocks with a modern British menu, big gin and whisky list and gin and tea at weekends

117 Harrington Street, The Rocks, Sydney

Website · Map · +61 2 9279 4369 · Facebook · Instagram

Restaurant or café

Brick Lane N12

East London-style café; all-day breakfast with bacon, eggs, beans, hash brown and mushrooms

12 Burwood Rd, Belfield NSW

Website · Map · Facebook · Instagram

Shops

Redfern Convenience Store

Corner shop known for imported British sweets, crisps and drinks such as Percy Pigs, Vimto and Irn Bru; also sells online

152a Redfern Street, Redfern NSW 2016

Website · Map · Facebook · Instagram

Churches

St Andrew's Cathedral

Anglican cathedral of the Diocese of Sydney; Book of Common Prayer Holy Communion on Sundays and choral evensong in the week

Corner of George and Bathurst Streets, Sydney NSW 2000

Website · Map · (02) 9265 1661 · cathedral@sydney.anglican.asn.au

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