Top Tips on Customs to Follow in Australia
At The Moving Partnership, we can not only help with overseas Customs – advising you on the immigration regulations of the country you are moving to – but also on the customs of the people once you get there. If you are considering removals from the UK to Australia, then here are our top tips on some of the traditions which are followed by most people who live Down Under.
Basic Manners
Greetings are less formal in Australia. By all means, shake people’s hands and say hello, but after the first meeting, it’s not uncommon to address people by their first names. Honesty is also appreciated.
While staying late in the office is often considered a badge of honour in the UK, Australians have a much better sense of a work-life balance and are less likely to work beyond their allotted hours. They are also more active in terms of sports and other activities.
In formal business settings, men are expected to wear a suit or collar and tie. For women, the code is similar but without the tie. In less formal work situations, smart casual may be enough. Australians tend to be fairly relaxed on dress codes out of the office, in part because of the hot climate.
Food and Eating Out
As in the UK, Australia is quite a cosmopolitan country (especially in the larger towns and cities), so there will be plenty of different cuisines on offer such as Thai, Vietnamese, Greek, Chinese, Malay, Indian, and Italian.
However, there are some native dishes. A Sunday roast is likely to be lamb, reflecting the amount of sheep farming in the country. However, beef lovers should note that a favourite takeaway item is the meat pie, where the meat is more than likely to be minced beef.
Another favourite takeaway item is fish and chips, but the fish is likely to be shark rather than cod. Other seafood which regularly features on Australian dinner plates include salmon, prawns and tuna, as well as regional variations such as Sydney rock oysters and the Moreton Bay Bug (flathead lobster).
As for desserts, the pavlova (a meringue with cream and fruit, named after the famous ballerina) is an essential part of the Australian Christmas dinner. The is also plenty of fresh fruit, which tends to be eaten ‘as is’ rather than cooked.
When it comes to drinks it’s not just beer or lager. Australia is one of the world’s biggest wine producers, with plenty of bottles ending up on domestic dinner tables.
If you are eating out, then tips of up to 10% are considered acceptable. However, it’s seen more as a reward for good service than an obligation. If you are invited round to a friend’s or neighbour’s home it’s customary to bring your own drinks or alcohol.
Aborigine Culture
Just as New Zealanders have a Maori culture, Australians have an aborigine culture. According to the 2021 census, there are estimated to be around 800,000 people of Aboriginal descent across Australia, with them descending from many different tribes, each with its own customs and beliefs.
Nowadays, the trend is to incorporate elements of their culture into national days such as Australia Day. The Government has also just decided to replace King Charles’ face on the new $5 note with a design that marks the ‘tradition and history’ of Australia’s indigenous cultures.
If you are visiting an Aboriginal community, respect their traditions and culture by, for example, not bringing alcohol. You will also find that most aborigines speak English.
Special Days
Many of the public holidays are the same as in the UK such as New Year’s Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. Note, however, that the UK’s May bank holidays are missing from the list and that Christmas is in summer so it’s warm enough to go swimming or surfing on December 25 (sometimes while wearing a Santa hat!).
In addition to the UK public holidays, Australians have two of their own – Australia Day and Anzac Day (above). The former is on January 26 and marks the anniversary of the First Fleet’s arrival at Sydney Cove in 1788 and the subsequent settlement of European and African people in the country.
Anzac Day is more akin to Remembrance Sunday and remembers the Australians and New Zealanders (hence the acronym, which stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) who perished in conflicts around the world. It’s marked on April 25 every year, the day in 1915 the Anzacs set out to capture the Gallipoli peninsula from the Turks in order to open the Dardanelles to the Allied navies, a move which led to thousands of deaths on both sides.
Australia also marks the King’s Birthday (as the British monarch is still the Head of State) and Labour Day with public holidays, but the days on which these are celebrated vary on a state-by-state basis.
Removals from the UK to Australia with The Moving Partnership
At The Moving Partnership we can help with removals from the UK to Sydney, Perth, Brisbane, and Melbourne, as well as all other major Australian towns and cities.
We will compare a number of quotes for you and/or your business and recommend the one that’s right for you. Our network of contacts around the world means that we will find a package that’s not just ideal for you, but competitively priced.
If you would like to know more about our removals from the UK to Australia, follow this link or call us on 0808 280 3648.
