Migration Agent Simona Ancuta brings a wealth of experience to VSA including past governmental work

Visa Solutions Australia is a very multi-national team and
our latest Migration Agent Simona Ancuta is helping to make our office one of
the most culturally diverse in Perth.

Simona was born in Romania, but at the age of 25 she and her
husband made the decision to move to New Zealand.  Simona is a qualified Lawyer as well as being
a Registered Migration Agent and her husband is a Mechanical Engineer.

“We both wanted a change, there was lots of corruption in
Romania and the economy wasn’t very stable, we wanted a country which we knew
would be good for our future family and so we chose New Zealand,” she
explained.

From Romania to Christchurch

Simona and her husband decided to settle in the South
Island, but Simona found it difficult to find work.

“When we arrived in Christchurch, things weren’t quite what
we expected, although I had a legal background, my expertise was from another
country and so legal work was hard to find. 
I ended up working in the administration department of the migration
agency which had helped us to move to New Zealand.  This sparked my passion to work in the industry.”

Simona stayed there for three and half years and immersed
herself in migration work, assessing qualifications and advising clients who
were lodging applications. 

“Why did it appeal to me? 
I loved meeting individuals from all different walks of life, I enjoyed
the interaction with them and it was satisfying.  I could also put my legal background to good
use.  Most lawyers have analytical skills
and need to have a logical approach to their work, something which is also
needed in the migration field.”

Working with the New Zealand
Department of Immigration

Realising that she wanted to progress her migration career,
Simona took on a three-month support officer role for the New Zealand
Department of Immigration.  It didn’t
take long for her to progress and eventually she was asked to oversee an
important audit on foreign vessels fishing in New Zealand waters.

“We had to board the boats and check their paperwork was in
order, find out about the crew onboard and ensure that each vessel hadn’t
exceeded the legal fishing quotas set by the government.”

This role gave her enormous job satisfaction, but in 2012
Christchurch experienced an earthquake. She had two young children aged 5 and 3
and so together with her husband they made the decision to move to Perth in
Australia as they felt it would be safer.

Qualifying as a Registered Migration
Agent

Simona took a job working with occupational therapists and ensuring
that people with disabilities were given the correct medical equipment.
However, she knew that she wanted to get back into migration work and so
decided to do some more studying and in 2016 qualified as Registered Migration
Agent and now works in the Como office for Visa Solutions Australia.

“My job is so different – no day is ever the same.  It really is about finding solutions and
solving problems and of course offering the right advice.  I am interested in all aspects of migration
but family migration is my favourite. I can speak many languages including
Romanian, English, French, Italian and Spanish and that helps in this role,”
she said.

Outside of work, Simona enjoys spending time with her family.  Her hobbies include travelling and reading
especially psychology books and classics.

“The world is built on history.  One day I’d like to write my own personal
story, explain why I went from Romania to Australia, I have lived through
communism, my life story would be about my heritage and it would be a legacy to
pass through my children and future generations. All of us are on a journey, it’s
just that mine involved quite a few countries.”