Ten essential tips every international newcomer to Sydney needs to know

If your visa permits you to work while you’re in Australia it’s vital that you apply for a TFN – a Tax File Number – as soon as possible, as you will not be able to join a payroll without one. This can be done simply online via the Australian Taxation Office website. Medicare is another entitlement of visa holders that you’ll need to apply for. This will allow you to claim a rebate on visits to the doctor and to access certain prescriptions and services without breaking the bank. If you’d prefer to speak to a real life person rather than braving an online application, you can get a walk-in appointment at most Service NSW offices, Monday to Friday.

Setting up a bank account will make it easier to pay rent, tax and other bills. Banks like Westpac have branches and ATMs (or cashpoints) all over Australia, so you can pop in and speak to someone as well. In Sydney, almost all restaurants, bars, gyms and any store you visit will accept credit and debit cards, so you'll never need to worry about figuring out the different kinds of bills and coins.

It’s no surprise that the vast majority of new arrivals to Sydney head straight to Bondi, where the golden sands, lapping waves and postcard-ready vistas sum up the Australian dream. But it’s worth shopping around when you’re deciding where to hang your hat to find the hood that fits like a glove. Searching for a more alternative scene with buzzing nightlife? Newtown is the go. Want to be immersed in the city’s vibrant LGBTQIA community? Darlinghurst or Kings Cross could be your new home. Looking for a beachy neighbourhood that’s a little more off the beaten track? How about the Northern Beaches? There are also many international diasporas that thrive in certain enclaves of the city – the Greek and Vietnamese communities in Marrickville; the Lebanese and Middle Eastern communities in Western Sydney; the Chinese community in Eastwood and Haymarket, to name just a few – so it's worth doing your research to find a home away from home where you feel at home.

Securing a property can be a challenging experience in Sydney. Open houses are more common than private viewings, which can make the process of applying for a tenancy a lot more competitive than you may be used to. If you don’t have the requisite paperwork and references to hand, a lease can be snatched out from under you by another renter. However, joining a houseshare (through websites like flatmatefinders.com.au) or moving into a serviced apartment are both far easier and can be a good stop-gap solution until you have everything organised to secure your own pad.

Australia’s fauna has a reputation for being extravagantly deadly, so you might reasonably assume that daily life in Sydney involves dodging venomous beasties at every turn. The reality, however, is a lot less life threatening. Yes, there are some very poisonous snakes and spiders here, but actually seeing them in the city is rare. And should you get a bite from a Red Back or a Funnel Web, treatment is widely available – in fact, there hasn’t been a single confirmed death from a spider bite in Australia for more than 40 years. You are, however, very likely to see a whopping Huntsman spider or a Golden Orb spider, both rather large but entirely harmless to humans. "But what about sharks?" I hear you cry. While a handful of people are injured by sharks annually, there are regular patrols of the busiest beaches and shark nets to prevent Jaws from getting too close. 

Australians love a colloquialism, so expect to hear a lot of unfamiliar slang in your first few weeks Down Under – “bottle-o” (off-licence or liquor store); “sanga” (sandwich); “tinnie” (can of beer) to name a handful. Even more confusingly, some familiar words mean totally different things here. If someone asks if you’re wearing thongs, they are not quizzing you about your saucy underwear choices, but rather your flip flops. If someone says they’re crook they are not admitting to a crime, they’re telling you they feel unwell. 

Nothing marks you out as a noob to the city like saying the names of suburbs incorrectly. Even the backpacker magnet of Bondi gets garbled much of the time – it’s Bond-Eye not Bond-ee. Some other common trip ups are Coogee – pronounced Could-jeee not Koo-ghee – and Woolloomooloo, pronounced Wul-la-ma-loo, despite all those Os! Pro tip: you can also flex your local knowledge by sharing that Sydney is on the lands of the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the First Nations clans who have lived in this area of the country for thousands of generations.

Conventional wisdom might tell you that going out to eat must be more pricey than staying home and cooking for yourself, but that’s not always the case in Sydney. For a start, groceries are slightly more expensive in Australia compared to the US and the UK, although the quality of produce is generally higher. But if you know where to look, you can find a bargain feed just about every night of the week, whether that's a $10 steak at the pub, $1 dumplings from your favourite Dim Sum joint, or an oyster happy hour down by the harbour. Trust us, your wallet and your stomach will thank us later.

It’s all too easy to stick to Sydney’s greatest hits – the famed Opera House and Harbour Bridge at Circular Quay, the bars and restaurants of the CBD, the beaches of Bondi and Manly and the cool nightlife go-tos of the inner suburbs. But Sydney is a vast city, with many fantastic wonders to discover if you’re willing to put in the leg work. Take a trip to Ku-Ring-Gai Chase National Park in Sydney’s north, find top-notch mom and pop Asian restaurants in Campsie, take a stroll amongst the blooms at Auburn Botanic Gardens, or enjoy one of the longest continuous stretches of beachfront in NSW down in Cronulla. By all means, make the most of Sydney’s buzzing heart, but don’t forget the good times that are waiting for you on the fringes.

Slender legs that tip toe as gracefully as a prima ballerina, proud pale plumes of ivory feathers and an elegantly tapered bill; the first time you spot one of these winged wonders, you’re likely to be impressed. That is until you spot them ripping into an old Maccas bag for a week-old french fry. Don’t be fooled, they may look like an exotic specimen worthy of your awe, but what you’re marvelling at is an ibis, better known round these parts as a Bin Chicken. Don’t worry, the novelty wears off once you’ve faced one trying to steal your lunch in the park.