Immigrating to Australia via agent

I was talking to my friend a few days ago about Australia. She has another friend who has filed the application via an immigration agent. The immigration agent is based in the Philippines. In the application, her friend stated interest in migrating to Adelaide. But Sydney was the first choice. However, according to the agent it's bit difficult to get into Sydney now. I didn't probe further. I am very much aware that Sydney is the center of business in Australia and with that, every possible immigrant is fighting for a slot in that state.

It was exactly a year ago when I took my IELTS exam. I got a 7 mark - the required IELTS mark for the profession I was claiming. But due to some personal reasons, I put my application on hold. The paperwork are all in place, just waiting for submission.

Going back to my friend's friend, she paid Php200,000 to the agent to assist them in lodging their application. I believe the amount includes the application fee for the whole family. They're a family of 5, by the way. Processing takes about two years minimum or if you're lucky, much earlier than that.

The approximate period of two years might as well buy them time to wait (and hope) for the recession to ebb. And for the global economy to recover.