USA citizen visiting UK spouse without spouse visa

[Tahira]

HI,

Im posting on behalf of my husband whose a USA citizen. We married in the USA this year (2010), and i returned to the UK a few weeks later. A few weeks after i returned i realised i was pregnant but we sadly lost our son at 17 weeks of pregnancy and we didnt have time to apply for a spouse visa so that he could come over for the funeral which is next week. Hes travelling to the uk without a visa as a visitor I guess. Since we are already married, will he need to go back to the US and reapply for a spouse visa? or can we apply from within the UK once he is here?..I dont want it to be refused and then him have to still go back to the US and reapply only this time its even harder because regardless of the circumstances his been refused once already. This year has been so filled with sadness already i cant bear for him to have to go back to the US and not know when i will see him again and i cant now consider joining him in the US since my sons grave is here in the UK and i cant bear to leave him either, please help..

[Bevdeforges]

In order for him to be admitted as a "visitor" to the UK, he needs to convince the immigration people that he will indeed be returning to the US at the end of his visit. If he mentions that he is here to "join my wife" or anything of that nature, he can expect to be grilled pretty closely as to his intentions to remain. His best bet is having a job to return to in the US and other evidence that he is NOT coming over on a long-term basis.

Officially, he may visit the UK, but in order to apply for a spousal visa, he will have to return to the US. He can only apply from within the UK if he is living there on another sort of long-stay visa.

You say he has been refused before? Was he refused entry to the UK? Or was he turned down on a spousal visa application? If you know the reason he was refused before, you should be able to better prepare the spouse visa application to have a better chance this time around. But he will have to return to the US to file the application. They are getting quite adamant about this.
Cheers,
Bev

[Tahira]

Originally Posted by Bevdeforges

In order for him to be admitted as a "visitor" to the UK, he needs to convince the immigration people that he will indeed be returning to the US at the end of his visit. If he mentions that he is here to "join my wife" or anything of that nature, he can expect to be grilled pretty closely as to his intentions to remain. His best bet is having a job to return to in the US and other evidence that he is NOT coming over on a long-term basis.

Officially, he may visit the UK, but in order to apply for a spousal visa, he will have to return to the US. He can only apply from within the UK if he is living there on another sort of long-stay visa.

You say he has been refused before? Was he refused entry to the UK? Or was he turned down on a spousal visa application? If you know the reason he was refused before, you should be able to better prepare the spouse visa application to have a better chance this time around. But he will have to return to the US to file the application. They are getting quite adamant about this.
Cheers,
Bev

Thanks for that Bev. No he hasnt been refused before, i was just commenting that if he gets refused by applying from within the UK he may suffer in the future application. Well he's had to come for the funeral and he wants to spend as much as time as he can with my son and myself before he returns and his employers wouldnt keep his job open for him for several months so he doesnt have a job to return to now in the US...i just hope he's allowed to attend the funeral atleast..

[rigey6]

First off, I am so sorry for your loss. I lost a baby daughter at birth several years ago and I understand the overwhelming grief that you must be experiencing. And to be separated from your husband must make the situation even more difficult. On that front, there may be an easier way to go about it.

According to this site: wwwDOTeasyexpatDOTcom/forums/uk-immigration-rules-t9028DOThtml, your husband can enter the UK as your spouse and apply for a Spouse visa once he is here. I'm going to be joining my British husband in London in a few weeks under the same scheme. Here are the relevant bits from that site:

"If your husband or wife is either a British citizen, or has indefinite leave to remain in the UK, you can join them on a Spouse visa. If you have been granted limited leave to remain in the UK, you can apply for a Spouse visa without having to leave the UK. If not, you must apply for entry clearance to ensure you enter the UK as a spouse.

To qualify for this visa, you must be able to show that:
1.You are over the age of 18, and your spouse is over the age of 18.
2.You are lawfully married to a person who is either settled in the UK or being admitted for settlement.
3.You have met your spouse in person.
4.You intend to live permanently with your husband or wife and that your marriage is subsisting.
5.You and any dependents have adequate accommodation which you will own or occupy exclusively, and will be able to maintain yourselves without relying on public funds.

If you have been married for less than four years, you will be given a probationary period of residence for two years. You will be entitled to apply for indefinite leave to remain after you have lived in the UK for two years, provided you can prove that you have been genuinely living together as husband and wife.

If you can prove you have been married for more than four years, you can apply for indefinite leave to enter immediately.

Once the visa has been issued, you will be able to work without restriction and exit and enter the UK multiple times."

Hope it helps!

Ann

[Joppa]

Originally Posted by rigey6

According to this site: wwwDOTeasyexpatDOTcom/forums/uk-immigration-rules-t9028DOThtml, your husband can enter the UK as your spouse and apply for a Spouse visa once he is here. I'm going to be joining my British husband in London in a few weeks under the same scheme. Here are the relevant bits from that site:

"If your husband or wife is either a British citizen, or has indefinite leave to remain in the UK, you can join them on a Spouse visa. If you have been granted limited leave to remain in the UK, you can apply for a Spouse visa without having to leave the UK. If not, you must apply for entry clearance to ensure you enter the UK as a spouse.

What you say is misleading. You cannot enter UK, say, as a visitor and then apply for spouse visa while you are here - your application will be rejected as you cannot switch your status from a visitor to a spouse while still in UK, and steps will be taken to remove or deport you from UK. If you intend to stay in UK as spouse, you must apply for your spouse visa in your country before arriving in UK. You can come as a visitor visa-free, but in that case you must abide by all the conditions for a visitor, including leaving the country at the end of your stay. As a visitor you cannot switch to any other visa category, and any application must be made back in your country.
What the quote actually says is if you are already here on a visa other than as a visitor, such as student, work, ancestry etc, you can apply to change your status to a spouse without having to return.