[Rario]

Hi, I just have a few VISA-application-beginner questions (I'm sure there will be more to follow!) I've already found a lot of useful information on these forums and a big thankyou in advance for any help anyone can give.

I'm British and my boyfriend is from Central America, we have been dating seriously for just over two years now. Although we are also considering the Spouse Visa I would prefer to marry in England and the fiance Visa would put a lot of pressure on us financially (to pay for a wedding and switch Visa afterwards).

I had lived in his family home for the majority of our relationship and contribute rent from savings in my bank account. I am a volunteer teacher out here and do not have residency so we have not been able to open a shared bank account and utility bills are only in his name. The only proof we have of living together is a contract his Dad has drawn up (he's a lawyer). I was wondering what exactly constitutes a 'relationship akin to marriage'? We have no problems providing photos and receipts of trips taken together but are lacking financial proof. He visited England with me last year to meet my parents.

Also, with regards to maintenance requirements; is the £105.95 per week how much you need to have combined or is it just the applicant? I am worried that i may have to go back to England to work for 3 months to support our application as my sole income is currently my savings (although my partner does work).

Any advice is greatly appreciated!
Thanks

 

[Joppa]

Hi, I just have a few VISA-application-beginner questions (I'm sure there will be more to follow!) I've already found a lot of useful information on these forums and a big thankyou in advance for any help anyone can give.

I'm British and my boyfriend is from Central America, we have been dating seriously for just over two years now. Although we are also considering the Spouse Visa I would prefer to marry in England and the fiance Visa would put a lot of pressure on us financially (to pay for a wedding and switch Visa afterwards).

I had lived in his family home for the majority of our relationship and contribute rent from savings in my bank account. I am a volunteer teacher out here and do not have residency so we have not been able to open a shared bank account and utility bills are only in his name. The only proof we have of living together is a contract his Dad has drawn up (he's a lawyer). I was wondering what exactly constitutes a 'relationship akin to marriage'? We have no problems providing photos and receipts of trips taken together but are lacking financial proof. He visited England with me last year to meet my parents.

There are a few requirements for a relationship aking to marriage for a period of two years.
First, cohabitation. Joint tenancy is best but other evidence you can submit include official (not personal) letters addressed to each of you or together bearing the same address, utility bills in his name and official letter from your school bearing the same address. Registration/treatment record with a doctor, dentist or optician. Immigration records.
Secondly, joint financial responsibility. Such as jt bank account, jt investment or jt insurance policy.
Thirdly, growing, deepening relationship, such as photos, trips together, how you kept in touch while apart such as skype, email and texting.
You can include the contract drawn up by his father, and testimony from those of standing within the community, such as doctors, MPs, councillors, judges, priests etc in addition to the primary evidence.
See http://www.ukba.homeoffice.gov.uk/s.../idischapter8/section9/annexz.pdf?view=Binary

Also, with regards to maintenance requirements; is the £105.95 per week how much you need to have combined or is it just the applicant? I am worried that i may have to go back to England to work for 3 months to support our application as my sole income is currently my savings (although my partner does work).

It's combined total of your UK income, your and his savings and external support from parents etc. It's the amount you need after paying for housing (rent/mortgage and council tax). It's probably a good idea to travel back to UK first to get yourself a job and get established financially before applying for his visa. UKBA take a dim view of people whose resources consist mainly of modest savings and external support from parents etc without established income stream.

Remember the minimum income requirement and other criteria are under review and it's rumoured that the amount will rise substantially with disregard for external sponsorship. We are just awaiting announcement.

 

[Rario]

Thanks so much for the info and advice!

The other option we are considering is marrying here before moving back to the UK together. My boyfriend currently earns around £850 per month (wages and cost of living here are considerably lower than back in the UK!). If we could satisfy all the other criteria for the Spouse Visa would his income, sponsorship from family and a job offer for myself (along with printouts from searches we have done regarding possible jobs he could take) be sufficient to satisfy maintenance requirements do you think? Thanks again in advance!

Forgot to mention that my mum has invited us to live with her (she has a three-bedroom house in which she currently lives alone) and we will not need to pay rent. Thanks.

 

[Joppa]

Thanks so much for the info and advice!

The other option we are considering is marrying here before moving back to the UK together. My boyfriend currently earns around £850 per month (wages and cost of living here are considerably lower than back in the UK!). If we could satisfy all the other criteria for the Spouse Visa would his income, sponsorship from family and a job offer for myself (along with printouts from searches we have done regarding possible jobs he could take) be sufficient to satisfy maintenance requirements do you think? Thanks again in advance!

Forgot to mention that my mum has invited us to live with her (she has a three-bedroom house in which she currently lives alone) and we will not need to pay rent. Thanks.

Getting a job offer or an actual job in UK for you would considerably strengthen your case. I would say wait applying for visa until you establish yourself financially in UK. Living with your mother is fine. UKBA, in anticipation of rules change for maintenance, seem to be taking a tougher line.

 

[moleking2k1]

We applied for our visa on 20th Feb. My wife is Vietnamese and I'm British.

I think we're in a similar situation to you.

We've been married for nearly a year and dating for a year prior and both living together in Vietnam. We are planning to move back to the U.K together in May. My parents are also willing to help with accommodation as they have adequate space in their house.

Problem we encounted just last Thursday is my wife receiving a call from the British embassy asking for a job confirmation letter for me in the U.K within 7 days! Now I'm in Vietnam and won't be returning to the U.K until we both fly back together. At least that's what we're hoping to do.

Our savings when we applied were just under £7,000. We still had the call with that.

Since then my parents, thankfully have agreed to sponsor the both of us in terms of finance and have boosted our savings for our return to the U.K. We now have almost double the savings and are going to submit the new information to the British Embassy in Hanoi tomorrow.

TBH I'm not holding our much hope.... Not anymore. This is the last thing we can do but it's still not a steady cash flow. Worse case scenario for us is me coming to the U.K on my own to find work and the re-apply.

I would suggest going to the U.K and getting work first.

I will keep you posted on our story. I felt so confident at the beginning of the application but not anymore.

 

[moleking2k1]

Ok to update on me losing all hope and I really can't believe the result we're both ecstatic.


My wife went to the British Embassy in Hanoi today to give our additional documents for submition in Bangkok and they said come back at 4pm as your visa discussion has already been decided.

My wife returned at that time and my wife now has her settlement visa. Can't believe it!

We e-mailed earlier in the week our intentions and the additional financial support that my parents were willing to offer so I'm guessing they picked up on that and issued the visa on that basis.

Thank you so much for people on this website especially Joppa, you've been a superb help for us.

 

[Rario]

Thanks for sharing your experience, congratulations! It's reassuring to know that they do value the sponsorship of family members. I have savings to the same value more or less but I have decided I will return to England to work a few months, back to Guatemala to get married here and then fly back together. I don't want to risk a rejection, as hard as it is going to be being apart.

The suggestions for the new rules are a little scary... will be difficult to meet that threshold when only one of you is already working in the UK. For me anyway

 

[Joppa]

Thanks for sharing your experience, congratulations! It's reassuring to know that they do value the sponsorship of family members. I have savings to the same value more or less but I have decided I will return to England to work a few months, back to Guatemala to get married here and then fly back together. I don't want to risk a rejection, as hard as it is going to be being apart.

The suggestions for the new rules are a little scary... will be difficult to meet that threshold when only one of you is already working in the UK. For me anyway

With new rules due to commence in a little over two months, it will make life a lot more difficult for those hoping to bring family members from outside EEA. Today's leak confirms what many have been fearing - that the government is determined to press ahead with high maintenance requirement to weed out all but financially secure. The requirement of £62,600 a year for those with a spouse and 3 children is truly amazing, which is nearly two-and-a-half time the average pay.

 

[moninna]

Hi all, I applied 1.5 weeks ago for the umarried partner visa, my partner is German and I am Mexican, but we have lived together in the UK for more than 3 years. I was there on a student visa and we have been in a relationship for over 6 years. I had to come to Mexico and have been here for the past 5 months. My partner stayed in the UK, but we showed evidence that despite the distance we have maintained a relation and I provided evidence of the health problems that made me come here on a temporary basis.
I applied in Mexico City, but the Consulate sends all visa applications made in Latin America to Bogota, Colombia. I was told in the visa application centre that an interview, either for my partner or myself, was rather unlikely, that they had stopped interviewing applicants long time ago. Also, I was told that I would be receiving updates on the processing of my application, but have not received anything, not even to say that my documents were received (they are sent through the visa application centre courier, everyday, by plane). I submitted a pile of documents that measured more than 15 cm, it was a bit hectic, but didn't want to risk refusal. I submitted originals of nearly everything (bank statments, utility bills, letters and cards) except council tax statements and the passport of my partner. I submitted only copies of his passport and his national identity card.
My appointment at the Embassy was very weird and I was only asked for my biometrics. I was hoping that the receptionist would check my documents but she did not even have a look at them. She said she did not have enough space to receive my docs and that I should leave them with the guard.
I want to ask how long did it take you to get any news in relation to your visa applications, if you were interviewed (either in person or by phone) and if you had a similar experience to mine when you submitted your biometrics. I am expecting to know the results of my request in about 6-8 weeks, but the wait is nerve racking!
Thank you all for reading and for sharing your thoughts.

 

[Joppa]

Hi all, I applied 1.5 weeks ago for the umarried partner visa, my partner is German and I am Mexican, but we have lived together in the UK for more than 3 years. I was there on a student visa and we have been in a relationship for over 6 years. I had to come to Mexico and have been here for the past 5 months. My partner stayed in the UK, but we showed evidence that despite the distance we have maintained a relation and I provided evidence of the health problems that made me come here on a temporary basis.
I applied in Mexico City, but the Consulate sends all visa applications made in Latin America to Bogota, Colombia. I was told in the visa application centre that an interview, either for my partner or myself, was rather unlikely, that they had stopped interviewing applicants long time ago. Also, I was told that I would be receiving updates on the processing of my application, but have not received anything, not even to say that my documents were received (they are sent through the visa application centre courier, everyday, by plane). I submitted a pile of documents that measured more than 15 cm, it was a bit hectic, but didn't want to risk refusal. I submitted originals of nearly everything (bank statments, utility bills, letters and cards) except council tax statements and the passport of my partner. I submitted only copies of his passport and his national identity card.
My appointment at the Embassy was very weird and I was only asked for my biometrics. I was hoping that the receptionist would check my documents but she did not even have a look at them. She said she did not have enough space to receive my docs and that I should leave them with the guard.
I want to ask how long did it take you to get any news in relation to your visa applications, if you were interviewed (either in person or by phone) and if you had a similar experience to mine when you submitted your biometrics. I am expecting to know the results of my request in about 6-8 weeks, but the wait is nerve racking!
Thank you all for reading and for sharing your thoughts.

Has your German partner lived in UK for 5 years or more? If not, you can't apply for unmarried partner visa under UK immigration rules but have to apply for EEA family permit instead.