I don't see how that is relevant in this case. Victoria Hi Victoria. Well, I thought, as there has been a change in the circumstances which allowed her to obtain ILE/ILR, the HO might officiously want the change ratified. Anyway, I emailed the HO and received a reply which mainly stated what I alre...

They wouldn't do this. It must be about something else. Victoria Perhaps this from the HO website: If the basis on which you were granted leave to enter or remain in the UK no longer applies, you should write to the Home Office as soon as possible, quoting your full name, date of birth, nationality...

3) What is the best way to contact the Home Office? By phone or by letter? I'd start by phone but follow it up promptly by letter. On the phone, as noted above, you can always ask to speak to someone more senior. Are you planning to do the contacting, or your wife? I will. When she signed on recent...

My wife (from whom I have just separated after ten years of marriage, two in the UK), has ILR and recently applied for Income Support. When she was refused I phoned the relevant office, who told me that they had had a fax from the Home Office to the effect that she has no recourse to public funds al...

Thanks for your replies, sakura and Christophe. And apologies for not replying sooner - I have been having connection problems. Although an ILE (once used) is equivalent to an ILR and implies no problems when entering the UK, for practical purposes an ILR (having no expiry date) is preferable when t...

Two unrelated questions: 1) How does one update from ILE to ILR? Write to the Home Office? My wife recently had some trouble at a Hong Kong check-in desk because they thought her ILE visa had expired. 2) A Chinese couple who are here on work visas have one child born here, with another on the way. T...

My Chinese wife received her Indefinite Leave to Enter visa 2 years ago. She used it to enter UK and was assured that as soon as she did so it became Indefinite Leave to Remain, provided she entered UK before it 'expired' in July 2007, which she did. Before it expired she also left UK for a two-mont...

Thanks for our reply, JAJ.

Yes, I am aware of the effects on any naturalisation application. Perhaps her friend is confusing things with that.

My Chinese wife and I are divorcing after eleven years of marriage, the last two spent in the UK. Although she has ILR, a friend of hers has told her that as a divorcee she will have no recourse to public funds until she has lived in the UK for three years. Is this true? Thanks in advance for any in...

Let me guess, the "expiry date" printed on to the ILE visa is the date that the passport expires?

Actually no, her passport expires in 2010.

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John wrote:

I thought ILE meant she could enter UK anytime before the visa expired.

You were quite right about that! That is exactly what the date on the visa meant.

OK.

But just to be clear, do you mean that she can use this visa to enter UK again after July 2007, the date that it appears to expire?

.

Of course? You don't believe me?

Yes, I believe you - but my wife doesn't!

.

Ha, I thought ILE meant she could enter UK anytime before the visa expired. Eamon, given that she already has ILE, and has clearly entered the UK before the date specified on that visa, she has not got to bother with FLR or with ILR! The date on the visa can now be ignored. The ILR effectively becam...

Are you able to look at her visa to make sure what sort of visa she has? Yes, you are right again, John. :) It is a settlement visa with 'indefinite leave to enter the UK'. I had always assumed that a spouse visa and a settlement visa were one and the same. What does this imply for FLR and/or ILR? ...

Has the claim now stopped? If so, who long ago are we talking about? And for roughly how many weeks was the JSA claimed for? No, the claim has not stopped. She has been claiming as a dependant for about 4 months. We would find it hard to live on my allowance alone. Aren't they less stringent about ...

Sorry, about the JSA, I neglected to ask which of the two types of JSA you claimed? Did you claim contribution-based Jobseeker's Allowance, or alternatively was it income-based Jobseeker's Allowance? Alas, having been out of the country for 10 years, I was eligible only for the income-based JSA. Th...

Regarding JSA :- No, you did not apply to "claim jointly". You merely claimed for your wife as a dependant, which is rather different. Based upon what you have posted, your wife has not actually claimed JSA. So the question is, should you have claimed for your wife as a dependant? Before ...

Thank you for your reply, John. ...but the cost will probably not be £335 per occasion, given that it is expected that applications fees from next month will be different. But new fee levels not yet announced. Anyway, it looks like we will need to pay twice. That is impossible! Unless you are actual...

I am a British citizen whose Chinese wife's 2-year settlement visa was granted in July 2005 and expires in July 2007. But she did not arrive until October 2005. Will we need to apply twice for Further Leave to Remain (FLR)? And will this entail paying the £335 fee twice? She will not be applying thi...